The below Parliamentary question was asked by Grahame Morris on 2015-10-27.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussions she has had with animal welfare groups on the mandatory use of CCTV in slaughterhouses.
George Eustice
On 3/2/15, the Farm Animal Welfare Committee (FAWC) published a report entitled “Opinion on CCTV in slaughterhouses”. I have had discussions with a number of animal welfare groups on the topic.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2015-11-23.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will make representations to the government of Egypt about the alleged involvement of Egyptian forces in the death at sea of Firas Miqdad, a fisherman from Gaza.
Baroness Anelay of St Johns
We are aware of reports of an incident on 5 November involving an Egyptian naval vessel and a Palestinian fishing vessel, leading to the death of the fisherman Firas Miqdad.
Details of the incident remain unclear. Foreign and Commonwealth Office officials will continue to monitor this case.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2016-01-06.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of the number of claimants of universal credit who will be affected by the changes to benefits taking effect from April 2016.
Priti Patel
The information requested is not available.
However, the latest statistics indicate that the majority of existing Universal Credit claimants will see no change in entitlement as a result of the April 2016 changes. This is either because they are not yet in work or because they are already in work with earnings above the relevant threshold.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Percy on 2016-01-26.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what support the Government has provided for post-conflict resolution in Papua New Guinea and Bougainville.
Mr Hugo Swire
Through our support to the United Nations Development Programme, we continue to provide funding for peace-building and post-conflict socio-economic recovery in Bougainville and more widely in Papua New Guinea. Earlier this month, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office invited a delegation of senior Bougainvillian leaders to London, Belfast and Edinburgh to share the United Kingdom’s experience of the Northern Ireland peace process and the Scottish referendum. The visit included a valuable discussion with the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association on these issues.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Austin on 2016-02-23.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 3 February 2016 to Question 25590, whether his Department has received a request from the Kurdistan Regional Government for replacement ammunition rounds for British-gifted heavy machine guns; and if he will make a statement.
Penny Mordaunt
The Kurdish Regional Government has made a number of recent requests to Her Majesty’s Government for further assistance, including for ammunition. These requests are currently under consideration and as set out in my Answer of 3 February 2016 to Question 25590. Should a decision be taken that we can provide further assistance, this would be notified to Parliament in the normal way.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Tonge on 2016-03-21.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether any of their projects in Cameroon, Nigeria or South Africa protect young girls from breast ironing.
Baroness Anelay of St Johns
The Government is concerned about the harmful practice of breast ironing in some Commonwealth and other African countries. Whilst there is little data on the number of girls suffering from this abuse, we have, for example, worked with the government and religious leaders in Cameroon on campaigns to raise awareness and to support community-led efforts to end breast ironing.
The Government condemns violence against women and girls in all its forms and places gender equality at the heart of our bilateral development programming. In Nigeria we are investing over £40 million to change harmful social norms towards women and girls, and to protect women and girls against violence. I raised these issues with the Government of Nigeria during my visit to the country in February. Baroness Verma, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary at the Department for International Development (DfID), discussed gender-based violence in South Africa in October 2015, including DfID’s support to the re-establishment of South Africa’s Sexual Offences Courts and its work with the African Prosecutor’s Association on research into preventing violence against women.
The manifestations of violence against women and girls may change but it is critical to address the structural causes of violence, including harmful beliefs and attitudes. We shall continue to work through diplomatic and development channels to engage with governments and local communities in Africa and beyond, to support the rights of women and girls, including ending harmful practices which constitute violence.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sharon Hodgson on 2016-04-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what proportion of school pupils aged 18 or under had either a Statement of Special Educational Needs or an Education, Health and Care Plan in each of the last five years.
Edward Timpson
The transition period from statements to Education, Health and Care plans (EHCPs) runs until April 2018. Every local authority has published an individual Local Transition Plan setting out the timings for transfers to the new system. We are monitoring local authority progress and published figures about transition up to January 2015, returned by local authorities, in the Special Educational Needs in England Statistical First Release of May 2015[1]. We will publish the figures up to January 2016 in May 2016.
The Department does not collect information on the number of children who are home educated. Some local authorities choose to maintain registers so that parents can voluntarily register children being educated at home.
The number and proportion of school pupils who had a Statement of Special Educational Needs or an EHCP in each of the last five years is as follows:
|
x |
2011 |
2012 |
2013 |
2014 |
2015 |
|
Pupils with statements or EHCPs |
224,210 |
226,125 |
229,390 |
232,190 |
236,165 |
|
Pupils on roll |
8,123,865 |
8,178,200 |
8,249,810 |
8,331,385 |
8,438,145 |
|
Incidence (%) |
2.8 |
2.8 |
2.8 |
2.8 |
2.8[2] |
The number of permanent and fixed period exclusions received by pupils with a Statement of Special Educational Needs in each of the last five years for which data is available is as follows:
|
x |
2009/10 |
2010/11 |
2011/12 |
2012/13 |
2013/14 |
|
Fixed period exclusions |
37,140 |
36,740 |
35,640 |
32,210 |
33,190 |
|
Permanent exclusions |
420 |
430 |
380 |
330 |
330[3] |
[1] https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/statistics-special-educational-needs-sen
[2] https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/special-educational-needs-in-england-january-2015
[3] https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/statistics-exclusions
“
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rachael Maskell on 2016-05-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether he plans to review the current time limits for abortion.
Jane Ellison
The Abortion Act 1967 sets out that an abortion may be carried out after 24 weeks gestation only where:
― the termination is necessary to prevent grave permanent injury to the physical or mental health of the pregnant woman Section 1(1)(b); or
― the continuance of the pregnancy would involve risk to the life of the pregnant woman, greater than if the pregnancy were terminated Section 1(1)(c); or
― there is a substantial risk that if the child were born it would suffer from such physical or mental abnormalities as to be seriously handicapped Section 1(1)(d).
In England and Wales it is accepted Parliamentary practice that proposals for changes to the Abortion Act come from backbench members and that decisions are made on the basis of free votes. The Government has no plans to review this legislation.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rosie Cooper on 2016-07-21.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, within what period for time a mandatory reconsideration must be completed for a personal independence payment application.
Penny Mordaunt
We introduced Mandatory Reconsideration to make the system as fair as possible for those going through it. It gives people the opportunity to present new evidence and to have their case looked at again.
The Department for Work and Pensions does not have a clearance time target for Mandatory Reconsiderations. Claimants have one calendar month from the date of their Personal Independence Payment (PIP) decision to request a Mandatory Reconsideration. Further information on Mandatory Reconsideration in PIP can be found at https://www.gov.uk/pip/appeals.
“
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-10-12.
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, how many civil servants work for his Department in EU member states excluding the United Kingdom; and if he will make a statement.
Greg Hands
I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Birmingham, Selly Oak on 13 October, UIN 47419 and 47396.