Category: Speeches

  • Huw Irranca-Davies – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Attorney General

    Huw Irranca-Davies – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Attorney General

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Huw Irranca-Davies on 2016-01-26.

    To ask the Attorney General, pursuant to the Answer of 20 January 2016 to Question 22432, how the Director of the Serious Fraud Office measures the undermining of UK PLC commercial or financial interests in the (a) City of London and (b) UK.

    Robert Buckland

    The Criminal Justice Act 1987 provides that “The Director may investigate any suspected offence which appears to him on reasonable grounds to involve serious or complex fraud.”

    Each case is assessed on its own facts and merits.

    The Statement of Principle sets out some of the factors that the Director will take into account when considering the matter for investigation. All of these will be considered, and there is no minimum requirement or measure in respect of the different factors.

    Each on its own or taken in combination can establish sufficient grounds for the Director to decide that the case is sufficiently large, complex or of wide public interest that it should be dealt with by the Serious Fraud Office.

  • Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Haigh on 2016-02-23.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what (a) guidance his Department issues and (b) regulations are in place on the provision of electoral roll data to credit reference agencies.

    John Penrose

    The Electoral Commission provides detailed guidance to Electoral Registration Officers on access and supply of the full electoral register, including by credit reference agencies.

    The regulations on the supply of electoral roll data to credit reference agencies are set out in The Representation of the People (England and Wales)(Amendment) Regulations 2002. Under Regulation 114, credit reference agencies registered under Part III of the Consumer Credit Act and carrying on the business of providing credit reference services may only use the full electoral register for specified purposes; namely for checking a person’s identity if they apply for credit, and for the prevention of money laundering fraud. Electoral Registration Officers are entitled to charge credit reference agencies a small fee for copies of the full register, to cover administration costs.

  • Daniel Zeichner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Daniel Zeichner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Zeichner on 2016-03-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 11 March 2016 to Question 29611, in what specified format the Buses Bill will require data on routes, timetables, punctuality and fares to be published; and whether this format will differ from the format currently used by his Department to publish bus fares information.

    Andrew Jones

    The Buses Bill will not specify the format in which the data on routes, timetables, punctuality and fares must be provided. The Bill would give the Secretary of State the powers to make secondary legislation to mandate the provision of data. The specific format of the data will be determined following discussions with industry in due course.

  • Lord Berkeley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Lord Berkeley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Berkeley on 2016-04-18.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government under what legislative provision OFWAT is able to waive the need for a public procurement process for lawyers and financiers for the Thames Tideway Tunnel for services contracts with fees of open-ended value, in the light of the limit for services contracts under the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 of £345,028.

    Lord Gardiner of Kimble

    The statutory provision is regulation 6(8) of the Water Industry (Specified Infrastructure Projects) (English Undertakers) Regulations 2013 (S.I. 2013/ 1582) ("the SIP Regulations"). This confers a power on Ofwat to waive the requirement imposed on a licensed infrastructure provider (being Tideway, in respect of the Thames Tideway Tunnel project) to put certain contracts out to tender under a modified version of the Utilities Contracts Regulations 2016 as set in Part 1 of Schedule 2 of the SIP Regulations. Tideway is neither a contracting authority nor a utility within the meaning of the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 or Utilities Contracts Regulations 2016 and so is not subject to the normal procurement rules.

    Following a public consultation, Ofwat issued two notices under this provision that waived Tideway’s obligation to comply with the modified version of the Utilities Contracts Regulations in certain limited and defined circumstances. The second notice issued by Ofwat provided Tideway with a narrow exemption for certain specified professional services relating to their financing and corporate arrangements, and only to the extent that those services will be paid for by its shareholders rather than customers.

  • Peter Kyle – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Peter Kyle – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Peter Kyle on 2016-05-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, with reference to paragraph 119 of the Teaching excellence framework: technical consultation for year two, published by his Department on 16 May 2016, how the estimates for the performance metrics were reached; whether there is scope for making adjustments to those estimates in the future; whether those estimates will be used as part of formal guidance for the operation of the teaching excellence framework; and if he will publish the methodological framework and evidence for how those estimates were reached.

    Joseph Johnson

    In developing our proposals for the Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) we used a set of indicative metrics, with data constructed using the methods set out in Chapter 2 of the TEF: Technical Consultation for Year Two. The statement that providers will fall into a bell curve was based on observing the number of providers with positive and negative significance flags against the core metrics.

