The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jonathan Edwards on 2016-06-09.
To ask the Leader of the House, what estimate he has made of the potential cost of providing simultaneous and written translation in Welsh Grand Committees for bilingual proceedings.
Chris Grayling
English is and should remain the language of this House. The Government has not made a detailed estimate of the cost of providing simultaneous and written translation in Welsh Grand Committees.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Helic on 2016-09-06.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, ahead of the referendum in the entity of Republika Srpska on 25 September, what support they have given High Representative Valentin Inzko to enable him to exercise his mandate under the Dayton Peace Accord to uphold the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Baroness Anelay of St Johns
As members of the Peace Implementation Council, the UK issued a statement on 30 August 2016 urging the Republika Srpska authorities not to hold the proposed referendum and making clear our support for the High Representative. The Government is in close contact with the High Representative and international partners about the proposed referendum and is committed to upholding the territorial integrity and structure of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) as a single, sovereign state comprising two entities.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2016-10-11.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they intend to raise the issue of stateless North Koreans with the government of China; and what steps they plan to take to aid stateless North Koreans in need if the government of China is unwilling to assist them.
Baroness Anelay of St Johns
We are aware of reports of thirty North Koreans being sent back to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) after a period of detention in China.
Despite claims by the DPRK authorities that forcibly repatriated refugees are well treated and reintegrated into DPRK society, reports suggest that they are often mistreated by the authorities.
We will raise the issue of non-refoulement at the next UK-China Human rights Dialogue, scheduled to take place this month.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Zeichner on 2015-11-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress he has made on achieving the target of 55 per cent of primary school children walking to school by 2025.
Mr Robert Goodwill
The Government is developing new ambitions for walking as part of its legal obligation, as set out in the Infrastructure Act 2015, to have in place a Cycling and Walking Investment Strategy (CWIS). The target for walking set out in the Cycling Delivery Plan, to increase the percentage of primary school children walking to school to 55 per cent by 2025, will be considered as part of that process.
My Department intends to publish the first CWIS in summer 2016 and will be announcing a series of supporting documents leading up to this, including an Ambition document.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb on 2015-12-02.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how the grant from Viridor Credits to All Saints Church in Kingston was audited by ENTRUST, and what assessment they have made of environmental objectives that grant fulfils.
Lord O’Neill of Gatley
The Landfill Communities Fund is a tax credit scheme. It allows landfill operators to gain a tax credit against 90% of the voluntary donations they make to environmental bodies for spending on certain prescribed objectives.
The prescribed objectives include:
within the vicinity of a landfill site.
ENTRUST, the independent regulator of the Landfill Communities Fund assesses and approves applications for project funding to ensure they meet the objectives of the scheme. ENTRUST also carries out a programme of assurance under which a cross-section of projects are selected for audit to ensure they meet the prescribed objectives, and that funds are spent compliantly.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Hendrick on 2016-01-13.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many letters his Department received from hon. Members and Peers in each month in 2015; and how many such letters received a substantive response within 10 working days.
Brandon Lewis
I refer the hon. Member to my answer of 15 December 2015, PQ 19650.
The reporting of performance of Government Departments in handling correspondence from hon. Members is co-ordinated by the Cabinet Office and published annually.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Luciana Berger on 2016-02-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 8 February 2016 to Question 25729, when he plans to (a) complete the BAME benchmarking pilot and (b) publish the benchmarking tool.
Alistair Burt
NHS England will begin the collection and analysis of responses from services in March. Following final sign off, NHS England expect to publish the benchmarking tool no later than June 2016.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Philip Davies on 2016-02-29.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 17 November 2015 to Question 15303, on reoffenders, how many (a) offenders had committed each of the listed offences and (b) offenders in each category were given a fixed term recall for committing a further offence.
Dominic Raab
I am unable to provide the data you have requested in Question 29034 within the timescales for this parliamentary question. I will write to you in due course with such data as officials can collate it from casework systems.
Any offender who is believed to have committed further offences whilst on licence is liable to be arrested and charged and, if convicted, given a further sentence. If the offence is serious, they can be remanded into custody until trial. Offenders on licence who are charged with further offences are also liable to be recalled, potentially to serve the rest of their sentence in prison, as they will be in breach of the requirement of their licence to be of good behaviour. If the offender is assessed as not presenting a risk of harm to the public they can be assessed as suitable for a shorter, fixed term recall. Those who have been charged with serious sexual or violent offences will not be considered suitable for a fixed term recall.
The table below provides the proportion of recalls in 2013 and 2014 and the proportion who received a fixed term recall.
|
Year |
Proportion of total recalls which were fixed term |
|
2014 |
42% |
|
2013 |
42% |
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine West on 2016-03-24.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps his Department is taking to improve trade with (a) Hong Kong and (b) China as a whole.
Anna Soubry
Increasing trade and growth through exports, to all overseas markets including Hong Kong and China is a key factor in the Government’s long-term economic plan. Government departments are working together to support UK businesses looking to take advantage of overseas opportunities and to create a strong business environment that allows them to flourish on the international stage.
The focus on China and Hong Kong is exemplified by the fact that UK Trade & Investment (UKTI) has some 180 full-time equivalent posts in these markets, representing its largest overseas team working on trade and investment. UKTI also works in partnership with the China Britain Business Council (CBBC) which delivers volume trade support on its behalf for UK companies looking to export to China. CBBC offers support for UK businesses across 13 strategic locations in China.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-05-04.
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what assessment her Department has made of the potential of solar thermal hot water heating to tackle fuel poverty.
Andrea Leadsom
Any measure which reduces the energy costs faced by a fuel poor home will have a beneficial impact on tackling fuel poverty. However, in order to tackle fuel poverty most cost effectively, it is right to focus on measures that can yield the greatest reductions in energy needs at least cost.
For example, low cost insulation is typically more cost effective in improving the energy efficiency of fuel poor homes than other measures, including solar thermal.
That is why Government is committed to insulating 1m homes this Parliament, helping to tackle the root cause of fuel poverty through cost effective policy.