Category: Speeches

  • Kevan Jones – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Kevan Jones – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevan Jones on 2016-06-15.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what he plans the UK operational in-service date for the P-8 Poseidon will be.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    The main investment decision on the UK’s Maritime Patrol Aircraft programme has not yet been taken by Ministers and the date at which the aircraft will be brought into service has yet to be determined. As the Prime Minister set out during last year’s Strategic Defence and Security Review, however, at least three of the aircraft will be in place by the end of the current Parliament.

  • Justin Tomlinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Justin Tomlinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Justin Tomlinson on 2016-09-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what plans she has to support the library service in England.

    Mr Rob Wilson

    I am responding as Minister with responsibility for Libraries policy.

    The Public Libraries and Museums Act 1964 requires the Secretary of State to superintend, and promote the improvement of, the public library service provided by local authorities in England, and to secure the proper discharge by local authorities of the functions in relation to libraries as conferred on them as library authorities.

    The Government invested £2.6m in 2015/16 to install and upgrade WiFi in over 1,000 libraries in England. This means that WiFi is now available in over 99% of public libraries in England.

    In addition, the Government and the Local Government Association established the Libraries Taskforce in 2015. The Taskforce has already published Toolkits and case studies to assist local authorities and consulted on “Ambition”, a draft vision for public libraries. This will provide a range of practical and innovative options local authorities can deploy to maintain and transform our library services. I expect to see local authorities working with Government and their local communities to consider these options, and to ensure library services are sustainable for the long term.

  • Drew Hendry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Drew Hendry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Drew Hendry on 2016-10-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of establishing a statutory social tariff for broadband services.

    Matt Hancock

    We are committed to introducing a new broadband Universal Service Obligation (USO) within this Parliament. The USO will give households and businesses the legal right to request a broadband connection with speeds of at least 10 Megabits, no matter where they live or work.

    Ofcom are preparing advice and recommendations for Government on the design of the broadband USO, and we have asked them specifically to consider a social tariff to make sure it is affordable for all. Ofcom will report on its findings by the end of the year and we will consider them as part of our decision.

  • Grahame Morris – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Grahame Morris – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Grahame Morris on 2015-11-06.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what discussions he has had about reducing the time taken by the Valuation Office Agency to consider rating assessment appeals.

    Mr Marcus Jones

    The Government is committed to delivering a quicker and more efficient business rates appeals system in England, so that businesses can be confident they are paying the right amount of business rates and any refunds can be paid quickly. Details of our proposals are set out in the consultation paper Check, Challenge, Appeal: Reforming Business Rates Appeals, available at https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/reforming-business-rates-appeals-check-challenge-appeal. Enabling legislation is being taken forward in the Enterprise Bill.

    “

  • Barry Sheerman – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Barry Sheerman – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Sheerman on 2015-12-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what research his Department has conducted on the effect on children of the imprisonment of their mothers.

    Caroline Dinenage

    The Ministry of Justice has recently published statistics on child dependents of female offenders (located at https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/female-offenders-and-child-dependents) but has not specifically conducted research on the impact of imprisonment on children.

  • Michael Dugher – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Michael Dugher – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Michael Dugher on 2016-01-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many homes have been built in (a) Barnsley East constituency, (b) Barnsley, (c) South Yorkshire and (d) Yorkshire and the Humber in each year since 2010.

    Brandon Lewis

    Statistics on new build housing starts and completions in Barnsley and South Yorkshire (Metropolitan County) are published on the Department’s website at:

    http://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-house-building

    These statistics are not available by parliamentary constituency.

    “

  • Andrew Murrison – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Andrew Murrison – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Murrison on 2016-02-04.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps he is taking to ensure that charities report surplus funds awarded to them by the Government.

    Mr Rob Wilson

    All charities in receipt of government grants should submit a final budget reconciliation to the grant giver at the end of the grant demonstrating how all funds have been spent on the activities specified in the grant letter. The Cabinet Office’s published standard terms and conditions of the grant includes the right to recover the grant if it has not been used for the purposes and activities agreed or if terms and conditions have not been met.

  • Derek Twigg – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Derek Twigg – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Derek Twigg on 2016-03-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent progress has been made on reopening the Halton Curve railway line.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    Following its inclusion in the Liverpool City Region Growth Deal, Merseytravel is managing the development and delivery of this devolved scheme on behalf of the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority. I understand that the business case for the scheme is expected to be considered by the Combined Authority at its meeting in April. If approved, work is expected to begin in June 2017 and be complete by May 2018.

  • Yvette Cooper – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Yvette Cooper – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Yvette Cooper on 2016-04-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will estimate the number of (a) jobs and (b) businesses that have been created in Scotland through European Regional Development Fund projects since 2010.

    Anna Soubry

    The number of jobs estimated to have been created in Scotland through European Regional Development Fund projects from the start of the 2007-2013 programmes to the end of February 2016 is 44,311. The number of businesses created in the same period is 17,543.

  • Lady Hermon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Lady Hermon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lady Hermon on 2016-05-03.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much has accrued to the public purse from use of fixed-odds betting terminals in (a) Northern Ireland, (b) Wales, (c) Scotland and (d) England in each of the last six years.

    Damian Hinds

    This information is not available. This is because HMRC do not ask for a country-by-country breakdown on the taxpayer’s return.