Category: Speeches

  • Paul Flynn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Paul Flynn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Flynn on 2016-03-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, with reference to the Annex on a Comprehensive Franco-British Partnership on Civil Nuclear Energy, Franco-British Summit, on 3 March 2016, what the basis is for the statement that major progress has been made in recent months with a view to confirming the project to build two EPR reactors on the Hinkley Point site.

    Andrea Leadsom

    The terms of the contractual documentation relating to Hinkley Point C (Contract for Difference, Secretary of State Investors Agreement, Funded Decommissioning Programme (FDP) and related Waste Transfer contracts) between the Government and EDF are in final form.

    EDF and CGN have confirmed major investment in HPC and are working to rapidly conclude the detailed investment documentation.

    The Final Investment Decision is a matter for EDF and we understand they will make this shortly.

    In January we gave planning consent for the National Grid connection to Hinkley Point C.

  • Lord Judd – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Lord Judd – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Judd on 2016-04-11.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they are taking to ring-fence special education funding within their new national funding formula.

    Lord Nash

    We are currently consulting on arrangements for new national formulae for schools and high needs funding (funding to provide high cost support for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities). Both funding streams, along with early years funding, make up the dedicated schools grant (DSG), which is ring-fenced so that local authorities can only spend it on specified elements of education. The DSG will continue to be ring-fenced when the national funding formulae are in place. We have also protected the schools and high needs budgets in this Parliament. This year we are adding £92.5 million to local authorities’ 2016-17 high needs allocations.

    At the Budget we also announced that we will provide £500 million over the Spending Review period, on top of per pupil protection, to speed up implementation of the national funding formula for schools and get extra funding quicker to those schools that need it most.

  • William Cash – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    William Cash – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by William Cash on 2016-05-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what discussions she has had with (a) Big Six and (b) other electricity generators on the effect on the electricity market of (i) existing and (ii) new combined cycle gas turbine generation.

    Andrea Leadsom

    DECC officials regularly meet with electricity generators to discuss the electricity market, including the outlook for their existing gas power stations as well as prospects for any planned investment in new gas power stations.

  • Jim Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Jim Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-07-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, whether her Department has provided administrative support to WaterAid in each of the last five years; and if she will make a statement.

    Mr Nick Hurd

    WaterAid received over £24million of DFID funding from April 2013 to March 2016. We have so far committed £4.7million in funding for April 2016 to March 2018.

    DFID funding has contributed to WaterAid directly reaching more than 2 million people with safe water and over 3 million people with sanitation in the last year alone. In addition, our Programme Partnership Arrangement (PPA) funding, effective from 2011 until the end of 2016, enabled WaterAid to improve their overall organisational effectiveness by supporting them to develop stronger Monitoring and Evaluation systems; improve their Value for Money framework and supported growth and innovation throughout the organisation.

  • Lord Taylor of Warwick – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Lord Taylor of Warwick – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Taylor of Warwick on 2016-09-13.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the figures released by the Office for National Statistics showing that 29 per cent of graduates earn less per hour than an average non-graduate who has completed an apprenticeship.

    Lord Nash

    The evidence consistently points to good returns both for graduates and for those who have completed an apprenticeship. According to the same statistical release from the Office for National Statistics, median gross hourly pay for graduate employees is £15.38, compared to £11.02 for non-graduates who have completed an apprenticeship.

    The Government recognises, however, that the benefits of further and higher education will differ between individuals, and between subjects and institutions chosen. It is important for young people to consider the available information and select a route through education that is right for them; whether that be an apprenticeship, higher education study or further education. They may also consider factors other than salary, when selecting their courses of study.

    That is why the Government is introducing policies such as a Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) that will provide clear information to students on where the best outcomes from higher education provision can be found. The Department for Education will also continue to release information through websites such as Unistats and other channels to help young people make the right choices when considering whether to enter further or higher education. This includes taking advantage of the Longitudinal Education Outcomes dataset to provide better information on the potential returns from different education routes.

  • Barry Sheerman – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Barry Sheerman – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Sheerman on 2015-11-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to ensure that guidance on changes to the disabled students’ allowance is easily accessible to (a) parents and (b) schools.

    Edward Timpson

    Reforms to the special educational needs and disability system mean local authorities must publish information in their Local Offers about support available to young people in Higher Education (HE), including Disabled Students’ Allowances (DSAs) and the process and timescales for making an application for DSAs. We would expect this information to cover changes to DSAs.

    The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) is currently considering the responses made to the recent consultation on proposed changes to DSAs, and the government response to the consultation will be published in due course. The proposed changes aim to make HE as accessible as possible, to re-balance support between HE providers and DSAs, and to improve value for money.DSAs will remain available to complement the support provided by institutions, and students will continue to receive the support they need.

    BIS has been clear that any changes implemented will take effect from August 2016 for the Academic year 2016/17. BIS will be working closely with the Student Loans Company and other stakeholders, to ensure that correct information is easily available.

  • Julie Elliott – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Julie Elliott – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julie Elliott on 2015-12-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions he has had with colleagues and representatives from the automotive sector regarding whether the Plug-in Car Grant should prioritise Pure Electric Vehicles above Plug-in Hybrids.

