Category: Speeches

  • Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-07-13.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will hold discussions with credit card companies on steps to support people who have large credit card debts related to shopping.

    Simon Kirby

    The Government has fundamentally reformed regulation of the consumer credit market, which includes the credit card sector. Consumer credit regulation transferred from the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) to the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) on 1 April 2014.

    The FCA is currently undertaking a thorough review of the credit card market through its ‘credit card market study’. The market study is investigating three areas, one of which is the extent of unaffordable credit card debt. On 3 November 2015 the FCA published its interim report which found that the market was working reasonably well for most customers. However, the FCA expressed concern about the scale of potentially problematic debt in this sector, and the incentives for firms to manage this.

    The interim report also included the FCA’s early thinking on potential remedies which include measures to give consumers more control over their credit limits, measures to encourage customers to pay off debt quicker when they can afford to, and proposals that firms do more to identify earlier those consumers who may be struggling to repay and take action to help them manage their repayments. The FCA is currently asking for feedback on the findings and potential remedies.

    The Government is looking forward to the final report in Q3 2016, and would encourage interested parties to give their views to the FCA to assist it in addressing the issues it has identified.

  • Martyn Day – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Martyn Day – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Martyn Day on 2016-09-15.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when his Department expects an updated Strategic Noise Map for Edinburgh Airport to be available.

    Mr John Hayes

    As noise is a devolved matter, the UK Government is not able to answer questions on noise mapping for Scottish airports. This is the responsibility of the Scottish Government and they will be able to advise on this matter.

  • Bill Esterson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Bill Esterson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bill Esterson on 2015-11-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 3 November 2015 to Question 14066, what accountability mechanisms are in place for the Criminal Cases Review Commission; and if he will meet the hon. Member for Sefton Central to discuss the case of James Thompson.

    Mike Penning

    As I stated in response to Question 14066, although the Criminal Cases Review Commission is funded by my Department, it is entirely independent of Government, and Ministers cannot, and should not, intervene in its reviews or decisions. Since there is no action I can take, I do not believe a meeting with the Hon. Member would be helpful.

  • Norman Lamb – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Norman Lamb – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Norman Lamb on 2015-12-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will direct HM Chief Inspector of Constabulary to investigate Kent Police’s handling of a complaint of alleged corruption within the BBC in Tunbridge Wells made by a constituent of the hon. Member for North Norfolk.

    Mike Penning

    The role of Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) is to inspect the efficiency and effectiveness of forces. If an individual is unhappy with the way a force has handled a specific matter, then they are able to make a complaint, either through the force directly, or via the Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) or the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC). The Home Office does not intervene in individual complaint cases. It would be for the force to determine whether a complaint should be subject to a local investigation or referral to the IPCC under part 2 of the Police Reform Act 2002. The handling of police complaints must be customer focused, simple to understand and transparent throughout. Through the Policing and Criminal Justice Bill we will increase accountability and transparency in the complaints system by strengthening the role of directly-elected PCCs, and by reforming the IPCC to ensure that it has the powers it needs to secure public confidence and investigate complaints effectively.

  • 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 2016-01-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many calls to his Department’s helpline in 2015 related to universal credit; and what proportion such calls were of the total number of calls.

    Priti Patel

    There is no single Departmental helpline. The latest available figures showed that 47 million calls were answered across all DWP telephony service lines during 2015. In the same period, 400k calls were answered by Universal Credit Agents, equating to 0.9% of total calls.

  • Julie Cooper – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Julie Cooper – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julie Cooper on 2016-02-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether NHS England’s workplan for 2016-17 will include developing a policy for the effective delivery of care for people with tuberous sclerosis complex.

    George Freeman

    Most services for patients with tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) are commissioned locally by clinical commissioning groups. There will only be very specific items relating to TSC included in NHS England’s clinical commissioning priorities for 2016/17. NHS England is currently identifying its clinical commissioning priorities for all services or conditions that fall within its commissioning responsibility for 2016/17; work which we are advised will be completed in April 2016.

  • Julie Cooper – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Julie Cooper – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julie Cooper on 2016-03-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the average waiting time is from referral for an autism diagnosis in Lancashire.

    Alistair Burt

    This data is not collected centrally.

  • Daniel Zeichner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Daniel Zeichner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Zeichner on 2016-04-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how much of the Local Growth Fund has been earmarked for (a) housing loan finance and (b) flexible grant funding.

    James Wharton

    The £12 billion Local Growth Fund includes £2 billion for housing loan finance and up to £7.1 billion of flexible grant funding.

  • Rachel Reeves – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Rachel Reeves – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rachel Reeves on 2016-05-19.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the potential effect of reductions in capital gains tax rates announced in the Budget 2016 on (a) the prevalence of converting income into capital gains and (b) income tax receipts.

    Mr David Gauke

    Budget 2016 announced reductions in the basic rate of Capital Gains Tax (CGT) to 10% and the main rate to 20%, excluding gains on residential property and carried interest. The purpose of these changes is to encourage individuals to invest in companies, helping them to access the capital they need to expand and create jobs.

    The estimated cost of this measure was published at Budget 2016 and provided in the table below:

    Table 1: Total estimated Exchequer impact of Budget 2016 CGT basic and main rate reductions

    2016-17

    2017-18

    2018-19

    2019-20

    2020-21

    £m

    -105

    -630

    -605

    -670

    -735

    The costing in Table 1 includes an estimate of the impacts on CGT, Income Tax and Stamp Duty Land Tax receipts. The total estimated Exchequer cost accounts for behavioural responses, including greater realisation of gains, and increased incentive to take capital gains relative to income. This can include a wide range of behavioural changes. The impact on Income Tax is only one aspect of this costing.

    No separate estimate was made of the impact on CGT receipts of converting income into capital gains. Finance Bill 2016 contains provisions to strengthen anti-avoidance rules to prevent opportunities for people to shift income to capital in order to gain a tax advantage, through making changes to the Transactions in Securities Rules and introducing a new Targeted Anti Avoidance Rule.

  • Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-07-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will hold discussions with representatives of gyms on ensuring that the fitness levels of new members is assessed before they use such gyms.

    Tracey Crouch

    I meet regularly with ukactive, an organisation with members and partners across the UK active lifestyle sector, and others in the gym and physical activity sector. Whilst arrangements made for new members are for leisure providers to determine, our Sport Strategy, Sporting Future, published last December, highlighted the importance of giving those getting involved in sport, particularly for the first time, the best possible experience.

    In addition, ukactive’s Code of Practice – which is designed to ensure the safety and wellbeing of health and fitness operators and customers – also stipulates that providers must offer all facility users an exercise induction, and many physical activity, fitness and leisure operators require all new members to sign a ‘Health Commitment Statement’.