The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jonathan Ashworth on 2015-12-02.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, on how many occasions a special adviser in his Department accompanied a Minister on an overseas trip since May 2015.
Justin Tomlinson
There have been 4 occasions since May 2015, where a DWP Special Adviser has accompanied a Minister on an overseas trip.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-01-06.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, which departments have members on the cross-departmental Maritime Business Services working group; and how often he expects that group to meet.
Mr Robert Goodwill
The Ministerial Working Group for Maritime Growth met for the first time on 30 November 2015. The government departments which attended that meeting were the Department for Transport, the Department for Business, Innovation & Skills, the Ministry of Defence, the Department for the Environment, Food & Rural Affairs, Her Majesty’s Treasury and the Department for Culture, Media & Sport. Those Government departments with interests in future cross cutting discussions will be invited to further meetings.
The current expectation is that this group will meet twice in 2016 with a review at the end of the year to determine future needs.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Carswell on 2016-01-26.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether cost comparisons were made between the Boeing C-17 Globemaster and Airbus A400M prior to approval for procurement of the Airbus A400M.
Mr Philip Dunne
The business case for the acquisition of A400M was approved in 2000 and, I am advised that in accordance with extant Ministry of Defence policy, it was supported by a series of value for money assessments and comparisons, including with the C-17 aircraft.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Doughty on 2016-02-23.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much and what proportion of his Department’s overseas development assistance budget his Department spent was subject to the International Development Act 2002 in each of the last three years.
Mr Julian Brazier
Ministry of Defence (MOD) expenditure on overseas development assistance is governed by the Supply and Appropriation Acts.
MOD spending on overseas development assistance over the last three calendar years has been £3.0 million in 2013 and £2.2 million in 2014. The 2015 figure is currently undergoing an assurance process and is scheduled to be published on 1 April 2016. This expenditure has mainly been on humantarian assistance and defence education.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch on 2016-03-21.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the Food Standards Agency achieved its target of halving the incidence of campylobacter food poisoning in 2015.
Lord Prior of Brampton
Although progress continues to be made, the Food Standards Agency’s (FSA) agreed target with industry to reduce the numbers of the most contaminated birds at the end of slaughter to less than 10% by 2015 was not met. However, given the interventions expected to come on stream within industry, the FSA Board agreed to roll the target to 2016, when it is expected that the target will be met. If the target is met, then a decrease of around 50% in the number of human cases of campylobacteriosis would be expected.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Patten on 2016-04-18.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the benefits to date of the Right to Roam policy.
Lord Gardiner of Kimble
The Government recognises that the right of access for open-air recreation under Part 1 of the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 plays an important role in the public’s use and enjoyment of the natural environment in England. Although it has made no assessment of the benefits of the right of access, a report Costs and benefits of public access to the countryside – Literature Review, which was made to Natural England in 2013, noted that the recreational use of the countryside provided significant benefits to individuals, society and the wider economy.
The Monitor of Engagement with the Natural Environment survey, which is funded by Natural England with support from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and the Forestry Commission, has recorded the number of visits per year to open access land. The results of the survey show that between 2009/10 and 2013/14 on average 27.8 million visits per year were made to open access land.
The Government is also developing a 25 Year Environment Plan which aims for Britain to be the healthiest and most beautiful place to live, work and bring up a family. We will be working with the Natural Capital Committee to develop a plan to protect and improve our natural capital and to provide opportunities for sustained prosperity and wellbeing.
The Government wants everyone to feel the benefits of an improved environment and the opportunities that come from access to the countryside and our green spaces, including for recreation and relaxation. We are making strides to improve our understanding of the value of nature, to better quantify the range of benefits we get from our land, water, air, and seas. This will allow us to enhance the quality of the decisions we take about how these assets are managed, using natural capital as the common currency.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2016-05-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what reports he has received on the number of people unlawfully executed in Libya by Daesh.
Mr Philip Hammond
It is clear from reports and testimonies from local residents that Daesh have carried out many savage executions and brutal punishments in Libya against innocent civilians and those who have had the courage to oppose their vile oppression. We utterly condemn their barbaric acts of terror inside Libya, including the targeting of others because of their faith. The Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) has confirmed that ICC jurisdiction over Libya prima facie extends to such crimes.
We are engaging with the new Libyan government and working closely with international partners to develop a comprehensive approach to defeat Daesh in Libya.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Michael Dugher on 2016-07-21.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when his officials last updated the Blue Badge Scheme local authority guidance; whether he plans to update that guidance; and if he will make a statement.
Andrew Jones
The extent to which a specific condition affects people will vary. If we were to provide automatic eligibility without further assessment by virtue of having dementia it may not reflect genuine need.
However, the ‘subject to further assessment’ criteria do not preclude the issue of badges to people with mental/cognitive disabilities. Any permanent and substantial disability may qualify for a badge if it causes “very considerable difficulty in walking”. It is for the local authority to assess the degree of challenge on a case-by-case basis.
The guidance was last updated in October 2014. There are no plans to update it at this time.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Blomfield on 2016-10-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many applications for medicine courses were (a) received and (b) accepted at higher education institutions in England in each of the last five years.
Joseph Johnson
The Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) publishes data on applications and acceptances to full-time undergraduate courses. The table below shows the number of main scheme applications (applications submitted by 30 June each year) and the number of acceptances for ‘pre-clinical medicine’ for applicants domiciled in England.
Table: applications and acceptances to pre-clinical medicine1
|
2011 |
2012 |
2013 |
2014 |
2015 |
|
|
Number of acceptances |
5,525 |
5,705 |
5,510 |
5,630 |
5,515 |
|
Number of main scheme applications |
55,280 |
53,740 |
54,710 |
55,065 |
48,525 |
Notes:
1. Pre-clinical medicine is based on Joint Academic Coding System (JACS) code A1
The figures were extracted from the UCAS 2015 end of cycle data resources (tables DR3_017_01 and DR3_017_03) available via the following weblink:
“
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Anna Turley on 2015-11-04.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, whether monitoring activity was put in place by his Department to oversee the financial viability of SSI in Redcar.
Anna Soubry
It is up to companies to run their own financial affairs and to submit annual returns and accounts. My Department was aware of the serious financial difficulties facing SSI UK prior to its closure and made every effort within the bounds of the law to provide assistance where we could, including ensuring workers could be paid their monthly salaries.