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 2014-03-11.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment his Department made before the 2012 Budget of the effect on stamp duty land tax and inheritance tax receipts of the introduction of a so-called mansion tax designed to raise a net sum of £2 billion per annum.

    David Gauke

    The number of residential properties in the UK valued at more than £2 million was estimated before Budget 2012 to be around 55,000.

    Before Budget 2012, an assessment of the average annual payment required from each property above £2 million in order to raise a net sum of £2 billion per annum was not made.

    On 1 July 2013, during Report stage of the Finance Bill, I referred to “a simple calculation arrived at by dividing £2 billion by 55,000 (an internal HMRC estimate of the number of properties valued at over £2 million) to give a ‘mean’ average of £36,000.”

    A so-called mansion tax would depress stamp duty land tax and inheritance tax yields. The exact impact would be dependent on the rates and bands chosen.

  • Maria Eagle – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Maria Eagle – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Maria Eagle on 2014-06-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether the Government expects to implement all the measures contained in Schedule 3 of the Flood and Water Management Act regarding sustainable urban drainage systems in this Parliament.

    Dan Rogerson

    The Government remains committed to implementing sustainable drainage systems at the earliest available opportunity, but not in a way that affects development. A statement, which will set out our plans in greater detail, will be made in the summer. It has become clear that, as previously hoped for, we will not be commencing Schedule 3 of the Flood and Water Management Act in October 2014.

  • Paul Blomfield – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Speaker’s Committee on the Electorial Commission

    Paul Blomfield – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Speaker’s Committee on the Electorial Commission

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Blomfield on 2014-03-11.

    To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker’s Committee on the Electoral Commission, what the electoral registration figures were in each ward in the recent confirmation dry run conducted in Sheffield.

    Gary Streeter

    The Electoral Commission informs me that the confirmation dry run involved matching all entries on the electoral registers against the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) Customer Information System database. Entries would be marked as green if they matched with DWP, amber if they were a partial match or red if there was no match.

    Results for all wards are available on the Commission’s website here:

    http://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/__data/assets/excel_doc/0003/163146/Confirmation-dry-run-2013-Results-Wards.xls

    The ward results for Sheffield City Council were as follows:

    Ward

    Green matches

    Amber matches

    Red matches

    Arbourthorne

    82.3%

    1.2%

    16.5%

    Beauchief & Greenhill

    85.6%

    0.9%

    13.5%

    Beighton

    87.2%

    0.7%

    12.1%

    Birley

    87.2%

    1.0%

    11.8%

    Broomhill

    37.5%

    2.8%

    59.7%

    Burngreave

    75.7%

    3.9%

    20.5%

    Central

    34.9%

    3.1%

    62.1%

    Crookes

    65.7%

    0.9%

    33.4%

    Darnall

    77.5%

    3.1%

    19.4%

    Dore & Totley

    86.1%

    1.2%

    12.7%

    East Ecclesfield

    86.2%

    1.0%

    12.7%

    Ecclesall

    81.8%

    1.2%

    17.0%

    Firth Park

    82.6%

    1.8%

    15.7%

    Fulwood

    62.8%

    1.3%

    35.9%

    Gleadless Valley

    79.3%

    1.7%

    19.0%

    Graves Park

    82.9%

    1.1%

    16.0%

    Hillsborough

    81.7%

    1.4%

    17.0%

    Manor Castle

    76.5%

    1.5%

    22.0%

    Mosborough

    85.6%

    0.9%

    13.4%

    Nether Edge

    69.4%

    2.7%

    27.9%

    Richmond

    86.1%

    1.1%

    12.8%

    Shiregreen & Brightside

    82.9%

    1.4%

    15.6%

    Southey

    84.8%

    1.1%

    14.1%

    Stannington

    84.9%

    1.8%

    13.3%

    Stocksbridge & Upper Don

    85.2%

    1.8%

    13.0%

    Walkley

    69.5%

    1.7%

    28.8%

    West Ecclesfield

    87.9%

    0.8%

    11.3%

    Woodhouse

    86.1%

    1.3%

    12.6%

    “

  • Angus Robertson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Angus Robertson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Angus Robertson on 2014-06-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much his Department has spent on Atomic Weapons Establishment facilities at Aldermaston in each of the last five years.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    Expenditure specifically on AWE facilities at Aldermaston is not held in the format requested. Contract payments for AWE are made against an agreed programme of work that covers all AWE sites; Aldermaston, Burghfield and Blacknest. These costs are not recorded according to site.

  • Andrew Rosindell – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Andrew Rosindell – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2014-03-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to penalise those who fail to attend scheduled meetings at jobcentres.

