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Category: Speeches

  • Craig Tracey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Craig Tracey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Craig Tracey on 2016-02-24.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to widen access to financial advice.

    Harriett Baldwin

    The Government has launched the Financial Advice Market Review (FAMR). This will explore what more can be done to ensure people can access high quality, affordable advice to help them make informed financial decisions. The Review will establish what sorts of financial advice consumers need and examine ways to make financial advice work better for consumers. It will report back around the time of Budget.

  • Mike Kane – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Mike Kane – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mike Kane on 2016-03-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what mechanisms her Department has in place to determine the geographic distribution of asylum seekers awaiting decisions on asylum applications.

    Mike Penning

    The Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 introduced the policy of national dispersal, designed to share the impact of asylum seekers across the whole of the UK. Asylum seekers are housed across the UK under voluntary agreements between national government and local authorities that have been in place since 2000.

    We work to a maximum agreed dispersal ratio of 1:200 asylum seekers per head of total population. We are proactively engaging with all areas that to date have not participated in asylum dispersal with a view to negotiating voluntary agreements to do so.

  • Baroness Whitaker – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Baroness Whitaker – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Whitaker on 2016-04-22.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have plans to issue guidance to vets on how to proceed with the micro-chipping of dogs or horses when the owner is of no fixed abode, such as in the case of Gypsies and Travellers.

    Lord Gardiner of Kimble

    Owners of horses and dogs without a fixed address should provide the address of a family member or close friend with whom they keep in contact. Defra have worked with the veterinary representative organisations on their guidance for vets on microchipping of dogs.

  • Clive Betts – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Clive Betts – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Clive Betts on 2016-06-06.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent assessment the Government has made of the contribution of the work of the Olympic Legacy Park in Sheffield to breaking down distinctions between sport and wider physical activity.

    David Evennett

    Government is committed to increasing physical activity as set out in our sport strategy, ‘Sporting Future: A New Strategy for an Active Nation’ published late last year. That strategy removed the artificial barriers between sport and wider physical activity, broadening Sport England’s remit to include cycling, dancing and walking. The recently published Sport England strategy, ‘Towards an Active Nation’, sets out their plans to implement this new approach.

    I recognise that creating a more active society will require action by a range of bodies working together over a significant period of time. I therefore welcome the work of Legacy Park Ltd in Sheffield in bringing together partners across local government, the health sector, academia, elite and community sport and the private sector. I look forward to seeing their ambitious plans to establish sport facilities for elite and community use and an Advanced Wellbeing Research Centre that would work with the National Centre for Sport and Exercise Medicine to provide health and wellbeing research and learning.

  • Alex Salmond – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Alex Salmond – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Salmond on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps the Government is taking to speed up family reunification for unaccompanied refugee children in Europe.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    The Government began work to implement the ‘Dubs amendment’ immediately after the Immigration Bill gained Royal Assent. Over 30 children who meet the criteria in the Immigration Act have been accepted for transfer since it received Royal Assent in May, the majority of these have already arrived in the UK.

    We continue to work with the French, Greek and Italian authorities and others to speed up existing family reunification processes or implement new processes where necessary for unaccompanied children. We have seconded a UK official to Greece, we have a long-standing secondee working in Italy and will shortly be seconding another official to the French Interior Ministry to support these efforts.

    We have established a dedicated team in the Home Office Dublin Unit to lead on family reunion cases for unaccompanied children. Transfer requests under the Dublin Regulation are now generally processed within 10 days and children transferred within weeks. Over 120 children have been accepted for transfer this year from Europe. We also continue to consult local authorities about the transfer unaccompanied refugee children from Europe to the UK, where it is in their best interests.

  • Philippa Whitford – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Philippa Whitford – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Philippa Whitford on 2016-10-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what preparations his Department has made for the likely relocation of the headquarters of the European Medicines Agency away from London after the UK leaves the EU.

    David Mowat

    The future arrangements which apply in relation to European Union institutions based in the United Kingdom should be determined once the UK has left the EU. It is too early to speculate on the future location of the European Medicines Agency.

  • Richard Burden – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Richard Burden – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2015-10-30.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate his Department has made of how many (a) drivers and (b) drivers under 25 were using black box technology in each of the last five years.

    Andrew Jones

    The Department for Transport has not made any such estimates. There are a number of behavioural, educational and technological interventions that have the potential to help improve young driver safety. We need better evidence about what works best, so we’re working with insurance companies to see how we can assess the impact of telematics products on young driver safety.

  • Louise Haigh – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Louise Haigh – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Haigh on 2015-11-26.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many positions are being created within his Extended Ministerial Office in each pay grade.

    Matthew Hancock

    I refer the hon. Member to the answers I gave her on 26 November 2015 to UIN: 10865-10866 and on 30 November 2015 to UIN: 17505.

  • Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Haigh on 2016-01-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, pursuant to the Answer of 21 October 2015 to Question 10867, how many of the complaints were (a) referred to his Department’s solicitors and (b) resulted in compliance with the Overseas Companies Regulations 2009.

    Anna Soubry

    Of the ninety complaints referred to in the previous question, twenty were referred to Companies House’s own solicitors: they handle the vast majority of Companies House’s legal work.

    Of the ninety cases, two companies complied with the requirement to register a UK establishment of an overseas company at Companies House. Both registrations followed a request to register from Companies House’s solicitors.

    In respect of the remaining complaints, there was insufficient information to conclude that the overseas company was required to register a UK establishment at Companies House.

  • Andrew Gwynne – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Andrew Gwynne – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Gwynne on 2016-01-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if he will bring forward legislative proposals to strengthen planning regulations in respect of air quality considerations when a planning application falls within an Air Quality Action Plan.

    James Wharton

    There are already strong protections in place to safeguard people from unacceptable risks from air pollution with particular recognition given to Air Quality Management Areas in national planning policy. The National Planning Policy Framework expects local planning policies to sustain compliance with and contribute to EU limit values or national objectives for pollutants, taking account the presence of Air Quality Management Areas. The Framework is also clear that planning decisions should ensure that any new development in Air Quality Management Areas is consistent with the local air quality action plan.