Category: Speeches

  • Douglas Chapman – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Douglas Chapman – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Chapman on 2015-12-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many Tornado and Typhoon jets operating in the Iraq and Syria region are fitted with the TCASS II Collision Warning System.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    Six Tornado aircraft operating over Syria and Iraq are fitted with the Honeywell Traffic Alert and Collision Avoidance System (TCAS) II, a system designed to de-conflict aircraft operating in civil airspace. This is the first system to be deployed in a combat jet fleet globally, although TCAS is not used in operational theatres for security reasons.

  • Robert Flello – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Robert Flello – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Robert Flello on 2016-01-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the briefing by the National Audits Office entitled Delivering major projects in government, published on 6 January 2016, what plans his Department has to increase the amount of data it publishes on major projects.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    The Department for Transport (DfT) accounts for a whole life value of £92bn within the Government Major Projects Portfolio (GMPP).

    The DfT follows the Cabinet Office transparency policy by publishing the Department’s data in line with requirements, including the annual publication of GMPP data, SRO appointment letters and individual project cases.

    The Department continually assures project delivery in relation to costs, timings and benefits through clear governance and project and programme management (PPM) requirements, which must be satisfied throughout the life cycle of a project. This includes investment board endorsement at key project planning and delivery stages, and independent assurance within the Department. Further external assurance is provided for example by the Infrastructure and Project Authority (IPA). The department uses a widely understood and highly regarded economic tool, known as WebTAG, for calculating costs.

    In addition to individual project assurance, the Department works with the IPA on both GMPP and its own portfolio reporting requirements. The Department has been actively involved in work to improve the collection, collation and analysis of key areas of project delivery, including costs and benefits, in line with the recent IPA review and refresh of GMPP data collection.

    As part of the Department’s internal governance, regular portfolio reporting on the aggregated performance and health of major projects is presented to the Department’s investment board. The Department has recently assessed the maturity of its portfolio reporting and has an action plan to further develop its capability in key areas.

    The Department reports infrastructure projects that are £50m or more on the National Infrastructure Pipeline (NIP) which details public and private infrastructure investment which is either forecast, being delivered, or completed. It is published on the Treasury’s website (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-infrastructure-pipeline-july-2015).

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  • Andy Slaughter – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Andy Slaughter – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2016-02-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 10 December 2015 to Question 18874, what assessment he has made of the reasons for the increase in the number of knives confiscated in Crown courts between 2012-13 and 2014-15.

    Mr Shailesh Vara

    My Department takes the issue of security within courts extremely seriously and has robust security and safety systems in place to protect all court users and judiciary. These systems include mandatory bag searches, modern detection equipment, X-ray machines and surveillance cameras, as well as court security officers with the legal powers to seize items where required. Security procedures, including the detection technology used, are continuously reviewed to ensure that security is as effective as possible.

    The increase in the number of knives taken from people as they enter Crown Courts between 2012/13 and 2014/15 may be due to the implementation of more robust training for Court Security Officers; improved rates of recording for the taking of such items and improved searching of people entering Crown Courts.

  • Martyn Day – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Martyn Day – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Martyn Day on 2016-03-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will discuss the imprisonment of Ahmed Naji with his Egyptian counterpart; and if he will make representations on the freedom of expression in Egypt during that discussion.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    My officials are aware of Mr Naji’s case and will continue to follow further developments.

    Political progress is essential for Egypt’s long-term stability. This includes freedom of expression in all its forms. We also want to see better protection of Egyptians’ constitutional rights. Ministers and officials regularly raise our concerns with their Egyptian counterparts.

    We will continue to urge the Government of Egypt to demonstrate its commitment to freedom of speech, including the right of freedom of expression for journalists and writers to operate. The UK has clearly stated that freedom of expression is fundamental to building a democratic society.

  • Clive Betts – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Clive Betts – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Clive Betts on 2016-03-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how he plans that the section 31 grant to compensate councils for the extension of small business rate relief will be funded.

    Mr Marcus Jones

    By raising £8 billion through a package of measures to counter tax avoidance and aggressive tax planning by multinational enterprises, Government has been able to announce in the Budget a £6.7 billion reduction in business rates. This is the biggest ever cut in business rates in England. The funding for these section 31 grants was provided for in Budget 2016 through the Budget scorecard (lines 15-17). This additional funding is included in the DCLG Local Government DEL budget figures on page 91 of the Budget Report.

  • Baroness Deech – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Baroness Deech – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Deech on 2016-05-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have given any consideration to suspending aid to the Palestinian Authority in the light of its decision to transfer over £85 million a year to the Palestine Liberation Organisation for the purpose of paying salaries to convicted terrorists imprisoned in Israel.

    Baroness Verma

    DFID is currently reviewing all its programmes following the publication of the updated Official Development Assistance strategy last year. DFID provides financial support to the Palestinian Authority (PA) to help deliver peace and support progress towards a two state solution. DFID funding helps build Palestinian institutions and promotes economic growth so that any future Palestinian state will be a prosperous and effective partner for peace. UK funding to the PA is for vetted civil servants only.

    The PA has reaffirmed that prisoner payments are administered by the Palestinian Liberation Organisation. We continue to lobby that the payments to prisoner’s families are more transparent and needs-based.

  • Lord Truscott – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Lord Truscott – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Truscott on 2016-06-20.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the cost of redeveloping Euston as part of the HS2 programme.

    Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

    Several assessments of the costs for redeveloping Euston were undertaken as part of the option appraisal work in developing the current proposals for the HS2 Euston Station.

  • Lisa Nandy – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    Lisa Nandy – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lisa Nandy on 2016-09-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many cyber-attacks there have been on the UK’s national energy infrastructure in the past five years.

    Jesse Norman

    In the interest of National Security we cannot comment on specific details of cyber security attacks. However, cyber security is one of the Government’s top national security priorities and BEIS is continuing to work with government departments and the National Cyber Security Centre, as well as with industry partners, to ensure that the risks to the energy sector are understood and that appropriate mitigations are established.

  • Diana Johnson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Diana Johnson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Diana Johnson on 2016-10-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, on how many occasions have (a) EU member states exchanged with the UK and (b) the UK exchanged with other EU member states information related to EU citizens on the (i) adults and (ii) children’s barred lists in each year since 2012.

    Sarah Newton

    Where an employer is considering an individual’s suitability for employment it is the employer’s responsibility to ensure the individual is suitable to work with vulnerable people (including children). This may include seeking information from other countries, including EU member states. The Disclosure and Barring Service uses information from the England & Wales, Northern Ireland and Scottish barred lists.

  • Brendan O’Hara – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Brendan O’Hara – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Brendan O’Hara on 2015-11-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what operational assessment has been undertaken of proposals to use the upgraded TPS-77 radar systems at RRH Benbecula and RRH Buchan as mitigation for planned wind turbine developments.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    In respect of the upgrade of the Air Defence radar at Remote Radar Head (RRH) Buchan, the Ministry of Defence (MOD) is in contact with the developers who proposed the upgrade as mitigation for their wind farm proposal.

    At RRH Benbecula, the MOD is in contact with the Western Isles Council and developers via the Council’s Working Group. In addition, the MOD provided an Air Defence update at the Aviation Management Board meeting on 5 November 2015 at which Scottish Government, the wind industry and RenewableUK representatives were present.

    The MOD continues to undertake full technical and operational assessments of all site specific Air Defence radar mitigation proposals, including those to the upgraded TPS-77 radar systems at RRH Benbecula and RRH Buchan. It remains the responsibility of developers to submit site specific mitigation proposals. The MOD will determine whether the impact upon the radar is of a permissible level.