Category: Speeches

  • Steve Reed – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Steve Reed – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve Reed on 2016-09-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what guidance his Department has given to Maximus to ensure that centres used for Fit for Work assessments are accessible to wheelchair users.

    Penny Mordaunt

    All Assessment Centres utilised by MAXIMUS to undertake Work Capability Assessments meet accessibility standards under the Equality Act 2010.

    Before attending an assessment, claimants are given the opportunity to alert the assessment provider to any additional requirements they may have and the provider will endeavour to meet all reasonable requests.

    If a claimant is unable to travel to or access an Assessment Centre as a result of their health condition or impairment, a home visit may be offered.

    This is unconnected to Fit for Work, a website, telephone line and webchat service that does not involve participants travelling to an assessment centre. Fit for Work provides a supportive occupational health assessment and general health and work advice to employees, employers and General Practitioners (GPs) to help individuals stay in or return to work.

  • Joan Ryan – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Joan Ryan – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Joan Ryan on 2015-11-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent representations the British High Commission in Colombo has received from (a) the Tamil National Alliance and (b) Tamil civil society groups on the treatment of Tamil political prisoners in Sri Lanka.

    Mr Hugo Swire

    Officials from the British High Commission regularly meet with political and civil society groups, including the Tamil National Alliance, to discuss political issues in Sri Lanka. We will continue to monitor the situation of detainees held under the Prevention of Terrorism Act closely and to raise issues of ongoing concern with the Sri Lankan government.

  • Jim Shannon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Jim Shannon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2015-12-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department takes to ensure that UK funding to Nigeria reaches the people most in need.

    Mr Nick Hurd

    To ensure UK aid reaches the most vulnerable recipients, leaving no one behind, we work with implementing partners who have a strong track record of prioritising assistance to those most in need. DFID independently monitors all its programmes and aid impact is also reviewed by The Independent Commission for Aid Impact (ICAI).

  • Baroness Pinnock – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Baroness Pinnock – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Pinnock on 2016-01-20.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether there is an expectation that an area with a population of over 400,000 should be served by a fully-equipped accident and emergency service.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    The detailed configuration of services is a matter for local commissioners.

  • Emily Thornberry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Emily Thornberry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emily Thornberry on 2016-02-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 4 February 2016 to Question 25006, for what reason the repair and maintenance costs of HMS Diamond were greater than those of the other Type 45 Destroyers.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    The primary cause of the greater repair and maintenance costs for HMS DIAMOND was a longer Docking Period than the other two routine docking cycles. HMS DARING and HMS DAUNTLESS are the only other Type 45 Destroyers to have completed a routine docking cycle. The additional length of the Docking Period was a reflection of the number of capability upgrades and modifications, fitted to HMS DIAMOND. This was entirely normal for a class of warship of this age and all future Docking Periods for the Class are now programmed for a similar duration.

  • Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2016-03-03.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, in which universities the Frontline programme was promoted in (a) 2015 and (b) 2016.

    Edward Timpson

    Frontline was promoted at the following universities in both 2015 and 2016: Aston, Bath, Birmingham, Belfast, Bristol, Brunel, Cambridge, Cardiff, Durham, Edinburgh, Exeter, Glasgow, Greenwich, Kings College London, Kingston, Imperial College London, Lancaster, Leeds, Leeds Beckett, Liverpool, London Metropolitan, Loughborough, LSE, Manchester, Middlesex, Newcastle, Nottingham, Oxford, Queen Mary, Reading, Sheffield, SOAS, Southampton, Strathclyde, Surrey, St Andrews (not in 2016), UCL, UEA, University of East London, Warwick, Westminster, and York. In 2016, Frontline also visited Belfast, Leeds Beckett, Surrey, and UEA to promote the programme.

  • Chris Stephens – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Chris Stephens – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Stephens on 2016-04-11.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many employees of HM Revenue and Customs are employed to investigate tax evasion; what the estimated amount was of tax evasion in 2015; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr David Gauke

    HM Revenue and Customs’ (HMRC) more than 26,000 (FTE) strong enforcement and compliance workforce of risk and intelligence analysts, compliance officers and fraud investigators tackle the full range of compliance risks ranging from hidden economy to the wealthy. Last year, they collected and protected a record £26 billion from compliance activities, contributing towards the UK’s highest-ever tax take of £518 billion.

    The most recent year for which tax gap figures are available is 2013/14. HMRC estimates that £4.4 billion of it relates to tax evasion.

    HMRC allocates resources in a flexible manner, so that it meets individual business needs.

    The Government has made additional resourcing of up to £10 million a year available for the creation of a new taskforce. Its purpose will be to swiftly obtain and analyse the Panama papers, and take rapid action where there is evidence of any wrongdoing and regulatory breaches. The taskforce will look beyond tax into all potential areas of financial crime and other regulatory breaches. It will be jointly led by HMRC and the National Crime Agency.

    Information on the structure and organisation of HMRC is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/hmrcs-annual-report-and-accounts

    “

  • Rachel Reeves – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Rachel Reeves – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rachel Reeves on 2016-05-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how much new funding has been given to SMEs across the West Yorkshire Combined Authority to develop their workforces since the publication of the Long-Term Economic Plan for Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire in February 2015.

    Anna Soubry

    The Leeds City Region Skills Service has, to date, supported 620 businesses, with 3,300 pieces of training completed and 1,595 more underway. The value of this support to SMEs is £2.12m.

    In 2016/17 the Skills Service is expected to support skills diagnostics for 800 businesses, help 1,100 SMEs to offer apprenticeships and upskill 5,600 employees.

    Grants between £500 and £50,000 are available to match business investments in workforce training.

  • Dawn Butler – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Dawn Butler – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dawn Butler on 2016-06-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what consultation the Oil and Gas Authority has undertaken on nuclear decommissioning; and whether that authority is subject to the Cabinet Office’s Consultation Principles, published in January 2016.

    Andrea Leadsom

    Nuclear Decommissioning Authority is responsible for decommissioning and clean-up of UK’s nuclear legacy sites. The Oil and Gas Authority has no remit for nuclear decommissioning. ­

    All OGA consultations will consider the Cabinet Office’s consultation principles where relevant.

  • Gavin Robinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Gavin Robinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gavin Robinson on 2016-09-13.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an assessment of the effect on children of the suspension of child tax credit when investigations are carried out.

    Jane Ellison

    In most cases, HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) does not suspend the payment of tax credits payments during checks on tax credit awards. It only does this where information held indicates that this is a reasonable step to prevent payments being made in error. In these circumstances, making further payments would therefore result in increased overpayments of tax credits overall which the customer would have to repay. Nevertheless, if a customer demonstrates that the claim is correct, HMRC reinstates payments immediately.

    HMRC has not carried out research into the specific aspect of the tax credits system related to suspension of Child Tax Credits.