Category: Speeches

  • Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2016-03-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many appeal hearings at the First-tier Tribunal (Immigration and Asylum) were (a) withdrawn and (b) adjourned because the Home Office did not send a representative in (i) 2012-13, (ii) 2013-14 and (iii) 2014-15.

    Mr Shailesh Vara

    The First-tier Tribunal (Immigration and Asylum Chamber) is administered by HM Courts & Tribunals Service.

    There are no available data relating to numbers of appeals withdrawn where the Home Office representative did not attend the hearing.

    The number of appeal hearings adjourned because the Home Office did not send a representative in (i) 2012-13 was 64 (ii) 2013-14 was 61 and (iii) 2014-15 was 68. For comparison, the figure in 2009/10 was 94.

    Data provided are internal Management Information and not subject to the same quality checks as Official Statistics.

  • Patrick Grady – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Patrick Grady – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Patrick Grady on 2016-04-29.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the human rights situation in Macedonia.

    Mr David Lidington

    I am very concerned by the human rights situation in Macedonia and by related developments, including most recently the decision of President Ivanov to pardon those individuals currently under investigation over allegations of abuse of power. This decision undermines the principle that all people must be held legally accountable for their actions. I raised my concerns over this decision and its implications for the rule of law in my public statement of 14 April. I, along with international partners, have also spoken to Nikola Gruevski, former Prime Minister and leader of the governing party VMRO, and raised concerns over the credibility of forthcoming elections in Macedonia, attacks on democratic institutions, and the wider level of commitment to the democratic process including the lack of media reform and the intimidation of voters. As I made clear to Mr Gruevski and to other party leaders during my visit to Skopje in March, Macedonia must implement commitments on the rule of law and free and democratic institutions as set out in the European Commission’s Urgent Reform Priorities.

  • Fiona Bruce – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Fiona Bruce – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Fiona Bruce on 2016-06-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people have been convicted of offences under section 58 of the Offences Against the Person Act 1861 for performing abortions on other people in each year since 1986; and what each such case was.

    Caroline Dinenage

    The number of offenders found guilty at all courts in England and Wales, from 1986 to 2015, can be viewed in the table. The figures from 2005 onwards are a further breakdown of data published in the outcomes by offences data tool in the annual Criminal Justice Statistics publication, at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/criminal-justice-system-statistics-quarterly-december-2015

    Information as to whether each case referred to abortion or miscarriage Is not available.

    “

  • Deidre Brock – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    Deidre Brock – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Deidre Brock on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many professionals from other EU member states in each regulated profession or holding qualifications from other EU member states related to each regulated profession were registered to work in the UK in the latest year for which figures are available.

    Jesse Norman

    In 2014, a total of 12,178 professionals holding qualifications from EU or European Free Trade Association member states had their qualifications recognised for the purpose of permanent establishment in the UK, and 680 professionals had their qualifications recognised for provision of services on a temporary and occasional basis in the UK. Additional detail and statistics for other years are available on the European Commission’s regulated professions database: http://ec.europa.eu/growth/tools-databases/regprof/.

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  • Lord Mawson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Lord Mawson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Mawson on 2016-10-19.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have considered the merits of exempting social enterprises from paying corporation tax.

    Lord Young of Cookham

    Many social enterprises are charities, which are exempt from Corporation Tax on most income and gains if they are used for charitable purposes.

    The Government has also taken steps to support social enterprises by introducing the Social Investment Tax Relief (SITR). SITR provides tax relief to individuals when they invest in qualifying social enterprises.

    The Government has no plans to exempt all social enterprises from paying Corporation Tax, but keeps all tax policy under review.

  • Lord Greaves – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Lord Greaves – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Greaves on 2015-11-05.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what measures they are taking to assist the organisations and volunteers in the UK taking action to help refugees (1) in the Calais area, (2) in the Dodecanese islands, and (3) elsewhere in Europe.

    Baroness Verma

    The UK has been at the forefront of the response to the crisis in Syria and the region. The UK has pledged over £1.12 billion, our largest ever humanitarian response to a single crisis. We are the second largest bilateral donor after the US and have done more than any other European country.

    The UK’s priority is to stop the deaths of migrants making perilous journeys. We believe the right approach is to support people to stay in a place of safety in their home or host countries. To this end we are increasing our work to support longer term stability and resilience-building inside Syria and in neighbouring countries.

    We are providing £15 million to organisations working in Europe, which includes immediate humanitarian support to migrants and refugees who have made the journey to Europe. Our package of support includes life-saving aid to protect the most vulnerable people, as well as support to governments in managing registration in Europe and the Western Balkans.

  • – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

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

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Prior of Brampton on 6 January (HL4779), what generally” means in that answer

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    The general position in England is that clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) arrange health services for persons for whom they are responsible. Broadly speaking CCGs arrange secondary care, which would include abortion services.

    A CCG could commission services, including abortion services, for persons ordinarily resident in Northern Ireland who are nevertheless registered (on a temporary or permanent basis) with a general practitioner who is a member of that CCG, if such services would improve the physical or mental health or treatment of illness of that person. This would be a matter for the CCG to decide however and they are free to exercise their discretion in that regard. There is no duty on a CCG to arrange health services for a person usually resident in NI (or Wales or Scotland) unless that person is present in the CCG’s area and needs ambulance services or accident and emergency services.

  • Richard Burden – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Richard Burden – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-02-03.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has (a) received and (b) made on the demolition of structures in the South Hebron Hills on 2 February 2016.

    Mr David Lidington

    We have not received any representations on this issue. An official from our Embassy in Tel Aviv raised our concerns about the demolition of structures in the South Hebron Hills with the Israeli Office for the Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories on 3 February.

  • – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by on 2016-02-24.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the minimum amount of special educational needs teaching required to fulfil the Teacher Standards of having a clear understanding of the needs of all pupils

    Lord Nash

    The Teachers’ Standards set a clear baseline of expectations for the professional practice and conduct of teachers and define the minimum level of practice expected of teachers in England.

    Head teachers and other appraisers should use their professional judgement to assess teachers to a level that is consistent with what should reasonably be expected of a teacher given their role and level of experience and the specific demands of the setting in which they are working.

  • Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2016-03-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 22 March 2016 to Question 31496, how many appeals were (a) withdrawn and (b) adjourned at the First-Tier Tribunal (Social Security and Child Support) due to his Department not sending a representative in (i) 2012-13, (ii) 2013-14 and (iii) 2014-15.

    Justin Tomlinson

    I refer the Rt. Hon. Member to the Answer given by the Minister for Justice, my Rt.Hon. Friend, Shailesh Vara, Question UIN 32293

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