Category: Speeches

  • Mark Hendrick – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Women and Equalities

    Mark Hendrick – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Women and Equalities

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Hendrick on 2016-07-07.

    To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what facilities are available for (a) lactating mothers and (b) the changing of babies in the Government Equalities Office.

    Caroline Dinenage

    The Government Equalities Office is based at Sanctuary Building, London which has a facility for both nursing mothers and baby changing located on the lower ground floor. This room is clearly signed as a baby changing area and contains a baby changing fold down work top, wipes, and chairs for nursing mothers to sit comfortably.

  • Baroness Humphreys – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Baroness Humphreys – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Humphreys on 2016-10-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what consideration they have given to allowing the parents of children born prematurely to nominate their child’s due date, rather than the actual date of birth, when applying for school places.

    Lord Nash

    We have announced our intention to support summer born children by allowing them to delay entry to the reception year until they are five and for those children to remain with that cohort as they progress through school.

    As part of this work we are giving careful consideration to how we can best implement any new arrangements we might put in place, and how we can best support premature children into school.

    We want to support these children in the best way we can, however, it is important that we take the time to consider the wider impact of any policy changes.

  • Andrew Smith – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Andrew Smith – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Smith on 2015-11-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policies of the report by Waging Peace on the use of rape as a weapon of war in the conflict in the Darfur region of Sudan.

    James Duddridge

    We remain acutely concerned by the use of sexual violence in Darfur as set out in this and other reports. It reinforces our policy approach of strong support for the presence of the African Union/United Nations Hybrid Mission operation in Darfur(UNAMID) and the need for the mission to have a strong mandate centred around protection of civilians. As a result, the UK led this year’s renewal of the operation’s Mandate to ensure it continues to operate across all the Darfuri states. We will continue to work with the mission, press for robust patrolling and encourage it to engage at the community level. We will also continue to urge the Government of Sudan to cooperate with the operation, and have consistently made clear to them that conditions on the ground must considerably improve before any moves towards the mission’s eventual exit can be made.

    At the same time, we continue – both bilaterally and through the UN’s Security and Human Rights Councils – to call on all armed actors to address sexual and gender-based violence in Darfur. The UK played a significant role in the adoption of Security Council Resolution 2242 reflecting the importance of Women, Peace and Security-related issues for the UN family. Bilaterally, we have provided support to over 150 survivors of rape in Darfur and contributed to the successful prosecution of members of the police and armed forces. We will remain active on these issues.

  • John Mann – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    John Mann – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Mann on 2015-12-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many crossings there are on the A1.

    Andrew Jones

    Highways England are responsible for about 705 road, foot, equestrian, river and farm bridge crossings of the A1 from the junction with the M25 to the England/Scotland border.

  • Baroness Coussins – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Baroness Coussins – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Coussins on 2016-01-21.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will intervene in the case of Momand Qais, an interpreter for the UK armed forces in Afghanistan from 2007 to 2009, whose application for asylum has been rejected, together with his appeal against that decision.

    Lord Bates

    The Home Office does not comment publicly on individual cases.

  • Lord Hylton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Lord Hylton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2016-02-10.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of whether the UN High Commissioner for Refugees has access to the refugees in camps at Calais and Dunkirk; and if not, whether they will discuss the matter with the government of France.

    Lord Bates

    The UK is in regular contact with France on all matters related to Calais and the migration situation, and engages with EU and multilateral partners, including the UN on a wide range of migration issues in order to find an effective and sustainable solution.

    The management of the migrant camps in Calais is the responsibility of the French Government. However, we understand that the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has made visits to the camps in Calais and Dunkirk, and we note the welcome given by the UNHCR to the joint declaration to address the issues in Calais signed by the UK and France on 20 August 2015.

  • Lord Falconer of Thoroton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Falconer of Thoroton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Falconer of Thoroton on 2016-03-07.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many British nationals (1) were murdered abroad, and (2) died as a result of terrorism abroad, in each year since 2010.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) does not hold information on the total number of UK nationals who are victims of murder and manslaughter overseas, because we can only capture information about those cases of which we are notified. However, we have provided assistance in the following number of cases, recorded as murder or manslaughter, from 2010 to 2016:

    2010 (68), 2011 (78), 2012 (53), 2013 (78), 2014 (84), 2015 (88).

    The number of British nationals killed as a result of terrorism are not captured separately and are included in the figures above. In January 2015, the FCO established a new dedicated team to lead on murder and manslaughter cases.

  • Jim Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Jim Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-04-13.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate his Department has made of the level of immigration in each of the next five years to inform its economic forecasts; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr David Gauke

    The data can be found in the Economic and Fiscal Outlook charts and tables – March 2016, under Chapter 5, Chart 5.6: Past and projected net migration to the UK, available here: http://budgetresponsibility.org.uk/efo/economic-fiscal-outlook-march-2016/

    “

  • David Mackintosh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Women and Equalities

    David Mackintosh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Women and Equalities

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Mackintosh on 2016-05-18.

    To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what recent steps she has taken to increase the number of women represented on the executive boards of FTSE 100 companies.

    Caroline Dinenage

    I am delighted that we exceeded Lord Davies’s target of 25% women on boards of the FTSE 100 last year. However, we know that there is more to be done, and we will support and promote Lord Davies’s recommendation for a business-led 33% target for FTSE 350 boards by 2020. That’s why we’ve appointed Sir Philip Hampton, Chair of GlaxoSmithKline, and Dame Helen Alexander, Chair of UBM plc, as Chair and Deputy Chair of a new review which will focus on increasing the number of women in the executive layer of the FTSE 350.

  • Lord Taylor of Warwick – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Lord Taylor of Warwick – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Taylor of Warwick on 2016-07-07.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the risk that leaving the EU could negatively affect the growth of startup companies in the UK.

    Baroness Neville-Rolfe

    There will be no immediate changes to the UK’s relationship with the EU, in the way goods can move or services can be sold.

    The Government is committed to ensuring that the UK remains open for business and continues to grow and thrive.