The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Burrowes on 2016-09-02.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if the Government will remove the local housing allowance cap for people living in supported housing; and if he will make a statement.
Caroline Nokes
The Secretary of State has confirmed that the Government expects to make an announcement on the way forward for supported housing in early autumn.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jamie Reed on 2016-10-17.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will meet the hon. Member for Copeland to discuss the effect of the exit payment cap on nuclear workers in Copeland constituency.
Mr David Gauke
The government announced in May 2015 that it intends to take forward its manifesto commitment to end six-figure exit payments for public sector workers. The Enterprise Act, which contains provisions for the £95,000 public sector exit payment cap, received Royal Assent on 4 May 2016.
Public sector exit payments cost around £2 billion a year and it is important that they are fair, proportionate and provide value for money to the taxpayer that funds them. The proposed cap, amounting to 3.5 times the average public sector salary, will still offer a significant level of compensation and support to an employee, and will apply to only a small percentage of public sector exits. The exit payment cap will apply to organisations classified as within the public sector by the Office for National Statistics, with a small number of exceptions.
I am aware that the hon. Member for Copeland is discussing the effect of the cap on nuclear workers in his constituency with my noble friend the Minister of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS). That is the appropriate route for these discussions as BEIS is the department responsible for the nuclear industry.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Helic on 2015-11-02.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations the Foreign and Commonwealth Office has made through the Permanent Mission to the United Nations regarding the incitement of violence in Burma against the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Burma.
Baroness Anelay of St Johns
The Government supports the Special Rapporteur, Professor Yanghee Lee, and deplores the hateful and threatening language that has been used against her by MaBaTha monk Wirathu. We have also called for Burma’s Ministry of Religious Affairs to take action on the matter. I was able to convey my sympathy and concern to Professor Lee in person during her visit to London in March. Last week, we publicly reiterated our support for Professor Lee and her mandate at the UN General Assembly in New York, at a dedicated session discussing her most recent report on the Human rights situation in Burma.
Unfortunately, statements like those of Wirathu are symptomatic of a troubling rise in intolerance, discrimination and hate speech in Burma. We have repeatedly raised our concerns over this trend, both bilaterally and in company with our international partners. The Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for East Devon (Mr Swire), did so with senior Burmese government ministers during his visit to Burma in July and, most recently, with Foreign Minister Wunna Maung Lwin in September in New York.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bob Blackman on 2015-11-23.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if his Department will undertake an analysis of the feasibility of devolving property taxes to London linked to specific infrastructure projects.
Mr David Gauke
By 2020, local government will retain 100% of business rates and will have the power to reduce business rates. Directly elected mayoral authorities, such as the Mayor of London, will have the power to levy a small supplement on business rates to fund new infrastructure.
In the last Parliament, the Government gave local councils greater power over council tax support schemes and the treatment of second homes and empty properties. The Government believes there would be difficulties in devolving other property taxes, such as Stamp Duty Land Tax and Capital Gains Tax, to London as this would create a distortive effect around the border, increase administration costs and complexity and expose local government to significant fiscal risk.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rosie Cooper on 2016-01-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if his Department will reconsider the decision that West Lancashire Borough Council be allowed the special levy contribution towards the operation of an Internal Drainage Board to take account of the recent flooding in West Lancashire.
James Wharton
The decision on whether to support the creation of an Internal Drainage Board is a local matter. We welcome the establishment of new Internal Drainage Boards where these are proposed and supported by the local community.
These are funded through drainage rates paid directly by agricultural landowners and special levies issued on district and unitary authorities. Local authorities take account of the need to pay levies as part of their annual budget setting process.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tulip Siddiq on 2016-02-02.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many appeals were heard by the Education Funding Agency and Local Government Ombudsman in relation to admissions decisions made by (a) academies, (b) academies which were previously maintained schools and (c) free schools in each year since 2009-10; how many such appeals were upheld; which schools were subject to those appeals; and what proportion of academies and free schools those schools represent.
Edward Timpson
Parents have the right to complain to an admission authority regarding its decision to refuse admission of a child. The admission authority must establish an independent appeals panel to hear the complaint. On behalf of the Secretary of State, the Education Funding Agency (EFA) will investigate complaints about the appeals process operated by independent appeal panels for academies and free schools.
The table below provides information on admission appeals complaints assessed as being in scope for investigation by EFA since April 2012, when it was established. EFA has no record of admission appeal complaints in the last four financial years from any Civil Society Organisations.
