Category: Speeches

  • Diana Johnson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Diana Johnson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Diana Johnson on 2014-03-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people have been convicted of an offence under sections 1, 2 or 3 of the Female Genital Mutilation Act 2003 where the offence was committed against a child in each of the last four years.

    Damian Green

    No-one has been convicted of an offence under the Female Genital Mutilation Act 2003 in England and Wales since the Act came into force. However, the Director of Public Prosecutions announced the first prosecutions for female genital mutilation on 21 March.

    The Government is committed to tackling and preventing the harmful and unacceptable practice of female genital mutilation. As part of this cross-government work, the Ministry of Justice is already considering suggestions made by the Director for strengthening the criminal law on female genital mutilation to make successful prosecutions more likely.

    We welcome the Home Affairs Select Committee inquiry into this area and will give careful consideration to any additional recommendations for legislative change that may be made by the Committee when it reports in due course.

  • John Healey – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    John Healey – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Healey on 2014-06-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the potential effects of removing dedicated funding for local welfare assistance; and if he will review the current local welfare assistance arrangements introduced in 2013 before any such change is made.

    Steve Webb

    In the next spending round period, from April 2015, central government will continue to provide support to local authorities through general funds, as part of the coalition Government’s commitment to reducing ring-fencing and ending top-down Whitehall control.

    It was always the intention that 2014-15 would be the last year of separate funding for local welfare provision from the Department for Work and Pensions. Councils will continue to provide support to those in their community who face financial difficulties or who find themselves in unavoidable circumstances.

    In contrast to a centralised grant system that was poorly targeted, councils can now choose how to best support local welfare needs within their areas. As this is an administrative change only no assessment has been made of the effects. However we are carrying out a review of the current arrangements, working with the Local Government Association and the Department for Communities and Local Government. Once completed it is our intention to place a copy of the findings in the House Library.

  • Lord Berkeley – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Lord Berkeley – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Berkeley on 2014-03-26.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what are the penalties for driving a motor vehicle without insurance.

    Baroness Kramer

    If taken to court, an offender faces a maximum fine of up to £5,000 and up to 8 penalty points on his/her driving licence.

    There is a fixed penalty of £300 for this offence which also carries 6 penalty points.

  • David Amess – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Prime Minister

    David Amess – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Prime Minister

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Amess on 2014-06-05.

    To ask the Prime Minister, if it remains his policy to publish the report of the Chilcot Inquiry in full; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr David Cameron

    The Iraq Inquiry is independent of government, and should be allowed to complete its work without interference.

    Neither I nor Ministers have had any discussions with or made any representations to the Inquiry. Nor have I discussed the Inquiry with President Obama.

    The Inquiry has sought the declassification of material for inclusion in its report from many thousands of documents, some of which have been or will be published. Government does not, as a rule, comment on any discussions between officials and the Inquiry.

    The Maxwellisation process is a matter for the Inquiry.

    The Government remains committed to ensuring that the Inquiry’s final report will be able to disclose all but the most sensitive information which will be determined in accordance with the protocol governing the disclosure of documentary evidence which is available through the Inquiry website.

    Timing of the delivery of the report to me is a matter for the Inquiry, but it is my hope that the Inquiry can complete its work before the end of the year. Upon publication, copies of the report will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

  • Baroness Seccombe – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Baroness Seccombe – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Seccombe on 2014-03-25.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what was the breakdown of departmental spending on Government Procurement Cards in the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs in 2009–10, including the name, merchant type, purchase date and transaction value.

    Lord De Mauley

    Officials’ spending on Government Procurement Cards (GPCs) in 2009-10 generated nearly 47,000 transactions totalling £3.9m.

    The breakdown requested could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

    However, details of all GPC transactions with a value of £500 or above, incurred from 1 April 2010 onwards, are published online at http://data.gov.uk/dataset/defra-gpc-spend-over-500-pounds.

    “

  • Helen Jones – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Helen Jones – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Helen Jones on 2014-06-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what the average rent is for (a) privately rented homes and (b) new homes built under the Affordable Homes Programme in (i) Warrington and (ii) Warrington North constituency.

    Kris Hopkins

    The information is not held centrally.

  • Cathy Jamieson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Cathy Jamieson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Cathy Jamieson on 2014-03-25.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the number of people who have utilised their full tax-free ISA allowance in each of the last three years in (a) the UK, (b) Scotland and (c) each parliamentary constituency.

    Mr David Gauke

    Until 1 July 2014 there are two allowances for ISAs: a cash and an overall allowance. This answer assumes you are asking about the overall allowance.

    The following table contains the number of individuals who made full use of their (£10,680) ISA allowance in 2011-12 in the UK and in Scotland.

    Country

    Number of individuals (thousands)

    Scotland

    73

    United Kingdom

    1,005

    A breakdown for 2012-13 and 2013-14 is not yet available. Constituency-level statistics are not available.

    As announced at Budget 2014, from 1 July 2014 the overall annual New ISA subscription limit will be increased to £15,000 and can be used for either cash or stocks and shares investments, or any combination of the two, up to this limit.

    This measure will reduce income tax on savings for people constrained by the current limits, improving incentives to save and increasing real household disposable incomes. Over 6 million people are expected to benefit from these increases, including over 5 million adults expected to be constrained by the cash ISA limit.

  • Tom Watson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Tom Watson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Watson on 2014-06-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department has provided any advice to public communications providers on the consequences of the decision of the European Court of Justice in Digital Rights Ireland and Seitlinger and Others on data retention by those companies.

    James Brokenshire

    The Government continues to consider the judgment of the European Court, but we consider that the UK Data Retention (EC Directive) Regulations 2009 remain in
    force. Those in receipt of a notice under the Regulations have been informed that they should continue to observe their obligations as outlined in any notice.

  • Paul Flynn – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Paul Flynn – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Flynn on 2014-03-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what steps the Government plans to take to deliver the commitments on nuclear security contained in paragraph 27 of the Hague Nuclear Security Summit Communiqué held in the Hague on 24 and 25 March 2014.

    Michael Fallon

    Safety and security are top priorities for the Government and there is a robust security framework in place for the civil nuclear industry. We seek continuous improvement in line with internationally established principles. The UK has a strong and effective independent regulator, the Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR), which ensures compliance with the requirements placed on duty holders by the Nuclear Industries Security Regulations 2003 (as amended) and the performance-based National Objectives, Requirements and Model Standards (NORMS). There is extensive engagement between the Government, ONR and duty holders. The full set of UK commitments made at the Nuclear Security Summit which go towards meeting paragraph 27 of the Summit’s Communiquécan be found at the following link:

    https://www.nss2014.com/sites/default/files/documents/140321_uk_national_statement_on_commitments.pdf

    “

  • Oliver Colvile – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Oliver Colvile – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Oliver Colvile on 2014-06-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what specialist one-to-one study skills support will be available for students with specific learning difficulties following the review of the disabled students allowance; and who will provide that support.

    Mr David Willetts

    Discussions are underway with stakeholders, including those who specialise in supporting students with Specific Learning Difficulties. This will help determine how specialist one-to-one support will be delivered in the future and where the responsibility for funding such support will fall.

    I will not make a final decision on this matter until I have considered the necessary Equality Analysis, which is in preparation, and will take account of any relevant evidence provided by stakeholders.