Category: Speeches

  • Richard Fuller – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Richard Fuller – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Fuller on 2016-03-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 27 January 2016 to Question 23178, if he will announce a date for the introduction of section 165 of the Equality Act 2010.

    Andrew Jones

    The Government is continuing to actively consider how best to address problems wheelchair users face when using taxis and private hire vehicles, including the possible commencement of Section 165 of the Equality Act 2010.

  • Viscount Waverley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Viscount Waverley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Viscount Waverley on 2016-04-13.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether, in the event of the UK leaving the EU, UK citizens living in EU member states will retain all of their rights as UK citizens and will continue to be treated the same as if they were resident in the UK.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    British citizens living in the EU currently enjoy a range of specific rights to live, to work and to access pensions, health care and public services that are only guaranteed because of EU law. There would be no requirement under EU law for these rights to be maintained if the UK left the EU. Should an agreement be reached to maintain these rights, the expectation must be that this would have to be reciprocated for EU citizens in the UK.

  • Justin Madders – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Justin Madders – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Justin Madders on 2016-05-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much each NHS trust spent on cleaning services in the last year for which figures are available.

    Alistair Burt

    The total amount spent on cleaning services by National Health Service hospital trusts is as shown in Table 1, below:

    Table 1: Cleaning Services Costs by Year

    Year

    Cleaning Services Costs (£ millions)

    2009/10

    897.2

    2010/11

    938.6

    2011/12

    936.5

    2012/13

    933.9

    2013/14

    904.1

    2014/15

    929.2

    Table 2 (attached separately) gives information on cleaning spend for each NHS hospital trust for 2014-15.

    “

  • Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-07-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Vietnamese government on human rights abuses and persecution of Christians.

    Mr Hugo Swire

    The Government is committed to promoting and protecting the right to freedom of religion or belief around the world, and to being a strong voice internationally in defence of this fundamental right. We raise these and other human rights issues with the Vietnamese government regularly and at all levels. We also work with non-government organisations and likeminded embassies on human rights issues in Vietnam. I raised concerns about the general human rights situation in Vietnam with the Vietnamese Deputy Foreign Minister during the UK-Vietnam Strategic Dialogue in London in March 2016. The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond), discussed human rights with the Vietnamese Prime Minister during his visit to Vietnam in April 2016. We will continue to raise these issues with the Vietnamese authorities, including a concerning report from Amnesty International which has just issued on the treatment of prisoners of conscience in Vietnam.

  • Stephen Gethins – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union

    Stephen Gethins – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Gethins on 2016-10-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, which EU Commissioners he has met with since taking office; and when and where such meetings took place.

    Mr Robin Walker

    The Prime Minister has been clear we will not give a running commentary on Brexit negotiations. We will ensure that we engage closely with all relevant interlocutors.

  • Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-10-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 10 October 2016 to Question 46239, what options for loan repayment are made available to people who contact his Department on returning to the UK.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    British nationals to whom we have issued an emergency loan are able to discuss with FCO staff a repayment plan that is convenient to them. They can pay as much (minimum payment of £5) and as frequently as they wish. They can pay by telephone, using a credit or debit card – we accept most cards which are linked to a British bank; electronic bank transfer; personal cheque; Postal Order; or online.

    We explain to the individual that their outstanding debt will be subject to a surcharge of 10% if it is not cleared within six months, and that they will not have their passport returned, or be able to apply for a new one, until their debt is repaid in full.

  • Sadiq Khan – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Sadiq Khan – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sadiq Khan on 2015-11-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much the Government has received from the Fund for European Aid to the Most Deprived in each of the last two years.

    Priti Patel

    The UK allocation from the Fund for European Aid to the Most Deprived (FEAD) is €3.96m for the 2014-20 period and will be used to expand breakfast club provision in deprived areas in England. The Department for Education received interim funding of €541,216 in advance of the scheme commencing. Officials are currently exploring options for the best way for the scheme to be administered.

    Since FEAD was created from within structural funds allocations and has some similarities to ESF, DWP Ministers took the initial decisions on our negotiation position on the size of the UK allocation and on the use of the funds. Responsibility for implementing the Fund now sits with DfE, and we have agreed this response with them. We will discuss with officials there whether all correspondence, PQs and so on, should now be their responsibility, or whether we retain a policy lead.

  • Jack Dromey – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Jack Dromey – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jack Dromey on 2015-12-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make an assessment of the potential effect on police workloads of planned reductions in local authority funding on (a) emergency planning, (b) vulnerability strategies, (c) youth offending services, (d) anti-social behaviour strategies and (e) community safety strategies.

    Karen Bradley

    Funding for local authorities in England is a matter for the Department for Communities and Local Government. Funding for local authorities in Wales is a matter for the Welsh Government.

    It is for local authorities to decide how they spend their budgets on these and other issues. Many local authorities already understand the value of working closely with Police and Crime Commissioners and are best placed to make the right decisions for their communities locally.

    PCCs have a duty under the provisions of the Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act to work with local authorities in their respective police force areas.

  • Christian Matheson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Christian Matheson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Christian Matheson on 2016-01-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many employees who were dismissed from employment by his Department or its executive agencies since 2010 were on long-term sickness absence at the time of their dismissal; and how many such employees had been diagnosed with a condition considered (a) incurable, and (b) terminal.

    Justin Tomlinson

    DWP has succeeded in reducing sickness absence from an annual average of 8.4 days per employee in December 2010 to 6.2 days per employee currently.

    DWP’s Attendance Management policy is supportive of our people and we are committed to helping them maintain good health. We will support employees during periods of sickness absence as long as there is a realistic prospect they will return to work. However, where this is not the case, we need to take prompt action to manage the situation.

    The following table provides a summary of number of employees dismissed while on long-term sickness absence.

    Year

    Headcount at end of year

    Dismissals on Long Term Sick

    2010

    112,135

    450

    2011

    101,331

    439

    2012

    106,487

    333

    2013

    99,343

    423

    2014

    90,388

    453

    2015

    84,429

    421

    DWP does not record whether an employee’s condition is diagnosed as incurable or terminal, so cannot provide this information.

  • 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 2016-02-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many times (a) knife, (b) shiv, (c) shank, (d) chib and (e) another slang word for a blade were recorded on the Incident Report System in HM Prison Wormwood Scrubs in the last 12 months for which figures are available.

    Andrew Selous

    The information requested, in respect of each of these four questions, could be provided only at disproportionate cost.