Category: Speeches

  • Lord Pendry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Lord Pendry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Pendry on 2016-09-05.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Olympic Games in Rio, what steps they will take to encourage greater participation in sport in the UK, in particular among women and ethnic minorities.

    Baroness Chisholm of Owlpen

    The brilliant performance of Team GB at this year’s Olympic Games will have inspired many to take part in sport and physical activity. We are determined to get more people from under-represented groups including women and ethnic minorities taking part in sport and physical activity and to remove any barrier that prevents them from doing so. Government’s sport strategy ‘Sporting Future: A New Strategy for An Active Nation’ states that in future government will, via Sport England, support work designed to get more people from under-represented groups engaging in sport and physical activity and wherever possible, this focus on under-represented groups will run through all Sport England funding.

  • Hugo Swire – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Hugo Swire – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hugo Swire on 2016-10-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what support officials of his Department are providing for the Commonwealth Trade Ministers’ meeting in London in 2017.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    The UK will co-host this meeting with Malta in London next March. Officials are working closely with colleagues in the Department for International Trade and the Commonwealth Enterprise and Investment Council on the practical arrangements and how the meeting can be used to increase cooperation, break down trade barriers and improve trading environments.

  • Jim Shannon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Jim Shannon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2015-11-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what discussions he has had with the Royal Colleges on the availability of cancer treatments relating to genetically-edited immune cells.

    Jane Ellison

    There have been no discussions with the royal colleges on the availability of cancer treatments relating to genetically-edited immune cells.

  • Craig Whittaker – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Craig Whittaker – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Craig Whittaker on 2015-12-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps his Department is taking to work with sports clubs to discourage young people from taking performance enhancing drugs.

    Tracey Crouch

    Performance enhancing drugs remain a threat to the integrity of sport and the health and wellbeing of all our athletes. The Government supports the work of UK Anti-Doping which works tirelessly to ensure athletes and sport are clean. Through testing programmes, intelligence sharing with law-enforcement agencies on supplying and trafficking, and its excellent athlete education initiatives, UKAD is one of the world’s most highly regarded national anti-doping organisations.

  • Frank Field – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Frank Field – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2016-01-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what discussions her Department has had with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation on eradication of polio.

    Mr Nick Hurd

    The UK and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation are both committed to global polio eradication. The Secretary of State and officials from her Department have had a number of meetings with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to discuss polio. Officials also have regular policy discussions through both organisations’ participation on the Global Polio Oversight Board and its Finance and Accountability Committee.

    The UK is a top three donor to polio eradication, with a £300 million commitment from 2013 to 2018. UK support has been critical in bringing us one step closer to the finish line of a world free from polio, something people across the country can be immensely proud of.

  • Andrew Gwynne – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Andrew Gwynne – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Gwynne on 2016-02-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much his Department has paid out in compensation to (a) internal and (b) external claimants in each year since 2010.

    Alistair Burt

    The value of compensation payments made in each year since 2010* is outlined in the table below.

    Year Compensation paid

    Value of compensation paid to external claimants

    Value of compensation paid to internal claimants

    2014/15

    £211,000

    £173,750

    2013/14

    £3,648

    £0

    2012/13

    £17,825

    £250

    2011/12

    £0

    £0

    2010/11

    £0

    £0

    *2015/16 data is still being audited and will be available when the final accounts are published later this year.

  • Mrs Madeleine Moon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Mrs Madeleine Moon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mrs Madeleine Moon on 2016-03-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when the current contractor was appointed to run the facilities at the Atomic Weapons Establishment Aldermaston; when the next open competition for that contract will begin; and if he will make a statement.

    Michael Fallon

    The current contract for the management and operation of the Atomic Weapons Establishment, including the Aldermaston site, was awarded in 2000 following an open competition and will expire in 2025. No decision has been made on how any succeeding contract might be awarded.

  • Richard Burgon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Richard Burgon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burgon on 2016-03-23.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will publish and place in the Library his correspondence on the (a) sale of Government’s Dividend Access Share and (b) proposed sale of Government shares in Royal Bank of Scotland since August 2015.

    Harriett Baldwin

    HM Government reached an agreement with RBS and the European Commission on 9 April 2014 to amend the terms of the Dividend Access Share (DAS). The full terms of this agreement can be found on the European Commission’s website:

    http://europa.eu

    The first sale of Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) shares was conducted in August 2015. The advice which the Chancellor received from a) the Governor of the Bank of England; b) N.M. Rothschild; c) HM Treasury; and d) UK Financial Investments (UKFI) is available on the Government’s website:

    www.gov.uk.

    The government has not undertaken any sale of RBS shares since August 2015.

    “

  • Baroness Falkner of Margravine – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Baroness Falkner of Margravine – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Falkner of Margravine on 2016-05-04.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions they have had with the BBC World Service regarding the proposal to move the Chinese Language Service to Hong Kong.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    We did not hold discussions with the BBC World Service prior to their decision to move some Chinese Language Service posts to Hong Kong. Operational decisions of this nature are for the BBC to take independently of Government.

    The BBC has since advised that the entire service is not moving to Hong Kong but that there will be a change in the number of staff based in Hong Kong and London to allow more first-hand reporting in the region.

  • Baroness Burt of Solihull – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Baroness Burt of Solihull – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Burt of Solihull on 2016-06-20.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many staff of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills have (1) been made redundant, and (2) taken voluntary redundancy, in each of the last five years.

    Baroness Neville-Rolfe

    The number of employees of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills HQ who have (1) exited via a Compulsory Redundancy scheme, and (2) exited via a voluntary redundancy scheme, in each of the last five financial years (April to March) are shown in the table below.

    Year (Apr – Mar)

    Exited via a Compulsory Redundancy scheme

    Exited via a Voluntary Redundancy Scheme

    2011-12

    4

    93

    2012-13

    3

    2013-14

    2

    7

    2014-15

    7

    2015-16

    1

    Grand Total

    6

    111