UKPOL.CO.UK

Category: Speeches

  • Ben Bradshaw – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Ben Bradshaw – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ben Bradshaw on 2016-02-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many HIV support services are planned to be affected by changes in funding from April 2016; and how many people used each of those services in the last 12 months.

    Jane Ellison

    Decisions on funding and access to social care support services for people with HIV are made by local authorities. The Care Act 2014 sets out the legal framework for social care in England, and this applies to all adults with support needs including those living with HIV.

  • Rosie Cooper – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Rosie Cooper – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rosie Cooper on 2016-03-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the reasons were for his decision to allocate Skelmersdale criminal cases to Wigan Magistrates’ Court after the decision to close Ormskirk Magistrates’ Court; and if he will make a statement.

    Caroline Dinenage

    The consultation proposed that work from Ormskirk Magistrates’ Court transfer to Preston.

    Responses received to the consultation highlighted that it would be easier to travel from Skelmersdale to Wigan Magistrates’ Court. Since there is capacity to hear this work at Wigan, when Ormskirk Magistrates’ Court closes, the majority of criminal workload originating from Skelmersdale will be heard at Wigan.

  • Kevin Hollinrake – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Kevin Hollinrake – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevin Hollinrake on 2016-04-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential effect of the UK leaving the EU on farmers in receipt of payments from the Common Agricultural Policy.

    Rory Stewart

    At the February European Council, the Government negotiated a new settlement, giving the United Kingdom a special status in a reformed European Union. The Government’s position is that the UK will be stronger, safer and better off remaining in a reformed EU.

  • Rebecca Long Bailey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Rebecca Long Bailey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rebecca Long Bailey on 2016-05-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps she is taking to support widows of genocide and conflict in Rwanda, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

    Mr Nick Hurd

    Supporting women and girls, including widows, is a top priority for DFID. In Rwanda, DFID supports the Government’s flagship social protection programme, which provides cash transfers to the poorest households with no labour capacity, including widows and those with disabilities.

    DFID DRC has committed up to £80 million over five years to promote peace, stability and recovery in eastern DRC. DFID addresses sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) across the DRC, both within and outside conflict zones, through its programmes and by addressing gender inequality. DFID DRC’s Humanitarian Programme is worth £168 million, of which £3.8 million provides direct support to survivors and those at risk of sexual violence.

    In Burundi, DFID is greatly concerned about the status of women and children in provinces affected by the political unrest. The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) has reported rape and abuses against women. HMG continues to raise the issue with the Government of Burundi, the UN and international partners.

  • Jonathan Ashworth – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Jonathan Ashworth – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jonathan Ashworth on 2016-06-14.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what processes are in place for strengthening partnerships between law enforcement agencies in the UK and elsewhere in order to tackle international corruption.

    Matthew Hancock

    UK law enforcement agencies​ already have strong collaborative partnerships with many overseas authorities which are valuable in supporting and developing their investigations into international corruption. The London Anti-Corruption Summit in May galvanised further efforts to improve international cooperation.

    At the Summit, the PM announced that the UK will host a new International Anti-Corruption Coordination Centre (IACCC) to help law enforcement investigators work together effectively across multiple jurisdictions, ending the impunity often associated with grand corruption. We are working with international partners towards making the IACCC operational by April 2017.

    The UK also committed to supporting the creation of a Centre of Excellence for Financial Intelligence Units to support the sharing of information with other countries. This will help to improve the effectiveness of the international response to international money-laundering. We are also working with other countries to establish a Global Forum for Asset Recovery.

    Initiatives to enhance transparency over beneficial ownership information will also support international law enforcement cooperation in tackling international corruption. This includes the initiative on the automatic exchange of beneficial ownership information between jurisdictions, as well as the UK’s new public register of persons of significant control, (which goes live this month) and the agreements reached with relevant Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies to grant UK law enforcement access to beneficial ownership information there.

