Category: Speeches

  • Richard Fuller – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Richard Fuller – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Fuller on 2016-05-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much expenditure was incurred by the Child Support Agency in making ex-gratia or special payments as a result of poor service or errors by that agency in each of the last three years.

    Priti Patel

    The information on the total amount paid as ex-gratia or special payments across child maintenance in the last three years is in the attached table.

    Financial Year

    £’000s

    2013 – 2014

    £1,090

    2014 – 2015

    £847

    2015 – 2016 *

    £941

    Notes –

    These amounts include payments made across the Child Support Agency and Child Maintenance Service for the following:

    Ex-gratia – Actual Financial Loss

    Ex-gratia – Consolatory

    Compensation for Delay

    *The figure for 2015/16 is draft and subject to audit.

  • Michael Dugher – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Michael Dugher – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Michael Dugher on 2016-07-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the definition of statutory homelessness in preventing rough sleeping.

    Mr Marcus Jones

    The homelessness legislation (part 7 Housing Act 1996) provides a strong safety net for all those who are vulnerable and homeless through no fault of their own. Homelessness is defined at section 175 of the Act. Broadly speaking somebody is statutorily homeless if they do not have accommodation that they have a legal right to occupy, which is accessible and physically available to them (and their household) and which it would be reasonable for them to continue to live in. It would not be reasonable for someone to continue to live in their home, for example, if that was likely to lead to violence against them (or a member of their family).

    We have protected homelessness prevention funding for local authorities, totalling £315 million by 2020. In doing so, we expect local authorities to meet their statutory duty to provide advice and assistance to all those that approach them for help. Since 2010, this funding has allowed local authorities to prevent more than a million households from becoming homeless. We are determined to ensure that we prevent more people from becoming homeless in the first place so we are working with local authorities, homelessness charities and across departments to consider options to prevent more people from becoming homeless.

    We have also increased central funding to tackle homelessness to £139 million over the next four years, which will include targeted funding for rough sleeping. This includes a new £10 million fund to support and scale-up initiatives to prevent and reduce rough sleeping, and a £10 million Social Impact Bond to support the most entrenched rough sleepers off the streets.

  • David T. C. Davies – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    David T. C. Davies – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David T. C. Davies on 2016-10-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people have been deported to (a) India, (b) Pakistan, (c) China, (d) Nigeria, (e) Uganda and (f) Iran in the latest period for which figures are available.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    The term ‘deportations’ refers to a legal definition of a specific set of returns. Deportations are a specific subset of returns which are enforced either following a criminal conviction or when it is judged that a person’s removal from the UK is conducive to the public good. The deportation order prohibits the person returning to the UK until such time as it may be revoked.

    Published information on those deported is not separately available. As such, the question has been interpreted as referring to enforced returns. In an enforced return, it has been established that a person has breached UK immigration laws and / or has no valid leave to remain in the UK. They have declined to leave voluntarily and the Home Office enforces their departure from the UK.

    Statistics on persons returned from the UK is published in the Home Office’s Immigration Statistics. The latest edition, Immigration Statistics: April to June 2016 is available from GOV.UK on the statistics web pages at: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/home-office/series/immigration-statistics-quarterly-release.

  • Gavin Newlands – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Gavin Newlands – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gavin Newlands on 2015-11-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what information the Government holds on UK-linked companies committing human rights abuses abroad.

    Mr David Lidington

    The Government does not maintain a central log of UK-linked companies who allegedly fail to respect human rights abroad. However, the Government’s expectation is that British companies will build respect for human rights into all aspects of their operations, in the UK and overseas. Responsible action by the private sector is good for business and communities – it helps create jobs, customers and a sense of fairness, and contributes towards to a market’s sustainability.

  • Lord Rana – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Lord Rana – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Rana on 2015-12-14.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions they have had with the government of India regarding the termination of UK aid to India in 2016.

    Baroness Verma

    In November 2012, the Secretary of State for International Development announced the UK would end our programme of financial aid grants to India by the end of 2015. That is exactly what we are doing. We will responsibly fulfil commitments to existing financial grant aid projects – all of which will be completed by end of 2015 – after which we will only provide support in the form of private sector expertise and technical assistance.

    The post-2015 transition plan was agreed in 2012 following extensive consultation with the Government of India (GoI), and has been reviewed annually with the GoI, including most recently in October 2015.

  • Stephen Doughty – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Stephen Doughty – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Doughty on 2016-01-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many complaints her Department has received regarding services provided under contract by Clearsprings from (a) service users and (b) external parties in each of the last six years.

