The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jonathan Ashworth on 2015-12-02.
To ask the Leader of the House, on how many occasions a special adviser in his Office accompanied a Minister on an overseas trip since May 2015.
Chris Grayling
No Ministers in my office have been on an offical overseas trip since May 2015.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Luciana Berger on 2016-01-06.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 17 December 2015 to Question 20082, what the (a) dates, (b) locations and (c) organisations of the 19 visits and meetings referred to in that Answer were.
Alistair Burt
Details of the 19 visits to or meetings with mental health trusts undertaken by Simon Stevens and Sir Bruce Keogh since their appointments as Chief Executive and Medical Director respectively are given on the attached table Details of meetings with and visits to mental health trusts undertaken by Simon Stevens and Sir Bruce Keogh since their appointments as Chief Executive and Medical Director respectively of NHS England.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nusrat Ghani on 2016-01-27.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what proportion of the revenue raised by Southern Rail in the last five years was passed back to GTR by his Department.
Claire Perry
Under the terms of its Franchise Agreement, Southern Railway Limited retained all of its revenue. The services operated by Southern Railway Limited were combined into a new franchise, the Govia Thameslink Railway franchise, on 26 July 2015 when the previous franchise ended.
No Southern Railway revenue has been passed back to GTR by the Department for Transport.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kate Hoey on 2016-02-23.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many and what proportion of trade union members in (a) Great Britain and (b) Northern Ireland pay the political levy.
Nick Boles
The latest Annual Report of the Certification Officer shows that 4,954,606 union members in Great Britain paid the political levy in the period 2013-2014. This represents 70.67% of the total number of individuals who were union members in the same period.[1]
Employment law is a devolved matter in Northern Ireland and I am not able to respond to the questions relating to Northern Ireland.
[1] Political Funds of Trade Unions, 2013-2014, Annual Report 2015/2016 of the Certification Officer, page 68-69, available at https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/449387/CO_Annual_Report__2014-2015_.pdf
“
The below Parliamentary question was asked by William Cash on 2016-03-21.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will provide an estimate of (a) the total level of immigration from other EU member states and (b) the annual number of people coming to settle in the UK from other EU member states which would trigger the activation of the proposed alert and safeguard emergency brake mechanism; and what discussions he has had with his counterparts in other EU member states and the European Commission on the appropriate thresholds for the emergency brake mechanism to be activated.
Mr Shailesh Vara
Alongside the conclusions of the February European Council, the European Commission made a separate Declaration on the emergency brake (the ‘Commission Declaration on the Safeguard Mechanism’). This Declaration set out the Commission’s view that the exceptional situation that the brake is intended to cover exists in the UK today.
Additional details are a matter for the implementation of the proposal, and further announcements will be made in due course.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-04-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the contribution of the Minister of State of 10 March 2016, Official Report, column 419, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of implementing temporary measures to ensure public safety when drones are used while his Department considers the best action to take.
Mr Robert Goodwill
There are existing regulations in place that require users of drones to maintain direct, unaided visual contact with their vehicle and to not recklessly or negligently cause or permit an aircraft to endanger any person or property. There are severe penalties in place for misuse of drones, such as up to five years imprisonment for endangering an aircraft.
The Department for Transport (DfT) and the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) work with a wide range of industry partners across the aviation sector, (including manufacturers, airports, and airlines), to ensure our understanding of potential hazards to aircraft remains up-to-date and mitigations effective. Further work is underway to better understand the risk posed by flying drones close to commercial planes to ensure that regulations remain fit for purpose.
The DfT is also currently working with the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) to develop consistent, EU-wide safety rules for drones, including potential technical solutions, such as geo-fencing and frequency jammers around airports.
Communication and education of users on current safety restrictions will be key. Officials from my Department are actively considering with the CAA the development of an expanded and diversified communication and education campaign, to include more mediums and supporting products, such as smart phone applications. The CAA is running ‘small UAS’ (Unmanned Aerial Systems) Risk and Hazard workshops with industry as part of the Mid Air Collision Programme.
Guidance on tackling the risks of criminal drone use has been provided to constabularies across the UK. The Secretary of State has written to Police to request their assistance in raising awareness of drone risks and restrictions.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Myners on 2016-05-25.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government when they last reviewed the risks posed to financial stability by central clearing houses; and whether such a review took account of the increasing practice of cross-margining linking two or more clearing houses.
Lord O’Neill of Gatley
Under European Regulation No 648/2012 (EMIR) CCPs in the UK are regulated by the Bank of England. For other information I refer the noble Lord to my written answers of 1 April (HL7153) and 26 April (HL7583, HL7584, HL7585, and HL7586).
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Philip Davies on 2016-07-21.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will place a copy of the grant application for funding for 2016-17 from Action on Smoking and Health in the Library.
Nicola Blackwood
A grant of £160,000 has been awarded to Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) for financial year 2016/17 and a copy of the signed award letter, including the detailed deliverables of the grant, is attached.
Grants made under Section 64 of the Health Services and Public Health Act 1968 can be made in a number of ways. The grant awarded to ASH has been assessed as most appropriate for the non-competed route.
The Department received a complaint about the deliverables of the 2015/16 grant awarded to ASH in June this year. The Department responded to the complainant, confirming it was satisfied that none of the deliverables were in breach of the provisions of Section 64.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevin Foster on 2016-10-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether the Government plans to give people with dyslexia in the armed forces protection under the Disability Discrimination Act 1995.
Mark Lancaster
There are no plans to extend the provisions of the Equality Act 2010 to cover Service personnel who have dyslexia. The Defence Direction for Specific Learning Difficulties (contained within Joint Service Publication 898 ‘Defence Direction and Guidance on Training, Education and Skills’) provides direction to all Service personnel who have dyslexia, and line managers, trainers and commanders who are required to manage Service personnel with dyslexia. It provides a learning support framework for those identified with dyslexia, ensuring that the Ministry of Defence meets its obligations as a responsible employer.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mims Davies on 2015-11-04.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many people are in receipt of a war widow or widower pension.
Mark Lancaster
As at 31 March 2015, the latest date for which data was available, the number of people in receipt of a War Widow or Widower Pension was 20,535.