UKPOL.CO.UK

Category: Speeches

  • David Mackintosh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    David Mackintosh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Mackintosh on 2016-02-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what his Department’s definition is of a homeless person.

    Mr Marcus Jones

    The legal definition of homelessness is set out in Section 175 of the Housing Act 1996. 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).

  • Chris Stephens – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Chris Stephens – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Stephens on 2016-03-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to his oral contribution of 21 March 2016, Official Report, column 1284, whether an impact assessment has been carried out on the effect of social security reform on employees in his Department.

    Priti Patel

    Ministers consider all of their statutory duties in considering new policies and impact assessments are published as is appropriate. A number of impact assessments have been published during the passage of the recent Welfare Reform Act. These use the whole population as a base but do not focus specifically on DWP employees.

  • Anne Main – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Anne Main – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Anne Main on 2016-05-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the implications for his Department’s policies of the Report, Nicotine without smoke: tobacco harm reduction, published by the Royal College of Physicians in April 2016.

    Jane Ellison

    The Department has and will continue to keep abreast of all evidence and consider it in developing policy. The report published by the Royal College of Physicians is consistent with the Government’s current policy that the best thing a smoker can do for their health is to quit smoking and quit for good but that e-cigarettes have a role to play in helping some people quit.

  • Lord Condon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Lord Condon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Condon on 2016-06-08.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the disruption to rail passengers in Kent on 6 June, what action they are taking to ensure a more reliable service for rail passengers travelling between Kent and London terminals.

    Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

    My Hon Friend, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Transport, Claire Perry MP, as Rail Minister, chairs a monthly meeting with Network Rail, train operators in the South East, Transport Focus, and Department for Transport officials. This group monitors performance and passenger experience and it is absolutely committed to identifying improvements and ensuring rail passengers see the benefits of these improvements being delivered. Network Rail and Southeastern both need to show much greater improvement in their ability to fix faults quickly and communicate with their passengers more effectively. The Department will ensure that lessons are learned from the disruption in Kent that day.

  • Lord Ahmed – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Ahmed – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Ahmed on 2016-09-05.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they have taken to ensure that any civil or military co-operation between the UK and the government of India does not contribute to human rights abuses in Kashmir.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    We are committed to working with India to deliver prosperity and security for our nations. This includes growing trade links, supporting economic reform, deepening our cooperation on security and counter terrorism, encouraging student exchange and strengthening bilateral links. We ensure that such cooperation supports the UK’s values and is consistent with our domestic and international human rights obligations.

  • Baroness Suttie – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Trade

    Baroness Suttie – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Trade

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Suttie on 2016-10-21.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many new members of staff appointed to work in the Department for International Trade have been recruited from outside the civil service; and what proportion of those staff are consultants on fixed-term contracts.

    Lord Price

    Following her appointment on 13 July 2016 the Prime Minister established the Department for International Trade (DIT). The DIT aggregates UK Trade and Investment (UKTI), UK Export and Finance (UKEF) and Trade Policy Units from the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS).

    Until such time as a transfer of functions order establishes my Rt hon Friend the Secretary of State for International Trade as a corporation sole, DIT remains a unified Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) and Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) department for accounting purposes. The transfer of functions order (No 2016/ 992) laid on 19 October 2016 will come into effect on 9 November 2016.

    As DIT is currently being formed, details of the staff that the Department employs is being finalised, whilst employee transfers and recruitment are taking place.

  • Clive Efford – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Clive Efford – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Clive Efford on 2015-11-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what progress his Department has made on plans to introduce a Horserace Betting Right; and if he will make a statement.

    Tracey Crouch

    Work is continuing on the detailed policy design of the Horserace Betting Right. We will make an announcement in due course.

  • Rebecca Long Bailey – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Rebecca Long Bailey – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rebecca Long Bailey on 2015-12-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what modelling his Department has done to estimate the potential effect on household income for tax credit claimant families who are migrated to universal credit before 2020; and if he will place that modelling in the Library.

    Priti Patel

    The government is committed to moving the UK from a high tax, high welfare, low wage society to a lower tax, lower welfare, higher wage society. This remains the case, and Universal Credit (UC) is delivering this.

    UC is fundamentally different from the current legacy benefit system and supports people into work and encourages them to earn more.

    Therefore there is no meaningful way of comparing an unreformed Tax Credit system with UC. The Government has committed to transitional arrangements as we reform the benefits and Tax Credit system. Those transferred by DWP from tax credits to UC will receive Transitional Protection. In addition, estimates of entitlements under UC of the sort requested will vary depending on assumptions on the level of earnings.

  • Paul Flynn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Paul Flynn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Flynn on 2016-01-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, pursuant to the Answer of 15 September 2015 to Question 9021 and with reference to the Oxford Research Group, Remote Control project report: Hostile drones, published 11 January 2015, if the Office for Nuclear Regulation will review security at nuclear power stations.

    Andrea Leadsom

    Licensees of UK nuclear sites are required by ONR to demonstrate that they have resilience against a range of external threat scenarios. These scenarios are updated regularly considering developments in technology and other areas. The airspace over UK nuclear licensed sites is restricted by the Air Navigation (Restriction of Flying) (Nuclear Installations) Regulations 2007. These impose restricted airspace of a radius between 0.5 and 2 nautical miles and to a height of between 1000 and 2400 feet above mean sea level around the centre of those nuclear licensed sites listed in Schedule 2 of the Regulations. Airspace usage in the UK is regulated by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA).

  • Antoinette Sandbach – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Antoinette Sandbach – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Antoinette Sandbach on 2016-02-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many properties in Eddisbury have been purchased under the Exceptional Hardship Scheme since phase two of High Speed 2 was announced.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    As of 31 January, 3 properties have been purchased under the Exceptional Hardship Scheme in Eddisbury.