Category: Speeches

  • Nick Clegg – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Nick Clegg – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nick Clegg on 2016-03-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of medicinal cannabis use to the NHS in each of the last three years.

    George Freeman

    We have made no such estimates.

    Herbal cannabis is not licensed as a medicine and, under section 7(4) of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971, a pharmacist would need to obtain a licence from the Home Office if they were to dispense cannabis.

  • Lord Hylton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Lord Hylton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2016-04-25.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government why less than 30 of the 157 children at Calais and identified as eligible for family re-union have so far been admitted to the UK; and what plans they have to improve the processes for re-union.

    Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

    There is no official estimate of the number of children in Calais; this is primarily a matter for the French authorities. It is only possible to assess whether an individual has links to the UK that could enable a transfer on family unity grounds once they make an application for asylum in France.

    Once an asylum claim is lodged in another Member State, the Dublin Regulation procedure requesting the UK to take charge of a child on family unity grounds can take place very quickly, often in a matter of weeks, subject to consideration of the evidence in each individual case.

    Since February 2016 the UK has accepted 30 requests from France under the Dublin Regulation to take charge of asylum seeking children on family grounds of which 23 have already been transferred to the UK. We are working closely with the French Government and NGOs, including on a joint communications campaign to inform migrants of their options and we provided a senior UK asylum official to the French Government who has put processes in place to support an efficient procedure.

  • Lord Donoughue – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Lord Donoughue – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Donoughue on 2016-06-07.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government why the total investment costs per tonne of CO2 equivalent abated by the Clean Technology Fund has increased from £21.40 to £26.40 according to the Department of Energy and Climate Change’s additional business case and intervention summary 2015; and what is being done to address rising costs.

    Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth

    Clean Technology Fund (CTF) approval decisions are based on six CTF Investment Criteria, of which cost-effectiveness is one. The total investment cost per tonne is estimated based on the portfolio of CTF projects that have been approved by the Trust Fund Committee. The original appraisal relied on the assessment of 30 individual projects approved by 2013, whereas the latest analysis is based on 57 projects approved by 2015. The total cost per tonne across the portfolio has changed as more projects have been approved, and will be expected to continue to change as the CTF portfolio increases, reflecting the range of projects included in the portfolio. As an example, sectors such as transport and energy efficiency typically have a higher cost per tonne than renewable energy projects. All projects deliver good value for money and wider benefits, such as private finance leveraged, jobs created, and increased numbers of people with access to energy.

    In order to guarantee the continued value for money of the CTF, there is a robust project approval process ensuring compliance with the standards set out in the CTF investment criteria. As a contributor country the UK approves the allocation of CTF resources for programmes, projects, and administrative budgets; assessing new proposals to ensure continued the value for money (see attachment with further detail on the CTF governance structure).

  • Lilian Greenwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Lilian Greenwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lilian Greenwood on 2016-07-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether the environmental assurance work his Department undertook in December 2015 in connection with runway expansion has been completed; and what the estimated cost of that work was to the public purse on the latest date for which figures are available.

    Mr John Hayes

    The Department is undertaking work to understand the environmental impacts of additional airport capacity. Further details on procurement undertaken to support the Department on environmental impacts can be found here: https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/17ffaddc-3c19-4462-91ae-bf30029c08d9.

  • Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-10-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what discussions his Department has had with key health stakeholders on providing guidance for GPs on extending the length of appointment slots and increasing the number of appointments bookable for each GP each day.

    David Mowat

    General practitioners (GPs) are required to provide essential services to meet the reasonable needs of their patients within core hours. Length of appointment slots and number of bookable appointments is determined by individual GP practices. The Department has not had discussions with key health stakeholders on providing guidance for GPs on these matters.

  • Nicholas Brown – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Nicholas Brown – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nicholas Brown on 2015-11-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the average number of hours worked per week by junior doctors is.

    Ben Gummer

    We do not hold this information centrally.

  • Jake Berry – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Jake Berry – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jake Berry on 2015-11-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many applications to buy public owned land for residential development made between 2009 and 2015 were (a) made, (b) granted and (c) developed as set out in those applications.

    Brandon Lewis

    As part of the Public Sector Land programme between April 2009 and March 2015, a total of 838 central Government-owned sites were sold. The Department does not hold information on the numbers of applications for sale or disposal of central government land, nor the build-out rates for individual sites.

  • Bernard Jenkin – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Bernard Jenkin – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bernard Jenkin on 2016-01-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how many staff in her Department are working on matters related to (a) European policy, (b) the future of Europe, (c) reform of the EU, (d) the renegotiation of the UK’s relationship with the EU, (e) the EU referendum and (f) the consequences of the EU referendum; how many full-time equivalent staff are working on such matters; what the (i) staff and (ii) other cost of such work is; what proportion of that work is undertaken by such staff on (A) communications, (B) strategy and (C) policy; whether her Department has established any specific unit or units to deal with those matters; to whom such (1) staff and (2) units report; whether her Department has issued guidelines to staff on those matters; and if she will make a statement.

    Mr Desmond Swayne

    The Government is fighting hard to fix the aspects of our EU membership that cause so much frustration in Britain – so we get a better deal for Britain and secure our future. Departments are appropriately resourced to support the Government’s priorities in Europe, including the renegotiation and referendum.

  • Karl McCartney – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Karl McCartney – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Karl McCartney on 2016-01-29.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what representations his Department has received on allowing a five per cent rate of VAT to golf participants at proprietary golf facilities.

    Mr David Gauke

    HM Treasury has received representations on applying a five per cent rate of VAT to golf from both the Association of Golf Course Owners, the Reduce VAT in Sport campaign group, the UK Golf Course Owners Association, and England Golf.

  • Paul Flynn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Paul Flynn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Flynn on 2016-02-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the UN Secretary General on the supply of arms and other military equipment sales to Saudi Arabia.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond), has had no discussions with the UN Secretary General on the supply of arms and other military equipment sales to Saudi Arabia.