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 2016-02-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what additional funding she plans to commit to tackling illegal immigration; and if she will make a statement.

    James Brokenshire

    The Chancellor the Exchequer announced the 2015 Spending Review to Parliament on 25th November 2015. Home Office ministers are in the process of allocating budgets for the next financial year to ensure that the department supports its key objectives of preventing terrorism, cutting crime and controlling immigration.

  • Dan Jarvis – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Dan Jarvis – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dan Jarvis on 2016-03-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how much funding his Department received from the European Social Fund (a) between 2007 and 2014 and (b) from 2014 to the last month for which data is available.

    Andrew Selous

    Money received from the European Social Fund (ESF) by the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) Co-financing Programme is published in the NOMS Annual Report and Accounts on gov.uk. The latest accounts can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/434548/NOMS_AR14_15_report_accounts_Final_WEB.pdf

  • Lord Mendelsohn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Lord Mendelsohn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Mendelsohn on 2016-04-25.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the Executive Remuneration Working Group’s conclusions, and whether they have any plans either by statutory means or by Ministerial engagement to ensure greater transparency in relation to executive pay, clearer alignment of shareholder, company and executive interests, more accountability on the part of remuneration committees and greater engagement with and control by shareholders working through company boards.

    Baroness Neville-Rolfe

    The Government welcomes the interim conclusions of the Executive Remuneration Working Group. They represent a valuable source of ideas for ensuring more effective engagement between investors and directors and ensuring that executive pay policies are tailored to the needs of individual businesses. We also welcome the Working Group’s plans to consult interested stakeholders on practical ways of improving the current approach to executive pay. Departmental officials will be engaging with the roundtables that are being planned.

    The Government made significant reforms to the governance of executive pay in 2013. Under these reforms, companies are required to put their pay policies to shareholders at least every three years. These policies have to include information on how each director will be paid and how that is linked to different levels of performance. This is subject to a binding vote. Companies also have to provide shareholders with an Annual Remuneration Report which reports the pay of each director in a single figure and again has to set out clearly how the actual payments relate to performance. Shareholders have an advisory vote on this report, but if they reject the report, the company must submit a revised pay policy to a binding vote at the next AGM.

    These reforms give shareholders effective powers to challenge excessive pay and hold boards to account on executive pay policies. There is strong evidence from the current AGM season that shareholders are willing to use these powers, particularly where levels of pay are out of line with performance.

    The Government has no current plans for further legislation or regulation, but is looking for firm evidence that companies are liaising effectively with shareholders and adjusting pay policies where there is shareholder dissatisfaction.

  • while the British Government maintains that no UK money supports this activity – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    while the British Government maintains that no UK money supports this activity – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by while the British Government maintains that no UK money supports this activity on 2016-06-06.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Verma on 12 May (HL8117), what assessment they have made of paragraph 29 of the Third Report of the House of Commons International Development Committee The UK’s Development Work in the Occupied Palestinian Territories which states We are also extremely concerned about the PA’s policy of paying salaries to the families of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails. While appreciating it is a sensitive issue

    Baroness Verma

    The UK provides financial support to the PA because we want to help deliver peace and support progress towards a two state solution, which is the only way to secure a prosperous and peaceful future for Israelis and Palestinians alike. The UK support to the PA funds named civil servants from a pre-approved EU list only. The EU PEGASE mechanism is used to earmark funds to payment of vetted PA civil servants and pensioners. The list of approved recipients is subject to a vetting process that includes screening against international and ad hoc sanctions lists. The screening covers over 20 different risk categories, including terrorism financing and is updated daily. The EU PEGASE mechanism is independently audited, as is UK direct financial assistance to the PA.

    As the Committee noted, prisoners are a sensitive political issue on both sides of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Payments to Palestinian prisoners are made by the Palestinian Liberation Organisation (PLO), which has full administrative control for the monthly payments that are provided to prisoners’ families and dependants. The UK has consistently raised prisoner payments at the highest levels with the Palestinian authorities and continues to urge that these payments are more transparent, needs-based and affordable.

  • Justin Tomlinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Trade

    Justin Tomlinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Trade

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Justin Tomlinson on 2016-07-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, if his Department will look at examples of best practice in attracting foreign direct investment (a) in Swindon and (b) across the UK.

    Greg Hands

    The Department is continuously seeking to identify and share best practice from across the UK.

    The Department works in partnership with Swindon & Wiltshire Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) and Swindon Borough Council to deliver foreign direct investment to Swindon. My officials will continue to work with them to look at further examples of best practice.

  • Clive Efford – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Clive Efford – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Clive Efford on 2016-10-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what discussions he has had with Greenwich Clinical Commissioning Group on the capacity of local health providers meeting the Getting it Right First Time requirements in Greenwich since the contract to provide musculoskeletal services was awarded to Circle Holdings PLC; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    The provision of local health services is a matter for the local National Health Service.

    There have been no meetings between Ministers at the Department of Health and Greenwich Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) about the award of the contract to provide musculoskeletal services to Circle Holdings PLC regarding the Sustainability and Transformation Plans for elective orthopaedic surgery in Greenwich.

    Neither have there been meetings between Ministers at the Department and Greenwich CCG regarding the capacity of local health providers meeting the Getting it Right First Time requirements in Greenwich since the contract to provide musculoskeletal services was awarded to Circle Holdings PLC.

  • 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 2015-11-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions he has had with Highways England on the appointment of a programme management partner; and if he will make a statement.

    Andrew Jones

    The government is tripling the capital investment in the Strategic Road Network. Highways England have been given responsibility for delivery of the Road Investment Strategy and operation of the network.

    A four year term contract was tendered competitively by Highways England to a consortium consisting of CH2M Hill, Mace and PwC (CMP) in early July 2015 to help provide additional support to improve their capability and available resources to deliver an increasingly demanding and complex programme.

    This has no impact on the role, responsibilities and requirements of Highways England.

  • Helen Goodman – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Helen Goodman – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Helen Goodman on 2015-11-27.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, when the Economic Secretary to the Treasury plans to respond to the letter from the hon. Member for Bishop Auckland dated 12 November 2015.

    Harriett Baldwin

    I have replied to the hon. Member.

  • Tulip Siddiq – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Tulip Siddiq – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tulip Siddiq on 2016-01-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of possible factors that would trigger a change in circumstances for a working tax credit claimant who has been transferred from universal credit (UC) which would cause their tax credit entitlement to be re-assessed based on UC thresholds.

    Priti Patel

    The information requested is not available.

  • Jim Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Jim Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-01-29.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many trauma cases were recorded in NHS A&E departments in each of the last 10 years; and if he will make a statement.

    Jane Ellison

    Information on the number of trauma cases treated at National Health Service hospitals is not collected centrally. Trauma is not a formal term by which activity is recorded.