Category: Speeches

  • Lord Wallace of Tankerness – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Lord Wallace of Tankerness – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Wallace of Tankerness on 2016-02-10.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they have taken to support Bite the Ballot’s National Voter Registration Drive 2016, as well as the efforts by other organisations to engage and register (1) attainers, and (2) young voters, ahead of the elections in May and the EU referendum.

    Lord Bridges of Headley

    The introduction of online voter registration makes it easier and faster to register to vote. This provided a platform for Bite the Ballot’s National Voter Registration Drive 2016 which made heavy use of on digital media. The Government supported the initiative by encouraging government departments and relevant stakeholders such as local authorities to promote it. Since its introduction, three quarters of applications to register to vote were made online by people aged 16-24. As part of the week long activity, my Rt Hon. Friend the Minister for Constitutional Reform met with representatives of several faith organisations to discuss democratic participation.

  • Lord Jones of Cheltenham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Lord Jones of Cheltenham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Jones of Cheltenham on 2016-03-07.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Altmann on 2 March (HL6343), why Canada was excluded from the list of countries in Annex A, and what figure for the number of people in Canada in receipt of a frozen UK state pension should have been included.

    Baroness Altmann

    The information requested can be found at page 2 of Annex A, at line 5 of the table provided in the answer I gave on 3 March to (HL 6343). I attach that here at Annex A for convenience.

  • Greg Knight – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Greg Knight – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Knight on 2016-04-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when a British frigate or destroyer was last assigned to protect the Falkland Islands; whether there has been any change in his Department’s policy on the provision of such protection: and if he will make a statement.

    Penny Mordaunt

    The Atlantic Patrol Tasking (South) duty provides a tangible presence in the South Atlantic, maintaining a commitment to provide support and reassurance to British Overseas Territories in the region, including the Falkland Islands.

    The last frigate or destroyer in the vicinity of the Falkland Islands was the Type 23 frigate HMS LANCASTER; she completed this task in early December 2015.

    There has been no change to our policy. We continually review our security posture in the Falkland Islands, which remain defended by a range of military assets including the patrol vessel HMS CLYDE, a Royal Fleet Auxiliary support ship and around 1,200 UK personnel operating Royal Air Force Typhoon jets, ground defences and supporting infrastructure. In addition, other Royal Navy ships would be retasked to the Falkland Islands if required.

  • Graham Allen – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Graham Allen – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Graham Allen on 2016-05-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the effect will be on the pension entitlement of the Deputy Chief Constable of Nottinghamshire Police of her promotion to acting Chief Constable.

    Mike Penning

    The Home Office does not hold information about the personal pension entitlement of any individual police officer.

    Arrangements for the pensionable pay of chief officers on temporary promotion to a higher rank are set out in determinations made under the Police Regulations 2003. These state that after 28 days spent performing the duties of a chief constable, a deputy chief constable will be paid either a temporary salary (pensionable) at a rate equivalent to 90% of the higher rank’s basic pay or an honorarium (a non-pensionable payment) of an amount to be determined by the local policing body.

    Pensionable pay is taken into account in calculating pension contributions and pension benefits, whereas any non-pensionable payments are not.

  • Lord Storey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Lord Storey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Storey on 2016-07-07.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government when they expect to complete the training review, publication and roll-out of training programmes on the Preventing Sexual Violence Initiative, and the Women, Peace and Security Agenda, for training delivered (1) in the UK to military officers from overseas, and (2) to foreign military forces.

    Earl Howe

    Our Armed Forces already undertake high quality training on Women, Peace and Security (WPS) and the Preventing Sexual Violence Initiative (PSVI) but a training needs analysis (TNA), which will report shortly, is assessing the level of future WPS/PSVI training required for UK and overseas militaries. Every year around 150 military officers from more than 50 countries attend UK Defence Academy courses that include lectures on WPS; and students on the Advanced Command and Staff Course are offered an additional two week ‘elective’ on "Gender, War, and Armed Forces", which some of the overseas officers choose to attend.

    The Ministry of Defence (MOD) is also delivering WPS and PSVI in-country training to foreign militaries through the deployment of short term training teams and deployable experts, and via our overseas training establishments. The MOD is developing a standardised core syllabus for the training on WPS and PSVI delivered to foreign forces, which is expected to be finalised in January 2017. Building on the core syllabus, the training is then theatre-specific and tailored to the needs of troops being deployed, based on the level of training they have already received.

    The MOD does not routinely publish its training materials but, as part of an accreditation process, it will share course materials with allies in NATO, the European Union, and the United Nations.

  • Baroness Hollins – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Baroness Hollins – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

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

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many respondents to the first consultation on reforming housing benefit for supported housing in 2011 considered the idea of a localised pot to support the right of disabled people to live independently.

    Lord Freud

    The consultation in 2011 sought views on a wide variety of options, and received a range of viewpoints, reflecting the diversity of the sector. It did not consider whether localised funding would support the right of disabled people to live independently.

  • Catherine West – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Catherine West – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine West on 2015-10-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many (a) starter and (b) affordable homes the Government plans to build over the next five years.

    Brandon Lewis

    The Government is committed to building 200,000 starter homes over the course of this Parliament to provide affordable homes for purchase with 20% discount are available to first time buyers under 40.

    The Government remains committed to delivering 275,000 new affordable homes between 2015 and 2020. This means we will build more new affordable homes than during any equivalent period in the last twenty years.

  • Andy Slaughter – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Andy Slaughter – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2015-11-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many assaults in which the victims was transgender were recorded in prisons in the last 12 months.

    Caroline Dinenage

    This information is not held centrally and as my Honourable Friend, the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Prisons, Probation and Rehabilitation, committed to the House on 20 November, my Department will publish data on the number of trans people in prison in due course.

  • John Mann – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Prime Minister

    John Mann – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Prime Minister

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

    To ask the Prime Minister, which types of French cheeses have been served at events in 10 Downing Street in the last five years.

    Mr David Cameron

    This information is not held.

  • Lord Freyberg – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Lord Freyberg – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Freyberg on 2016-01-21.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many (1) definitive, and (2) actionable, diagnoses are made for every 1,000 genomes sequenced as part of the rare disease arm of 100,000 Genomes Project; and how many diagnoses they estimate would have been made if the Project were run using (1) whole, and (2) medical, exome technology; and if those estimates are not available, why not.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    The 100,000 Genomes Project is not intended to provide definitive or actionable findings from whole genome sequencing. This is the responsibility of the National Health Service Genomic Medicine Centres based on interpretation reports provided by Genomics England. To date approximately 20 reports have been issued based on the initial interpretation of the pilot phase genome data. It is not possible to estimate the comparison between whole genome and exome methods for these patients. That is because the eligibility criteria for patients to be invited to participate in the 100,000 Genomes Project require that they remain undiagnosed after standard NHS diagnostic tests.