    Esther McVey

    Where a person is required to attend an interview as part of their obligations as a benefit claimant, and subsequently fails to attend that interview, a sanction will be applied to their benefit unless they can show good reason/cause for their failure.

  • Angus Robertson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Angus Robertson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Angus Robertson on 2014-06-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he has taken to ensure that the outcome of the Global Summit to End Sexual Violence in Conflict reflects the wide range of people affected by such violence.

    Mark Simmonds

    The Global Summit to End Sexual Violence in Conflict will turn the political commitments made in the Declaration of Commitment to End Sexual Violence in Conflict into practical action and bring real change to those affected by this crime. We have consulted widely with experts, practitioners and international partners since the launch of the Preventing Sexual Violence Initiative in 2012, including on the outcomes of the Summit. Over 1,500 delegates will attend, including legal, military and judicial practitioners, representatives from multilateral organisations, and over 100 NGOs and grassroots organisations. The Summit is an opportunity for governments from countries around the world to hear directly from those affected what action needs to be taken to effectively tackle this issue.

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

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

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Murray on 2014-03-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment his Department has made of the future use of the Post Office Card Account; and if he will make a statement.

    Steve Webb

    The Post Office card account (POca) contract expires in March 2015 with the possibility of a 2 year extension beyond that date.

    The POca is a very simple account designed for the receipt of pensions and legacy benefits. It cannot be used for the payment of wages/salaries and does not offer transactional services such as direct debits so will not be suitable for the majority of working age claimants eligible for Universal Credit.

    No decision has been made on the future of the POca but discussions are currently taking place between DWP, Post Office Ltd and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills to consider the future needs of customers beyond 2015 and any announcement on this matter will be made in due course.

    Ministers and Officials have also met with relevant stakeholders, including the National Federation of Sub-Postmasters to discuss POca related issues.

  • Kerry McCarthy – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Kerry McCarthy – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kerry McCarthy on 2014-06-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps his Department has taken with UN Women in the planning of the June 2014 summit to end sexual violence in conflict.

    Mr Hugo Swire

    The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) is working closely with a broad range of UN agencies who work on sexual violence, including UN Women. UN Women have provided a valuable contribution to Summit planning, as well as the wider development of the Preventing Sexual Violence Initiative and will have an active role at the Summit. The FCO will continue to work with UN partners, including UN Women, to ensure that Summit outcomes and ongoing work on this agenda are supportive of the UN Action 2014-2017 Strategic Framework.

  • Lord Jopling – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Lord Jopling – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Jopling on 2014-03-11.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Taylor of Holbeach on 10 March (WA 348), whether they will now answer the question.

    Lord Taylor of Holbeach

    As I stated to the House on 23 January 2014, Official Report, column 846, and
    repeated in my reply to the noble lord, Lord Vinson on 10 March (WA 348), the
    Government remains committed ‘to holding another vote on the final package of
    measures that we will apply to rejoin’.

  • Jim Fitzpatrick – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Jim Fitzpatrick – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Fitzpatrick on 2014-06-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will publish the average waiting times at the UK border for the last three years at (a) Heathrow, (b) Gatwick, (c) Stansted, (d) Manchester, (e) Birmingham and (f) Luton airports.

    Karen Bradley

    The yearly average queue times for passengers arriving at the Primary Checkpoint to be admitted into the UK are set out in the table below. All meet service level agreement targets, which are below 25 minutes for European Economic Area (EEA) passengers and below 45 Minutes for non-EEA passengers.

    Average Passenger Queue Times (hr:mm)
    2011 2012 2013
    Port EEA NonEEA EEA NonEEA EEA NonEEA
    Heathrow TN1 00:05 00:13 00:03 00:08 00:02 00:05
    Heathrow TN3 00:06 00:19 00:03 00:11 00:02 00:09
    Heathrow TN4 00:04 00:22 00:02 00:11 00:02 00:08
    Heathrow TN5 00:06 00:21 00:04 00:13 00:04 00:09
    Gatwick North 00:03 00:05 00:03 00:05 00:02 00:04
    Gatwick South 00:04 00:07 00:03 00:05 00:02 00:03
    Stansted 00:13 00:20 00:07 00:10 00:06 00:09
    Manchester TN1 00:09 00:15 00:10 00:17 00:09 00:15
    Manchester TN2 00:10 00:19 00:09 00:16 00:08 00:15
    Manchester TN3 00:08 00:14 00:15 00:23 00:11 00:16
    Birmingham 00:07 00:11 00:06 00:09 00:05 00:09
    Luton 00:09 00:09 00:08 00:08 00:07 00:09
    The figures quoted above are management information subject to internal quality checks and may be subject to change.

    “