The Local Government Ombudsman (LGO) handles the appeals process operated in respect of maintained schools. The Department does not hold information on the number of admission appeals complaints heard by the LGO. The LGO should hold this information.
|
Financial year 2012-13 |
Financial year 2013-14 |
Financial year 2014-15 |
2015-16 Current financial year to date |
|
|
PQ25402 (A) Total number of admission appeal complaints about academies investigated by EFA |
127 |
163 |
144 |
203 |
|
PQ25402 (B) Total number of admission appeal complaints about academies which were previously maintained schools investigated by EFA |
115 |
150 |
130 |
193 |
|
PQ25402 (C) Total number of admission appeal complaints about free schools investigated by EFA |
Not recorded centrally for this financial year |
4 |
8 |
4 |
|
Total number of admission appeal complaints fully upheld by EFA |
15 |
13 |
26 |
15 |
|
Name of schools where EFA has investigated an admission appeal complaint subject to appeals |
See attachment |
See attachment |
See attachment |
See attachment |
|
Total appeals complaints investigated, as a proportion of open academies and free schools |
5% (of 2,796) |
4% (of 3,874) |
3% (of 4,881) |
4% (of 5,447) |
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2016-02-23.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 16 June 2015 to Question 1205, how many UK nationals are currently employed by the European Commission; and what proportion of the total number of Commission employees they represent.
Mr Philip Hammond
The latest figures from October 2015 state that there are 1000 British citizens working in the European Commission as Permanent Officials and Temporary Agents, which represents 4.3% of the total. In addition there are 142 employed as Contract Agents.
UK representation was at its peak in the late 70s but since then, it has been falling steadily across all EU institutions as UK officials retire and are not replaced by the same number of new UK entrants. The Government is committed to reversing this picture but recognises this will require sustained efforts over the long-term. The EU Staffing Unit, established in April 2013, works to promote EU careers across the UK and support candidates through the application process. It has increased secondments in positions of strategic importance to the UK. The European Fast Stream within the Civil Service has also been re-launched.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Tredinnick on 2016-03-22.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether the Government plans to pursue any initiatives similar to that announced in the joint statement made by President Obama and Prime Minister Modi in January 2016 during the President’s visit to India on expanding the India-US health collaboration in health sectors including complementary and traditional medicine.
Jane Ellison
The UK Government continues to work closely with the Government of India within the health sector, including working with the Indian Government to open health centres. In 2013 the Department agreed a five year Memorandum of Understanding with the Government of India. This prioritises action on antimicrobial resistance, training and development and universal health coverage. There are no plans to expand this to include complementary and traditional medicine.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Storey on 2016-04-27.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how they ascertain the number of local staff at a foreign embassy who are liable to pay tax.
Lord O’Neill of Gatley
Letters are issued annually on behalf of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office to Diplomatic Missions in the UK (Embassies, High Commissions and Consulates) requesting staff lists providing details of all locally engaged staff and private servants.
HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has a specialist team (the Embassy team) in place to deal with enquiries from locally engaged staff employed at Diplomatic Missions and International Organisations in the UK as detailed in ‘The London Diplomatic List’. In December 2015 HMRC wrote to all these bodies to ensure they held full and up-to-date contact information for the team.
Locally engaged employees and private servants are expected to contact the Embassy team to notify their employment as soon as they are engaged.
The Embassy team determines the employee’s liability to Income Tax and National Insurance Contributions. The team also carries out risk assessment activity and where it identifies individuals who have not notified their employment to HMRC, it takes action to ensure they pay the tax that is due.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Gardiner on 2016-06-06.
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what her Department’s definition is of unabated coal.
Andrea Leadsom
We have committed to consulting on when to close all unabated coal-fired power stations. We will set out proposals to close coal by 2025, to ensure we stay on track to meet our decarbonisation pathway. We will seek views on what measures might be applied to existing coal power stations in order to achieve this.
In the UK new coal power stations can only be built if their carbon dioxide emissions will be at a level consistent with our decarbonisation targets. This includes compliance with an Emissions Performance Standard equivalent to 450gCO2/kWh for a plant operating at baseload, and which is about half that of a typical existing British coal station. In addition, any new coal power stations would need to meet planning requirements to demonstrate Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) technology on at least 300MW of the power station’s generating capacity and be CCS-ready on the rest.