The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Vinson on 2016-10-03.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they intend to classify the cost of armed intervention to achieve regime change as overseas aid.
Lord Bates
No – the use of Official Development Assistance (ODA) for general military activities is circumscribed; ODA can only be used in well-defined training on a limited list of topics consistent with development objectives, for example in human rights and humanitarian law.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Graham Jones on 2015-10-29.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many independent tribunals have been brought to challenge mandatory reconsiderations of tax credits by Concentrix in each month since that company has been under contract with his Department.
Damian Hinds
The following table outlines the number of applications HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) received from HM Court and Tribunal Service (HMCTS) as a result of a mandatory reconsideration decision made by Concentrix.
|
Month |
Number of applications HMRC received from HMCTS following a mandatory reconsideration decision made by Concentrix |
|
March 2015 |
3 |
|
April 2015 |
1 |
|
May 2015 |
6 |
|
June 2015 |
5 |
|
July 2015 |
3 |
|
August 2015 |
3 |
|
September 2015 |
19 |
Prior to March 2015 HMRC did not receive any applications from HMCTS challenging a mandatory reconsideration decision made by Concentrix.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nicola Blackwood on 2015-11-26.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how much of his Department’s funding allocated in the Spending Review 2015 will be for research and development expenditure up to 2020.
Mike Penning
The amount of funding allocated for research and development will be determined through the Ministry of Justice’s internal budget setting process. This process has not yet concluded so the amount is not known.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tulip Siddiq on 2015-12-11.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many people took up ESOL Plus Mandation courses in each year such courses were available.
Nick Boles
An estimated 5,060 people in 13/14 and 20,530 in 14/15 were mandated to ESOL under the English Language Requirement policy.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Redfern on 2016-01-21.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to ensure that departments assist projects such as the British Coatings Federation’s PaintCare project.
Lord Gardiner of Kimble
The Government welcomes the PaintCare initiative and is working constructively with the British Coating Federation in relation to several aspects of the project. This includes identifying potential regulatory barriers to the recycling and re-manufacturing of paint and how these might be overcome, as well as providing opportunities to raise awareness of the potential benefits of PaintCare, for example at the G7 Alliance for Resource Efficiency conference in Berlin last October.
My Hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs), spoke at the Parliamentary launch of PaintCare’s interim report in November. The Waste and Resources Action Programme has also been working with PaintCare to provide information to consumers on how to recycle and dispose of household paint, through the Recycle Now campaign.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Gwynne on 2016-02-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what plans her Department has to ensure that the smart meter roll-out is used as an opportunity to engage with householders on the issue of carbon monoxide safety.
Andrea Leadsom
Energy suppliers are responsible for installing smart meters in their domestic customers’ premises. It is, a condition of their licence that energy suppliers must comply with the Smart Meter Installation Code of Practice, which is regulated by Ofgem:
http://www.smicop.co.uk/SitePages/Home.aspx
The Code states that the installer should inform the customer about the dangers of carbon monoxide (CO) and the need to regularly have all gas appliances serviced and checked by a Gas Safe Registered engineer.
“
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Luce on 2016-03-07.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government when they plan to make a decision on the resettlement and future of the Chagossian people, and whether Parliament will be consulted in advance of that decision.
Baroness Anelay of St Johns
The Government is considering all relevant advice and material, including the recent independent feasibility study published in February 2015, and the results of the public consultation, published in January this year. The consultation period has now ended. The Government hopes to make a decision soon.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nic Dakin on 2016-04-13.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to paragraph 3.35 of Educational excellence everywhere, Cm 9230, if she will issue guidance on levels of remuneration for non-executive academy trust directors.
Edward Timpson
Academy trusts are independent charities and must comply with charity law. This means that trust directors can only receive payment for carrying out trustee duties with Charity Commission authorisation.
The Charity Commission will only authorise payment to academy trustees where it has been clearly shown to be in the charity’s interests. They will consider issues such as the reasons for payment, whether conflicts of interests are managed appropriately, whether the Principal Regulator (for academies this is the Secretary of State for Education) is agreeable and whether payment of any trustees is in the longer-term interests of the charity. These arrangements are set out in the Department’s Governance Handbook, available on GOV.UK at: www.gov.uk/government/publications/governance-handbook. It is up to trusts to decide on the level of any such remuneration.
Academy trusts operate under a robust accountability system which holds them to account for the results they achieve and their use of resources. This includes a requirement to publish audited accounts each year allowing the wider public chance to hold academy trusts to account to help make sure that spend is securing better outcomes for pupils.
“
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-05-23.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress his Department has made on developing a scheme to publish pass rates of instructors as set out in his Department’s Motoring Services Strategy; and how much funding he has allocated to that project.
Andrew Jones
The proposal to publish pass rates of Approved Driving Instructors forms part of the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency’s broader plans to improve overall standards and transparency.
The Agency has been exploring with the ADI National Association Strategic Partnership (NASP) the development of a voluntary ‘earned recognition’ scheme which would acknowledge and recognise the extent to which Approved Driving Instructors are compliant with regulations and/or adopting high professional standards.
The Agency will want to discuss the voluntary publication of pass rates with NASP as part of their ongoing discussions. Once the scope of the proposals has been determined appropriate funding will be allocated to the overall programme of reforms.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rachel Reeves on 2016-07-06.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the cost to the Exchequer has been of reductions to corporation tax since 2010.
Mr David Gauke
Overall cuts delivered to corporation tax will be worth almost £15bn a year to business by the end of this Parliament. This has enabled businesses to increase investment, take on new staff, increase wages, or reduce prices.
Official costings of any policy announcements can be found in Budget or Autumn Statement documents. The cost of the cut to 17% for instance can be found here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/budget-2016-documents/budget-2016#policy-decisions