Category: Speeches

  • Owen Smith – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Owen Smith – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Owen Smith on 2015-11-03.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many war veterans have applied for personal independence payment.

    Justin Tomlinson

    Information on the number of claims to Personal Independence Payment (PIP) by war veterans is not available as details about current or previous occupations are not collected as part of the application or assessment process.

    Service personnel and veterans who are entitled to a Guaranteed Income Payment of 50% or higher through the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme are eligible to apply for Armed Forces Independence Payment instead of PIP. There have been 873 applications for this payment to date.

  • Philip Davies – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Philip Davies – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Philip Davies on 2015-12-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 10 November 2015 to Question 14762, if he will place in the Library the additional information received in respect of the application.

    Jane Ellison

    Some amendments are being made to the outputs in the grant application from Action on Smoking and Health and the final version of the application will be placed in the Library when it is available.

  • Nigel Evans – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Nigel Evans – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nigel Evans on 2016-01-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the UN to ensure a more open and transparent selection process of the next Secretary-General.

    James Duddridge

    Last year the UK launched an initiative to reform the selection process for the next UN Secretary General. We proposed measures that would deliver greater transparency, fairness and structure to the process. All other attributes being equal, it is high time for a woman to lead the United Nations – a job that represents the interests of all the world’s people cannot exclude half of its population. We were therefore pleased the General Assembly adopted a resolution (69/321) that broadly reflects our key proposals: clarity over timelines, greater transparency and an invitation to Member States to put forward women candidates. We also welcome the joint letter of 15 December 2015 (http://www.un.org/pga/70/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2015/08/15-Dec-2015_Appointment-of-Secretary-General-15-December-2015.pdf) from the Presidents of the General Assembly and the Security Council that sets out principles to guide the selection process.

  • Sadiq Khan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Sadiq Khan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sadiq Khan on 2016-02-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what the average monthly mortgage payment per household was in (a) London and (b) each London borough in each year since 2010.

    Brandon Lewis

    The Department does not record or collect this information at London borough level.

  • Jonathan Ashworth – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Jonathan Ashworth – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jonathan Ashworth on 2016-02-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how much her Department spent from the public purse on industrial tribunals in the last 12 months.

    Andrea Leadsom

    The cost of Employment Tribunals can be found within the HMCTS annual accounts published at:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/433948/hmcts-annual-report-accounts-2014-15.pdf.

  • Grahame Morris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Grahame Morris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Grahame Morris on 2016-04-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department takes to advise HM Revenue and Customs when an individual is moved from the employment and support allowance work related activity group into the support group.

    Priti Patel

    The Department does not automatically share information on moves between the work related activity group and the support group with HM Revenue and Customs.

    At the end of each financial year the Department reports to the HM Revenue and Customs details of the tax code operated, the total amount of taxable benefit paid and the total amount of tax deducted for that tax year.

  • Mike Weir – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Mike Weir – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mike Weir on 2016-04-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will investigate the fitness for purpose of the members’ payments division of the National Consumer Council pension scheme.

    Nick Boles

    The National Consumer Council participated in the Principal Civil Service Pension Scheme (PCSPS), which is managed by the Cabinet Office. Administration of the PCSPS is contracted out to MyCSP Ltd. MyCSP’s performance in administering the PCSPS is monitored by the Supplier Management team within Civil Service Pensions in the Cabinet Office; the performance of MyCSP is also reported to the Civil Service Pensions Board on a regular basis, which is independent of the Cabinet Office team.

    Contact details for MyCSP are available from the Civil Service Pensions website: www.civilservicepensionscheme.org.uk/contact-us/.

  • Helen Goodman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Helen Goodman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Helen Goodman on 2016-06-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the Answers of 7 April 2014 to Questions 194734 to 194737, who the independent marketing agent was for the sale of Brompton Road underground station.

    Mark Lancaster

    The independent marketing agent was Jones Lang LaSalle.

  • Richard Burden – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Richard Burden – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-09-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions he has had with the DVLA on waiting times for HGV driving licence renewal; what the (a) rate of renewals, (b) number of new applications, (c) total number of renewals outstanding, (d) average waiting time from application to renewal and (e) number of staff processing renewals was for HGV driving licence renewals; and if he will make a statement.

    Andrew Jones

    The table below shows the average waiting time for straightforward vocational licence renewals and the time taken to process the transaction from the day it is received at the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA). The figures are the latest available and are for the period September 2015 to August 2016 and include applications and renewals of HGV and PSV (bus driving) entitlements.

    a) Rate of renewals:

    11,675 on average per month

    b) Number of new applications:

    5,126 on average per month

    c) Total number of renewal outstanding:

    Approximately 8,000 on 5 September 2016

    d) Average waiting time from application to renewal:

    The average waiting time from application to renewal is 1.5 working days. September 2015 – August 2016, 99% of straightforward applications were processed within three days of receipt. Applications that are more complex or where there is a medical condition involved take longer to investigate before a licensing decision can be made.

    e) Number of staff processing HGV driving licence renewals:

    120 staff members work on all types of vocational transactions. This includes both HGV and bus driving licence renewals.

  • Lord Marlesford – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Marlesford – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Marlesford on 2016-10-13.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what part they played in the 9 September Geneva agreement between the US and Russia for a ceasefire in Syria.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    The 9 September Geneva agreement was the product of months of bilateral negotiations between the US and Russia. The UK plays an active role on Syria in wider fora including in the International Syria Support Group and through our Permanent Membership of the UN Security Council. We have further been playing our role in the wider political and diplomatic efforts to resolve the crisis and on Sunday 16 October the Foreign Secretary, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Uxbridge and South Ruislip (Boris Johnson) convened a meeting of key partners on Syria in London. The meeting discussed various options for responding to the appalling situation in Syria, and particularly the worsening humanitarian situation in Aleppo.