Category: Speeches

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

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Pendry on 2016-06-15.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government how they are supporting British businesses in Colombia so that they do not contribute to the human rights violations against, in particular, the indigenous and Afro-descendant peoples.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

Encouraging businesses to respect human rights is a global priority for this Government. We recognise that communities such as indigenous and afro-descendant people and those in isolated rural areas are particularly vulnerable.

The UK National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights sets out how the Government is implementing the UN Guiding Principles. British firms are expected to uphold these principles in their overseas operations, as well as in the UK. It is for each country to implement a National Action Plan to ensure compliance with the Guiding Principles.

We worked closely with the Colombian authorities to develop their National Action Plan, published in December. All companies operating in Colombia, including British ones, should comply with the requirements and guidelines set out in that National Action Plan.

The Minister for Trade and Investment, my noble Friend, the Lord Price of Sturminster Newton, launched a campaign for British businesses to support peace, primarily through respect for human rights, during his visit to Colombia last month. Twenty of the largest British companies operating in Colombia subsequently agreed to align themselves to the Colombian National Action Plan for business and human rights.

01/01/2023
The Marquess of Lothian – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Marquess of Lothian on 2016-09-12.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they are making to the government of Iran seeking the return of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe and her daughter to the UK.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

I am deeply concerned by recent reports that Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe has been sentenced without confirmation of the charges against her. On 11 September our Acting Ambassador raised our concerns with the Iranian Government and pressed for urgent confirmation of the charges and sentencing against her. We continue to raise our strong concerns about British prisoners in Iran, including Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe, at the highest levels in both London and Tehran. The Prime Minister, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Maidenhead (Mrs May), did so in her introductory call with Iranian President Rouhani on 9 August and again on 20 September at the UN General Assembly in New York. The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Uxbridge and South Ruislip (Mr Johnson), similarly raised this case in his introductory call with Iranian Foreign Minister Zarif on 4 August, and followed up in writing on 29 August. The Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my Hon. Friend the Member for Bournemouth East (Mr Ellwood) met Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s family on 8 September to reassure them that we will continue to do all we can and that we remain ready to help them bring Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s daughter back to the UK if requested.

01/01/2023
Tim Loughton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Loughton on 2016-10-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, when the Youth Action Group last met; who attended that meeting; and what the current membership of that group is.

Mr Rob Wilson

The last Youth Action Group meeting was 25 Nov 2014. A Youth Action Group Workshop was held on 24 Feb 2015.

Youth Action Group members and meeting participants were drawn from the government departments and national charities that develop policy and deliver programmes for disadvantaged young people. These included the following:
- Government: Cabinet Office, Department for Education, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, Department for Work and Pensions, Department for Communities and Local Government, Ministry of Justice, Home Office, Department for Health and Ministry of Defence; and
- VCSE sector: The Prince’s Trust, Rathbone, The Foyer Federation, Catch22, Groundwork, Barnardo’s, Youth United, YoungMinds, Brook and Action for Children
There are no current plans for this group to meet.
01/01/2023
Chris Leslie – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Leslie on 2015-11-09.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when he plans to transfer housing benefit fraud investigation powers from local authorities to national investigation service.

Justin Tomlinson

The current intention is for Local Authority powers to prosecute Housing Benefit cases to be turned off from 02 April 2016, at which time the Department for Work and Pensions Fraud and Error Service will assume overall responsibility, following the full implementation of the Single Fraud Investigation Service Project.

01/01/2023
Jim Shannon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2015-12-08.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to encourage people to walk for up to 30 minutes a day.

Jane Ellison

The Government recognises that walking is a key part of being active. The UK Chief Medical Officers’ physical activity guidelines for adults recommending 150 minutes of physical activity every week, identify walking as the easiest way of building physical activity into everyday life. To raise awareness of the guidelines, we have recently created an infographic for health professionals to use when they discuss physical activity with their patients. We have made walking a key part of the recommended activity.

Following the Infrastructure Act 2015, the Department of Health has also been working closely with Department of Transport on plans which will underpin the first Cycling and Walking Delivery Plan to be published in the summer. This will take forward the vision set out in the Cycling Delivery Plan 2014, to make walking and cycling the natural choices for short journeys or as part of a longer journey.

