Category: Speeches

  • Liam Fox – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Liam Fox – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Liam Fox on 2014-06-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment his Department has made of the potential risks of imprisoned extremists returned from terrorist operations overseas (a) radicalising the Muslim prison population and (b) recruiting other prisoners to commit terrorist acts in the UK or overseas.

    Jeremy Wright

    I am responding to this question as I am the Minister responsible for the prison estate. We are well aware of the risks posed by individuals who return to the UK having gained experience, through training or participation, in terrorism overseas. At the current time clearly those travelling to and from Syria are of particular concern.

    The Prison Service works closely with the Police and other Agencies in all areas of Counter Terrorism work; including where individuals are held in custody having returned from overseas. All prisoners are managed according to the risk they pose, taking into consideration all relevant information and intelligence that is identified.

    The National Offender Management Service (NOMS) has long recognised the threat posed by terrorists and extremists, and has considerable experience in managing this threat. The Prison Service will continue to use its well established and effective three-tiered response: to identify behaviour that may indicate extremism, to report it using established intelligence systems, and to manage it through disruption and intervention.

  • Lord Mendelsohn – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Lord Mendelsohn – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Mendelsohn on 2014-04-08.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the percentage cost over-run established by the management board for any budget in HM Treasury to merit being tabled at the departmental management board; and how many times in the last 12 months that has occurred.

    Lord Deighton

    HM Treasury does not have a prescribed percentage for which a forecast overspend is tabled at the executive management board. Each month the board receives a summary of the forecast expenditure against budget and a commentary in which any significant forecast variances to individual budgets are described and explained.

  • Ian Austin – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Ian Austin – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Austin on 2014-06-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent discussions he has had on tendering for contracts to run community rehabilitation companies.

    Jeremy Wright

    The tendering process is being run in accordance with standard Government procurement practice. Ministers are being kept updated on progress and throughout the programme have engaged in discussions with a wide range of stakeholders. Bids to run the Community Rehabilitation Companies (CRCs) are expected in June 2014 and the contract winners for each Community Rehabilitation Company will be announced by the end of 2014.

  • Lord Empey – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Lord Empey – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Empey on 2014-04-08.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they accept claims for hearing loss from former members of the Ulster Defence Regiment who served before 1986; and if not, why not.

    Lord Astor of Hever

    Section 10 of the Crown Proceedings Act 1947 prevented service personnel, including former members of the Ulster Defence Regiment, from suing the Crown for alleged negligence which occurred before that section was repealed in 1987. The repeal was not retrospective. Depending on their level of hearing loss, they may, however, be eligible for a War Disablement Pension.

  • Kerry McCarthy – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Prime Minister

    Kerry McCarthy – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Prime Minister

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kerry McCarthy on 2014-06-18.

    To ask the Prime Minister, if he will attend (a) Ban Ki Moon’s Climate Summit in September 2014 in New York and (b) the European Council meeting in October 2014 to finalise the EU’s climate and energy goals for 2030.

    Mr David Cameron

    I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Brighton, Pavilion (Ms Lucas) on 11 June 2014, Official Report, column 176W.

    It is my normal practice to attend Heads of Government EU Council meetings.

  • Lord Jones of Cheltenham – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Lord Jones of Cheltenham – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Jones of Cheltenham on 2014-04-08.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they are taking steps to encourage the governments of China and Vietnam to cease the trade in ivory.

    Lord De Mauley

    The Governments of both China and Vietnam participated at Ministerial level in the London Conference on Illegal Wildlife Trade on 12 and 13 February 2014. They joined the other participating countries in agreeing to the London Conference Declaration. In this, Governments have committed to support the existing CITES commercial prohibition on international trade in elephant ivory until the survival of elephants in the wild is no longer threatened by poaching. They have also committed to taking a wide range of actions to reduce the demand for wildlife products, including ivory, and to agreeing for the first time to renounce the use of any products from species threatened with extinction. We very much welcome this strong signal by China and Vietnam of their commitment to join the rest of the international community in tackling the scourge of the illegal trade in ivory and other wildlife products.

    In the margins of the Conference I had constructive meetings with both Forestry Vice Minister Jianlong Zhang of China and Deputy Agriculture and Rural Development Minister Ha Cong Tuan of Vietnam to discuss the impacts of the illegal wildlife trade and the action needed to tackle the problem. I hope to visit Vietnam in the near future to continue this constructive dialogue.

    We will also fund two projects in Vietnam which applied through the 2013-2014 Darwin Initiative Funding Round, at a total cost of just over £0.5m. These will be supported from the £10m of new funding for tackling the illegal wildlife trade, announced on 23 December 2013 by the Secretaries of State for Environment and International Development. One project is focused on combating wildlife trafficking by cutting out the ‘middle man’. The other will support action to reduce demand for rhino horn.

  • Gareth Johnson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Gareth Johnson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gareth Johnson on 2014-06-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many people were prosecuted for failure to pay vehicle excise duty in (a) Dartford constituency and (b) England and Wales in each of the last five years.

    Stephen Hammond

    The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency does not hold this data broken down by parliamentary constituency. Figures are not held specifically for England and Wales. The table below shows the total amount of prosecutions for the offence of keeping or using an unlicensed vehicle in England, Scotland and Wales in each of the last five years.

    Year

    Total number of prosecutions

    2009/10

    64,408

    2010/11

    53,648

    2011/12

    44,159

    2012/13

    29,035

    2013/14

    25,044

    The DVLA operates a comprehensive package of measures to tackle vehicle excise duty evasion. These range from reminder letters and penalties through to court prosecutions and the wheelclamping and/or removal of unlicensed vehicles. These measures have helped to improve compliance and the latest estimates show that vehicle excise duty evasion is at a historic low of just 0.6%.

  • Chuka Umunna – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Chuka Umunna – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chuka Umunna on 2014-04-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what (a) bonuses, (b) additional salary increments and (c) premiums are offered to UK Trade & Investment staff for proficiency in foreign languages; for which foreign languages these are available; what level of financial support is available for each language; and how many staff receive support for each foreign language for which support is offered.

    Michael Fallon

    UK Trade and Investment (UKTI) draws mainly on civil service staff employed by one or other of its two parent departments – the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) and the Foreign & Commonwealth Office (FCO).

    BIS does not give bonuses, additional salary increments or premiums to the staff of UKTI for proficiency in any foreign languages. BIS does however actively encourage individuals to learn languages and they have access to the FCO’s language school.

  • Ian Austin – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Ian Austin – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Austin on 2014-06-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of the number of (a) staff in his Department and (b) members of the public who use his Department’s on-site nurseries.

    Mike Penning

    The number of DWP families who use the on site nurseries was provided in PQ195198:

    10 Apr 2014, Column 320W, Nurseries: House of Commons Hansard Written Answers for 10 Apr 2014 (pt 0001)

    37 members of the public use the Department’s on site nurseries.

    “

  • Margaret Curran – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Margaret Curran – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Margaret Curran on 2014-04-07.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many and what proportion of people in England and Wales identified themselves as (a) British, (b) Scottish and (c) British and Scottish in the 2011 census.

    Mr Nick Hurd

    The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.