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Category: Speeches

  • Andrew Tyrie – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Andrew Tyrie – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Tyrie on 2016-04-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment his Department has made of the potential effect of closing the Chichester Combined Court Centre and Chichester Magistrates’ Court on the work of (a) Chichester constabulary, (b) Chichester District Council and (c) other local services.

    Mr Shailesh Vara

    All responses to the consultation were carefully considered before the decision was made to close the courts in Chichester. This included evaluating the impact on the police, the District Council and other local services. In recognition of the particular circumstances of court users in Chichester, the Combined Court Centre will not close until suitable local alternative provision is in place.

  • Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Women and Equalities

    Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Women and Equalities

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-06-06.

    To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, if she will hold discussions with the Secretary of State for Education on encouraging regular trips to engineering firms, factories and laboratories by all-girls’ schools to encourage girls to consider STEM careers.

    Caroline Dinenage

    We are committed to increasing the number of girls studying STEM subjects and considering STEM careers. That is why earlier this year we announced an ambition to increase the proportion of girls studying STEM subjects by 20% by 2020. We fully encourage engagement between schools and employers to inform and inspire all young people about STEM careers.

    This government wants to see improvements to the quality of careers advice and guidance available to young people, with many more schools and employers working together to provide excellent support. Helping all young people, regardless of background, get the inspiration and guidance they need for success in working life is a key part of this government’s commitment to delivering real social justice. Later this year, we will publish our careers strategy which will set out a clear vision and roadmap for our £90 million investment this parliament to improve careers education and guidance for young people.

    As part of this investment, we are funding the Careers and Enterprise Company (CEC) to take a lead role in transforming the provision of careers, enterprise and employer engagement experiences for young people to inspire them and prepare them for the world of work. The CEC announced, in March, the successful bidders to the £5 million careers and enterprise investment fund, some of which have a specific focus on STEM. The fund will boost provision for nearly 250,000 young people across England in 75% of the areas the company has identified as ‘cold spots’.

    The government supports the STEM Ambassadors Programme with a network of over 32,000 volunteers from STEM companies and academia who inspire schoolchildren about STEM careers. We also support the industry led Your Life campaign which aims to transform perceptions of STEM subjects by showing young people the range of careers they can pursue.

  • Justin Tomlinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Justin Tomlinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Justin Tomlinson on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps he is taking to ensure that government departments and executive agencies return people’s personal identification documents by secure delivery.

    Ben Gummer

    Personal identification documents can be requested by departments to verify an individual’s identity for a service that they provide. It is for each department to determine the most appropriate method for returning these documents to the individual, taking into account the risk of loss and potential for fraud. Departments that regularly handle personal identification documents are expected to have clear procedures in place to return documentation to the owner.

    The government has also launched ‘Verify’ on the GOV.uk website. As more government services are provided online and using the Verify service, the need for personal identity documents to be sent in hard copy through the postal network will be reduced.

  • Barry Sheerman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Barry Sheerman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Sheerman on 2016-10-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps the Government plans to take to include remanufactured paint as a material in Green Public Procurement.

    Dr Thérèse Coffey

    The Government has been engaging constructively with the British Coatings Federation on making better use of leftover paint, including identifying potential regulatory barriers to its recycling and remanufacture and how these might be overcome.

    The Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) encourages consumers to recycle and re-use household paint by providing information through the Recycle Now website. This includes a postcode locator which helps pinpoint local Household Waste Recycling Centres (HWRCs) that accept leftover paint. The Government’s Innovation in Waste Prevention Fund has also supported a pilot paint re-use project in Cheshire involving local charities, working with HWRCs and housing associations to increase paint donation and minimise disposal. WRAP will publish a summary of the project, lessons learned and a video case study later in the year.

    In terms of public procurement, it is for each Government department to consider sustainability and put this into practice in its own procurement activity. Government Buying Standards do not currently include remanufactured paint. WRAP has recently published a guide on ‘How to Include Re-use in Local Authority HWRC Procurement’.

  • Martin John Docherty – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Martin John Docherty – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Martin John Docherty on 2015-10-27.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what contribution his Department has made, excluding investment in Trident, to the NATO (a) civil budget, (b) military budget and (c) Security Investment Programme in each of the last three years.

    Michael Fallon

    The amount contributed by the Ministry of Defence to NATO’s Military Budget and the NATO Security Investment Programme (NSIP) in each of the last three financial years is as follows:

    Financial Year

    Military Budget

    NSIP

    £ million

    £ million

    2014-15

    82.050

    47.261

    2013-14

    109.741

    53.287

    2012-13

    123.408

    45.975

    Both the Military Budget and NSIP amounts include UK contribution to NATO Operations and Missions. The contribution to both funding streams is based on the agreed NATO cost share for the UK of 10.479%.

    The UK contribution to the NATO Civil Budget is funded by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

  • Nicola Blackwood – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    Nicola Blackwood – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nicola Blackwood on 2015-11-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how much of her Department’s funding allocated in the Spending Review 2015 will be for research and development expenditure up to 2020.

    Mr Ben Wallace

    My Department has no funding allocated in the Spending Review 2015 for research and development expenditure. Funding for research and development expenditure in Northern Ireland is allocated to NI Executive Departments.

  • Seema Malhotra – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Seema Malhotra – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Seema Malhotra on 2016-01-07.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 10 December 2015 to Question 19047, what discussions he has had with the Office for Budget Responsibility on including the potential effect of recent Conservative Party manifesto commitments in its forecasting of economic growth.

    Harriett Baldwin

    The economy forecast produced by the OBR reflects current Government policy. As laid out in the Budget Responsibility and National Audit Act 2011, ‘Where any Government policies are relevant to the performance of that duty, the Office – must have regard to those policies, but may not consider what the effect of any alternative policies would be.’ The OBR note as risks to the fiscal forecast any significant policy commitments that are not quantifiable.

  • Maria Eagle – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Maria Eagle – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Maria Eagle on 2016-02-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what meetings (a) Ministers and (b) officials in her Department have had with (i) James Murdoch and (ii) representatives from Sky UK Limited in each year since 2012.

    Karen Bradley

    Home Office Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide variety of international partners, as well as organisations and individuals in the public and private sectors, as part of the process of policy development and delivery. Details of Ministerial meetings are passed to the Cabinet Office on a quarterly basis and are subsequently published on the Gov.uk website: http://data.gov.uk/dataset/ministerial-data-home-office

  • Laurence Robertson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Laurence Robertson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Laurence Robertson on 2016-02-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if she will increase Government funding for emergency food aid to Ethiopia.

    Mr Nick Hurd

    We are very concerned about the impact of the current drought on the food security situation for 18 million people across Ethiopia. Britain is working closely with the Government of Ethiopia and the international community to ensure adequate funding for drought response activities.

    We acted quickly and decisively at the onset of the drought by providing emergency food aid for 2.1 million people in 2015. This year, we have committed £40 million to provide food aid to a further 3.8 million people in April.

    In collaboration with the United Nations Children’s Fund, DFID is also ensuring that 120,000 severely malnourished children receive treatment in order to recover quickly.

    Our overall funding for the drought to date is £113 million. We are continuing to work with the Government of Ethiopia and other donors to make sure needs are being met. We are monitoring the situation closely.

    UK Aid resilience work with the Government of Ethiopia has helped prepare 10 million people to cope with this drought.

  • Rupa Huq – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Rupa Huq – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rupa Huq on 2016-03-22.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many convictions for benefit fraud were overturned on appeal between 2010 and 2014.

    Dominic Raab

    The information requested is not available.