    The actual TEF assessments will be made against the most recent data which we anticipate will follow a broadly similar pattern. As stated in the Technical Consultation, we expect the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) to construct the guidance to assessors in such a way that will lead to a distribution similar to that set out in paragraph 119; however, assessors will not be obligated to check that the awards follow this distribution, only that they have followed the guidance.

    Our consultation response will outline the final metrics and HEFCE guidance will set out the detailed methodology of how the metrics are constructed.

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

    Rosie Cooper – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rosie Cooper on 2016-07-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the average length of time is for children to be diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders in (a) England and (b) West Lancashire.

    David Mowat

    This information is not collected centrally.

    The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence has published a guideline on the recognition, referral and diagnosis of autism in under 19s. This recommends that an assessment for autism is begun within three months of referral.

  • Clive Lewis – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Clive Lewis – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Clive Lewis on 2016-10-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what estimate his Department has made of the value of artefacts illegally salvaged from the site of HMS Warrior since the discovery of the wreck in September 2016.

    Harriett Baldwin

    The Ministry of Defence Police (MDP) has carried out the following investigations (taking “disturbances” to mean thefts or alleged thefts and not limited to shipwrecks) under the Protection of Military Remains Act 1986:

    YEAR

    2010

    1

    2011

    6

    2012

    1

    2013

    0

    2014

    0

    2015

    1

    The MDP has not received any information related to the illegal salvage of material from HMS Warrior.

    By invoking the principle of Sovereign Immunity, and by designating specific vessels under the Protection of Wrecks Act 1973 and the Protection of Military Remains Act 1986, we endeavour to protect these important sites where we are able. Where we have definitive evidence of desecration of these sites, we will take appropriate action. However, it should be appreciated that, given the large number of Royal Navy wrecks around the world and the vast area they cover, there are limitations on what can be achieved with regard to protection.

  • Louise Ellman – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Louise Ellman – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Ellman on 2015-11-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will assess the effectiveness of arrangements for delivering community health services to patients who reside outside the clinical commissioning group area in which their GP is based.

    Alistair Burt

    From 5 January 2015, all GP practices are able to register new patients who live outside the practice area.

    NHS England has been reviewing the numbers of patients registering with practices away from their home address and have also been monitoring the number of patients who have had cause to seek in hours care whilst at their home address. To date, NHS England has not reviewed the effectiveness of community health services.

    As at 1 November 2015, 33,347 patients in England were registered as out of area patients.

  • Christopher Chope – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Christopher Chope – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Christopher Chope on 2016-01-06.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she expects the new secure zone for British-bound lorries at Calais to be operational; and what steps are being taken to protect UK-bound lorries from attack before that time.

    James Brokenshire

    The new secure zone at Calais for UK-bound lorries which will provide a secure waiting area for 230 vehicles is expected to be completed in late spring 2016. In the interim, Border Force has worked with Calais port operator and introduced an interim secure freight circulation and waiting area for around 200 vehicles.

    The haulage industry is hugely important to UK trade and prosperity and Her Majesty’s Government regularly speaks with haulage industry representatives to listen to their concerns regarding the situation in northern France. The Government is funding improved security measures and port infrastructure to protect the travelling public, including HGV drivers, in the Calais area. This includes the introduction of security fencing around port perimeters and along the port approach roads at Calais port and at the Coquelles Eurotunnel site; and the introduction of new secure waiting zones for UK-bound HGVs at both locations.

    This forms part of the measures to reduce illegal migration in Northern France being delivered under the Anglo/French Declaration. In addition, the UK and French authorities also work closely to share intelligence to combat illegal migrant activity and organised immigration crime.

  • Stephen Phillips – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Stephen Phillips – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Phillips on 2016-01-26.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to table 2.7 on page 85 of the Spending Review and Autumn Statement 2015, which Departments will fund the cross-government overseas development aid spending set out in that table in each of the five years from 2015-16 to 2019-20.

    Greg Hands

    As set out in the strategy for official development assistance “UK Aid: tackling global challenges in the national interest”, published on 23 November, meeting our responsibilities to the world’s poorest while also serving and protecting the UK’s interests and security, requires us to harness skills from across government.

    The cross government ODA funding in “Table 2.7: Department for International Development (DFID)” is part of DFID’s total DEL settlement. DFID will transfer this to other government departments and cross government funds to spend on activities that can be classified as Official Development Assistance (ODA) according to the OECD definition.