Category: Speeches

  • Lord Storey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Lord Storey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Storey on 2016-06-29.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what funding contingencies are in place in the event that the UK exiting the EU results in a drop in foreign nationals studying in Britain and Northern Ireland.

    Baroness Evans of Bowes Park

    We remain an EU member until the time we complete successful exit negotiations, with all the rights and obligations that derive from this. The UK has, and will continue to have, a world-class education system that attracts students from across the world including the EU.

  • The Lord Bishop of Durham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The Lord Bishop of Durham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Lord Bishop of Durham on 2016-09-08.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what financial and diplomatic assistance they are providing to the East African Community and the UN to support them in their efforts to reduce existing tensions between the governments of Burundi and Rwanda.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    The East African Community (EAC) has a central role to play in resolving the crisis in Burundi and mediating dialogue between Burundi and its neighbours. We strongly support the EAC mediation process, led by former Tanzanian President Benjamin Mkapa. We have provided extensive diplomatic support to the process through lobbying of regional leaders and attendance by our Special Envoy to the Great Lakes at meetings of the dialogue in May and July in Arusha, Tanzania.

    Through our UN Security Council Membership we have worked with partners to ensure that EAC efforts are fully coordinated with, and supported by, the United Nations. In January 2016 our Ambassador to the United Nations participated in a Security Council visit to Burundi. In July the Security Council passed Resolution 2303 which welcomed the EAC’s efforts so far and called for all parties in the region to participate fully with the process.

  • Alex Cunningham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Alex Cunningham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2015-11-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of partial restrictions on the use of lead ammunition for reducing the incidence of lead poisoning; and what comparative assessment she has made of the effectiveness of that policy and those in place in other jurisdictions.

    Rory Stewart

    The Government is considering the independent Lead Ammunition Group’s report on the effect of lead shot on human and wildlife health and will respond as soon as possible.

    The Food Standards Agency has produced advice on the consumption of lead shot game which can be accessed at https://www.food.gov.uk/science/advice-to-frequent-eaters-of-game-shot-with-lead.

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  • Roger Godsiff – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Roger Godsiff – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2015-12-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment his Department has made of the potential effect of the measures proposed in clause 13 of the Welfare Reform and Work Bill on claimants with (a) Parkinson’s disease and (b) other incurable and degenerative conditions.

    Priti Patel

    The Government set out its assessment of the impacts of the policies in Bill on 20th July.

    Ministers have considered impacts with regard to all relevant legal obligations when formulating the welfare policies announced in the Bill.

  • Steven Paterson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Steven Paterson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steven Paterson on 2016-01-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, to which countries of the UK his Department’s target to halve the disability employment gap during the current Parliament applies.

    Justin Tomlinson

    Employment is a reserved matter. Progress towards halving the disability employment gap is a key part of our aim to achieve full employment across the whole of the UK. This is consistent with the Government’s manifesto commitment which said ‘as part of our objective to achieve full employment, we will aim to halve the disability employment gap’.

  • Karl Turner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Attorney General

    Karl Turner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Attorney General

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Karl Turner on 2016-02-09.

    To ask the Attorney General, whether he has made an assessment of the potential effect of the UK leaving the EU on the application and implementation of the European Arrest Warrant.

    Jeremy Wright

    At the February European Council the Government negotiated a new settlement, giving the United Kingdom a special status in a reformed European Union. The Government’s view is that the UK will be stronger, safer and better off remaining in a reformed EU.

  • Lilian Greenwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Lilian Greenwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lilian Greenwood on 2016-03-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 5 February 2016 to Question 25499, how many of the speed cameras referred to in that Answer had been painted grey on the latest date for which figures are available.

    Andrew Jones

    We have currently converted five camera sites from grey paint to yellow and we are on track for all working motorway speed cameras to be yellow by October 2016.

  • Craig Tracey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Craig Tracey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Craig Tracey on 2016-04-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will take steps to ensure that all health and social care staff involved in providing care to children and young people with life-shortening conditions receive specialist training.

    Ben Gummer

    A review of the allocation methodology of the annual children’s hospice grant is being considered to support an equitable, transparent and evidence based formula making use of data from all children’s hospices in 2016/17. The aim is to provide clear advice to hospices on the grant for 2016/17 and a proposed way forward to review the formula and how hospices can contribute to that process.

    Adult hospices, including voluntary sector hospices, receive on average around a third of their funding from the National Health Service and it is for local commissioners to ensure that the services they commission meet the needs of their local populations, including in end of life care.

    Clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) have responsibility for ensuring that they are meeting the needs of those requiring children’s palliative care services, considering the full range of local provision, both statutory and voluntary sectors, and the wishes of children and young people and their families. CCGs will need to make sure that they provide information on the support available locally for children with palliative care needs and their families.

    Many maternity units have specialist bereavement midwives and dedicated bereavement suites to support parents but we know that this support is not available in every unit and we are currently considering the actions that we can take to improve bereavement services further. For families of older children and young people chaplaincy services may be able to provide support.

    It is the responsibility of the professional regulators to set the standards and outcomes for education and training and approve training curricula to ensure newly qualified healthcare professionals are equipped with the knowledge, skills and attitudes to provide high quality patient care. It is the responsibility of employers to ensure staff receive appropriate development to deliver safe and effective healthcare. This includes training in providing care to children and young people with life-shortening conditions.

  • Andrew Rosindell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Andrew Rosindell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2016-05-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he is taking to encourage more businesses to sign the Armed Forces Covenant.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    The Ministry of Defence recognises the value of open, mutually beneficial relationships with employers, which is why we have introduced professionalised employer engagement at the national and regional level.

    The relationships we are building show that supporting the Armed Forces community is not only the right thing for employers to do, but can also yield tangible business benefits. Showing support by signing the Armed Forces Covenant can enhance the reputation of a company and attract the interest of Reservists and Service leavers; highly skilled, well-trained professionals who can add real value to a business.

    Since 2014 the Defence Employer Recognition Scheme (ERS) has provided visible recognition to those employers which support Defence and is inspiring others to do the same. The scheme encompasses bronze, silver and gold awards for employer organisations that pledge, demonstrate or advocate support to Defence and the Armed Forces community. Publicity around the ERS and the Armed Forces Covenant is valuable to both Defence and the employers involved. Ministers regularly attend Armed Forces Covenant signing events, most recently with ISS UK.

    Our approach is delivering benefit; almost 1,000 employers have signed the Armed Forces Covenant and research shows that overall awareness of the Covenant has increased significantly over the last year.

  • Lord Berkeley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Lord Berkeley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Berkeley on 2016-06-28.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the Thames Tideway Tunnel project will send clean excavated materials to landfill permit sites as a waste or to be beneficially reused as a material or product as recovery in accordance with its commitment to reduce waste to landfill in the development consent order.

    Lord Gardiner of Kimble

    Tideway, the infrastructure provider set up to finance and deliver the Thames Tideway Tunnel, has been assessing several sites identified through the Development Consent Order (DCO) process to receive the tunnel excavated material.

    Amongst other things this assessment looks at maximising the beneficial use of excavated material and its transport by river to meet environmental commitments made under the DCO. The relevant site operators have already made a number of applications to the Environment Agency (EA). The type of permit these sites require will be assessed by the EA in line with its guidance. This guidance is currently being revised following a recent Court of Appeal judgment which in some cases may lead to the reclassification of some waste activities as disposal rather than recovery. It is possible for appropriate disposal to deliver beneficial use such as habitat creation.