The below Parliamentary question was asked by Anna Turley on 2015-11-13.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the effect of changes to business rate relief on the charity sector.
Mr Marcus Jones
The Government is continuing to consider representations, including on business rates reliefs, to inform decisions on reform of the business rates system. The Government has confirmed the review will conclude by the end of the year.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Craig Whittaker on 2015-12-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what assessment he has made of the effect of the National Living Wage on wage growth in Calder Valley.
Nick Boles
We have made no assessment of the impacts of the National Living Wage in Calder Valley or at constituency level. The Government published its Impact Assessment of the National Living Wage on 7 December.
The new National Living Wage is an essential part of moving to a higher wage, lower tax, lower welfare society; it ensures that work pays, and reduces reliance on the state topping up wages through the benefits system. The Government’s target is for the National Living Wage to reach 60% of median earnings by 2020, and we have asked the Low Pay Commission to recommend its level going forward.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Natalie McGarry on 2016-01-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues about the Turkish government’s military action against Kurdish militants in predominately Kurdish areas of Turkey.
Mr David Lidington
The ongoing violence in the predominantly Kurdish areas of south east Turkey is extremely concerning. The Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) continues to kill members of the Turkish police service and security forces in violent terrorist attacks. The Turkish Government has responded by striking PKK targets in Turkey and Northern Iraq. They have also launched large-scale security operations involving curfews in some towns and cities in order to clear them of suspected terrorists.
We are aware of reports of civilian casualties in the region, and a worsening humanitarian situation in certain areas in south east Turkey. The Turkish Government have said that 48 civilians lost their lives in clashes between 23 July and 23 December 2015. They also said that 93,000 people have fled their homes. We also understand that there have been investigations launched against elected officials and politicians. Any such investigations should be undertaken transparently and fully respect the rule of law.
We believe Turkey has a legitimate right to defend itself against the PKK, whose attacks we condemn as we condemn all terrorism. Our thoughts are with the victims of these attacks, and the civilians who have been caught up in the violence. As in any conflict, civilian casualties should be avoided and human rights need to be fully protected. We have been clear, in public and private, that PKK violence must end and we support a return to the peace process, in the interests of Turkey and the region. We stand ready to help in any way we can.
We continue to monitor the situation closely. The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge and our Ambassador to Turkey have emphasised to the Turkish government the need to respect human rights, avoid civilian casualties and return to the peace process. I raised these issues with my Turkish counterpart the last time we met in August 2015.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emily Thornberry on 2016-02-10.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much his Department spent on recruitment agency fees in each of the last six years.
Mark Lancaster
The Ministry of Defence (MOD) has made payments to recruitment agencies in the last six years as follows:
|
Calendar Year |
Total Payments |
|
2010 |
£120,905 |
|
2011 |
£143,785 |
|
2012 |
£283,725 |
|
2013 |
£372,937 |
|
2014 |
£583,086 |
|
2015 |
£121,879 |
This expenditure relates to recruitment to the permanent Senior Civil Service across the MOD, including the Trading Funds. It represents the costs of searches, advertisements, response handling, assessment and support to selection panels. The figures do not include expenditure on Contingent Labour, the process used to engage temporary staff through recruitment agency contracts.
Generally, recruitment to the MOD for all grades below the Senior Civil Service is carried out by Defence Business Services who do not make use of external recruitment agencies when appointing MOD Crown Servants. This is not the case in Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S), which is now a bespoke trading entity. Since 2013, DE&S has made use of agency support in recruiting staff in order to ensure it has access to suitably qualified and experienced personnel to fill specialist vacancies. DE&S expenditure is as follows:
|
Calendar Year |
Total Payments (£ million) |
|
2013 |
1.75 |
|
2014 |
2.0 |
|
2015 |
0.5 |
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Poulter on 2016-03-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, whether the building of the proposed Sizewell C nuclear plant is contingent on future decisions on the Hinkley Point C plant.
Andrea Leadsom
No application for development consent to build a new nuclear power station at Sizewell has yet been made. EDF have completed the first stage of local public consultation which is necessary before an application for development consent can be made, and have said they will make available more information on the next consultation stage once they have made a final investment decision on Hinkley.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Kramer on 2016-04-11.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many people paid capital gains tax on personal possessions in each of the last five years, and what was the total amount of tax paid.
Lord O’Neill of Gatley
Information is not available on the number of people paying Capital Gains Tax on specific types of possession, or the total amount of tax paid on gains of specific type of possession. Capital Gains Tax payments are not separated into personal possessions. However, the Government publishes information about total amount of Capital Gains Tax paid each year and the total numbers of individuals accruing liabilities.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by William Cash on 2016-05-18.
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what discussions she has had with the European Commission on the application of EU state aid rules related to the provision of (a) Supplementary Balancing Reserve and (b) other Black Start ancillary support contracts provided by the National Grid to Eggborough, Fiddler’s Ferry and Drax power plants; and if she will make a statement.
Amber Rudd
The Supplementary Balancing Reserve and Black Start services are procured directly by the System Operator, National Grid and the Government has no involvement in the tendering, or award of Supplementary Balancing Reserve or Black Start contracts. As such DECC has not discussed these with the European Commission in relation to their application to State Aid.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Blomfield on 2016-07-11.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, (a) who holds responsibility for training magistrates and (b) how many magistrates have received training on the use of (i) slavery and trafficking risk orders and (ii) slavery and trafficking prevention orders.
Mr Shailesh Vara
Judicial training is the responsibility of the Lord Chief Justice and is exercised through the Judicial College.
To fulfil their judicial decision making responsibilities magistrates, their legal advisers and District Judges (Magistrates’ Courts) receive comprehensive induction and continuation training in across the jurisdictions, which includes new legislation.
It is not however possible to identify where magistrates have received standalone or direct training on the use of slavery and trafficking risk orders or slavery and trafficking prevention orders.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emily Thornberry on 2016-09-13.
To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, how many staff, at what grades, his Department has recruited to work in the Permanent Secretary Office.
Mr David Jones
The Department for Exiting the EU now has over 200 staff in London, plus the expertise of over 120 officials in Brussels, and we are still growing rapidly. We are not in a position to give a final total nor a breakdown by directorate as recruitment is ongoing.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Diana Johnson on 2015-11-13.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to ensure companies or individuals suspected of funding ISIL through oil trades do not operate or transfer money through the UK financial system; and what steps she has taken to assess whether such steps have been effective.
Mr John Hayes
International engagement is a key part of the UK’s strategy for countering the financing of terrorism and the UK is part of the Global Coalition working together to dismantle and destroy the threat from ISIL. Denying ISIL access to revenue and funding for its ambitions of statehood is a core part of the Global Coalition’s strategy to defeat ISIL.
The Government works closely with law enforcement and industry bodies such as the British Bankers’ Association. We also work bilaterally with international partners, and with multilateral institutions such as the Financial Action Task Force, to build international capacity the financing of terrorism.
The recent Home Office and HM Treasury National Risk Assessment of money laundering and terrorist financing (published 15 October – https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/uk-national-risk-assessment-of-money-laundering-and-terrorist-financing) gave a clear and candid assessment of the current overall situation. It found that while the UK’s response to terrorist financing risks is well developed, more could be done to strengthen our regime. The Government will take forward comprehensive work to address these findings through a new cross-Government Action Plan.