The below Parliamentary question was asked by Christopher Chope on 2016-10-18.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, when he plans to respond to the letter of 20 September 2016 from the hon. Member for Christchurch on the involvement of his Department with the consultation document and questionnaire on possible Dorset local government reorganisation.
Mr Marcus Jones
A reply was sent to my hon Friend on 20 October.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Philip Davies on 2015-11-05.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, which regulations his Department introduced as a result of EU legislation in (a) 2013, (b) 2014 and (c) 2015 to date; which regulations his Department expects to implement as a result of EU legislation in (i) 2016 and (ii) 2017; and what estimate he has made of the cost of each such regulation to the (A) public purse and (B) private sector.
Mr Julian Brazier
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to him by my my right hon. Friend the Minister for Small Business, Industry and Enterprise (Anna Soubry) on11 November 2015 to Question 15037.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Danny Kinahan on 2015-11-30.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of removing treatments for multiple myeloma from the Cancer Drugs Fund on investment in clinical trials for that condition in the UK.
George Freeman
I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 16 September 2015 to Question 10093.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Roberts of Llandudno on 2016-01-11.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will consider using airdrops to carry food to relieve the hunger of Syrian communities.
Earl of Courtown
The UK has pledged over £1.1 billion in response to the crisis in Syria and the region, making us the second largest bilateral donor after the US. By the end of June 2015, UK support inside Syria and in the surrounding region had, for example, delivered almost 20 million food rations that feed one person for a month; over 2.5 million medical consultations; and relief items for 4.6 million people. We have provided ongoing support to the UN and international NGOs (INGOs) since the start of the conflict to deliver aid in hard to reach and besieged areas of Syria.
The UK will consider any option compliant with international law that might save lives in Syria. We rule nothing out. However, the use of air drops is high risk and should only be considered as a last resort when all other means have failed.
Attempting air drops without the consent of the parties to the conflict may risk undermining ongoing negotiations on humanitarian access to the 4.5 million people in hard to reach areas across Syria. Even in uncontested space air drops poise significant challenges. There is a requirement to identify clear drop zones, ensure safe access for the intended recipients and to co-ordinate with authorities on the ground. Instead, the UN, the Red Cross Movement and NGO partners are best placed to deliver aid to vulnerable people in besieged and hard to reach areas.
The desperate situation in besieged and hard to reach areas shows why we need the international community to come together at the London Conference for Syria and the Region on 4 February to support immediate needs and identify longer-term solutions to address the needs of those affected by the crisis.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-02-03.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, pursuant to the Answer of 3 February 2016 to Question 24171, what funding the Illegal Money Lending Team received in each of the last five years; and how much it will receive in each year until it becomes funded through a levy.
Nick Boles
Annual funding for the Illegal Money Lending Teams as reported to the Department by National Trading Standards was:
|
Year |
England |
Wales |
|
2015/16 * |
£3,097,822 |
£546,674 |
|
2014/15 |
£3,605,286 |
£634,016 |
|
2013/14 |
£3,716,789 |
£673,625 |
|
2012/13 |
£3,716,789 |
£595,670 |
|
2011/12** |
£3,716,789 |
£653,625 |
* * Additionally, for 2015/16 the FCA agreed to outsource work to a maximum of £880,000, split £748,000 to the England Team and £132,000 to the Wales Team. The FCA will outsource work to a maximum of £500,000 for 2016/17.
** Until the creation of NTS in April 2012, the teams were funded directly by BIS.
BIS has committed to maintaining its funding of the teams at 2015/16 year levels for 2016/17. It is anticipated that levy funding will be in place from 2017/18.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Debbie Abrahams on 2016-02-24.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if he will bring forward legislative proposals to ensure that people who have been convicted of a child sex offence cannot serve as a local authority or parish councillor.
Mr Marcus Jones
During the passage of the then Cities and Devolution Bill we undertook to review the legislation on the disqualification of local authority members and to consult on proposals for change to bring the legislative rules into line with modern sentencing guidelines. Our intention is to launch the consultation as soon as practicable this year.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Bridgen on 2016-03-24.
To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what assessment he has made of the financial accountability of government in Wales.
Guto Bebb
In order to become truly accountable to the people of Wales it is vital that the Welsh Government takes more responsibility for raising, through taxation, the money that it spends.
We will, as part of the Wales Bill, remove the requirement for a referendum before the devolution of powers to vary the rates of income tax in Wales.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine West on 2016-04-28.
To ask the Attorney General, when he last discussed the UK’s membership of the European Convention on Human Rights with the Home Secretary.
Jeremy Wright
I meet regularly with Ministerial colleagues, including the Home Secretary, to discuss important issues of common interest, including domestic and international human rights law. I am not able to provide information about any legal content of those discussions because, by longstanding convention, the fact that the Law Officers have advised, or have not advised, and the content of their advice is not disclosed outside government.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Goudie on 2016-06-13.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action, if any, they plan to take to save and preserve the Kensington Odeon, maintain its classic art deco design, and reverse the impact of its closure upon the neighbourhood and community.
Baroness Neville-Rolfe
Kensington Odeon is subject to a Certificate of Immunity (COI) which precludes the building being listed until 2018. The Odeon has been considered for listing twice before. It was rejected because it does not possess the special architectural or historic interest features required.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Lucas on 2016-09-02.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, when he plans to respond to the concluding observations and recommendations of the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights on the UK’s sixth periodic report in relation to social housing supply and homelessness; and if he will make a statement.
Gavin Barwell
In paragraph 73 of the UN recommendations, the UN requested that the UK submits its next period report under the Covenant (inclusive of a response to all the recommendations from this year’s examination) by 30 June 2021; it would therefore not be appropriate for me to pre-empt this report by anticipating what we, or indeed a future UK government in 2021, might say.
This government remains committed to tackling homelessness. That is why we have increased central government funding for homelessness programmes to £139 million over the Spending Review period. We have also maintained and protected homelessness prevention funding for local authorities through the local government finance settlement totalling £315 million by 2019/20. In the Budget we announced further commitments to prevent homelessness including £100 million to provide at least 2,000 places for vulnerable people to enable independent living; £10 million to support initiatives to prevent and reduce rough sleeping; and an increase from £5 million to £10 million to launch a Social Impact Bond to support the most entrenched rough sleepers off the streets.
This will be supported by the government’s broader commitments to increase the overall supply of housing. We remain committed to building more affordable housing, including shared ownership. More than 277,000 affordable homes have been delivered since April 2010, and the housing budget has been doubled to more than £20 billion to support the largest housing programme by any government since the 1970s, which includes £8 billion to deliver over 400,000 affordable homes.