UKPOL.CO.UK

Category: Speeches

  • Gareth Thomas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Gareth Thomas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gareth Thomas on 2016-06-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she plans to introduce compulsory advanced notification for (a) commercial and (b) pleasure craft of arrival in the UK; and if she will make a statement.

    James Brokenshire

    The security of our border remains a absolute priority. Border Force works closely with domestic and international partners on an intelligence-led approach to identify unlawful maritime activity including facilitation and illegal entry.

    Information on vessels travelling to and from the UK is collected from a range of sources and analysed at the National Maritime Information Centre. The Government keeps all options relating to advance notification requirements under review and will continue to ensure proportionate measures are in place to secure our border.

  • Chris Elmore – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Chris Elmore – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Elmore on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent progress has been made on the electrification of the railway line in South Wales.

    Paul Maynard

    Progress is being made on the Severn Tunnel autumn works which run from the 12 September until the 21 October. This will enable works to be carried out to electrify the tunnel which is the key link into South Wales.

  • Anna Turley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    Anna Turley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Anna Turley on 2016-10-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what checks his Department and its agencies undertake to ensure public funding for new innovation facilities does not result in a duplication of existing commercial assets.

    Joseph Johnson

    All potential major capital projects are assessed against the additional value they add, including an evaluation of whether the research or innovation activity is already being undertaken elsewhere. The majority of decisions about which research investments to undertake are taken directly by Research Councils, based on rigorous criteria including peer review.

    In respect of the establishment of Innovate UK’s 11 Catapult Centres, all candidate areas have undergone a robust evaluation by Innovate UK’s Senior Innovation Leads who have relevant domain expertise. In addition, facilitated workshops, with leading figures in the relevant industries – including business, academic and representatives from the public sector, are held to ascertain whether Innovate UK’s analysis of the market opportunities in this area is correct. Each candidate area is evaluated according to an agreed process to assess the size of the global market opportunity and the demand for a Catapult to help business build on their capabilities to commercialise innovation and realise this potential in the UK.

    In setting up new Catapult centres Innovate UK take into account the option of working within or alongside existing physical centres in the UK either to avoid duplication or to achieve quicker delivery.

    At a local level, Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) are responsible for identifying, assessing and approving Local Growth Funded projects. They do this in accordance with their strategic economic objectives and Local Assurance Frameworks which have to comply with the LEP National Assurance Framework. The National Assurance Framework covers value for money and states that methodology should be proportionate to the funding allocated and in line with established Government guidance including the HM Treasury Green Book.

  • Nigel Adams – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Nigel Adams – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nigel Adams on 2015-11-03.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment his Department has made of the effect on competition between different sectors in the gaming industry of different forms of gambling taxation; and if he will make a statement.

    Damian Hinds

    The Treasury keeps all aspects of tax policy under review, and routinely looks at the impact of gambling tax policy on the industry.

  • Stephen Metcalfe – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Stephen Metcalfe – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Metcalfe on 2015-12-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to increase the use of digital technology in the courts and tribunals system.

    Mr Shailesh Vara

    We have secured over £700m of funding to invest in our courts and tribunals system so they deliver swifter, fairer justice. Together with the Crown Prosecution Service, we are already developing shared digital technology for criminal justice so that all can work from the same digital case files. We have introduced online pleas and fines for traffic offences. Courts are now trialling extended opening hours, new ways of scheduling cases to avoid frustration and delays, and extending the use of video links.

  • Tristram Hunt – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Tristram Hunt – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tristram Hunt on 2016-01-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many jobs in (a) his Department and (b) each of its non-departmental public bodies, executive agencies, non-ministerial departments, advisory bodies and other accountable statutory bodies (i) have been abolished or relocated from Stoke-on-Trent since 2010 and (ii) will be abolished in or relocated from Stoke-on-Trent by 2020.

    Justin Tomlinson

    (a i) The number of people employed in DWP offices in Stoke-on-Trent at June 2010, which is the earliest information available, was 744. The current number of people employed as at November 2015, latest information available, is 464.

    (b i) Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has an office in Stoke-on-Trent. The number of people employed at 1 January 2010 was 52. Current number of people employed is 31.

