The below Parliamentary question was asked by Philip Hollobone on 2016-01-06.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 19 November 2015 to Question 15757, what proportion of clandestine illegal entry attempts in 2014-15 were intercepted by the (a) French authorities and (b) UK authorities.
James Brokenshire
The UK Government does not release statistics that could prejudice the security of the UK borders.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Blencathra on 2015-11-18.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will place in the Library of the House the assessment by the Department of Health’s Voluntary Sector Grants Hub of the grant applications made by Action on Smoking and Health in each of the last five years.
Lord Prior of Brampton
All grants awarded to Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) in the last five years have been awarded under Section 64 powers. There are a range of different circumstances under which it would not be appropriate or represent best value for money to run a competed scheme. The grants awarded to ASH have been assessed as most appropriate for the non-competed route.
The assessment of any grant application for funding from ASH is undertaken by members of the Tobacco Control policy team. Following this assessment, the Grants Hub makes a decision regarding whether or not to approve the application. These policy assessments contain policy advice to Ministers and so are not made public. Approvals are required from Ministers and from HM Treasury or are subject to a Departmental approval process that has been agreed with HM Treasury.
To identify relevant representations the Department has received would result in disproportionate cost.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Percy on 2015-12-15.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what estimate he has made of the likely value of increased trade between the UK and Canada as a result of the EU Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership; and what steps he plans to take to encourage trade in (a) Alberta, (b) British Columbia and (c) the rest of Canada.
Anna Soubry
I assume my hon. Friend means the EU-Canada Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), which is the trade deal between the EU and Canada and this is the subject on which I will be answering.
Analysis suggests that, as a result of CETA, UK exports to Canada will increase by 29% and Canadian exports to the UK will increase by 15%. In the long run, the benefit to the UK economy will be of the order of £1.3 billion per annum.
UK Trade and Investment will promote to British businesses all the new opportunities arising from CETA through a range of marketing activities across the UK and through the network of UK Posts in Canada. An accompanying guide will translate the agreement into an easily accessible document to help businesses identify potential benefits, including the tariff liberalisation on manufactured goods and food and drink products; greater access to government procurement contracts in all provinces at all levels of the Canadian government, including British Columbia and Alberta; and longer patent protection provided for pharmaceutical companies to protect R&D investment.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Maria Eagle on 2016-01-26.
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, on what dates the inter-Ministerial group on tourism has met; and who is a member of that group.
David Evennett
The inter-ministerial group on tourism meets quarterly. The first meeting was held on 16th September 2015 and Ministers will meet again in February. Membership is composed of the following Departments, and attendance is subject to the agenda for the meeting:
DEFRA.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Blomfield on 2016-02-11.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what assessment he has made of the benefits to his Department of conducting policy work outside of London.
Joseph Johnson
Since summer 2015 the Department has been reviewing its business model. By 2020, we want to simplify our structure, become more digital, be cheaper for taxpayers and better for users. As part of this we anticipate reducing the number of our locations from more than 80 to approximately 7 centres plus a regional footprint for the provision of local services. The intention to close the BIS Sheffield office at St Paul’s Place is based on a strategy to simplify delivery and focus expertise in specific areas. Consistent with this strategy the policy function will be in one place, close to Ministers, and the Department has made a decision to locate all its policy functions in the HQ in London. By 2020 the majority of employees in BIS and our Partner Organisations will continue to be based outside of London.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Angela Rayner on 2016-03-11.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what his policy is on employers offering higher salaries to employees who opt of occupational pension schemes.
Justin Tomlinson
Section 54 of the Pensions Act 2008 prohibits employers from taking any action for the sole or main purpose of inducing a worker to leave a workplace pension scheme.
The Government takes potential inducement by employers very seriously. The Pensions Regulator (TPR) is responsible for all matters relating to employers’ compliance with their enrolment duties, including investigations into individual cases of potential inducement by employers.
Through automatic enrolment we are delivering a fundamental shift in workplace pension saving that is changing the way that people are enabled to save for retirement. Already 100,668 employers have completed their declaration of compliance with the Regulator, resulting in more than 6 million eligible jobholders being automatically enrolled into a qualifying pension scheme.
The law relating to inducements is an important safeguard for workers and the Regulator has statutory powers of investigation and enforcement it can use in appropriate circumstances. We are working with the Regulator to monitor the number and nature of possible inducement cases as the roll-out of automatic enrolment continues. That will enable us to judge whether the current legislation covering inducement, and the guidance and messaging provided by the Regulator, are operating effectively to protect employees, and whether change may be appropriate.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paula Sherriff on 2016-04-18.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether a timetable has been agreed for the review of the General Dental Practitioners contract.
Alistair Burt
The current dental contract reform prototypes are testing a new way of providing preventative care, including the right balance of payment incentives. Subject to evaluation of the prototypes, a reformed dental contract could begin to be rolled out nationally from 2018/19 onwards.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Earl of Sandwich on 2016-05-18.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how, and through what channels, they plan to ensure that asylum seekers from Sudan attend English language classes and counselling sessions, so that they can be fully prepared for their asylum application hearing.
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
All asylum seekers have access to publicly-funded legal advice and an interpreter to assist in presenting an accurate account of the reasons for their claim if English is not their first language.
Asylum seekers are provided with information on how to access legal advice and signposts specialist organisations where they can find additional help, support, counselling and language provision.
The Home Office funds Migrant Help to provide confidential and impartial advice and guidance to adult asylum seekers and their dependants in a language they understand. Their services include face-to-face advice for newly arrived asylum seekers in initial accommodation and a helpline and website providing information in 15 languages.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-07-12.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the change in tax revenue since the EU referendum; and if he will make a statement.
Jane Ellison
There have been no new forecasts made for tax revenue since the EU referendum. The independent Office for Budget Responsibility will produce an updated forecast for receipts revenues (Public Sector Current Receipts) at the Autumn Statement later this year.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Madeleine Moon on 2016-10-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether the UK has ratified Montenegro’s accession to NATO; and if he will make a statement.
Sir Alan Duncan
The Government laid Montenegro’s Protocol of Accession before Parliament on 29 June 2016, under the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act 2010. Following the summer recess, the Protocol completed its Parliamentary scrutiny period on 15 September. We are currently finalising the process to confirm the UK’s acceptance of the Protocol and allow us to deposit it with the US Government (depositary for the Treaty), as stipulated by the North Atlantic Treaty. We expect to complete this shortly and look forward to welcoming Montenegro as the 29th NATO Ally, once all current NATO Allies have ratified according to their own national processes.