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  • Baroness King of Bow – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Baroness King of Bow – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness King of Bow on 2015-12-17.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Williams of Trafford on 8 December (HL4000), whether they will place in the Library of the House a copy of the tender specification for the research by Savills on estate regeneration in London commissioned by the Number 10 Policy Unit.

    Baroness Williams of Trafford

    The tender specification for the research by Savills on estate regeneration in London commissioned by the Number 10 Policy Unit will be placed in the Library of the House in due course.

  • Baroness King of Bow – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Baroness King of Bow – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness King of Bow on 2015-12-17.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Williams of Trafford on 8 December (HL4006), how much Savills has been paid for its report on the regeneration of local authority estates in central London.

    Baroness Williams of Trafford

    The information regarding the cost of the report is commercially sensitive and therefore cannot be released. However, the Government has paid a contribution towards the cost of the research which was less than half of the full amount.

  • Baroness King of Bow – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Baroness King of Bow – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness King of Bow on 2015-12-17.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Williams of Trafford on 8 December (HL3999), when they expect to publish the Savills report on the regeneration of local authority estates in central London.

    Baroness Williams of Trafford

    A copy of the report will be placed in the Library of the House in due course.

  • Lord Morris of Aberavon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Lord Morris of Aberavon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Morris of Aberavon on 2015-12-17.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the Home Secretary will discuss with the police whether a protocol should be agreed to rationalise and improve on the present system of names of persons interviewed by the police but not charged being made public on a case by case basis.

    Lord Bates

    The decision to release the name or details of a suspect in an investigation is an operational one for the police to take.

    The College of Policing’s Authorised Professional Practice (APP) ‘Guidance on ‘Relationships with the Media’, which was developed in full consultation with the police, makes clear that decisions on releasing the names of those who are arrested or suspected of a crime should be made on a case by case basis and that the police should not do so unless there are clearly identified circumstances to justify it, such as threat to life or the prevention or detection of crime. This guidance will be reviewed by the College early in the New Year.

    It is the Government’s position that, in general, there should be a right to anonymity before the point of charge. However, there are circumstances where the police decide it is in the public interest that an arrested suspect should be named.

  • Lord Black of Brentwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Lord Black of Brentwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Black of Brentwood on 2015-12-17.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have had any discussions with International Cat Care and the World Small Animal Veterinary Association about international feline welfare issues.

    Lord Gardiner of Kimble

    Ministers have not been approached by International Cat Care or the World Small Animal Veterinary Association so no such discussions have taken place.

  • Lord Black of Brentwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Lord Black of Brentwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Black of Brentwood on 2015-12-17.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions they have had with the government of India about the conservation of Asian elephants including banning the use of elephants in tourist attractions.

    Lord Gardiner of Kimble

    The UK is committed to conserving Asian elephants and recognises the growing threats to their populations, particularly from poaching and cross-border illegal trade in live animals to meet the demand from the tourist and entertainment industries. The UK has been working internationally through the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species to increase protection for Asian elephants. In 2014 the UK led successful efforts to ensure that Asian elephant range states have relevant legislation and enforcement in place to tackle illegal cross-border trade.

    During Indian Prime Minister Modi’s visit to the UK on 12 November, he and the Prime Minister issued a joint statement resolving to work together to improve protection for both captive and wild Asian elephants. This provides a firm foundation for future co-operation with India to address this important issue.

  • Lord Black of Brentwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Lord Black of Brentwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Black of Brentwood on 2015-12-17.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what funding they are making available under the UK Illegal Wildlife Trade Challenge Fund to combat the illegal tiger trade and tiger farming.

    Lord Gardiner of Kimble

    In December 2013, Defra and the Department for International Development announced a £10 million fund over the period from 2014/15 to 2017/18 to help developing countries tackle the illegal wildlife trade, to be administered by Defra. In March 2015, the Secretary of State for International Development announced that an additional £3 million would be made available for this purpose. Most of this funding is distributed through the Illegal Wildlife Trade Challenge Fund.

    Nineteen successful projects from the first round of the UK Government’s Challenge Fund were announced in December 2014. These included a number of projects that aimed to reduce the demand for illegal wildlife products in Asia, build capacity and strengthen law enforcement to combat wildlife trafficking. Challenge Funding directly benefitting tigers includes a £210,000 contribution towards a project strengthening institutional frameworks to combat wildlife trafficking in Indonesia, which is also supporting local communities mitigate human-tiger conflict. The Fund has also contributed over £59,000 to a project producing educational children’s videos in Vietnam, one of which is on tigers, to help reduce the demand for illegal wildlife products.

