Category: Speeches

Lord Black of Brentwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Black of Brentwood on 2016-02-01.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many local authorities routinely scan pet cats and dogs that are the victims of road traffic accidents on local roads and where possible contact their owners.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

The Government recognises the distress of owners who lose a beloved pet. The main focus for this Government is to continue to ensure we reduce road casualties and improve road safety. By doing this it is hoped that we can make our roads safer for all users, as well as reducing the risks to all animals.

It is the Government position that it is best practice to scan deceased pets found on the local highway. Some local authorities do endeavour to identify the owners if the pet has a collar or microchip and we encourage others to adopt the same practice. On 26 March 2015 the then Minister for Roads, Rt. Hon. John Hayes MP, wrote to all local highway authorities recommending that they consider scanning any deceased cats or dogs found on the public highway for which they are responsible as a matter of standard practice.

It is, however, for each local highway authority to determine how any deceased animals found on the roads are handled and the Department for Transport does not collect information on how many undertake scanning.

01/01/2023
Jonathan Ashworth – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jonathan Ashworth on 2016-02-25.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much his Department has paid to staff in overtime in each of the last 24 months.

Harriett Baldwin

The Treasury’s overtime costs are published and can be found on www.gov.uk

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01/01/2023
Christian Matheson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Christian Matheson on 2016-04-08.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the average cost per mile of electrification of a railway line in the UK.

Claire Perry

The Department for Transport does not delineate the average cost per mile of electrification from the wider rail upgrade works that it funds in England and Wales. The Government’s commitment to a rolling programme of electrification is reliant on a wider set of enhancement works to make journeys better. This often includes track works, gauging, signalling upgrades, power supply works and station works to allow electric trains to run. The Department does not make an estimate of the average cost per mile of electrification as the engineering complexity and challenge varies significantly across England and Wales. Electrification works in Scotland are devolved to the Scottish Government.

However, we are aware of the significant cost to the industry and the wider public of the failure of the Labour Governments of 1997 to 2010 to progress electrification schemes across the country. This Government is determined to rectify this failure.

01/01/2023
Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the House of Commons Commission

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-04-26.

To ask the Rt. hon. Member for Carshalton and Wallington representing the House of Commons Commission, what assessment the Commission has made of the effectiveness of the Education Service in engaging the attention of children during their visits to Parliament.

Tom Brake

The Commission has not made a formal assessment of the effectiveness of the Education Service in engaging the attention of children during their visits to Parliament. However, it receives regular updates on the work and reach of the service, and has supported the substantial growth in this area in recent years.

The Education Service uses a number of techniques to engage students’ attention during visits including story-telling, question and answer, images, audio-visual clips, debating, quizzes and roleplay.

Visits also make use of interactive and immersive technology as a means to enhance learning. The Education Centre’s Discovery space uses 360° projection and sound technology to immerse students in virtual chambers, historical events and The Story of Parliament, whilst three of the Centre’s learning spaces are equipped with augmented reality experiences, which see Winston Churchill, the Yeoman Usher, Charles I and Queen Victoria ‘come to life’ in virtual environments.

Voting pods and tablets are used regularly in sessions, and the centre also contains a 3D printer, for printing objects students cannot normally handle or get close to; this is proving particularly effective for tactile learning and Special Educational Needs (SEN) groups. Tablets are also used on the line of route as part of the ‘Adventurer’s Tour’ programme, where KS2 students are tasked with a mission to save democracy.

01/01/2023
Tom Watson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Watson on 2016-06-07.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many members of staff will be recruited to form the Anti-corruption Innovation Hub.

Matthew Hancock

There will be a full time member of staff with additional support as part of joint commitment between the Government and Omidyar Network.

01/01/2023
Stephen Hammond – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Hammond on 2016-09-05.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what information his Department holds on trends in the incidence of mobile phone use while driving since it was prohibited.

Andrew Jones

In 2014, 1.6% of drivers in England and Scotland were observed using a mobile phone whilst driving. This is similar to the 1.4% of drivers observed using a hand held mobile phone in England in 2009, when the previous survey was carried out. In this context, we have recently consulted on proposals for increased penalties for this dangerous behaviour.

01/01/2023
Lord Inglewood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Inglewood on 2016-10-13.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their estimate of the average number of British citizens who are in other EU countries, either temporarily or permanently, at any one time.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

United Nation migration statistics from 2015 estimate that there are around 1.2 million British nationals living in the EU.

01/01/2023
Lord German – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord German on 2015-11-09.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the suitability of the current range of vocational qualifications offered to those serving prison sentences in England and Wales.

Lord Faulks

The Secretary of State for Justice announced on 8^th September a review of the quality of education in prisons, chaired by Dame Sally Coates. The review will examine the scope, quality and effectiveness of current provision. It will consider the scope and range of the current curricula and identify the most effective teaching and delivery models. Stakeholders are being consulted and a Call for Evidence has been issued. The review is expected to report in the spring of 2016. A copy of the terms of reference can be found at gov.uk

The Welsh Government provides prison education funding to NOMS in Wales to commission services and these are aligned to the Welsh Government’s learning and skills outcome requirements. Vocational courses represent more than 80% of the prisoner education in prisons in Wales and take account of offender needs and labour market information to increase prisoners’ employment opportunities on release.

01/01/2023

Jim Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-01-06.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 5 January 2016 to Question 20200, what estimate his Department has made of its total spend on mental health specialists in each of the last five years.

Mark Lancaster

The average costs for military, reserves and civilian personnel for each of the last three years, the period for which figures are available, are provided in the table below.

Where gaps exist in military or civilian mental health services delivery staff, locums may be used, the costs of which are also provided.

Year	Military	Reserves	Civilian	Locums
	million	million	million	million
2013	£15.06	£0.37	£2.01	£3.24
2014	£15.12	£0.19	£2.06	£2.69
2015	£14.18	£0.20	£3.17	£2.77
AVERAGE	£14.79	£0.29	£2.41	£2.9

01/01/2023

The Marquess of Lothian – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Marquess of Lothian on 2016-02-01.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the current situation in Burundi; and whether they are concerned that the present levels of violence could lead to genocide.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

The current situation in Burundi remains grave. The number of fatalities is high with at least 130 killed in December 2015. There is a daily rhythm of violence during the nights followed by quiet mornings. We were deeply concerned to hear of allegations that the police and the ruling party’s youth league are responsible for much of the violence, including sexual violence. The conflict remains essentially political in nature. Whilst there have been some limited signs of ‘ethnicisation’ of the crisis, these have not yet formed the kind of pattern that was seen in the run-up to previous genocides. The immediate risk is of a decline into multi-sided civil war. We continue to work closely with African and international partners to bring an end to the violence.

01/01/2023