    Andrew Jones

    The Office for Low Emission Vehicles (OLEV) comprises elements of the Department for Business Innovation and Skills, Energy Climate Change and Transport and its work programme has cross-government support. The 2015 Spending Review settlement represents an increase of over £100 million on the Government’s manifesto commitment and means that the Plug-in Car Grant can run throughout the Parliament if there is a market need.

    The government announced on the 17 December a long-term extension to the Plug-in Car Grant to encourage more low emission vehicles on Britain’s roads. The announcement confirms the grant will continue until at least the end of March 2018.

    From next March, buyers of the greenest cars can save up to £4,500 off the price, bringing total funding for the scheme to £400m over the course of this Parliament. In addition the greenest vehicles will be exempt from the £60,000 price cap.

    Ministers and officials frequently meet with representatives of both vehicle manufacturers and the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders to discuss the ULEV market. This helps to inform policy discussions about grant levels.

  • Natalie McGarry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Natalie McGarry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Natalie McGarry on 2016-01-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his Turkish counterpart on the humanitarian situation in predominately Kurdish areas of Turkey.

    Mr David Lidington

    The ongoing violence in the predominantly Kurdish areas of south east Turkey is extremely concerning. The Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) continues to kill members of the Turkish police service and security forces in violent terrorist attacks. The Turkish Government has responded by striking PKK targets in Turkey and Northern Iraq. They have also launched large-scale security operations involving curfews in some towns and cities in order to clear them of suspected terrorists.

    We are aware of reports of civilian casualties in the region, and a worsening humanitarian situation in certain areas in south east Turkey. The Turkish Government have said that 48 civilians lost their lives in clashes between 23 July and 23 December 2015. They also said that 93,000 people have fled their homes. We also understand that there have been investigations launched against elected officials and politicians. Any such investigations should be undertaken transparently and fully respect the rule of law.

    We believe Turkey has a legitimate right to defend itself against the PKK, whose attacks we condemn as we condemn all terrorism. Our thoughts are with the victims of these attacks, and the civilians who have been caught up in the violence. As in any conflict, civilian casualties should be avoided and human rights need to be fully protected. We have been clear, in public and private, that PKK violence must end and we support a return to the peace process, in the interests of Turkey and the region. We stand ready to help in any way we can.

    We continue to monitor the situation closely. The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge and our Ambassador to Turkey have emphasised to the Turkish government the need to respect human rights, avoid civilian casualties and return to the peace process. I raised these issues with my Turkish counterpart the last time we met in August 2015.

  • Emily Thornberry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Emily Thornberry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emily Thornberry on 2016-02-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many (a) Sea King HC4, (b) Wildcat, (c) Gazelle, (d) Apache, (e) Chinook HC2/3, (f) Puma HC2 and (g) Merlin Mk 3/3A helicopters were used for military flight training in each of the last six years.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    The following table shows the numbers of aircraft, broken down by type, for the previous six financial years:

    FY

    Sea King HC4

    Wildcat BRH Mk1

    Gazelle

    Apache

    Chinook HC2/3

    Puma HC2

    Merlin Mk 3/3A

    14-15

    2

    12

    4

    11

    4

    10

    2

    13-14

    2

    61

    3

    12

    8

    41

    2

    12-13

    2

    –

    4

    12

    10

    –

    2

    11-12

    2

    –

    2

    11

    10

    –

    2

    10-11

    2

    –

    3

    12

    11

    –

    2

    09-10

    2

    –

    6

    12

    15

    –

    2

    Note 1: Not in service before 2013-14.

    All Chinook HC2/2a aircraft have undergone modification with new cockpit avionics and are now HC4. In December 2015 there were 26 HC4 aircraft in the forward fleet and 12 in sustainment.

    The (eight) Chinook HC3 were all removed from the forward fleet last year and are undergoing modification with new cockpit avionics and a new digital automatic flight control system. Once modified, these aircraft become Chinook HC5.

    The Wildcat HMA MK2 entered service in January 2015, but was not used for training in that financial year as it was in a trials phase.

  • Gary Streeter – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Gary Streeter – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gary Streeter on 2016-03-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what plans the Government has to implement the recent UN General Assembly Resolution on an Olympic truce during the Rio 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

    James Duddridge

    The United Kingdom co-sponsored the General Assembly resolution “Building a peaceful and better world through sport and the Olympic ideal”, which calls for Member States to observe the Olympic Truce – a cessation of hostilities around the Olympic Games – within the framework of the Charter of the United Nations, and to promote peace through sport. As a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council, the UK already works to uphold the UN Charter and its commitment to the maintenance of international peace and security.

    For the 2012 Olympic Games in London the UK was the first ever nation to get all 193 UN Member States to sign the Olympic Truce. We are actively involved in building links between countries through sport. HM Government supported the successful London 2012 International Inspiration programme that reached 25m children in twenty countries through the power of sport and continues to support a range of other related initiatives around the world such as the British Council’s Premier Skills and Try Rugby programmes. Looking ahead to next year’s IAAF World Athletics Championships due to be hosted in London, the Government, through UK Sport, is supporting LEAP (Leadership and Excellence in Athletics Programme) which aims to develop youth athletics in a number of countries around the world.