  • Andrew Gwynne – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Trade

    Andrew Gwynne – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Trade

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Gwynne on 2016-09-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, whether his Department has had discussions with representatives from Japan on arrangements for Japanese pharmaceutical companies in the UK.

    Greg Hands

    The Department for International Trade (DIT) works with new investors from Japan as well as Japanese companies across many sectors that have a UK presence. The Life Sciences Organisation (LSO) in this Department as well as the overseas market team in Japan have been engaging directly with Japanese pharmaceutical companies in Japan and those with a UK footprint. We welcome engagement from Japan and senior officials will continue to engage in a structured way on all levels.

  • Baroness Kennedy of Cradley – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Baroness Kennedy of Cradley – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Kennedy of Cradley on 2015-11-10.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they are taking to ensure that apprenticeships deliver the skills that are needed in the current world of work.

    Baroness Neville-Rolfe

    We are committed to delivering employer-led apprenticeship reforms, which continue to improve the ability of apprenticeships to provide the skills that employers need.

    Employers are designing high quality apprenticeships – including Degree Apprenticeships -that are more responsive to the needs of business. They are deciding the skills, knowledge and behaviour required in each apprenticeship and how those skills should be assessed at the end of the programme. Through this process employers can be confident that completing an apprenticeship signals a genuine ability to do the job.

  • Kevan Jones – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Kevan Jones – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevan Jones on 2015-12-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what his Department’s planned expenditure is on television recruitment campaigns for the (a) Army and (b) Army Reserve in (i) 2015-16, (ii) 2016-17, (iii) 2017-18, (iv) 2018-19 and (v) 2019-20.

    Penny Mordaunt

    The expenditure, or planned expenditure, of each Service on television recruitment campaigns in Financial Year (FY) 2015-16 is as follows:

    Naval Service – planned expenditure has not been finalised but is currently forecast to be £4.3 million for Regular personnel and £0.72 million for Reserves.

    Army – planned expenditure is £0.94 million for Regular personnel and £0.65 million for Reserves.

    Royal Air Force (RAF) – planned expenditure has not been finalised but is currently forecast to be £3.46 million. It is not possible to differentiate between Regular and Reserve spend as the majority of RAF advertisements are targeted towards both cadres.

    Plans for expenditure in FY 2016-17 and onwards have not been finalised.

  • Jim Fitzpatrick – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Jim Fitzpatrick – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Fitzpatrick on 2016-01-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much Public Health England (PHE) plans to spend on HIV prevention in 2016-17; and which HIV-prevention projects PHE plans to support financially in that year.

    Jane Ellison

    In 2016/17 Public Health England (PHE) will support local, regional and national HIV prevention activities by providing stakeholders, commissioners and policy makers with specialist public health services. PHE is working through its detailed budget setting process having regard for the outcome of the Spending Review. PHE is not yet in a position therefore to confirm funding figures for 2016/17.

  • Hilary Benn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Hilary Benn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2016-02-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Written Statement of 16 July 2015, HCWS128, on alleged serious and significant offences (diplomatic immunity): 2014, how many instances of alleged criminal conduct by foreign diplomats based in the UK have been brought to the attention of his Department by the police or other enforcement agencies in the last 12 months.

    Mr Philip Hammond

    In the last 12 months Parliamentary and Diplomatic Protection of the Metropolitan Police has notified us of a total of 945 incidents where there was a link with a diplomatic mission or international organisation in the United Kingdom. These not only include instances of alleged criminal conduct by persons attached to diplomatic missions and international organisations in the UK (including their family members), but also offences allegedly committed against such persons and occasional non-criminal incidents involving such persons or their missions.

    This figure also includes occasions when diplomats or family members are required as witnesses. Statistics for only those instances of alleged criminal conduct by foreign diplomats based in the UK are not recorded centrally and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost. Future Written Ministerial Statements on the failure of foreign missions to comply with UK law will however, contain details of serious and significant offences allegedly committed by people entitled to diplomatic immunity in the UK in 2015 and 2016.