The below Parliamentary question was asked by Cheryl Gillan on 2016-02-02.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if his Department will instigate a national public awareness campaign about sepsis.
Ben Gummer
My Rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health asked Public Health England (PHE) to review the evidence and make recommendations on the scope for a public-facing campaign to raise awareness of Sepsis. PHE will publish its evidence-based review shortly.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-02-26.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what proportion of Syrian refugees resettled under the Vulnerable Persons Resettlement Programme were previously resident in another country before Syria.
Richard Harrington
We do not monitor whether a resettled person has ever previously been resident in another country apart from Syria and their host country. All refugees resettled under the Syrian Vulnerable Persons Resettlement (VPR) Scheme are Syrian nationals.
The UN High Commissioner for Refugees identifies and proposes Syrian refugees for the VPR scheme from among the whole of the registered refugee population in the region, over 4 million people. This includes people in formal refugee camps, informal settlements and host communities in Turkey, Jordan, Lebanon, Iraq and Egypt
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2016-03-21.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, pursuant to the Answer of 18 March 2016 to Question 30689, when his Department plans to publish the declaration of actual or potential conflicts of interest made by Paul Newby for the role of Pubs Code Adjudicator.
Anna Soubry
The appointment panel satisfied itself there were no conflicts of interest when they made recommendations to ministers in relation to the appointment of the Pubs Code Adjudicator.
The Department does not intend to publish any information provided by candidates during this appointment process.
In due course and as is usual practice, the Adjudicator’s office will publish a register of interests.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by David T. C. Davies on 2016-04-26.
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what steps she is taking to keep coal plants open.
Andrea Leadsom
Decisions on plant closures are commercial matters for the plant owners. However, we recently consulted on changes to the Capacity Market, which included proposals for an early Capacity Market auction for the 2017/18 delivery year to mitigate the security of supply impact of potential early plant closures. If we go ahead with this proposal, coal plants will be eligible to participate.
On 18 November we announced plans to close all unabated coal-fired power stations by 2025. Achieving this goal would make the UK one of the first developed countries to deliver on a commitment to take coal off the system. However, we have been clear that we would only proceed with these plans if we are confident that the shift to new gas generation can be achieved within these timescales.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Zac Goldsmith on 2016-06-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether his Department has extended to the British Overseas Territories of St Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha the (a) International Convention on Civil Liability for Oil Pollution Damage 1969, (b) 1992 Protocol to the International Convention on the Establishment of an International Fund for Compensation for Oil Pollution Damage, (c) 2010 Protocol to the International Convention on Liability and Compensation for Damage in Connection with the Carriage of Hazardous and Noxious Substances by Sea, (d) International Convention on Civil Liability for Bunker Oil Pollution Damage 2001, (e) International Convention on Oil Pollution Preparedness, Response and Co-operation 1990 and (f) 1997 Protocol to the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships 1973.
James Duddridge
Only the 1992 Protocol to the International Convention on the Establishment of an International Fund for Compensation for Oil Pollution Damage has been extended to St Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha. Information on all treaties that have been extended to the UK Overseas Territories can be found at: http://treaties.fco.gov.uk/
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Monaghan on 2016-09-02.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of excluding Scotland from the scope of the net migration target.
Mr Robert Goodwill
Our immigration system is designed to work for the whole of the UK and surveys show that people in Scotland want to see net migration reduced. We have a Scotland-specific Shortage Occupation List to accommodate skills shortages which are specific to Scotland. Applying substantially different immigration rules to different parts of the UK would complicate the immigration system, harming its integrity, and cause confusion for applicants and difficulties for employers who need the flexibility to deploy their staff to other parts of the UK.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Murray on 2016-10-17.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when he plans to publish the response to the Government’s consultation on section 75 employer debt in pension funds, published in March 2015.
Richard Harrington
My Department is currently considering further changes to employer debt legislation, following a Call for Evidence about section 75 employer debt in non-associated multi-employer schemes last year with a view to consulting on any specific proposals in due course.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2015-11-03.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the size of the current account balance in 2014.
Mr David Gauke
The current account deficit in 2014 was 5.1% of GDP, with this net borrowing from the rest of the world helping fund the budget deficit. The Government’s plan to repair the public finances through fiscal consolidation should in turn improve the current account deficit, as set out in the latest forecasts of the Office for Budget Responsibility.
The Government is also working to boost UK exports, including a £20m package of support for first time exporters and working alongside a more effective UKTI and better export finance.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nigel Dodds on 2015-12-01.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the Pet Travel Scheme in tackling pet smuggling.
George Eustice
The carriers which carry out checks to ensure pets animals are compliant with Pet Travel Scheme rules are audited by the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) and the results show that they are performing satisfactorily. In 2014, APHA audited close to 6,000 pets. Of these only 0.9% of the pets were found not to comply with the entry rules. These pets were either detained until their compliance could be established, re-exported or placed into quarantine.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gregory Campbell on 2016-01-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will make representations to the government of Laos on the treatment of the Christian minority in that country.
Mr Hugo Swire
We raise human rights concerns on a regular basis with the Lao government both bilaterally and through multilateral fora. As part of Laos’ Universal Periodic Review process starting in January 2015, and the EU-Laos Human Rights Dialogue in November 2015, we raised concerns regarding restrictions on the right to freedom of religion or belief. We will continue to look for opportunities to work with the Lao government to implement its human rights obligations and commitments, including those regarding respect for the rights of religious minorities.