    James Brokenshire

    Within the terms of the contracts for asylum accommodation the accommodation provider is required to respond to and address complaints from service users and external parties in the first instance. Where a service user or external party is dissatisfied with the response or the measures taken to address their complaint, the complainant may escalate the issue to the Home Office.

    In the years 2010 to 2015 the Home Office has received 60 complaints in total regarding services provided under contract by Clearsprings Ready Homes, broken down by each of the last six years as follows:

    Year No. of complaints

    2010 0

    2011 0

    2012 0

    2013 1

    2014 0

    2015 59

    The complaints have not been categorised to distinguish whether the complainant was a service user or external party.

    On receipt, each complaint is considered, investigated and addressed. If after investigation the Home Office determines that a complaint demonstrates a failure of the contractor to comply with the required standards and the contractor fails to address the complaint there are a range of contractual sanctions that the Home Office can and do impose.

    The Home Office is working with contractors to undertake profiling and trend analysis of complaints, including why there was an increase in 2015. The Home Office is also assessing whether the existing channels are sufficiently capturing service user and external party concerns.

  • The Lord Bishop of Southwark – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The Lord Bishop of Southwark – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Lord Bishop of Southwark on 2016-02-22.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the conditions facing Iraqi refugees in Jordan.

    Baroness Verma

    The situation for many refugees in Jordan is challenging, irrespective of nationality. Services are provided by the international community and the Government of Jordan based on a system of prioritisation of the most vulnerable and Iraqi refugees are included in this system. Like all refugees, Iraqis are registered by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and access assistance from UN agencies, international NGOs and national NGOs. Partners assess vulnerability in Jordan at individual, community and household levels. These vulnerability assessments take into account positive coping strategies and support networks, which are understood to be better established among the Iraqi community, including through religious institutions such as mosques and churches.

  • Lord Chadlington – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Lord Chadlington – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Chadlington on 2016-03-09.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to educate women on alcohol avoidance whilst pregnant.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    On 8 January 2016, the United Kingdom Chief Medical Officers published a new guideline on pregnancy and drinking – that if a woman is pregnant or planning a pregnancy, the safest approach is not to drink alcohol at all, to keep risks to the baby to a minimum. A copy of the guideline is attached. The Department will be working with the Royal College of Midwives and the Royal College of Obstetrics and Gynaecology to ensure that their members are fully informed about the content of the guidelines and are able to explain them to the women they care for and help them make informed decisions. Public Health England (PHE) is also working with professional organisations to enhance the awareness and confidence of midwives and health visitors to educate and inform women about avoiding alcohol while pregnant.

    PHE’s Start4Life social marketing programme delivers advice and practical guidance to parents and parents to be to help them adopt healthy behaviours and build parenting skills to give their child the best possible start. This includes looking after their own health, and addresses the implications of drinking during pregnancy. Start4Life uses a range of products to inform and influence its audience’s behaviour around alcohol consumption including the Information Service for Parents, Start4Life website, and leaflets and posters.

    Through voluntary actions by alcohol producers, independent research showed that in 2014 90.7% of bottles and cans carried warning labels about drinking in pregnancy, compared to just 17.6% of products six years before.

  • Paul Blomfield – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Paul Blomfield – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Blomfield on 2016-04-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what process his Department will adopt for evaluating responses received to the consultation on proposals to move all policy roles to the 1 Victoria Street office in London and close the St Paul’s Place office in Sheffield.

    Joseph Johnson

    The BIS Executive Board will take account of all consultation responses from the Departmental Trades Unions and staff when they decide whether to proceed with proposals to move policy roles to London and to close the Sheffield office.

  • Lord Beecham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Lord Beecham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Beecham on 2016-05-23.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the fact that the Sentencing Council’s fine calculator does not reflect the new victim surcharge fees for offences committed on or after 8 April, does not permit rounding for fines or victim surcharges, and allows fines to be imposed outside Magistrates’ Court Sentencing Guidelines, what steps they plan to take to make changes to the calculation method, and to confirm that the Ambay Software Sentencing Guidelines App complies fully with those guidelines.

    Lord Faulks

    The Sentencing Council has launched a new fines calculator, which is freely available on its website to assist magistrates when imposing fines. This takes account of the changes to the surcharge introduced on 8 April and enables calculations for multiple fines and rounding where appropriate. The calculator is a tool to assist sentencers and is not intended to replace the role of the court in determining the appropriate sentence in line with any relevant sentencing guidelines. Courts can only depart from sentencing guidelines if it is in the interests of justice to do so.