Category: Speeches

Paula Sherriff – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paula Sherriff on 2016-07-21.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of legislation on hate crime; and whether she has plans to review the suitability of such legislation for tackling such crimes.

Sarah Newton

The Government condemns all hate crimes and is committed to tackling these crimes in partnership with the communities affected.

We have in place some of the strongest legislation to tackle hate crime in the world – this includes specific offences for racially and religiously aggravated activity and offences of the stirring up of hatred on the grounds of race, religion and sexual orientation.

We also have stronger sentences for hate crime. We continue to carefully consider the recommendations from the Law Commission review into hate crime legislation. The Government has committed to taking action to improve our response to hate crime.

This includes joint training between the police and Crown Prosecution staff to improve the way the police identify and investigate hate crime; building on the improvements to police recording of hate crime by working with the police to break down religious-based hate crime by religion; and working with victims and advocacy groups to improve victims confidence to come forward and report such crimes.

The police are also improving their operational practices and recording. Last year, the College of Policing published Operational Guidance for officers responding to hate crime which comprehensively covers how to address all forms of hate crime.

Hate crime statistics show number of crimes recorded by the police by force area. The decision as to how hate crime is resourced in individual forces is an operational matter for the Police and Crime Commissioner for that area. The latest police funding settlement represents a fair deal for the police and reinforces this Government’s commitment to protect the public. No Police and Crime Commissioner who maximised precept income is facing a reduction in cash funding this year.

Police and Crime Commissioners are also responsible for commissioning local support services for victims of crime. The Ministry of Justice provides the Commissioner with a grant to enable services which best meet the needs of local victims of crime to be funded.

The Home Office published a new hate crime action plan on 26 July 2016, which sets out Government action over the next four years to tackle hate crime. It includes:

● new steps to boost reporting of hate crime and support victims;

● new CPS guidance to prosecutors on racially aggravated crime;

● a new £2.4 million fund for protective security measures at potentially vulnerable places of worship;

● and additional funding to community organisations tackling hate crime.

Nobody in this country should live in fear because of who they are and anyone who experiences hate crime should report it to the police, either in person at a police station, online through the True Vision website, or by phoning 101.

January 1, 2023
Lord Ouseley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

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

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether additional resources allocated for mental health services are ring-fenced in order to prevent any of those resources being used for alternative services in order to offset any NHS spending constraints.

Lord Prior of Brampton

NHS England is responsible for allocating funding resources for health services including mental health. The Government has committed to an additional £1 billion by 2020/21 to support the implementation of the Five Year Forward View for Mental Health. This is in addition to the £1.4 billion over five years to improve children and young people’s mental health announced in 2014/15. We are holding NHS England to account through the NHS Mandate to ensure this investment delivers improvements in mental health.

We will continue to work with NHS England and other arm’s length bodies to monitor and track progress against the mental health commitments of the Five Year Forward View for Mental Health and Future in Mind.

January 1, 2023
Grahame Morris – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Grahame Morris on 2015-11-10.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much the Government spent on each infrastructure project in Easington constituency in each of the last five years.

Greg Hands

The information requested is not held centrally. More than 100 infrastructure schemes have been delivered in the North East since 2010. There are 27 projects and programmes in the National Infrastructure Pipeline (published July 2015) with a total capital value of £5 billion, as well as cross-regional and UK-wide projects and programmes.

January 1, 2023
Matthew Pennycook – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Matthew Pennycook on 2015-11-24.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what steps she is taking to ensure that the Capacity Market does not favour any class of generators.

Andrea Leadsom

The Capacity Market is technology neutral, i.e. it does not seek to procure specific volumes of capacity from different types of technology. Before the start of pre-qualification for the auction, National Grid discounts the capacity available from each technology according to its historic reliability. These steps ensure that all types of eligible capacity are able to participate on an equal basis. The principle of technology neutrality allows the market to identify which technology type is cost efficient in delivering security of supply.

