Category: Speeches

  • Kevin Brennan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Kevin Brennan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevin Brennan on 2016-03-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many shop workers were assaulted in each of the last six months for which figures are available.

    Mr John Hayes

    The data requested is not available broken down by month. However, the Home Office runs an annual Commercial Victimisation Survey (CVS) which asks business premises in different sectors about their experience of various crime types, including assaults and threats (a combined category) in the last year.

    In 2014, the most recent year for which figures are available, there were around 410,000 assaults and threats against businesses in the wholesale and retail sector. The 2015 figures will be published on 28th April.

    The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) also publish annual figures on the number of violent incidents in the workplace based on findings from the Crime Survey for England and Wales. However, this information is not available just for shops. According to the 2013/14 crime survey, there were an estimated 583,000 incidents of violence at work, comprising 269,000 assaults and 314,000 threats. HSE will publish figures for 2014/15 on 31st March.

  • Hilary Benn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Hilary Benn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2016-04-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether he has received any reports of (a) violence against opposition officials, candidates and activists and (b) intimidation of journalists during the Parliamentary elections taking place in Serbia.

    Mr Philip Hammond

    Elections took place in Serbia on 24 April. The Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) deployed a 22 person election monitoring mission and we and other countries fielded additional observers. We await final reports and ODIHR’s full and thorough assessment of the fairness and conduct of yesterday’s elections.

  • Paul Monaghan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Paul Monaghan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Monaghan on 2016-05-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will summon the ambassador of Turkey to explain why the Co-chair of the Democratic Regions Party, Kamuran Yuksek, has been arrested and charged with being a member of a terrorist organisation.

    Mr David Lidington

    The PKK continues to mount deadly terrorist attacks in Turkey, particularly in the country’s south-east. In the course of security operations in that region, a number of Democratic Regions Party officials have been detained, including Kamuran Yuksek. We regularly urge the Turkish authorities to respect human rights, including the right to freedom of expression, in the course of anti-terror operations, and to support the rule of law. We will continue to monitor these issues closely.

  • Baroness Tonge – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Baroness Tonge – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Tonge on 2016-07-19.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the progress of the UN Population Fund Supplies programme.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    As with all programmes in which DFID invests, the UNFPA Supplies programme is subject to thorough Annual Reviews, which were conducted in December 2014 and again in December 2015. The programme has expanded from 12 to 46 focus countries and has been found to be achieving value for money in procurement of contraceptive commodities. The recommendations from these Annual Reviews are being taken forward with UNFPA.

  • Justin Madders – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Justin Madders – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Justin Madders on 2016-10-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the sign-off process is for sustainability and transformation plans.

    David Mowat

    The Sustainability and Transformation Plans (STPs) are being developed by local areas. National Health Service providers, commissioners, local authorities, and other health and care services are coming together to propose how they, at local level, can close the health and wellbeing, care and quality and financial gaps. These plans are locally owned, but will be shared with the national health and care bodies, chiefly NHS England and NHS Improvement, so the national bodies can best develop support to enable footprints to deliver their plans. The National bodies have also published guidance on the STP process.

    NHS England and NHS Improvement will continue to work closely with STP areas to provide them with support and expertise to develop robust plans which will meet the objectives set out in the Mandate. STPs will form the basis for operational planning for 2017/18 and 2018/19, which will be subject to NHS Improvement and NHS England assurance processes.

    The local organisations will also be leading public engagement processes on their STP plans, in line with the engagement guidance.

  • Emily Thornberry – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Emily Thornberry – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emily Thornberry on 2015-11-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent discussions Ministers in his Department have had with representatives of mental health charities on the design of contracts for new welfare to work schemes.

    Justin Tomlinson

    DWP Ministers meet regularly with a wide range of organisations in relation to the Department’s work and welfare reform, where they discuss a variety of issues.

  • Diana Johnson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Diana Johnson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Diana Johnson on 2015-12-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many press and public relations staff are employed by (a) his Department, (b) the Planning Inspectorate, (c) the Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre, (d) the Housing Ombudsman, (e) the Homes and Communities Agency, (f) the Leasehold Advisory Service and (g) the Local Government Ombudsman; how many of these employees earn more than (i) £50,000 and (ii) £100,000; and what the total expenditure was on press and public relations by each of those organisations in the most recent year for which figures are available.

    Brandon Lewis

    The Government communications profession saved £330 million for taxpayers last year compared to 2009 to 2010 by making its campaigns more cost effective.

