Category: Speeches

  • Bridget Phillipson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Bridget Phillipson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

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

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the effect on proposed devolution deals of the Quality Control Scheme Board’s decision to not recommend the re-franchising of bus services in Tyne and Wear.

    James Wharton

    The Quality Contract Scheme Board’s report concerns an individual case brought under existing legislation. It is not about the bus franchising powers which will be included in the Buses Bill.

    The Government is determined that local transport authorities with ambitious plans to grow and develop should be given the powers they need, and we will legislate through the Buses Bill to deliver on that ambition.

  • Andrew Rosindell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Andrew Rosindell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2015-12-02.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make it his policy to ensure that the status of the City of London as a world financial centre is explicitly protected during the renegotiations on the UK’s membership of the EU.

    Mr David Gauke

    As part of the European reform agenda the Government is negotiating ensure competitiveness is embedded in the DNA of the EU, so that the UK financial sector can continue to thrive as the global centre of European finance. The Government is also negotiating to ensure that the UK remains able to effectively safeguard the stability and integrity of the UK’s financial system. This means ensuring that UK regulators have responsibility for financial stability and supervision in the UK.

    The City of London does not, however, get special treatment in the Government’s reform agenda. A special protection for the UK financial sector would not be in the interests of the single market in financial services, from which the UK benefits. Instead, we are demanding that the single market works in the interest of all 28 Member States.

  • Christopher Chope – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Christopher Chope – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Christopher Chope on 2016-01-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, pursuant to the Answer submitted to Question 21401, what new or changed policies her Department has implemented as a result of the evidence submitted.

    Andrea Leadsom

    We have not implemented new policies specifically as a result of the call for evidence on park homes. The evidence did support decisions made on the Warm Home Discount where this scheme year we have introduced a pilot scheme to allow eligible park home residents to apply for £140 to help with their energy bills.

  • Vernon Coaker – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    Vernon Coaker – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Vernon Coaker on 2016-02-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, if the Government will provide additional funding for the Police Service of Northern Ireland to deal with legacy issues.

    Mrs Theresa Villiers

    Matters relating to policing and justice are devolved to the Northern Ireland Executive. As a consequence, responsibility for funding policing and justice in Northern Ireland (including for Troubles-related issues) rests with the Northern Ireland Executive.

    The budget for the Northern Ireland Executive includes funding from Her Majesty’s Treasury in accordance with its funding policy. The funding the Executive receives per capita from the UK Government is more than any other region or country in the UK – 25% above the UK average. All devolved allocation and spending decisions are a matter for the Executive.

    Through the Stormont House and Fresh Start Agreements, the UK Government has undertaken to provide financial packages giving the Executive up to £2.5 billion of additional spending power. This includes an additional £150 million to support the proposed new institutions to deal with the past.

  • Jim McMahon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Jim McMahon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim McMahon on 2016-02-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the Prime Minister’s announcement of 14 December 2015, We will not stand by – failing children’s services will be taken over, how the Government plans to spend the £100 million to be invested in attracting more high-calibre graduates into social work.

    Edward Timpson

    This Government is investing in Step Up to Social Work and Frontline, our fast-track graduate entry programmes, to attract future high-calibre graduates into social work. We aim to train over 3,000 new social workers through fast-track schemes over the Spending Review period.

    The cost for the continuation of the Frontline pilot from April 2016 – end March 2019 is estimated at around £10m.

    In October 2015, Government issued a tender for a national fast-track social work programme to succeed the Frontline pilot. Funds will be allocated for delivery once the contract is confirmed. Costs will vary according to actual numbers recruited.

  • Mary Creagh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Mary Creagh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mary Creagh on 2016-03-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he has taken to support the formation of the transitional government of national unity in South Sudan.

    James Duddridge

    In January I visited Juba and held meetings with President Salva Kiir, members of the opposition and civil society. In the margins of the African Union Summit I met with the Leader of the Opposition Riek Machar. In all those meetings I emphasised the importance of forming the transitional government without delay. The UK has also worked closely with key countries in the region and in the UN Security Council to build pressure on the parties to form a government of national unity.

  • Philip Davies – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Philip Davies – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Philip Davies on 2016-05-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many and what proportion of arrests for each offence of people of each ethnic group resulted in (a) no further action, (b) an out of court disposal and (c) a charge in the last year for which information is available.

    Mike Penning

    The Home Office does not hold data centrally on the outcomes of arrests. The Home Office collect and publish data on the number of arrests broken down by offence group and ethnicity, however, the outcome of these arrests is not held centrally.

    The number of arrests, broken down by ethnicity, can be found in the statistical publication, Police Powers and Procedures: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/police-powers-and-procedures-england-and-wales-year-ending-31-march-2015

  • Andrew Gwynne – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Andrew Gwynne – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Gwynne on 2016-06-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, for what reasons TV Licensing is not included in the Tell Us Once service.

    Priti Patel

    Consideration was given to include TV licencing in the Tell Us Once Service, however as the Department for Work and Pensions already provides this information to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, it is not necessary to also include it in the Tell Us Once Service.

  • Baroness Barker – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Baroness Barker – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Barker on 2016-09-05.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what locations they considered for their new offices in the USA focused on international trade.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    The USA is the UK’s single largest trade and investment partner, and the decision to open three new Government Offices in 2016 reflects our ambition to expand this economic partnership even further.

    The Foreign and Commonwealth Office considered a number of factors when deciding where to open these offices. The cities of Raleigh, North Carolina; Minneapolis, Minnesota; and San Diego, California were judged to have the best combination of policy, research and trade and investment potential.

  • Lord Vinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    Lord Vinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Vinson on 2016-10-21.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will consider introducing the national interest test for mergers and acquisitions that was part of the brief of the Monopolies and Mergers Commission into the brief of the Competition and Markets Authority.

    Baroness Neville-Rolfe

    As we build an economy that works for all, the Government will keep the law on mergers and acquisitions under review.