The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord West of Spithead on 2015-12-08.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the average age of Tornado GR4-trained navigators in the RAF.
Earl Howe
The average age of Tornado GR4 trained navigators in the Royal Air Force is 41 years and three months.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord West of Spithead on 2015-12-08.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many Tornado GR4-trained navigators there are in the RAF.
Earl Howe
There are 190 Tornado GR4 trained navigators in the Royal Air Force.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord West of Spithead on 2015-12-08.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will confirm that stocks of air-launched weapons such as Brimstone used in Syria and Iraq will be maintained at planned levels at no cost to the agreed defence budget.
Earl Howe
I am withholding details of stock levels of air-launched weapons as disclosure would or would be likely to prejudice the capability, effectiveness or security of our Armed Forces and allies. However, the cost of replenishing weapons used for air strikes in Syria and Iraq will be met from the HM Treasury Special Reserve.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord West of Spithead on 2015-12-08.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many Tornado aircraft (1) the RAF possess which are (a) available for operation, (b) maintained at each of the various defined levels, and (c) in storage; and (2) the RAF intend to fund for each of the above categories in each of the years from 2015–18.
Earl Howe
The information is not available in the format requested. The number of aircraft available varies day-to-day according to normal fleet management activities.
I am withholding further information on the number of serviceable aircraft available for operations on the grounds of safeguarding national security.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Watson of Invergowrie on 2015-12-08.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many formal notices have been issued to the Academies Enterprise Trust or individual schools within that Trust; and what discussions they have had with the relevant Regional Schools Commissioner regarding that Trust.
Lord Nash
Pre-warning notices in relation to academies are subject to ongoing review and, where appropriate, intervention as part of the regular dialogue between the trust and Regional Schools Commissioners.
Details of all formal notices that have been issued are in the public domain and have been attached to this answer.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Watson of Invergowrie on 2015-12-08.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to provide support for the Family Rights Group advice service when its current funding expires in March 2016.
Lord Nash
Following the spending review, the Department is considering future spending priorities right across the board, including those important grants we make to voluntary and community sector organisations. We will announce next steps on funding for 2016/17 and beyond in due course.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Truscott on 2015-12-08.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the recent flooding in the UK, the slowing of the Gulf Stream, and the COP21 climate talks in Paris, what strategy they have to address increasingly extreme weather patterns affecting the UK’s climate.
Lord Gardiner of Kimble
The Climate Change Act 2008 requires Government to identify, every five years, the risks from a changing climate, including from extreme weather, and to put in place programmes to address them.
The first Climate Change Risk Assessment (CCRA) was published in 2012 and identified over 100 risks to the UK, up to the 2100s. Work is well underway on the second CCRA, which will be published in January 2017. The first National Adaptation Programme, which laid out how risks identified in the CCRA are being addressed, was published in 2013, and the second will be produced around 2018.
In the biennial National Risk Assessment (NRA), the Government assesses the most significant hazards and threats that could affect the UK over the next five years. It considers natural events such as extreme weather and their resulting impacts (for example, flooding, severe storms and gales, low temperatures and heavy snow, heatwaves, drought). The NRA informs the National Resilience Planning Assumptions which support response and recovery planning at both local and national levels.
The Government also works with the owners and operators of the UK’s most critical infrastructure to produce annual Sector Resilience Plans (SRPs), which set out the resilience of the UK’s most important infrastructure to the relevant risks identified in the NRA. Plans identify potential vulnerabilities and set out a programme of measures to improve resilience where necessary.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by FALSE on 2015-12-08.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the reply by Baroness Anelay of St Johns on 7 December (HL Deb, col 1310), what assessment they have made of whether the statement that they never allow issues about our economic relationship to get in the way of upholding international law and international humanitarian law” is consistent with the remarks in June 2014 by the then Minister for Small Business
Baroness Anelay of St Johns
As the first country to produce a National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights we have advocated the view that the promotion of business and respect for human rights go hand in hand. We see these as mutually reinforcing. The degree of influence we have with a country, including on human rights issues, depends on many factors; as a general rule we have more influence with countries with whom we have a strong trade and investment relationship.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Roberts of Llandudno on 2015-12-08.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of what medical support is available for diabetic asylum seekers in refugee camps across Europe.
Lord Bates
Each EU Member State is responsible for the welfare of asylum applicants on their territory. The UK government bears no responsibility for asylum seekers who are on the territory of another Member State and has made no assessment of the support available for diabetic asylum seekers in other parts of Europe.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Roberts of Llandudno on 2015-12-08.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what NHS medical support is available for (1) asylum seekers, and (2) refugees.
Lord Bates
Only those asylum seekers (and their dependants) who receive asylum support under section 95 of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 are entitled to access NHS medical services. They are able to access free NHS prescriptions, free dental treatment, free eye sight tests, help with the cost of glasses or contact lenses, free wigs and fabric supports and help with the cost of travel to receive treatment under the care of a consultant.
The Home Office takes all reasonable steps to ensure the health and welfare of asylum seekers who receive asylum support under section 95 of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999. At the inception of their claim, they are provided with an opportunity to undergo assessment by health officials and suitable steps are taken to provide them with access to appropriate medical treatment, this includes advice on how to register with a GP practice and how to access emergency treatment at a hospital or walk in centre.
Those qualifying asylum seekers, as outlined above, are provided with a HC2 certificate which confirms to medical practitioners that they are eligible to access appropriate medical services.
Refugees who have been granted asylum status are eligible for services from the National Health Service on the same basis as the general population.