    A second round of the Challenge Fund opened in August 2015. We expect to announce the successful projects from the second round early this year.

  • Lord Black of Brentwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Lord Black of Brentwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Black of Brentwood on 2015-12-17.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussion they have had with the governments of China, Thailand, Laos and Vietnam about combatting the illegal tiger trade and tiger farming in those countries.

    Lord Gardiner of Kimble

    The UK Government remains committed to playing a leading international role in tackling the illegal wildlife trade (IWT), including in tigers, and working with our international partners to bring an end to this scourge.

    Issues concerning illegal trade in tigers, their parts and derivatives are addressed through the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Fauna and Flora (CITES). The UK is an active member of the CITES Working Group on tigers and issues discussed include illegal trade and captive tiger breeding. The Working Group has submitted a report of its work for consideration at the CITES Standing Committee meeting to be held in Geneva on 11–15 January 2016.

    The UK has engaged with China, Laos and Vietnam on IWT through two high-level international Conferences on IWT, the first of which was hosted by the UK in London in February 2014 and which was attended by all three countries. China and Vietnam also attended the Kasane Conference on IWT in Botswana in March 2015, in which the UK played an active role. The UK will be providing support to Vietnam to host a third high-level international Conference on IWT, due to take place in late 2016, and will be encouraging Thailand’s participation. The UK’s diplomatic posts also engage with the relevant authorities in all three countries about how best to tackle IWT.

    The Government has also committed £13 million to support projects around the world to tackle illegal wildlife trade by reducing demand, strengthening law enforcement and developing sustainable livelihoods for communities affected by IWT, primarily through Defra’s Illegal Wildlife Trade Challenge Fund. A second round of the Challenge Fund was launched on 5 August and successful applicants will be notified in early 2016.

  • Lord Greaves – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Lord Greaves – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Greaves on 2015-12-17.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their estimate of (1) the number of citizens of other EU countries, other than the Republic of Ireland, who are working in the UK; (2) how many of those are receiving (a) tax credits, and (b) other in-work benefits; (3) how many of the people claiming such benefits have lived in the UK for less than four years; (4) how many UK citizens are working in other EU countries other than the Republic of Ireland; and (5) how many of these are receiving in-work benefits in those countries.

    Lord O’Neill of Gatley

    The information is not available in the format requested.

    HM Revenue and Customs are planning to publish further information relating to EEA Nationals receiving tax credits early in 2016 once the information has been properly collated.

  • Lord Greaves – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Lord Greaves – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Greaves on 2015-12-17.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their estimate of the total capital and current spending on (1) drainage, and (2) flood prevention, by (a) local authorities in England, and (b) the Environment Agency, in each of the past ten years and in the current year.

    Lord Gardiner of Kimble

    Local authorities decide what to spend on drainage and flood prevention depending on local priorities. The Department for Communities and Local Government publishes statistics on local authorities’ revenue expenditure and capital expenditure outturns on GOV.UK. They are currently published from 2007/08 until 2014/15 with budget and forecast figures for 2015/16. Figures in relation to defences against flooding and land drainage are included in the statistics.

    The Environment Agency invests in flood and coastal erosion risk management. Whilst in some cases there may also be secondary drainage benefits of this work, the Environment Agency does not measure those benefits and so cannot report on spending on drainage.

    The table below shows the Environment Agency’s expenditure on flood and coastal erosion risk management in each of the past ten years, with budget figures for the current year. All figures are in £m, with real terms figures given at 2015/16 prices.

    Year

    Total

    Total Real Terms

    2005/06

    445.1

    549.7

    2006/07

    439.7

    528.7

    2007/08

    459.4

    536.7

    2008/09

    565.6

    644.6

    2009/10

    620.1

    688.9

    2010/11

    651.6

    704.4

    2011/12

    548.5

    582.5

    2012/13

    537.1

    561.4

    2013/14

    535.9

    548.8

    2014/15

    569.3

    575.0

    2015/16

    601.4

    601.4

    In addition to the above, exceptional funding of £30m; £180m; and £60m was provided to the Environment Agency in financial years 2013/14, 2014/15 and 2015/16 respectively (cash terms), following the winter 2013/14 flood event.