Category: Speeches

  • Chris Heaton-Harris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Chris Heaton-Harris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Heaton-Harris on 2016-03-02.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many individuals recorded in (a) HM Revenue and Customs’ and (b) the Department of Work and Pension’s computer systems who were nationals of another EEA member country at time of registration for a National Insurance (NI) number and are recorded as having arrived in the last four years using the earlier of his or her arrival date or NI number registration date have either (i) paid NI contributions over the previous year, (ii) paid PAYE income tax over the previous year and (iii) claimed benefits or tax credits over the previous year.

    Mr David Gauke

    I refer the honourable members to the recent HMRC release.

    https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/tax-credit-statistics-on-eea-nationals

    “

  • Lord Stevenson of Balmacara – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Lord Stevenson of Balmacara – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Stevenson of Balmacara on 2016-03-23.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the not-for-profit company that sets and co-ordinates the 11 plus exam in Buckinghamshire is subject to the public sector equality duty.

    Lord Nash

    The Department for Education holds no responsibility for the 11 plus exams. These are commercial products which local authorities and independent schools implement at their discretion.

    The 11 plus exam, or newly-named ‘Transfer Test’, in Buckinghamshire is developed by the Centre for Evaluation and Monitoring (CEM) at the University of Durham, which is an independent educational supplier. Private and voluntary organisations are subject to the public sector equality duty under the Equality Act 2010 when they carry out public functions. The duty may therefore apply to CEM’s public functions only, but the Department cannot advise on this.

  • Richard Burden – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Richard Burden – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-05-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many UK seafarer (a) officers and (b) ratings employed in the offshore supply vessel sector have been made redundant in each month since June 2015.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    We do not hold this information.

  • Jeremy Lefroy – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Jeremy Lefroy – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jeremy Lefroy on 2016-06-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what research and development her Department is funding into the potential role of agroforestry in improving soil health and condition and prevention of erosion.

    Mr Nick Hurd

    The Department for International Development supports a number of research programmes that assess the use of agroforestry to promote soil health and prevent as well as reduce erosion. This includes, for example, work with the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) and the global Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security research programme (CCAFS).

    My Department also supports a wide range of development programmes with agro-ecological components, from agroforestry, soil and water conservation, land use management to climate resilience and conservation agriculture. These include, for example, The Adaptation for Smallholder Agriculture Programme (ASAP), and Building Resilience and Adaptation to Climate Extremes and Disasters (BRACED). The full range of our programmes can be found on our Development Tracker website.

  • Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2016-09-05.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of North Korea’s launch of three ballistic missiles on 5 September.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea’s (DPRK) ballistic missile launches of 5 September are a clear violation of multiple UN Security Council Resolutions (UNSCRs). The DPRK’s repeated provocations in 2016 are a threat to regional stability and international security. The UN Security Council statement of 6 September, which the UK fully supports, clearly demonstrates that the international community is united and will not tolerate this destabilising behaviour. We urge the DPRK to abide by UNSCRs and return to credible and authentic discussions on its nuclear and ballistic missile programme.

  • Mark Durkan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Mark Durkan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Durkan on 2016-10-20.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many tax credits were stopped by HM Revenue and Customs during the week commencing (a) 8 and (b) 15 August 2016.

    Jane Ellison

    Between 1 August 2016 and 31 August 2016 HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) automatically stopped 365,483 tax credit claims as a direct result of customers failing to comply with the requirements of the annual renewal process.

    Alongside the annual renewal process, HMRC records the number of awards that have been amended, which could be stopped, reduced or increased. Therefore, data showing the total number of claims stopped following a compliance intervention is unavailable.

    During the course of the contract, HMRC delegated a total caseload of 2,209,500 cases for high risk renewal checks by Concentrix. Of these 1,635,676 cases were not the subject of further investigation for fraud or error by Concentrix. This amounts to 74% of the total caseload.

    The volume of high risk renewals referred to Concentrix are broken down into the three risk categories as follows:

    • Undeclared Partner: 1,398,908

    • Work & Hours: 564,983

    • Child Care: 245,609

  • Hilary Benn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Hilary Benn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2015-11-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what his Department’s expenditure against Departmental Expenditure Limits is in 2015-16; and what his Department’s Annually Managed Expenditure in 2015-16 was (a) at the time of the March Budget, (b) at the time of the Summer Budget and (c) on 10 November 2015.

    Mr Philip Hammond

    Audited spend information for 2015-16 will not be available until the FCO Accounts are published after the end of the financial year. Audited departmental outturn for 2014-15 against both Departmental Expenditure Limits and Annually Managed Expenditure is published in the FCO Annual Report and Accounts which has been placed in the Library of the House of Commons.

  • Jonathan Ashworth – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Jonathan Ashworth – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jonathan Ashworth on 2015-12-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, on how many occasions a special adviser in his Department accompanied a Minister on an overseas trip since May 2015.

    Caroline Dinenage

    As has been the case under successive Administrations, civil servants, including special advisers, may routinely accompany their Ministers on official visits.

    All ministerial travel is undertaken in accordance with the Ministerial Code.

  • Norman Lamb – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Norman Lamb – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Norman Lamb on 2016-01-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what progress he has made on the creation of a new role for a part-time neuromuscular psychologist at the Colman Centre in Norwich.

    Jane Ellison

    NHS England advises that the post of neuromuscular psychologist is a specialised service, for which NHS England is the responsible commissioner.

    We understand that Norfolk Community Health and Care NHS Trust has yet to submit a business case to NHS England for the post.

  • Corri Wilson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Corri Wilson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Corri Wilson on 2016-02-05.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has target times for responding to written correspondence from members of the public; and what change there has been in the volume of written correspondence to HMRC from the public seeking information or assistance over the last three years.

    Mr David Gauke

    HM Revenue and Customs’ (HMRC) targets for responding to written correspondence received via post are to reply to 80% within 15 working days and 95% within 40 working days.

    The volume of written correspondence received by HMRC has decreased over the past three years, and is currently at around one million items per month. HMRC regularly publishes general performance reports on Gov.uk.