Category: Speeches

  • Alison Thewliss – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Alison Thewliss – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alison Thewliss on 2016-02-29.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential effect of the UK leaving the EU on the immigration status of EU citizens currently resident in the UK.

    James Brokenshire

    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 position, as set out by the Prime Minister to the House on 22 February, is that the UK will be stronger, safer and better off remaining in a reformed EU. The process for withdrawing from the EU has been set out in the White Paper published on 29 February 2016.

  • Douglas Chapman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Douglas Chapman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

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

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the suitability of the Honeywell TCAS II collision warning system for use in Typhoon fighter aircraft.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 10 March 2016 to Question 30090.

  • Cat Smith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Cat Smith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Cat Smith on 2016-05-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many public consultations the Post Office conducted on proposals to franchise Crown post offices in 2014 and 2015; and how many of those post offices so consulted on proceeded to be franchised.

    George Freeman

    Post Office Limited runs and manages its Crown post offices. Franchising of these offices is the operational responsibility of the Post Office.

    I have asked Paula Vennells, the Chief Executive of Post Office Limited, to write to the hon Member on these matters. A copy of her reply will be placed in the libraries of the House.

  • Martyn Day – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Martyn Day – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Martyn Day on 2016-06-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will take steps to increase war pensions for veterans to correspond with the state pension triple lock.

    Mark Lancaster

    I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 24 November 2015 to Question 16781 to the hon. Member for Barnsley Central (Mr Jarvis).

    http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2015-11-18/16781/

  • Roger Godsiff – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Roger Godsiff – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2016-09-06.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department plans to exempt domestic violence refuges from proposals to cap housing benefit.

    Caroline Nokes

    The Secretary of State has confirmed that the Government expects to make an announcement on the way forward for supported housing in early autumn.

  • Lord Hunt of Kings Heath – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Lord Hunt of Kings Heath – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 2015-11-09.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions they have held with other EU member states about whether the Recognition of Professional Qualifications Directive provides sufficient safeguards to allow regulators to assure themselves that migrant healthcare professionals have kept their skills and competence up-to-date.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    The revised Directive was negotiated between Member States including the United Kingdom over a number of years before its publication in the Official Journal in 2013. A copy of the Directive is attached.

    The main aim of the Directive is to increase freedom of movement of professions across the European Union by providing a framework for the regulatory bodies to consider a professional’s qualification. If a professional’s qualifications are of the standard recognised across Europe they are deemed to be of sufficient quality. Ifhowever a professional’s qualification does not meet the minimum standards set out across Europe the regulator can require them to undertake further training to improve their skills and competence before being permitted to practise in the UK.

    Individual employers also have a responsibility to ensure that the people they employ or contract with have the required knowledge and skills and qualifications for the posts for which they are applying.

    Once a professional has been registered with the regulatory body they must adhere to the same requirements as UK registrants including continuing professional development and revalidation (for doctors and nurses) to ensure that they remain fit to practice.

  • Lord Storey – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Lord Storey – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Storey on 2015-12-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what criteria they use in auditing compliance with Tier 4 licences for non-EU students.

    Lord Bates

    All Tier 4 licensed sponsors are assessed against criteria set out in the published Tier 4 Guidance for Sponsors. This includes the following four documents:

    • Document one – Applying for a Tier 4 licence
    • Document two – Sponsorship Duties
    • Document three – Tier 4 Compliance
    • Appendix D – record keeping

    Some of the key criteria includes:

    • Ensuring that each sponsor has a genuine and lawful trading presence.
    • Ensuring that each sponsor holds the appropriate education oversight with the relevant external inspection body.
    • Compliance visits; where checks are undertaken to establish whether an institution’s HR functions are appropriate.
    • An annual basic compliance assessment (BCA); where the sponsor must meet demonstrate that their visa refusal, enrolment and course completion rates fall within the outlined requisites.
  • The Marquess of Lothian – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The Marquess of Lothian – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Marquess of Lothian on 2016-01-13.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many UK airstrikes have been carried out against Daesh in Syria over the last two months; how many of those were against (1) economic targets, and (2) human targets; and what estimate they have made of collateral damage from those strikes.

    Earl Howe

    As at 18 January 2016 the Royal Air Force has conducted a total of 22 air strikes against Daesh targets in Syria, beginning on the 2 December 2015 after the House of Commons vote.

    Of these, 11 strikes were against oil infrastructure, one was against a Daesh command and control centre and 10 were against Daesh fighters and their equipment. No collateral damage or civilian casualties arose from these strikes.

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

    Andrew Smith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

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

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what discussions his Department has had with the US administration on the siting of a US drone operation centre at (a) RAF Lakenheath, Suffolk and (b) other UK locations.

    Penny Mordaunt

    The UK and US have routine discussions on all aspects of US visiting forces in the UK.

  • Tulip Siddiq – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Tulip Siddiq – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tulip Siddiq on 2016-02-29.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many NHS transplant centres there are for the transplantation of stem cells for people with blood cancer or blood disorders; how much funding has NHS England provided to such centres in each year since 2009-10; and in the latest inspections by the Joint Accreditation Committee for the International Society for Cellular Therapy and the European Society for Blood and Marrow Transplantation (JACIE), on how many of the standards set by JACIE was each entre found (a) compliant and (b) non-compliant.

    Jane Ellison

    NHS England commissions stem cell transplant activity for adults and children from 46 providers and have provided the following information on funding.

    Total funding for stem cell transplantation was £163 million in 2013/14 and £170 million in 2014/15. Services are commissioned within this budget based on need rather than as individual services. Stem cell transplantation is subject to local pricing and so it is not possible to provide information about funding by provider as this is commercially sensitive.

    NHS England is responsible for commissioning specialised care involving adult bone marrow transplantation that includes care up to 100 days after transplant. The costs of care up to 100 days post-transplant are included within the overall budget for stem cell transplantation. NHS England does not hold data on the funding of care beyond this 100 day period.

    The Department does not hold information on funding provided for these services before the creation of NHS England in 2013.

    The Joint Accreditation Committee for the International Society for Cellular Therapy and the European Society for Blood and Marrow Transplantation (JACIE) is an independent organisation and the Department does not hold data related to JACIE compliance.