    The North Staffs Remploy factory based at Trentham, Stoke-on-Trent closed on 4 December 2012 and 110 people left the factory.

    (a ii) Detailed workforce planning up to 2020 is not yet available. Although reducing and rationalising the estate could result in relocations, there is no centrally driven relocation target to this effect. Any relocation is done based on the operational needs of the department.

    (b ii) The HSE office in Stoke-on-Trent will relocate on 25 January 2016 and 31 people will move to Crewe from that date.

  • Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2016-02-01.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what evidence the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority has received that bona fide trophectoderm stem cells have already been successfully derived and propagated from human embryos; whether any such stem cell lines have been deposited in the UK Stem Cell Bank; and if so, when.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority has advised that it holds information on the number of stem cell lines derived in each licensed research project and checks for compliance (on inspection) with the requirement for stem cell lines to be deposited in the UK Stem Cell Bank. However, this information does not differentiate between stem cells derived from the inner cell mass and those from trophectoderm.

  • Baroness Hodgson of Abinger – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Baroness Hodgson of Abinger – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Hodgson of Abinger on 2016-02-25.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what their side events will be at the Commission on the Status of Women meeting in March.

    Baroness Williams of Trafford

    The Government will use the 60th session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) to ensure that gender equality and women’s empowerment remain at the top of the global political agenda. We will negotiate with other UN Member States to agree a set of ambitious, action-oriented and forward-looking recommendations for governments around the world to accelerate progress on gender equality and ensure accountability.

    At the first session after the adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals, we will press for a meaningful follow-up process that places gender equality at the heart of the new agenda while ensuring that the CSW remains the prime global forum on gender equality and the laboratory of ideas that it is today.

    Furthermore, we will enhance the UK’s reputation as a world leader in this area by promoting relevant national policies but also by exchanging ideas with other UN Member States. In line with the session’s themes this year, we will be focusing on women’s empowerment and on violence against women and girls in high level discussions, events and bilateral meetings.

    In addition, the Government will host and support a number of events to raise the profile of certain issues which still prevent us from achieving equality, such as inequality in the workplace, discrimination in all its forms and violence against women and girls.

    Lastly, but very importantly, we are working with civil society to ensure their participation remains an integral part of the CSW programme and their concerns are heard at the national and global levels.

    Sixty years after the first session of the Commission on the Status of Women, the UK Government will send a strong signal that gender equality must be at the heart of economic and social development of all countries. We will have a ministerial team of four, led by the Rt Hon Nicky Morgan MP, Secretary of State for Education and Minister for Women and Equalities, and including the Rt Hon Justine Greening MP, Secretary of State for International Development. Parliamentary Under Secretary for Women, Equalities and Family Justice Caroline Dinenage MP and Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for International Development, Baroness Verma, in her capacity as Ministerial Champion for Tackling Violence Against Women and Girls Overseas, will also attend.

    The UK Government currently has two confirmed side events at this year’s Commission on the Status of Women. The first one will focus on getting more women and girls into science and technology and the second one will be on the gender pay gap.

    We will also be taking part in other events where major issues such as women’s economic empowerment and violence against women are discussed.

  • Stephen Hammond – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Stephen Hammond – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Hammond on 2016-03-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the effect of non-custodial sentences for knife crime offenders on the rate of reoffending.

    Dominic Raab

    We have made no assessment of the effect of non-custodial sentences on the rate of reoffending for those convicted of knife crimes. Sentencing is entirely a matter for our independent judiciary based on all the facts of each case.

  • Peter Kyle – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Peter Kyle – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Peter Kyle on 2016-04-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how his Department monitors the performance of Sussex Clinical Commissioning Group’s patient transport services.

    Jane Ellison

    The Department does not have responsibility for monitoring the performance of Sussex Clinical Commissioning Group’s (CCGs) patient transport services.

    We are advised by NHS England that the Sussex non-emergency Patient Transport Service (PTS) is managed by Coperforma who sub-contract to a variety of specialist ambulance and transport providers. Coperforma is therefore held accountable for the actions of all service providers it subcontracts to, as the organisation responsible for the entirety of the PTS.

    Sussex CCGs are responsible for monitoring Coperforma’s performance.