    This means that we reduced the Government communications spending by a total of £1 billion during the last Parliament.

    The Department employs 17 full time equivalent Press Officers, including the Head of External Communications.Two staff members earn more than £50,000. No staff member earns more than £100,000.

    In 2014-15 the Department’s non-staff press spend was £266,235. We expect the full year expenditure in 2015-16 to be approximately £150,000.

    The Department has spent nothing on external public relations from 2010-11 to 2015-16.

    The Planning Inspectorate employs one senior communications officer who has responsibility for media handling as well as other communication related activities. Salary costs are below £50,000. Given the nature of its role, the Inspectorate does not undertake any media campaigns or marketing of its services.

    The Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre does undertake some public relations spending in its capacity as a commercial trading fund to generate sales leads for the venue. It does not have an in-house press office. It spent £36,000 in 2014-15. This spending is fully covered by the revenues from commercial bookings. It does not employ any press or public relations staff.

    The Housing Ombudsman does not employ any press or public relations staff or haverelated press spend.

    There are no staff at the Homes and Communities Agency who are primarily employed as media and public relations professionals. However there are 10.74 Full Time Equivalent staff who, to varying degrees, undertake some media and PR activity. Two of these staff earn more than £50,000; none earn more than £100,000. Expenditure on press and public relations at the Agency, January to December 2015, was £14,537.26.

    Leasehold Advisory Service does not employ any press or public relations staff or have any related press spend.

    The Local Government Ombudsman has one member of press or public relations staff. Their salary is less than £50,000. They spent £500 printing their Annual Report.

  • Lord Boateng – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Boateng – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Boateng on 2016-01-28.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the state of the rule of law in Burundi, the need for security sector reform and the role of development assistance in addressing any deficits in this regard.

    Earl of Courtown

    The UK is deeply concerned by the situation in Burundi. At least 130 people were killed in December 2015 alone. We are aware of 250 cases of torture/ill treatment and 13 documented cases of sexual violence. The UK has also been deeply concerned to hear of allegations that the police and the Burundian ruling party’s youth league are involved in the violence, including sexual violence. These reports demonstrate that the rule of law is in a fragile state in Burundi.

    Given this, there is a critical need for security sector reform (SSR) in Burundi. The African Union (AU) has authorised a protection mission to Burundi if Burundian consent is obtained. If the mission is deployed the UK will provide financial and logistical support. However, the UK’s current focus is to see progress in the Ugandan-mediated East African Community dialogue. Without dialogue, SSR will bear little fruit.

    The UK does not currently have a bilateral aid programme with Burundi; however, the Department for International Development is providing £18.15 million to support Burundian refugees in the region, making the UK the second largest contributor to the humanitarian effort after the US.

    The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my hon. Friend the Member for Rochford and Southend East (James Duddridge), visited Burundi in mid-December 2015 where he pressed the Government to engage in inclusive dialogue to end the violence. He again pressed the Foreign Minister for action when they met at the recent AU Summit. The summit also provided an opportunity to lobby a range of AU members on the importance of regional leadership in resolving the situation in Burundi.

  • Sadiq Khan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Sadiq Khan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sadiq Khan on 2016-02-22.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many properties in (a) England and Wales, (b) London and (c) each London Borough are registered with the Land Registry (i) in total and (ii) to off-shore companies.

    Anna Soubry

    The relevant data is attached.

  • Andy Slaughter – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Andy Slaughter – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2016-03-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to ensure that defendants do not break bail conditions due to contact with people that those conditions do not allow when travelling to court.

    Mike Penning

    We have a range of special measures in place to support vulnerable witnesses and victims when they are giving evidence. These include the option of giving evidence from a remote location away from the court via live link, which significantly limits the risk of a witness coming into contact with a defendant or their supporters. This will mean victims of crime can give evidence from somewhere they feel safe.

    The Ministry of Justice also funds the delivery of the court-based Witness Service, delivered by Citizens Advice at all criminal courts in England and Wales. The Service has developed an enhanced package of support to vulnerable and intimidated witnesses (including victims). This enhanced level of support includes both support at court and pre-trial support and an outreach service offering home visits or meetings, in advance of trial, at Citizens Advice offices or another neutral and appropriate location, and meeting the witness outside the court and accompanying them inside. This enhanced service is being rolled out nationally and will be available in all areas by end of April 2016.

    The court can impose any bail condition necessary to ensure that a defendant does not interfere with a witness. If a bail condition is broken, this will have consequences for the offender, including the possibility of a remand into custody.