Category: Speeches

  • Sarah Champion – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Sarah Champion – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sarah Champion on 2016-07-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many notifications her Department has received under section 52 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015 relating to slavery or human trafficking of (a) children and (b) adults.

    Sarah Newton

    We published guidance on the Modern Slavery Act on GOV.UK and a circular was sent to all bodies who are subject to the duty. We will publish data on notifications received and carry out further awareness-raising activity later this year.

  • Mark Hendrick – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Mark Hendrick – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Hendrick on 2016-09-14.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 13 September 2016 to Question 45282, where staff who work at the Valuation Office Agency in Preston are planned to be deployed after the planned closure of that office; and how many staff at what cost at that office he plans to make redundant after that closure.

    Jane Ellison

    The Valuation Office Agency will consult with staff affected by the closure of the Preston office. Options will include working from an alternative location or working from home.

    The Agency is not looking to make redundancies and is committed to take every practical step to avoid job losses as a result of location changes.

    The Agency‘s transformation programme is changing the way the Agency works, focusing on a core network of offices and greater use of technology.

  • Lord Ahmed – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Ahmed – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Ahmed on 2015-11-11.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of  whether pre-planned lynchings, immolations, and attacks on Muslim burial grounds have taken place during the term of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and whether they will raise the question of human rights with him.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    We are aware of recent incidents of sectarian violence. These are being investigated by the Indian authorities, and arrests have been made. We are clear that any allegations of human rights abuses should be investigated thoroughly, promptly and transparently.

  • Lord Watson of Invergowrie – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Lord Watson of Invergowrie – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Watson of Invergowrie on 2015-12-16.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to publish monthly information on those academies that have transferred from one academy trust to another, together with an explanation as to why those transfers have taken place.

    Lord Nash

    Information on the current academy trust is in the public domain through Edubase.

    The Department has no plan to publish such information on a monthly basis. The Department regularly publishes a variety of information.

  • Mark Hendrick – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Mark Hendrick – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Hendrick on 2016-01-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will assess the potential merits of enabling or compelling local authorities to use housing and council tax benefit data to (a) identify children who are eligible for free school meals and the pupil premium and (b) enable parents and guardians of those children to claim free school meals for their children.

    Mr Sam Gyimah

    We want to ensure that as many children as possible who are eligible for free school meals (FSM) receive them. We have made it as simple as possible for schools and local authorities to check eligibility. We are aware that a number of local authorities have been successful in using housing benefit and council tax support claim data to identify children who may be eligible for, but are not currently claiming, FSM.

    We are looking in more detail at the approaches that schools and local authorities have taken so far and we will set out the Government’s position on this issue shortly.

  • Vernon Coaker – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    Vernon Coaker – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Vernon Coaker on 2016-02-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what discussions she plans to have with Chancellor of the Exchequer on job losses at Bombardier in Northern Ireland.

    Mrs Theresa Villiers

    I recently held discussions on Bombardier with the Minister for Small Business, Industry and Enterprise and the Northern Ireland Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Investment. I will continue to discuss this issue with Government and Executive Ministers.

  • Lord Beecham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Lord Beecham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Beecham on 2016-03-14.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what savings they estimate will derive from their courts closure programme; and how much, and over what period, they plan to invest in technology to reduce the demand for court facilities in the justice system.

    Lord Faulks

    The Impact Assessment published alongside the consultation document outlines estimated savings of £170m over a 10-year period.

    The Government is committed to modernising the way in which justice is accessed and delivered. We are investing over £700m over the next 4 years to update the court and tribunal estate, installing modern IT systems and making the justice system more efficient and effective for modern users.

  • Anne Main – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Anne Main – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Anne Main on 2016-04-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will place in the Library a list of EU draft legislation that has been forwarded to the European Parliament but which has currently been frozen by European Commissioner Timmermans through the application of Better Regulation principles.

    Mr David Lidington

    The European Commission has committed itself to withdraw, modify or repeal legislative proposals through a number of processes. In the 2015 Commission Work Programme, there were 80 proposed withdrawals. Of these, 73 have now been delivered. The remaining seven have been modified by the Commission, or were proposals where the Council and the European Parliament had not been able to come to an agreement, but have since made progress. A list can be found in the Official Journal of the European Union [http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=OJ:C:2015:080:FULL&from=EN]. In the 2016 Commission Work Programme, the Commission is working on the withdrawal or modification of a further 20 proposals. The Commission has also reduced the number of new initiatives proposed in its annual work programmes by over 80 per cent compared to 2014.

    Under the UK’s new settlement with the EU, the European Commission has agreed for the first time to set specific targets to reduce the overall burden on business in key sectors. The Commission has also committed to ‘establish a mechanism to review the body of existing EU legislation for its compliance with the principle of subsidiarity and proportionality’; in setting priorities for this review, the Commission will be duty-bound to consult the Council and national parliaments. Further information can be found in the Government’s White Paper, “The best of both worlds: the United Kingdom’s special status in a reformed European Union”.

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

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

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-05-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what the cost to his Department was of hotel bookings made for (a) Ministers, (b) special advisers and (c) officials of his Department in each of the last five years.

    Mr David Lidington

    In line with UK government commitments to increase transparency, the Department publishes details on our spend, including data on expenses, travel and hotel costs on GOV.UK. Publication includes all spend which, in compliance with HM Treasury guidance, does not compromise national or personal security, foreign relations or legal obligations under acts such as the Data Protection Act.

    Total travel and subsistence spend is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/foreign-and-commonwealth-office-annual-report-and-accounts-2014-to-2015

    Information on our Ministers expenses and hospitality are published at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/minister-data

    “

  • Margaret Greenwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Margaret Greenwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Margaret Greenwood on 2016-07-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will publish the internal guidance that his Department issues to staff on the safeguards that those staff must observe when consideration is being given to (a) suspend or withhold payment, (b) make a substantial change to the level of entitlement or (c) terminate a claim in the case of a claimant of personal independence payment who has a mental health condition.

    Damian Hinds

    There is no intention to publish the internal guidance as it is for Department use only.