We are satisfied with the wide range of different technologies that have prequalified for the next Capacity Market auction, which will take place next month.

January 1, 2023
Stephen Gethins – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Gethins on 2016-01-06.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he is taking to prepare for the outcome of the EU referendum.

Priti Patel

The Government is fighting hard to fix the aspects of our EU membership that cause so much frustration in Britain – so we get a better deal for Britain and secure our future. The Government is focused on delivering a successful renegotiation: it believes it can and will succeed in reforming and renegotiating our relationship with the EU.

January 1, 2023
Michelle Donelan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Michelle Donelan on 2016-01-26.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what estimate her Department has made of the proportion of available gas reserves that need to be left in the ground to ensure that global warming is kept to within two degrees.

Andrea Leadsom

The Department has not made its own estimates of the proportion of fossil fuel reserves that are unburnable under a scenario that limits warming to 2°C. However, others have made estimates such as the International Energy Agency who have suggested that around a third of current proven global fossil fuel reserves could be burned under a 2°C scenario before 2050. Different fossil fuels emit varying amounts of CO₂ per unit of energy released on combustion, so calculating the proportion of proven global gas reserves within this global fossil fuel mix depends on the quantities of other fossil fuels combusted.

This Government remains committed to the Climate Change Act and to meeting our climate change target of an 80% emissions reduction by 2050 on 1990 levels. This will mean reducing the amount of fossil fuels we use – through improved energy efficiency and increased supplies of low carbon energy – as well as reducing other sources of emissions. As part of our efforts to reduce emissions I have already announced that the Government will consult on proposals to end coal power generation by 2025 and restrict its use from 2023.

January 1, 2023
Douglas Chapman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Chapman on 2016-02-23.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will place in the Library a copy of email MA/DGMAA to Min(DPWV) private office 3 Dec 13 16:32.

Mark Lancaster

I have placed the requested documents in the Library of the House.

January 1, 2023
Lord Myners – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Myners on 2016-03-21.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government why the budget made concessions available on capital gains to non-domiciled residents of the UK that are not available to standard UK tax payers.

Lord O’Neill of Gatley

The Summer Budget reforms to the domicile tax regime are the most significant since the rules were introduced. They are forecast to raise £1.2 billion this Parliament. The transitional provisions announced at Budget 2016 are necessary for a reform of this scale as they help to ensure that non-doms remain here and continue to pay UK tax on their income and gains within the new domicile tax regime. In April 2017, over 3,000 non-doms will still become subject to UK taxation on their worldwide income and gains.

January 1, 2023
Lord Judd – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Judd on 2016-04-18.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have made to the government of Bangladesh about (1) the arrest of Shafik Rehman on 16 April, and (2) the recent harassment of other journalists in Bangladesh; and what was the outcome of those representations.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

Consular officials in Dhaka have registered the British Government’s interest in Mr Rehman’s case with the Director, Consular Affairs at the Bangladesh Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) and requested consular access to Mr Rehman. Our High Commissioner in Dhaka raised this case with the MFA’s Director General EU.

We have made clear our concerns about freedom of expression in Bangladesh, most recently in a press statement about the murder of Nazimuddin Samad. In that statement the Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my Hon. Friend the Member for Bournemouth East (Mr Ellwood), restated the Government’s position that the right to freedom of expression and open debate in Bangladesh must be upheld.

January 1, 2023
Hilary Benn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2016-05-25.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, with reference to his Department’s Human Rights and Democracy Report 2015, Cm 9245, what countries his Department is supporting to develop Preventing Violent Extremism action plans to tackle the root causes of extremism and prejudice; and what the support is which his Department is giving in each such case.

Mr Philip Hammond

The UK provides support to multilateral bodies and international organisations such as the UN, the Global Counter Terrorism Forum, the Hedayah Centre and the Commonwealth that work in partnership with countries developing their own national action plans against violent extremism. UK-funded programmes in fragile and conflict-affected states and our Democracy and Human Rights projects in over 40 countries, also support this global effort.

January 1, 2023