The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mike Weir on 2014-06-04.
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what plans his Department has to commission polling on attitudes in Scotland towards Scottish independence and related matters before 18 September 2014; and what the (a) scope and (b) value of each such contract is.
David Mundell
The Scotland Office has no plans to commission any polling on attitudes in Scotland toward Scottish independence and related matters.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mrs Madeleine Moon on 2014-03-10.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what protections have been built into Universal Job Match to ensure the service cannot be infiltrated with non-existent jobs with the aim of accessing personal data; and if he will make a statement.
Esther McVey
The security of a user’s data is of the utmost importance to us and built into the service are monitoring tools and vacancy checks, which help to detect, deter and remedy inappropriate use of the site. There are also warnings to users of the service advising them they should not be asked to reveal personal details. Additionally, a ‘Contact Us’ facility is provided so users can quickly highlight any employers that they may have concerns about. DWP then investigate such concerns.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Lucas on 2014-06-04.
To ask the Prime Minister, on what date and which Minister signed off the decision to give permission to the Chilcot Inquiry to disclose quotations or gists of the content of notes from Tony Blair or records of discussions between the UK Prime Minister and the President of the United States; when detailed consideration of the gists and quotations requested by the Inquiry bagan; how many (a) gists and (b) quotations of Tony Blair are under consideration; whether the publication of any gists or quotations has yet been agreed; and which Minister will approve the decisions on which gists or quotations can be published.
Mr David Cameron
The Inquiry is completely independent of government and should be allowed to complete its work without interference.
At the outset of the Inquiry, Government and the Inquiry agreed a documents protocol on the handling of information provided to the Inquiry. The protocol names the Cabinet Secretary as final arbiter in discussions about disclosure. He is the right person to perform this role. He is the most senior civil servant and can see papers of a previous government Sir John Chilcot’s letter of 28 May describes the background against which the Inquiry made its requests for gists and quotes. Sir John also makes clear that the gists and quotes are sufficient for the Inquiry’s purposes.
Sir John Chilcot’s letter of 28 May is available on the Iraq Inquiry website and I am placing a copy in the Library of the House.
The Government will not comment further on the extent or detail of the Inquiry’s declassification requests. I have made clear my hope that the Inquiry will be able to complete its work by the end of the year.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Marlesford on 2014-03-06.
To ask the Chairman of Committees how many Members of the House of Lords currently have entries under category 8 (Gifts, benefits and hospitality) of the Register of Lords’ Financial and other Interests.
Lord Sewel
As at 7 March 2014, 34 Members had entries registered under category 8.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Graham Evans on 2014-06-04.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to encourage young savers.
Mr David Gauke
At the Budget it was announced that, from 1 July 2014, the limits for Junior ISAs and Child Trust Funds (CTFs) will rise from £3,720 to £4,000.
Following a public consultation, the Government has decided to allow the transfer of savings from CTFs to Junior ISAs. We are committed to ensuring that there is a clear and simple way to save for all children and believe that parents should be allowed the opportunity to transfer from a CTF to a Junior ISA if they consider this to be the most appropriate account for their child.
The Government has clauses in the Deregulation Bill, currently making its way through Parliament, which will enable the transfers. We hope this option to transfer will be available by April 2015.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by on 2014-03-27.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the guidelines issued by the Law Society on 13 March on making wills Sharia compliant”
Lord Faulks
Sharia law has no jurisdiction in England and Wales and the Government has no intention to change this position.
The Government also has no intention of changing the fundamental principle of the law of succession in England and Wales that testators are, by making a valid will, able to leave their property to whomsoever they wish, subject only to the Inheritance (Provision for Family and Dependants) Act 1975.
We encourage people to make wills by providing a relatively straightforward legal framework that keeps the formalities to a minimum and enables wills to be made quickly and inexpensively; and are considering what further steps we can take to raise awareness of the importance of making a will and to make the process simpler. We provide information to help people considering making a will on government websites: see, for example, https://www.gov.uk/make-will and www.justice.gov.uk/courts/probate/why-make-a-will.
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve Rotheram on 2014-06-04.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many pupils in (a) infant schools, (b) junior schools, (c) secondary schools and (d) sixth form colleges in (i) Liverpool, (ii) the North West and (iii) England are non-UK nationals.
Mr David Laws
The Department for Education does not collect information on the nationality of pupils and students.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Earl of Dundee on 2014-03-27.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the case for international intervention or guidance to assist the efforts of the Plenum movement to reduce corruption and financial irregularities in Bosnia Herzegovina.
Baroness Warsi
The recent protests and work of the plenums are evidence of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s (BiH) political stalemate and economic malaise. We are making clear to BiH’s leaders that the onus is on them to respond to the socio-economic grievances expressed by protesters and the plenums, most recently in the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my Rt. Hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague)’s meetings with the Presidency and the Foreign Minister on 27 and 28 March. We see an opportunity also for the international community, particularly the EU, to support reform ahead of October’s elections. This includes assistance through new initiatives on economic reform and anti-corruption announced by EU Commissioner Fule, and the EU Special Representative’s planned ‘Compact for Growth’. We support these efforts to develop and build popular support for concrete reforms in economic governance, transparency and anti-corruption.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sarah Newton on 2014-06-04.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, which NHS England’s review of Tier 4 Children and Adolescent Mental Health Services provision will be complete.
Norman Lamb
This mapping exercise looking at Tier 4 Child and Adolescent Mental Health services has been completed. NHS England is now formulating an implementation plan and is preparing to publish a report of the exercise along with the implementation plan as soon as possible via the governance processes of NHS England.
The implementation will proceed via two distinct phases recognising that there are urgent actions which need to be taken to improve access and to reduce long distance referrals. The second phase will focus on the more medium term actions required. The implementation plan when finalised, will be clear about the timescales.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dan Jarvis on 2014-03-26.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent steps she has taken to help local authorities control the sale of legal highs.
Norman Baker
In December 2013 the Home Office published guidance for local authorities which sets out the range of legislative tools they can use to tackle the ‘head shops’
where legal highs are often sold. This was developed in collaboration with the Department for Communities and Local Government, the Local Government Association and the Trading Standards Institute. The guidance covers offences head shops may be committing under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971, the Intoxicating Substances (Supply) Act 1985, and various consumer protection regulations.
The Home Office also provides local authorities and their trading standards officers with technical and financial support with drug testing through the Forensic Early Warning System. This supports local authorities in their action against the sale of legal highs by helping them to identify the contents of legal high products. To date, we have brought well over 250 substances under control through the use of ‘generic’ legislation and temporary class drug orders. We also work closely with law enforcement to tackle this reckless trade. Concerted action, started in November 2013, has so far resulted in over 40 arrests and seizures of new psychoactive substances, including 9 kilograms by Kent Police.
Last summer we also ran a targeted communications campaign to raise awareness of the risks in taking new psychoactive substances amongst young people; providing information on these substances through our FRANK online service.
However, we accept that more can be done, hence my announcement on 12 December 2013 of a review by an expert panel to look at how the UK’s response to new psychoactive substances can be enhanced beyond the existing measures. The expert panel includes a senior policy advisor from the Local Government Association to inform the work of the panel from a local government perspective. The panel is due to report its recommendations by the end of spring 2014.