01/01/2023
Mark Field – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prosecutions for human trafficking resulted in a conviction between 1 August 2015 and 1 January 2016; and how many orders made for victim compensation as a result of such convictions resulted in payments (a) by convicted traffickers and (b) at a cost to the public purse.

Mike Penning

Statistics for prosecutions and convictions for 2015, including those for offences defined as human trafficking, are planned for publication in May 2016.

Overall court proceedings data for offences defined as human trafficking in England and Wales from 2004 to 2014 are published here.

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/criminal-justice-system-statistics-quarterly-december-2014

The Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority cannot provide data on the compensation it has awarded to victims of a particular crime type. This is because it awards compensation in line with the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme tariff of injuries rather than the type of incident that led to those injuries.

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01/01/2023
Baroness Masham of Ilton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Masham of Ilton on 2016-02-04.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to encourage GPs to undertake out-of-hours shifts in primary care.

Lord Prior of Brampton

The Department and NHS England are committed to addressing the issue of increasing medical indemnity costs for general practitioners (GPs), including those working out of hours.

Increasing costs of indemnity cover associated with out of hours work may discourage GPs from undertaking out-of-hours shifts in primary care.

The Department was represented at a roundtable event held by NHS England on 17 November 2015 to develop a shared understanding of how to address rising medical indemnity costs. A range of stakeholders, including the British Medical Association and Medical Defence Organisations, also attended.

On 9 December 2015, NHS England announced a winter indemnity scheme to offset the additional indemnity premium for GPs who wish to work additional sessions for their out-of-hours providers.

Discussions are ongoing between the Department and NHS England on a long-term solution.

01/01/2023

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

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Carswell on 2016-03-02.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, with reference to the Answer of 24 January 2013 to Question 139167, how many staff in her Department were in receipt of Continuity of Education Allowance in (a) 2012-13, (b) 2013-14 and (c) 2014-15; and what the cost to her Department was of providing that allowance for staff based (i) in the UK and (ii) overseas in each such year.

Mr Nick Hurd

The amount spent on Education Allowance by DFID and the number of HCS staff who have benefited from education continuity payments is provided in the table below.

Year	2012/13	2013/14	2014/15
Total Number of Employees	43	41	46
Employees in UK	£32,165.55	£8,178.80	£9,337.45
Employees Overseas	£995,609.04	£995,852.61	£1,042,819.56
Cost	£1,027,774.59	£1,004,031.41	£1,052,157.01

01/01/2023

Derek Twigg – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Derek Twigg on 2016-03-23.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent assessment his Department has made of the effect of the use of steroids on the physical and mental health of people using such drugs.

Jane Ellison

Information on the physical and mental health effects of anabolic steroids, as well as other illicit and licit substances, is contained in ‘A summary of the health harms of drugs: A guide to the risks and harms associated with substance misuse’ published by the Department in August 2011 and is available online:

http://www.nta.nhs.uk/uploads/healthharmsfinal-v1.pdf

When used in clinical practice, doctors prescribing a course of anabolic steroids are expected to discuss potential side effects and to draw patients’ attention to the additional information contained in the Patient Information Leaflet.

01/01/2023
Hannah Bardell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hannah Bardell on 2016-05-03.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what estimate his Department has made of the number of jobs that may be lost as a result of automation in industry over the next 10 years; and what steps the Government is taking to address the risk of such job losses.

Nick Boles

The Department has not made a specific forecast of how many jobs will be lost (or how many will be created) over the next 10 years due to automation. However, officials across Government are exploring the implications for policy – including employment – of automation, as part of the Horizon Scanning Programme. Officials are also engaging with our international partners to ensure that we are aware of the most recent thinking about the potential impacts of automation.

The Government is taking action to provide individuals with the skills that will help prepare them for changes to the labour market. Activities include the new school computing curriculum, developing new apprenticeship standards, growing the apprenticeships programme, and recently announcing the Institute for Coding.

01/01/2023