Category: Speeches

  • Iain McKenzie – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Iain McKenzie – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Iain McKenzie on 2014-06-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what extra consular assistance his Department will provide for British citizens in Brazil attending the World Cup.

    Mark Simmonds

    During the World Cup, the Foreign & Commonwealth Office will have a comprehensive consular plan in place to assist any British nationals that require our assistance. This includes a Consular Operations Centre in Rio de Janeiro on the day preceding, the day of and the day following all England games, a dedicated consular telephone number (which has been advertised on our travel advice and in the Football Supporters Federation’s tournament and match day programmes), a team of consular officers at every England game and consular officers from around the region and Portugal on standby to assist the Brazil network with any consular surges. We will also have a rapid deployment team from the Americas region on standby should they be required.

    In the build up to the World Cup we have run a comprehensive travel advice campaign called ‘Be on the Ball’ that has featured Twitter Q&A sessions, attendance at fans forums in London, media interviews in printed and video forms. We have also run a number of exercises across the Brazil network so that consular officials are prepared should we need to assist British nationals in the case of major incidents.

    I visited Sao Paulo on 4 June to view preparations which the Foreign & Commonwealth Office is making to give consular assistance during the World Cup. I also met the Deputy Mayor of Sao Paulo to discuss the local preparations for the tournament.

    The Foreign & Commonwealth Office has also been working with the Football Association, UK Football Policing Unit, Brazilian local authorities and other stakeholders on contingency and crisis planning.

  • Mr Andy Slaughter – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Mr Andy Slaughter – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mr Andy Slaughter on 2014-03-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many and what proportion of free schools have changed their headteacher since opening.

    Edward Timpson

    The information requested is not held centrally.

  • Cathy Jamieson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Cathy Jamieson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Cathy Jamieson on 2014-06-04.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will list the mutuals which provide public services.

    Mr Nick Hurd

    Information on known operational public service mutuals in England is publically available on the Mutuals Information Service at:

    http://www.mutuals.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/interactive-map-public-service-mutuals

    “

  • Chris Ruane – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Speaker’s Committee on the Electoral Commission

    Chris Ruane – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Speaker’s Committee on the Electoral Commission

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Ruane on 2014-03-17.

    To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker’s Committee on the Electoral Commission, pursuant to the Answer of 24 February 2014, Official Report, column 19W, on the electoral register, what measures the Electoral Commission agreed following its meetings with the Department for Work and Pensions, Cabinet Office and other departments on co-operation in electoral registration.

    Gary Streeter

    The Electoral Commission informs me that it has highlighted the previous question to the Cabinet Office and suggested that they should discuss the issues referred to in it with the Department for Work and Pensions and are currently awaiting a response.

  • Cathy Jamieson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Cathy Jamieson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Cathy Jamieson on 2014-06-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the cost of refunding travel expenditure by jobseekers to jobcentres in Kilmarnock and Loudoun constituency was between January 2014 and May 2014.

    Esther McVey

    The cost of refunding travel expenditure by Jobseekers to Jobcentres in Kilmarnock and Loudoun constituency between January 2014 and May 2014 was :

    January 2014 to May 2014

    £1,456.88

  • Andrew Stephenson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Andrew Stephenson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Stephenson on 2014-03-17.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what estimate he has made of the number of people in (a) Pendle constituency, (b) Lancashire and (c) the North West who have jobs which primarily require working (i) during the day and (ii) at night.

    Nick Hurd

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

  • Frank Field – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Frank Field – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2014-06-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many calls were made on higher-rate telephone numbers to (a) magistrates’ courts, (b) county courts and county court money claims centres in England in 2012-13 and 2013-14; and what the average duration was of calls to such numbers.

    Mr Shailesh Vara

    I refer the hon. Member to the replies given to him on 12 May 2014, Official Report, Columns 413-414W (for volume and average duration of calls), and on 10 April 2014, Official Report Columns 396-397W (for a note on money claims centres).

  • Andrew Stephenson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Andrew Stephenson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Stephenson on 2014-03-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many criminal offences by foreign-born nationals were recorded in Pendle constituency in each of the last five years.

    Norman Baker

    The Home Office does not hold data on the nationality of offenders, and so cannot provide data on the number of offences committed by foreign-born nationals that were recorded by police in Pendle.

    The Home Office collects aggregate data on the number of offences recorded by the police, available at police force area and Community Safety Partnership level. However, we do not hold details about the people responsible for these offences.

    The Ministry of Justice collects details on the number of offenders and offender characteristics, but does not collect information on the number of offences that these offenders commit.

  • Nicholas Soames – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Nicholas Soames – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nicholas Soames on 2014-06-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what contracts are outstanding in the Astute programme.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    The following table describes the current Ministry of Defence contracts solely for the Astute class submarine programme. All contracts, except serial 9, are with BAE Systems Marine Ltd. Once in service, platforms, including the Astute class, are supported via extant Fleet wide arrangements.

    Serial Contract Description
    1 Batch 1 The build of Astute boats 1-3.
    2 Boat 4 The build of Astute boat 4.
    3 Boat 5 The provision of long-lead materials and activities to support the build of Astute boat 5.
    4 Boat 6 The provision of long-lead materials and activities to support the build of Astute boat 6.
    5 Boat 7 The provision of long-lead materials and activities to support the build of Astute boat 7.
    6 Base Spares To provide the initial spares provisioning for Astute boats leaving Barrow.
    7 Foundation Placed to deliver the savings required by the 2010 SDSR through performance improvement and cost-benefit initiatives. To note that this contract impacts on both the Astute and Successor programmes.
    8 Submarine Design Services The provision of In Service technical assistance.
    9 Astute Class Training Service A PFI contract for the provision of Astute class crew training. The contract is placed with FAST Training Services Ltd (a consortium of BAE Systems, L-3 Communications and Babcock International).

  • Mr Barry Sheerman – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the House of Commons Commission

    Mr Barry Sheerman – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the House of Commons Commission

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mr Barry Sheerman on 2014-03-17.

    To ask the hon. Member for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross representing the House of Commons Commission, what steps he is taking to improve the support available to hon. Members.

    John Thurso

    The fundamental aims of the Commission are not only to ensure that the House is valued and effective in holding the Government to account and scrutinising legislation, but that individual Members have the information, advice, support and technology they need to be effective in their work and to engage closely with their constituents.

    We are coming to the end of a programme of savings, during which the governing principle has been that any cost reductions should not adversely affect the ability of the House and its Members to carry out their parliamentary functions. Indeed many of the changes have been a spur to innovation in the support available to Members. Now that we are on track to achieve the savings target, we have the opportunity to re-appraise the provision of resources and ensure, for example in the area of select committees, that we are providing the right level of support.