Category: Speeches

  • Henry Bellingham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Henry Bellingham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Henry Bellingham on 2016-10-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will list the (a) names and (b) salaries of the 10 most senior officials in the Iraq Historical Allegations Team.

    Mike Penning

    In accordance with normal practice we only provide the names of officials at Senior Civil Service level and their military equivalents. The Iraq Historic Allegations Team’s most senior officials comprise a mix of civilian and military personnel as follows:

    Director, Mr Mark Warwick – Senior Civil Service Band 1, £63,000 – £117,000

    Royal Navy OF5 (Captain), £84,000 – £93,000

    Royal Navy Police OF4 (Commander), £70,000 – £81,000

    Royal Navy Police OF3 (Lieutenant Commander), £49,000 – £59,000

    Civil Service Band B1, £59,000 – £70,000

    2 x Civil Service Band C1, £37,000 – £42,000

    4 x Civil Service Band C2, 30,000 – £35,000

  • Poulter – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Poulter – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

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

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the expected average frequency of evening and weekend work by junior doctors under the proposed changes to junior doctors’ contracts.

    Ben Gummer

    NHS Employers’ evidence to the Review Body on Doctors’ and Dentists’ Remuneration – “Reform of national contracts for consultant doctors and doctors and dentists in training”1 – published in December 2014 during the hon. Member’s tenure as a Minister, included a profile of how the hours worked by doctors in training were spread across the week.

    We have evidence that hospital leaders consider the junior doctors’ contract to be a significant barrier to delivering more seven-day services. NHS Providers’ written evidence to the Review Body on Doctors’ and Dentists’ Remuneration on contract reform for consultants and doctors and dentists in training2 stated that the junior doctor contract is still a significant source of barriers to seven day working and reform of the junior doctor contract is also required to support trusts to deliver more seven-day services. In particular, the pay banding system for junior doctors needs to be reviewed. There were concerns from employers that the banding system is too complicated, can create “perverse incentives” for junior doctors and hospital management, and means that providing more seven-day services is unfeasible, since more junior doctors would be working outside core hours and receive premiums under the current banding system. NHS Providers also believe that more hours in a day and more days of the week need to be defined as core hours, as the current arrangement does not support the delivery of more seven-day services or reflect the needs and expectations of today’s patients.

    Future working patterns are for individual employers to determine. The evidence on doctors’ working patterns has not altered since the hon. Member was a Minister for Health.

    1 http://www.nhsemployers.org/your-workforce/pay-and-reward/pay/medical-pay/ddrb-evidence—in-detail/consultants-and-junior-doctors-contract-reform-submission-of-evidence-to-the-ddrb

    2 http://www.nhsproviders.org/resource-library/written-evidence-ddrb-special-remit/

    “

  • Kirsten Oswald – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Kirsten Oswald – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kirsten Oswald on 2015-12-08.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, when he was first told that Capital Financial Managers Limited knew by September 2009 that investors’ funds were exposed to risks not provided for in the information memorandum for the Connaught Fund.

    Harriett Baldwin

    This is a matter for the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), which is operationally independent from Government.

    This question has been passed on to the FCA. They will reply directly to the Honourable Member by letter. A copy of the letter will be placed in the Library of the House.

  • Andrew Stephenson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Andrew Stephenson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Stephenson on 2016-01-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many motorhome-friendly parking sites there are in (a) England, (b) the North West and (c) Lancashire.

    Mr Marcus Jones

    The Department for Communities and Local Government does not hold data for of the number of motorhome-friendly parking sites. Parking provision is a matter for which local authorities are responsible, and the development of parking policies should take account of the existing and projected levels of parking demand.

  • Andy Slaughter – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Andy Slaughter – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2016-02-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 10 December 2015 to Question 18874, what assessment he has made of the reasons for the increase in the number of knives confiscated in Crown courts between 2012-13 and 2014-15.

    Mr Shailesh Vara

    My Department takes the issue of security within courts extremely seriously and has robust security and safety systems in place to protect all court users and judiciary. These systems include mandatory bag searches, modern detection equipment, X-ray machines and surveillance cameras, as well as court security officers with the legal powers to seize items where required. Security procedures, including the detection technology used, are continuously reviewed to ensure that security is as effective as possible.

    The increase in the number of knives taken from people as they enter Crown Courts between 2012/13 and 2014/15 may be due to the implementation of more robust training for Court Security Officers; improved rates of recording for the taking of such items and improved searching of people entering Crown Courts.

  • Chris Heaton-Harris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Chris Heaton-Harris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Heaton-Harris on 2016-03-02.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether the commitments contained in the Decision of the Heads of State or Government, meeting within the European Council, on 18 and 19 February 2016 not to create obstacles to, but facilitate such deepening of the Eurozone and to sincere cooperation with the Eurozone, create any additional legal obligations to those already contained in Article 4 (3) of the Treaty on European Union.

    Mr David Gauke

    No new legal obligations on the UK have been created in this regard. The Eurozone is a key trading partner for the UK and a stable, successful Eurozone economy is of vital importance to the UK’s own economic security. While the UK Government supports the Eurozone taking the steps it needs to succeed, the Prime Minister has secured a legally-binding agreement which recognises that the UK should not be forced to participate nor have its interests undermined.

  • Kate Hollern – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Kate Hollern – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kate Hollern on 2016-03-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment his Department has made of the potential implications for safety on live ammunition ranges of changes in the numbers of safety wardens present on site.

    Mr Julian Brazier

    The Ministry of Defence is currently reviewing staffing levels on UK Defence Training Estate ranges and the implications for safety and I will update the hon. Member when this has been completed.

  • Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2016-05-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what efforts they are making to press for the publication of the UN Security Council Sudan Panel of Experts’ most recent report, presented to the Sudan Sanctions Committee in December 2015, detailing the use of cluster munitions and gold smuggling in Darfur.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    The UK fully supports the work of the UN Panel of Experts on Darfur. We are extremely concerned that last year’s report has not been published and have raised this issue with our UN Security Council partners.

  • Lord Lester of Herne Hill – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Lester of Herne Hill – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Lester of Herne Hill on 2016-06-20.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Anelay of St Johns on 13 June (HL424), whether another country’s failure to recognise dual citizenship impedes the UK from offering consular assistance to an individual whose fundamental rights are being violated.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    Dual citizenship is allowed in the UK and we respect the rights of Britons who choose to have dual nationality in the UK or overseas. However we acknowledge that many countries do not accept dual nationality, or allow it in the same way as the UK.

    The consular assistance we offer to dual British nationals overseas depends on where they are and their circumstances.

    We do not normally offer support to dual nationals who are in the country of their other nationality, however we consider each case on the circumstances and we may make exceptions if there are special humanitarian reasons to do so.

    In countries where dual nationality is not recognised we offer assistance and lobby for consular access, but the other country has the right to refuse to grant such access.

  • Justin Madders – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Justin Madders – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Justin Madders on 2016-09-05.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, from which sources does the Government receive credit card fees from people paying for services offered by its departments and agencies; and what the total amount received was in (a) 2013-14, (b) 2014-15 and (c) 2015-16.

    Ben Gummer

    The Cabinet Office does not collect data on behalf of Government on the receipt of credit card fees from people paying for services offered by its departments and agencies. If available, individual departments and agencies will hold this information.