Category: Speeches

  • Frank Field – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the House of Commons Commission

    Frank Field – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the House of Commons Commission

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2016-10-21.

    To ask the Rt. hon. Member for Carshalton and Wallington representing the House of Commons Commission, on how many days under the current Travel Office contract the ticket machines situated in the House have been unable to print hon. Members’ travel tickets.

    Tom Brake

    The Trainline ticket machine situated in the Parliamentary Travel Office has been unable to print tickets on six separate days since September 2014, the latest period being 17–19 October 2016. The machine is owned by Trainline but it is CTM’s responsibility to ensure that they report any faults so that they can be fixed quickly and efficiently.

    The ticket machine situated in the Members’ Centre in Portcullis House is maintained by IPSA and therefore the Commission does not hold records on the operation of that machine. However, officials are aware that the machine has been out of service since the beginning of September 2016.

  • Nic Dakin – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Nic Dakin – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nic Dakin on 2015-11-09.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps his Department has taken to embed the family test into its policy making.

    Matthew Hancock

    Officials in my Department have liaised with the Department for Work and Pensions as the lead Department for the Family Test to embed it into the policy process. This has included training officials on applying the Test, disseminating relevant evidence, learning materials and best practice.

  • The Earl of Clancarty – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The Earl of Clancarty – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Earl of Clancarty on 2015-12-02.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Nash on 2 December (HL3697) regarding the sale of 41–71 Commercial Road, Aldgate, for which school the site will be developed; and whether that school will use the entire site.

    Lord Nash

    The school site has been leased back to the university until August 2016. This allows the EFA to develop the site in time for a school to open there in September 2017.

  • Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Haigh on 2016-01-13.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, on how many occasions he has met with National Archive officials to discuss the release of Cabinet Office papers for the 1986 to 1988 period.

    Matthew Hancock

    The Cabinet Office has regular ongoing communications with the National Archives.

    The Minister for the Cabinet Office met National Archive officials to discuss the release of Cabinet Office papers for the 1986 to 1988 period on two occasions.

  • Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-02-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the effect on the advancement of democracy in Colombia of ongoing killings by paramilitaries there; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr Hugo Swire

    The Government of Colombia has made significant progress on peace process negotiations with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). Both sides have committed to sign a final agreement by the end of March 2016. This agreement has significant potential to advance democracy for all Colombians.

    However, I am concerned about the continued influence of organised criminal gangs and resulting violence in Colombia, which challenges the implementation of the peace process. I am pleased to see that, on 1 February, President Santos launched a committee to tackle organised criminal groups.

    Our Embassy officials regularly discuss the challenges posed by armed criminal groups (so called ‘Bandas Criminales’ or BACRIM) in their meetings with the Colombian government. Our Ambassador to Colombia met with the Minister of Interior on 1 February when they discussed security challenges, including those posed by the BACRIM. In forthcoming meetings with the Minister of Defence and Minister of Post-Conflict, our Ambassador will seek to raise these issues again. The UK is also contributing £1m to the Organisation of American States’ Peace mission (also known as MAPP-OAS) which is monitoring demobilisation.

    A peaceful Colombia, where authorities effectively tackle organised crime and promote democratic practices nationwide, will bring about real change for all Colombians.

  • Jim Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Jim Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-02-29.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 22 February 2016 to Question 26579, what estimate he has made of the total cost of the Troubled Families Programme in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

    Greg Clark

    £448 million was made available for the original Troubled Families Programme, which ran from 2012-2015 and successfully helped over 116,000 families.

    The programme was expanded and rolled out nationally in April 2015, to support a further 400,000 families by 2020. The programme secured £200 million for 2015/16, the first year of its expansion; it secured a further £720 million at the Spending Review 2015 to run it until 2020.

  • Douglas Carswell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Douglas Carswell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Carswell on 2016-03-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if she will make an assessment of the effectiveness of her Department’s programmes in the eight districts of the Central Region of Uganda in preventing the spread of malaria.

    Mr Nick Hurd

    DFID works with UNICEF in the Central Region of Uganda on a programme to prevent the spread of malaria. As part of this, the Integrated Community Case Management programme is improving access to testing and treatment for children under five with high fever. This is an important intervention in preventing the spread of malaria and reducing deaths related to malaria and other treatable diseases.

    Results from the 2014-15 internationally recognised Malaria Indicator Survey showed that the prevalence of malaria in children in the central region where the eight districts are located had reduced from 39.1% in 2009 to 10.5%. This is largely as a result of targeted interventions including the programme funded by DFID and implemented by UNICEF.

  • 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 2016-05-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to tackle political instability in east Africa.

    Penny Mordaunt

    The Ministry of Defence does not directly tackle political instability. As part of the United Kingdom’s policy of countering shared threats in the region, supporting democratic and accountable governments, and promoting sustainable development, the Department works with other parts of Her Majesty’s Government in assisting the countries of East Africa, as well as the United Nations and the African Union, to maintain security and to conduct peace support operations.

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

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

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Ahmed on 2016-06-09.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what estimate they have made of the number of Saddam Hussein’s elite guards and soldiers who have joined ISIS in Iraq and Syria.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    The Government does not hold figures for the number of former military personnel from Saddam Hussein’s regime that joined Daesh. However, there are credible reports of several ex-Ba’athist senior military officials and personnel with weapons expertise having joined Daesh.

  • Lord Hamilton of Epsom – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Lord Hamilton of Epsom – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hamilton of Epsom on 2016-09-06.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the answer by Lord O’Neill of Gatley on 5 September (HL Deb, col 849–50), what assessment they have made of the impact of immigration on wage rates and productivity in the UK.

    Lord O’Neill of Gatley

    As noted in the 2012 report by the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC), the empirical literature suggests that the impact of migration on productivity may be mixed and heavily dependent on the type of migrant coming to the UK. Migrants may increase productivity either through a simple ‘batting average’ effect if they work in higher productivity roles relative to the average for non-migrants, or through increasing the productivity of UK workers through greater specialisation and knowledge transfer. In this report, the MAC established the key role played by skilled migrants in raising productivity. Further, the 2014 MAC report, ‘Migrants in low-skilled work’, found low skilled migrants have a neutral impact on UK-born employment rates, GDP per head and productivity. The impact of immigration on wage rates is also mixed, although a 2015 working paper by the Bank of England found an increase in the immigrant to native ratio has a small negative impact on average British wages.