Category: Speeches

  • Nadine Dorries – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Nadine Dorries – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nadine Dorries on 2016-04-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to improve the travel experiences of blind and partially sighted people; and if he will make a statement.

    Andrew Jones

    The Government plans to publish an accessibility action plan (AAP) to improve the travel experience of disabled people, including blind and partially sighted people. We are working with the Disabled Persons Transport Advisory Committee (DPTAC) to assess what information should go in this publication and how to update any other Departmental guidance to make it used and useful to visually impaired people and a wide audience. We plan for the AAP to be ready for wider consultation in the summer.

  • Lord Berkeley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Lord Berkeley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Berkeley on 2016-05-05.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their latest estimate of the cost of HS2’s AP3 design for its part of Euston Station and, within that cost, what allowances have been made for (1) inflation, (2) property purchase and compensation, (3) demolition, and (4) provision for taxis, buses and connections to London Underground and Crossrail 2, if built.

    Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

    The latest cost estimate for Euston is £2,250m. This is based on the revised proposal for Euston included in the 3rd Additional Provision (AP3) to the Phase One hybrid Bill, deposited in Parliament in September 2015.

    This figure is at 2nd quarter 2011 price levels and excludes land and property, inflation and contingency costs.

    The property purchase and compensation costs for the AP3 proposals are included as part of the wider property budget for Phase One of HS2.

    This estimate includes provisional allowances for demolition, station connections for taxis & buses and connections to London Underground. Due to their commercial sensitivity, figures for those provisional allowances are not currently available for release.

    The AP3 proposals do not include a connection for Crossrail 2, however the design of the high speed station has been coordinated with the promoters of the Crossrail 2 scheme and AP3 does not preclude a connection.

  • John Spellar – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    John Spellar – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Spellar on 2016-06-27.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if he will take steps to ensure that his Department’s purchasing policies support British (a) industry and (b) agriculture.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    The Department’s purchasing policies support the Government’s commitment to do all it can to ensure UK suppliers can compete effectively for public sector contracts, in line with our current international obligations and guidance issued by the Crown Commercial Service.

  • Thangam Debbonaire – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Trade

    Thangam Debbonaire – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Trade

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Thangam Debbonaire on 2016-09-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what steps he is taking to determine how many trade negotiators his Department will require in the next six months.

    Greg Hands

    The Department for International Trade already has a strong and capable trade policy team which has more than doubled in size since 23 June. Over the coming months we will be developing that team to build the world class negotiating strengths needed to deliver the best outcomes for the UK. They will have the depth and breadth of expertise to handle the full range of sectoral and cross-cutting issues that arise in trade agreements, supported by analysts and lawyers.

  • Lord Oates – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Lord Oates – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Oates on 2015-11-05.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the current food security situation in Ethiopia.

    Baroness Verma

    We are extremely concerned about the impact of the current drought on the food security situation in Ethiopia. A joint Government of Ethiopia and UN assessment is underway and we are in touch with our UN and Non-Governmental Organisation partners on the ground to determine the extent of need.

    In October, the Government of Ethiopia announced that about 8.2 million people are in need of emergency food aid, up from the 4.5 million estimated in August. The number of severely malnourished children under five years old admitted to therapeutic feeding programmes this year has increased notably.

    Britain has acted quickly and decisively by providing emergency support for 2.6 million people. This includes food aid for 2.1 million people for a month. The Government of Ethiopia has also committed its largest ever response to a drought. The international community will need to work hard with the Government of Ethiopia to prevent the crisis from worsening in the coming months.

    DFID is at the forefront of resilience work to reduce the impact of crises in developing countries. In Ethiopia, DFID’s Productive Safety Nets Programme (PSNP) has helped turn desert land into land that can be farmed again.

  • Lord Hylton – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Hylton – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2015-12-09.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have discussed, or have any plans to discuss, with the government of Israel, the impact of exit permit restrictions on inhabitants of Gaza and the West Bank who seek medical treatment elsewhere.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    While we have not discussed this issue with the Israeli authorities, we remain deeply concerned about restrictions on freedom of movement in the Occupied Palestinian Territories. Our Ambassador in Tel Aviv raised the issue of freedom of movement with Israeli National Security Advisor Cohen on 2 November. Our Consul-General to Jerusalem also raised this issue with the Mayor of Jerusalem on 28 October.

  • Dan Jarvis – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Dan Jarvis – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dan Jarvis on 2016-01-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she expects the inquiry announced by her Department on 20 January 2016 into the housing of asylum seekers in the north-east of England to report its findings.

    James Brokenshire

    Home Office officials are working closely with our housing providers to ensure that asylum seeker accommodation is not easily identifiable. I am not aware of a uniform door colour being the practice in any other region. My officials have also spoken to our housing providers to tell them that such a practice is not acceptable.

    I was first made aware of this issue when The Times contacted the Home Office in mid-January. G4S has investigated correspondence and discussions on the issue of external door colour in the North East and has confirmed that it was raised in 2012 by a Middlesbrough local councillor and was considered by the G4S audit and assurance team, no complaints from asylum seekers relating to this matter were found and a response was issued.

    As I said to the House on 20 January, I instructed officials to look into this issue as a matter of urgency and I expect that the audit will be concluded on the Home Office side very shortly.

  • Lord Laird – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Lord Laird – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Laird on 2016-02-08.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have an agreement or understanding with the IRA that there will be no attempts to stop or bring to court its members on charges relating to tax fraud in South Armagh.

    Lord O’Neill of Gatley

    The government does not have any agreement or understanding in place with the IRA.

  • Lord Lucas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Lord Lucas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Lucas on 2016-03-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 3 March (HL6266), whether they consider that the changes to the opening hours of ticketing offices proposed by Govia Thameslink Railway can be described as proposals to improve the passenger experience at stations” in the light of proposals for reduced ticket office hours and the continuation of ticket machines; and whether they consider that the introduction of smaller seats and the removal of tea trolleys will also “improve the passenger service”.”

    Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

    Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) were awarded the franchise on the basis that they would make improvements to the passenger experience both on trains and at stations. Further to my written answer on 3 March, GTR are consulting on proposed changes to ticket office opening hours at some stations. As part of these proposals, GTR plan to introduce the role of ’Station Host’ who will be on duty for times in excess of the current ticket office opening hours. The Station Hosts will be there to provide customer assistance including help with ticket purchases and information provision.

  • Owen Smith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Owen Smith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Owen Smith on 2016-04-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department’s contract with Maximus/HML for provision of the Fit for Work programme contains provision for penalties in the event of early termination or truncation of that programme.

    Justin Tomlinson

    The contract does not contain specific provision for penalties in the event of early termination.