The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Myners on 2016-03-23.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how much the UK contributes towards the subsidisation of sugar production.
Lord Gardiner of Kimble
Sugar production is not directly subsidised in the UK. However, sugar beet growers in the UK are entitled to make a claim for support under the Basic Payment Scheme of the Common Agricultural Policy.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Karl McCartney on 2016-04-28.
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 21 April 2016 to Question 33531 and of 14 April 2016 to Question 33450, what further government activities are planned to promote the Government’s position on the EU Referendum prior to 23 June 2016.
John Penrose
The Government will comply fully with the statutory restrictions that will be in place from 27 May. The Government will continue to set out its position that the UK will be stronger, safer and better off remaining in a reformed EU.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Young of Hornsey on 2016-06-13.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the impact the General Data Protection Regulation (Regulation (EU) 2016/679) will have on care leavers’ full access to their care records.
Lord Nash
The Government is currently assessing the full impact that the General Data Protection Regulation will have on individual areas of data processing. Certain provisions of the Regulation will have direct effect in UK law, including a continuing right of access for data subjects to their personal data and other information. In certain areas, the regulation leaves the option for domestic legislation to restrict rights that arise under it in certain circumstances (article 23).
The Regulation will apply from 25 May 2018. Before then, the Department for Education will assess whether the current statutory guidance covering care leavers’ access to their case records needs to be revised.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Martyn Day on 2016-09-02.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of making compulsory the accessibility standards outlined in the National Planning Policy Framework.
Gavin Barwell
National planning policy is clear that in developing their local plans, planning authorities should consider the needs of a wide range of households, including older and disabled households.
The role of higher accessibility standards for new housing was considered during the Housing Standards Review undertaken by the Coalition Government. As a result, Optional Requirements for higher levels of accessibility were introduced into the Building Regulations and came into force on 1 October 2015. It was decided at that time that the application of these standards should remain a matter for Local Planning Authorities taking into account local needs and viability.
Details of relevant consultations and impact assessments can be found at the link below:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/2010-to-2015-government-policy-building-regulation/2010-to-2015-government-policy-building-regulation#appendix-5-technical-housing-standards-review
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevan Jones on 2016-10-18.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many Defence Equipment and Support employees are over the age of 45.
Harriett Baldwin
Defence Equipment and Support currently employs 5,497 civilian staff and 604 military personnel over the age of 45.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Amess on 2015-11-05.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to meet the UK’s international obligations to refugees fleeing the conflict in Syria, other than by supporting countries in that region.
Mr Tobias Ellwood
The Prime Minister’s consistent focus has been on providing a comprehensive solution to the refugee crisis. He has reiterated the need for the EU to deal with the root causes of the crisis, not just respond to the consequences. The UK has committed more than £1.1 bn – the largest ever UK response to a humanitarian crisis. This goes to those in need inside Syria and the region. The Prime Minister announced on 8 September that the UK would resettle 20,000 Syrian refugees over the next five years. This will build on an existing scheme for Syrians designed to support refugees based on their vulnerability. The UK has provided financial assistance (£3.6 million/€5 million per year for two years) to fund a project aimed at protecting the most vulnerable people in the migrant camps in Calais. We continue to provide practical support to frontline Member States (particularly Greece), including to support them in securing the EU external border. The Department for International Development announced a £5 million package to the Start Network, a group of humanitarian organisations, to provide emergency relief supplies for refugees and migrants in Greece, Serbia and Macedonia. Overall funding to the Europe wide response, which is not allocated to specific countries is £6,050,000. Of this £550,000 is allocated to International Federation of Red Cross and £500,000 to the Civil Protection Mechanism.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jeremy Lefroy on 2015-11-30.
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what plans her Department has to provide humanitarian funding to (a) refugees from and (b) internally displaced persons in Burundi.
Mr Nick Hurd
The UK Government is extremely concerned by the ongoing political unrest in Burundi and its humanitarian consequences, including internally displaced persons and the flow of Burundian refugees to neighbouring countries.
The UK is the second largest bilateral donor to the regional appeal, after the US. DFID offices across the region, including in Tanzania, DRC, Rwanda and Uganda, are working closely to monitor the situation, review preparedness activities and provide humanitarian support. £18.15 million has been committed by DFID for refugee response in the region through UN agencies, such as UNHCR, UNICEF and WFP, and international NGOs. This funding includes £14.25 million to support refugees in Tanzania and £3.9 million to support refugees in Rwanda. We are staying in close contact with these agencies about future funding needs. DFID has deployed a Humanitarian Advisor to the region in support of the response and to monitor funding provided so far.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Ouseley on 2016-01-11.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how they intend to address the shortfall of trainee teachers in business studies, social science, and design and technology.
Lord Nash
Teaching continues to be a popular career choice for both graduates and career changers, and last year we recruited 1,000 more secondary teachers overall than in the previous year. We recognise, however, that recruitment is more difficult in some subjects than others, which is why we offer generous financial incentives in those subjects where more teachers are needed to meet demand.
We continue to support recruitment to Design and Technology initial teacher training through bursaries of up to £12,000. Subject knowledge enhancement courses are also available for those candidates who need to refresh or boost their knowledge of Design and Technology prior to commencing teacher training.
Bursaries are designed to incentivise applications in subjects where it is difficult to recruit, and where the Department’s teacher supply model tells us that we need to attract more applicants.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steven Paterson on 2016-02-03.
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many (a) small and medium-sized enterprises and (b) other businesses have signed up to the Cyber Essentials Scheme.
Mr Edward Vaizey
At the end of January 2016, 1,674 Cyber essentials and Cyber essentials Plus certificates have been issued, of which 80% were awarded to micro, small and medium-sized businesses.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tristram Hunt on 2016-02-24.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to ensure that the supply of newly-qualified teachers is not affected by imbalances in the distribution of teacher training places at a sub-regional level.
Nick Gibb
The Department for Education has changed the approach to initial teacher training (ITT) allocations for the 2016 to 2017 academic year. The National College for Teaching and Leadership are not allocating a specific number of places to individual organisations for postgraduate ITT courses due to start in the 2016 to 2017 academic year. Instead, eligible schools, school-centred initial teacher training providers (SCITTs) and higher education institutions (HEIs) will be able to recruit as many trainees as they feel they need (subject to a limited number of controls), until the overall system has recruited a sufficient number.
As School Direct and SCITT partnerships cover large geographical areas, we are monitoring recruitment at a regional level only. To date, the only challenge in geographical distribution of ITT places has been found in the London region in recruitment to primary, which was recruiting slower than other regions. In this case we have allowed school led routes (i.e. School Direct (tuition fee) and SCITTs) in this region to continue to recruit to primary courses to ensure that enough trainees are recruited.
We are prepared to use reserve recruitment controls in other subjects, or for other regions as required.