Category: Speeches

  • Charlie Elphicke – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Charlie Elphicke – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Charlie Elphicke on 2014-06-18.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, for what reasons Mapeley has not come to an agreement with Network Rail regarding the sale of land on the western perimeter of the Priory Court site for the construction of new parking facilities for Dover Priory railway station.

    Mr David Gauke

    Commercial arrangements in relation to the land at the Priory Court site are a matter for discussion between Network Rail and Mapeley. The Crown does not own the land.

  • Diane Abbott – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Diane Abbott – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Diane Abbott on 2014-04-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent steps her Department has taken to allow the most vulnerable Syrian refugees to come to Britain.

    James Brokenshire

    The first group of Syrian refugees arrived in the UK on 25 March as part of the
    Government’s Vulnerable Persons Relocation (VPR) Scheme. The next group of
    refugees
    is expected to arrive this month, with further groups to follow on a regular
    basis. We continue to work with UNHCR to establish a steady flow of cases.

    Whilst there is no set quota we predict that the VPR scheme will support
    several hundred people over the next three years.

  • Dan Jarvis – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Dan Jarvis – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dan Jarvis on 2014-06-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 16 June 2014, Official Report, column 364W, on Reserve Forces, what the current national recruitment rate to the Army Reserve is.

    Anna Soubry

    I refer the hon. member to the UK Armed Forces Quarterly Personnel Report which is published by Defence Statistics. This shows Reserve trained and untrained strength figures, as well as movements into the Future Reserves 2020 populations. It is available on the www.gov.uk website at the following link:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/uk-armed-forces-quarterly-personnel-report-2014

  • Diane Abbott – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Diane Abbott – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Diane Abbott on 2014-04-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent representations he has received from organisations concerned about the inclusion of books in the Incentives and Earned Privileges Scheme; and what assessment his Department has made of the effect the inclusion of books in that scheme will have on prisoner rehabilitation.

    Jeremy Wright

    There have always been controls on the sending of parcels into prisons, and allowing parcels to be sent in unrestricted would be operationally unmanageable and would lead to a significant risk of drugs and other illicit items being smuggled into prisons.

    We have always recognised the importance of reading and literature in the rehabilitative process, and the positive effects this has on prisoners’ welfare. The National Offender Management Service works closely with schemes such as the Shannon Trust reading network, which includes peer mentoring to improve reading levels.

    The Howard League for Penal Reform, English PEN and Liberty have made representations concerning prisoner access to books. There have been no changes in the availability of books in prisons. Every prison has a library, to which every prisoner has access. Up to 12 books may be held by prisoners in their cell at any one time and additional volumes may be stored locally at the prison.

  • Barry Sheerman – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Barry Sheerman – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Sheerman on 2014-06-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent estimate he has made of the number of school-age children living in areas where the only state schools within reasonable travelling distance are faith schools.

    Mr David Laws

    We have made no such estimate. Local authorities have responsibility for securing sufficient school places to meet the needs of their local communities and have the statutory duties and powers to support that. They must also ensure that the balance of different types of provision meets local demand and that they make suitable transport arrangements for eligible pupils.

    The Government does recognise the need to ensure that new provision meets the needs of the whole community. New academies and free schools with a religious designation may only prioritise up to 50% of pupils on the basis of faith-related admissions criteria.

  • Simon Hart – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Simon Hart – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Simon Hart on 2014-04-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether there are plans for the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency to accept Army Personnel Centre records of driver qualifications as proof of army personnel having passed driving tests.

    Stephen Hammond

    Legislation provides, under delegated authority, for military personnel to carry out driving tests. The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) following a notification from the Military of Defence records the test pass and applies the new entitlement to the driving record. Letters from the Army Personnel Centre are also accepted, provided it confirms that the driver has passed an appropriate driving test that allows them to drive on public roads.

  • Christopher Chope – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Christopher Chope – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Christopher Chope on 2014-06-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when he expects work to all properties identified by the Environment Agency in Christchurch constituency as being suitable for Property Level Protection against flooding to be completed.

    Dan Rogerson

    As part of schemes funded through Local Levy and Flood Defence Grant-in-Aid, work to protect ten properties in the Mudeford and Stanpit area is planned for 2015.

    Property-level protection measures were installed at twelve properties in Stony Lane, Christchurch earlier this year.

  • Stephen Timms – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Stephen Timms – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2014-04-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he is taking to ensure that paid employees are not being replaced by unpaid staff under the Work Experience scheme; and if he will make a statement.

    Esther McVey

    All potential host businesses must sign an agreement with Jobcentre Plus, confirming that the work experience opportunity they wish to offer is on top of (not instead of) current and future vacancies.

    If there is any suspicion that a host is not complying with this agreement, the matter will be fully investigated.

    If doubts remain about the host employer’s integrity, Jobcentre Plus will immediately terminate the agreement.

  • David Amess – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    David Amess – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Amess on 2014-06-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what discussions he has had with the National Clinical Director for Obesity and Diabetes on the implementation plans for Action for Diabetes; and if he will make a statement.

    Jane Ellison

    Jonathan Valabhji, the National Clinical Director for Obesity and Diabetes, has had no discussions with my Rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health specifically about Action for Diabetes.

    There have been no recent discussions about diabetes between the Secretary of State for Health and NHS Improving Quality.

  • Fiona O’Donnell – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Fiona O’Donnell – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Fiona O’Donnell on 2014-04-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what funding for the independent living fund his Department has withdrawn from local authorities in (a) 2015-16 and (b) 2016-17.

    Mike Penning

    Responsibility for supporting former ILF users will transfer to local authorities and the devolved administrations from 1 July 2015.

    In line with the commitment made in last year’s Spending Review, local authorities and devolved administrations will be fully funded to enable them to meet those responsibilities in 2015/16

    Budgets for 2016/17 and later years will be determined in future Spending Reviews.