The below Parliamentary question was asked by Christopher Chope on 2014-05-07.
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, on what basis the Government calculates entitlement to holiday pay for civil servants.
Mr Francis Maude
This is a matter delegated to individual Civil Service Departments and agencies under the Civil Service Management Code (CSMC).
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Naomi Long on 2014-05-07.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he will take to implement the Fourth Anti-Money Laundering Directive; and what plans he has to distinguish between high and low risk trusts.
Andrea Leadsom
The Treasury is leading the on-going negotiations on the Fourth Anti-Money Laundering Directive. The UK is committed to implementing measures to prevent potential misuse of trusts for illicit purposes. We support mandatory requirements on trustees to hold beneficial ownership information on their trusts and together with the new automatic exchange of tax information agreements there will be more transparency and information exchange on trusts than ever before.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by John McDonnell on 2014-05-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many grievances on the grounds of race discrimination have been made in HM Prison Thameside in the last three years; what the nature was of each such grievance; when each grievance was made and resolved; and what the outcome was in each case.
Jeremy Wright
The Government is committed to ensuring equality throughout the criminal justice system. Internal complaints procedures and the employment tribunal system enable any allegations of racial discrimination in the workplace to be thoroughly investigated.
Two staff grievances alleging discrimination have been submitted at HMP Thameside in the last three years.
The first, which alleged bullying at work, racial discrimination, unfair treatment and victimisation, was received in 12 October 2012. It was considered by the Employment Tribunal at two hearings (October 2013 and in December 2013). The Tribunal dismissed the claim in its entirety in January 2014.
The second grievance, alleging unfair dismissal, racial discrimination, victimisation and harassment, was received in March 2013. It is currently being considered by the Employment Tribunal.
Liability for any legal costs in relation to employment cases would fall on the employer.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by John McDonnell on 2014-05-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many employment tribunal cases were presented on the grounds of race discrimination in HM Prison Thameside in the last three years; what the nature was of each complaint; when each such tribunal began and ended; what the outcome was in each such case; and what the cost to the public purse was of defending such cases.
Jeremy Wright
The Government is committed to ensuring equality throughout the criminal justice system. Internal complaints procedures and the employment tribunal system enable any allegations of racial discrimination in the workplace to be thoroughly investigated.
Two staff grievances alleging discrimination have been submitted at HMP Thameside in the last three years.
The first, which alleged bullying at work, racial discrimination, unfair treatment and victimisation, was received in 12 October 2012. It was considered by the Employment Tribunal at two hearings (October 2013 and in December 2013). The Tribunal dismissed the claim in its entirety in January 2014.
The second grievance, alleging unfair dismissal, racial discrimination, victimisation and harassment, was received in March 2013. It is currently being considered by the Employment Tribunal.
Liability for any legal costs in relation to employment cases would fall on the employer.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by John McDonnell on 2014-05-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether any (a) internal and (b) external reports were commissioned by Serco in relation to any steps taken by HM Prison Thameside to eliminate race discrimination in the workplace.
Jeremy Wright
The Government is committed to ensuring equality throughout the criminal justice system. Internal complaints procedures and the employment tribunal system enable any allegations of racial discrimination in the workplace to be thoroughly investigated.
The Ministry of Justice conducted a routine assurance audit of HMP Thameside in 2013.
Any internal document prepared by the contractor in relation to potential litigation is legally privileged and therefore exempt from disclosure.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dominic Raab on 2014-05-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, pursuant to the Answer of 1 May 2014, Official Report, column 791W, on fossil fuels: imports, how much in thousand tonnes of (a) oil and (b) gas was (i) exported from and (ii) imported to the UK in 2012 and 2013.
Michael Fallon
Data on gas trade in units of thousand tonnes is not available, the standard unit of measurement is GWh.
In 2012, the UK imported 53,763 thousand tonnes of crude oil and 534,987 GWh of gas and exported 28,535 thousand tonnes of crude oil and 131,711 GWh of gas.
In 2013, provisional figures show that the UK imported 50,311 thousand tonnes of crude oil and 523,506 GWh of gas and exported 30,382 thousand tonnes of crude oil and 99,582 GWh of gas.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2014-05-07.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will undertake a review of the effectiveness of the Debt Relief (Developing Countries) Act 2010 in preventing the use of the English legal system by vulture funds to extract funds from developing countries.
Andrea Leadsom
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by the former Financial Secretary to the Treasury, my right hon. Friend the Member for Bromsgrove (Mr Javid) on 6 January 2014, which includes information on the Government’s approach to promoting debt sustainability among low income countries.
The impact assessment for the Debt Relief (Developing Countries) Act 2010 indicates direct benefits to Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPCs) of between zero and £26m a year. The Government’s decision to make the Act permanent on 25 May 2011 was taken following consultation with relevant stakeholders; evidence from that exercise suggested that the Act had some benefit on HIPCs and no evidence was found of unintended or adverse effects.
The UK continues to be at the forefront of international efforts to promote responsible lending and borrowing practices, including our ongoing support for the IMF/World Bank Debt Sustainability Framework and OECD lending principles covering official export credits. The UK also supports the World Bank’s debt reduction facility, which enables countries to buy back their commercial debt at a deep discount with donor backing, and the African Legal Support Facility, which provides legal advice to countries facing litigation.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2014-05-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if she will take steps to encourage all UK clothing companies which use suppliers in Bangladesh to join the Accord on Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh.
Mr Alan Duncan
Over 160 companies, including many well-known British brands and retailers, have now signed up to the Accord on Fire and Building Safety, a ground-breaking, legally binding agreement between international unions and clothing companies. Signing up to the Accord shows that they are serious about their responsibilities in ensuring the safety of all those people in Bangladesh that make their clothes.
DFID has used every opportunity, such as the Westminster Debate on 30 April, my recent visit to Bangladesh, communications around the Rana Plaza anniversary, and meetings with retailers and buyers to call for companies to take responsibility for the working conditions of all those that make their clothes and to contribute to the Rana Plaza Trust Fund for the victims of the factory building collapse.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2014-05-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what technology he plans to use to restrict the sharing of NHS patient data extracted under care.data to countries inside the European Economic Area.
Dr Daniel Poulter
The Data Protection Act (1998) allows personal data to be transferred to countries within the European Economic Area (EEA) on the same basis as transferring data within the United Kingdom. Personal data can only be sent to a country or territory outside the EEA if an adequate level of protection for the rights and freedoms of individuals when processing their personal data is ensured.
Every application for information will be considered by the Health and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC), in line with the Data Protection Act, taking account of their location if it is outside the UK.
HSCIC is required to generally publish the information it collects or may derive from a collection, but not in forms which would identify or enable the identification of individual patients or service users. HSCIC’s published data will be openly available via its website.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2014-05-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how much the UK plans to give to the Global Partnership for Education at its next funding round.
Lynne Featherstone
The UK is by far the largest donor to Global Partnership for Education (GPE) and the largest bilateral donor to basic education. We are currently considering the level of future UK support to GPE based on their case for investment and the results to be delivered under their new funding model.