Category: Speeches

  • Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2016-06-06.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have made to the government of North Korea on reports of widespread rape committed by its military; and whether the UK defence attaché to North Korea will raise this issue with their counterpart.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    We are aware of the disturbing reports of sexual violence within the Korean People’s Army. We consistently raise our concerns about the appalling human rights situation in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) directly with the regime. In June, our Ambassador to North Korea made clear the UK’s position on human rights in a speech in Pyongyang attended by DPRK senior officials. We regularly raise North Korean human rights issues in multilateral fora such as the UN Security Council and the Human Rights Council, and will continue to do so.

  • Caroline Lucas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    Caroline Lucas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Lucas on 2016-07-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the implications for his Department’s costings for nuclear power of the findings of the National Audit Office in its report published in July 2016 on Nuclear power in the UK, HC 511, paragraph 2.11, on the effect on running costs of nuclear power facilities of increased terrorist threats.

    Jesse Norman

    The Government considers safety and security at nuclear power plants to be of paramount importance. The operator bears most of the security costs for nuclear power plants. The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy seeks independent costs estimates for new nuclear power, which incorporate security costs – the Department’s most recent cost estimates are available in the Electricity Generation Costs report, available at:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/269888/131217_Electricity_Generation_costs_report_December_2013_Final.pdf

    “

  • Nigel Adams – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Nigel Adams – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nigel Adams on 2016-10-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the potential for community pharmacies to (a) deliver early identification of medical complaints and ongoing patient monitoring and (b) help reduce hospital admission rates.

    David Mowat

    We want a clinically focussed community pharmacy service that is better integrated with primary care and public health in line with the Five Year Forward View. This will help relieve the pressure on general practitioners and accident and emergency, ensure better use of medicines and better patient outcomes, and contribute to delivering seven-day health and care services.

    The Chief Pharmaceutical Officer for England, Dr Keith Ridge has commissioned an independent review of community pharmacy clinical services. The review is being led by Richard Murray, Director of Policy at The King’s Fund. The final recommendations will be considered as part of the development of clinical and cost effective patient care by pharmacists and their teams.

    NHS England is also setting up a Pharmacy Integration Fund to support the development of clinical pharmacy practice in a wider range of primary care settings, resulting in a more integrated and effective National Health Service primary care patient pathway.

  • Tim Farron – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Tim Farron – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Farron on 2016-10-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many 999 calls were made over the last three calendar years from HM prisons.

    Mr Sam Gyimah

    The information requested could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

  • Peter Bone – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Speaker’s Committee on the Electoral Commission

    Peter Bone – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Speaker’s Committee on the Electoral Commission

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Peter Bone on 2015-11-02.

    To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker’s Committee on the Electoral Commission, what plans are in place for monitoring the EU referendum.

    Mr Gary Streeter

    In addition to its roles overseeing delivery of the referendum, supporting the work of Electoral Registration Officers in registering voters and helping the police and electoral administrators tackle allegations of electoral fraud, one of the Electoral Commission’s key objectives is to ensure the integrity and transparency for voters of campaign funding and spending at the EU referendum. Its role will be to register campaigners and regulate their funding and spending.

    To ensure all campaigners know what the rules are, the Commission will actively engage with potential campaigners, publish guidance and provide an advice line. It will receive, analyse and publish information about the campaign funding and spending; ensuring this information is provided by campaigners on time and in line with the legal requirements. The Commission will also deal with potential breaches of the rules, including by the use of its enforcement and sanctioning powers where appropriate.

    As part of its approach, the Commission will monitor campaigning. Using various sources, including the media and information brought to the Commission by campaigners and others, it will identify emerging issues and opportunities to offer advice and guidance to those it regulates or, if necessary, take enforcement action where the rules are not followed. The Commission will also refer to the information obtained through campaign monitoring when looking at financial information submitted by campaigners.

  • Julie Cooper – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Julie Cooper – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julie Cooper on 2015-11-26.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the benefit to the public purse was of the closing of tax loopholes in each of the last six years.

    Mr David Gauke

    Revenue protected in connection with avoidance measures announced over the last 6 years is scored in relevant Budget documentation published by HM Treasury.

    However, for convenience on 19 March 2015 the coalition government published a document detailing the action taken over the course of the last Parliament to tackle tax evasion and avoidance. That document can be found at: www.gov.uk/government/publications/tackling-tax-evasion-and-avoidance

    “

  • Tulip Siddiq – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Tulip Siddiq – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

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

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many cases were referred to the National Referral Mechanism as potential victims of trafficking for domestic servitude in each year since 2009; and how many such cases had a (a) positive reasonable grounds decision and (b) positive conclusive grounds decision.

    Karen Bradley

    Statistics relating to the National Referral Mechanism are published quarterly by the National Crime Agency in their “Human Trafficking: National Referral Mechanism Statistics” report, which includes information on exploitation type and decision outcomes. These can be found here:

    http://www.nationalcrimeagency.gov.uk/publications/national-referral-mechanism-statistics

    Data prior to April 2012 is held for internal use but has not been validated for publication.

  • Chris Stephens – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Chris Stephens – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Stephens on 2016-01-29.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans he has to increase public awareness of National Savings and Investments.

    Harriett Baldwin

    The core purpose of NS&I remains to raise cost-effective finance for the Government, using an operating framework that balances the interests of savers, taxpayers and the wider financial sector.

    An indication of NS&I’s cost effectiveness in raising finance for the Government, as measured by the Value Indicator, is published annually. The Value Indicator is calculated by comparing the total cost of delivering Net Financing and servicing existing customers deposits with how much it would cost the Government to raise funds through the wholesale market via equivalent maturity gilts. Last year £330m was saved.

    As an arms-length body, NS&I is responsible for its own brand strategy. In line with government Spend Controls, Cabinet Office approval is required for advertising, marketing and communications spend of £100,000 or above.

    NS&I relocated its operations within Glasgow from the Cowglen site to the Capella building in the centre of Glasgow in May 2015. The closure of Cowglen facilitated the move to more modern and cost effective accommodation and released the surplus site for redevelopment for housing, together with a capital receipt for the Exchequer. NS&I’s mail processing and scanning operations previously located at Cowglen, moved to Orbital House in East Kilbride in October 2015. NS&I remains committed to its operations in Scotland.

  • David Nuttall – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    David Nuttall – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Nuttall on 2016-02-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether the commitments by the UK not to create obstacles to, but facilitate such deepening of the Eurozone, to sincere cooperation with the Eurozone, not to impede the implementation of legal acts directly linked to the functioning of the euro area to refrain from measures which could jeopardise the attainment of the objectives of economic and monetary union contained in the Decision of the Heads of State or Government, meeting within the European Council, on 18 and 19 February 2016 are legally binding; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr David Lidington

    The Decision of the Heads of State or Government, meeting within the European Council, concerning a new settlement for the United Kingdom within the European Union, is legally binding. The Prime Minister, my right hon. Friend the Member for Witney (Mr Cameron), has been clear that this deal protects the UK’s rights as a country outside the Eurozone, and from any future integration.

  • Luciana Berger – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Luciana Berger – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Luciana Berger on 2016-03-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many agency mental health nurses have been employed by each clinical commissioning group in each year since 2010.

    Ben Gummer

    This information is not collected centrally either by the Department or NHS England.