The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mr Mark Williams on 2014-03-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, for how many and what proportion of employment and support allowance claimants in the Work Related Activity Group Atos has sought further medical evidence and opinion from the person’s nominated professional.
Mike Penning
The information requested is not readily available and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town on 2014-06-05.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many estate agents since 1 April 2014 (1) have been, or (2) are being, considered for (a) a warning notice, and (b) a prohibition order, under the Estate Agents Act 1979 by the National Trading Standards Estate Agency Team.
Viscount Younger of Leckie
An order under the Estate Agents Act 1979 may be issued against both estate agents and individuals or businesses who are not currently involved in estate agency work. For example an order can be issued against someone who has formerly been an estate agent, or who has worked closely with an estate agent.
Since the 1st April 2014:
· Three individual orders (two prohibition and one warning) have taken effect. These orders were issued by the Office of Fair Trading but implemented by the National Trading Standards Estate Agency Team.
· Four individual orders and one against a business – all prohibitions – are currently subject to appeals.
· Fifteen new cases are currently being processed by the National Trading Standards Estate Agency Team. ‘Notices of proposal to prohibit’ have been issued for six of these cases and are awaiting representations from the individuals and businesses concerned. Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town
· Additionally, the National Trading Standards Estate Agency Team currently has fifteen cases on its books which are awaiting prosecution outcome or further investigation by local Trading Standards teams and which may lead to notices being issued at a later date.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Mendelsohn on 2014-03-24.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the percentage cost over-run established by the management board for any budget in the Attorney General’s Office to merit being tabled at the departmental management board; and how many times in the last 12 months that has occurred.
Lord Wallace of Tankerness
The Attorney General’s Office (AGO) does not have a cost overrun established by the management board above which it merits a budget being tabled at departmental Executive Board. No overruns have been reported to the AGO Executive Board in the last 12 months.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Lester of Herne Hill on 2014-06-04.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to introduce a measure enabling civil partners to marry.
Baroness Northover
Section 9 of the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act 2013 provides that civil partners may convert their civil partnership into marriage under regulations to be made by my Right Honourable friend the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport. Her Majesty’s Government is working hard to ensure that couples wanting to convert their civil partnerships into marriages are able to do so as soon as possible. The aim is to do this before the end of 2014.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Tyler on 2014-03-24.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many UK Border Agency staff are permanently deployed in Jersey, Guernsey and Sark.
Lord Taylor of Holbeach
There are no Border Force Officers deployed to Jersey, Guernsey or Sark.
Jersey has its own Customs and Immigration Service. Guernsey has an Immigration, Nationality and Passport Department. Both islands have their own immigration rules.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Whitaker on 2014-06-04.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have called in the approval of planning permission for a site for Travellers in Brighton, granted by the South Downs National Park; and if so, when they will make a decision.
Baroness Stowell of Beeston
This application remains under consideration by the Secretary of State in response to a request by the hon. Member for Hove (Mike Weatherley) for the application to be called in. The consideration is being made against the Secretary of State’s policy, as set out in a Written Ministerial Statement on 26 October 2012, Official Report, Column 72W. The Secretary of State is very selective about calling in applications and will generally only do so if they raise issues of more than local importance. I will arrange for departmental officials to let the noble Lady know the outcome in due course.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Uppal on 2014-03-24.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to encourage local authority pension funds to become signatories to the Stewardship Code.
Brandon Lewis
Each local authority that administers a pension fund is already subject to statutory guidance that states that it should recognise the Financial Reporting Council’s Stewardship Code and ensure that the Code is adopted by their fund managers, investment consultants and advisers. The guidance also states that the authority should include a statement of its policy on responsible ownership in its statement of the principles governing its investment decisions and report periodically to scheme members on the implementation of the policy. Sixteen of the eighty nine local government pension funds in England and Wales are themselves signatories to the Stewardship Code as asset owners.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hoyle on 2014-06-04.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government why Royal Air Force aircraft flying to Gibraltar cannot fly over Spain; what cost that adds to the flight; and what representations they have made to the government of Spain about the restriction.
Lord Astor of Hever
All requests to Spanish authorities by any nation for a military over flight that has Gibraltar as a departure or arrival airfield, is routinely denied by Spanish authorities. We make clear to the Spanish government that this is not the sort of arrangement close allies should have to manage.
The military aircraft that routinely fly to Gibraltar are the Hercules C130 and C17 Globemaster. The difference in cost of a direct flight to Gibraltar from, for example, RAF Brize Norton and a route not overflying Spain is as follows.
C130 – £2,600 each way
C17 – £4,900 each way
It should be noted that Spanish authorities are swift and cooperative in allowing our military aircraft to pass through Spanish airspace to any other destination. The refusal to use their airspace to access Gibraltar is an irritant that we have managed since the 1980s, and is set against an otherwise productive defence relationship between our two countries.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Percy on 2014-03-24.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the baseline requirement is for wi-fi provision for all primary schools; and if he will make a statement.
Elizabeth Truss
The Department for Education has no baseline requirements for Wi-Fi provision in all schools. Headteachers manage their own budgets and are best placed to decide the extent of Wi-Fi provision. Where schools are built or rebuilt via the Department’s capital programmes, IT infrastructure including Wi-Fi is installed to a standard that supports 1:1 tablet use in the classroom.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead on 2014-06-04.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the reports that Joseph Kony and senior members of the Lords Resistance Army are hiding in a Sudanese-controlled area of a disputed enclave bordering the Central African Republic.
Baroness Warsi
We have not been able to assess the veracity of reports that Joseph Kony and senior members of the Lords Resistance Army are hiding in a Sudanese-controlled area of a disputed enclave bordering the Central African Republic. However, we are aware of reports that local authorities in south-eastern Central African Republic (CAR) have been in contact with a contingent of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) who have expressed an interest in surrendering.
The British Government condemns in the strongest possible terms the atrocities carried out by the LRA. Although much reduced in numbers, the LRA remains an unprincipled, violent threat to civilians in the heart of Africa. The UK has consistently promoted a co-ordinated regional and international approach to defeating the LRA. We continue to encourage the UN and African Union to implement their counter-LRA strategies in full and bring Kony to justice.