The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Greaves on 2016-03-21.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Williams of Trafford on 15 March (HL6737) about the Community Engagement Forum, why they were unable or unwilling to provide a definition of the word community”.”
Baroness Williams of Trafford
The Oxford English Dictionary defines community as ‘a body of people who live in the same place, usually sharing a common cultural or ethnic identity’.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Craig of Radley on 2016-03-21.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many Army Air Corps personnel have been asked in the past 12 months to repay retention or other alleged overpayments; and in each case, who was responsible for the error.
Earl Howe
The information is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. However, I refer the noble Lord to the answer I gave on 23 March 2016 (Official Report, column 2379) to the noble Lord, the Lord Trefgarne.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Cox on 2016-03-21.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the remarks of the Minister of State for the Department for International Development, Mr Desmond Swayne, on 16 March (HC Deb, col 937), whether non-state actors can be guilty of genocide, subject to a referral to the International Criminal Court from the United Nations Security Council.
Baroness Anelay of St Johns
Under Article IV of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, persons committing genocide or any of the other acts enumerated in Article III of the Convention shall be punished whether they are constitutionally responsible rulers, public officials or private individuals. Any member of Daesh who has committed an act of genocide is therefore liable to prosecution. Individual criminal responsibility, rather than by organisations or groups, is determined by courts. The International Criminal Court (ICC) Prosecutor has set out some of the complicated issues involved in the ICC investigating Daesh in her press statement of 8 April 2015.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Cox on 2016-03-21.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the remarks of the Minister of State for the Department for International Development, Mr Desmond Swayne, on 16 March (HC Deb, col 937), whether it is their assessment that the International Criminal Court has not ruled out the possibility that violence against minorities in the Middle East perpetrated by Daesh is genocide.
Baroness Anelay of St Johns
I refer you to the press statement made by the International Criminal Court (ICC) Prosecutor on 8 April 2015, setting out her views on the ICC investigating Daesh.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Berkeley on 2016-03-21.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the publication of the Departmental Minute by the Department of Energy and Climate Change on 21 October 2015 Notification that the Secretary of State may approve the entering into of contracts regarding the Hinkley Point C Power Station that could give rise to liabilities, whether the Department for the Environment and Rural Affairs published a similar Minute in respect of its liabilities in connection with the Thames Tideway Tunnel.
Lord Gardiner of Kimble
Defra did not submit a Departmental Minute on the Government’s contingent financial support package for the Thames Tideway Tunnel because the Secretary of State has statutory authority to give financial assistance for major water or sewerage infrastructure projects under section 154B of the Water Industry Act 1991. This is consistent with the approach set out in HM Treasury’s guidance, Managing Public Money.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Berkeley on 2016-03-21.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 17 March (HL6898), how many road tunnels worldwide there are of a comparable length to road tunnels planned underneath the Peak District; and for each of those (1) how long they have been in operation, (2) what traffic speed they operate at, (3) how many lanes there are and whether they have a hard shoulder, (4) what levels of air pollution are found within them, (5) what their construction cost was, and (6) whether they were delivered on time and on budget.
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
We are currently examining a number of corridors to identify potential links between Manchester and Sheffield. At this stage the precise length of any tunnel is unknown. The initial findings on the construction and maintenance of a potential tunnel were published in the Interim Report in November 2015. The next stages of the study will examine shortlisted options in more detail and will include the consideration of international best practice. The conclusions will be published later this year.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Berkeley on 2016-03-21.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 17 March (HL6898), what assessment they have made of the Mont Blanc tunnel fire of 1999 and the implications of that fire and subsequent investigations, inquiries and trials for (1) the construction of a Trans-Pennine Tunnel or other long road tunnels, (2) the safety management of such tunnels, (3) the classes of vehicles that will be permitted to operate through such tunnels, and (4) the licensing and inspection of different classes of vehicles, especially heavy goods vehicles, in using such tunnels.
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The Trans Pennine Tunnel Study will include the consideration of international best practice in tunnel design and management to learn lessons from around the world. The design and development of a Trans Pennine Tunnel will comply with the current international standards that were changed as a result of the Mont Blanc fire.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2016-03-21.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by the Earl of Courtown on 22 February (HL5963), and with regard to Freedom of Information Act 2000 Request 0986-15, why there is a discrepancy between the Minister’s quoted figure of £270,046.61 being spent on projects in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea with a human rights focus and a quoted figure in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) Freedom of Information response of £9,499 being spent; and what differentiates the FCO projects with a human rights rationale” and a human rights “element”.”
Baroness Anelay of St Johns
The figure of £270,046.61 relates to projects which are not exclusively focused on promoting human rights, but which significantly contribute to our human rights objectives in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. These include humanitarian projects aimed at improving the lives of the most vulnerable people in North Korean society, and English language projects which make North Korean participants aware of other ideas and cultures. The figure of £9,499 relates to projects solely focused on promoting human rights.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2016-03-21.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Anelay of St Johns on 24 February (HL6091) and paragraph 13 of United Nations Security Council Resolution 2270, whether they are considering the expulsion of Democratic People’s Republic of Korea’s diplomatic personnel in London in respect of their submission of vessel registration changes to the International Maritime Organisation in 2014.
Baroness Anelay of St Johns
We are not considering the expulsion of Democratic People’s Republic of Korea diplomats in respect of their submission of vessel registration changes to the International Maritime Organisation in 2014.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2016-03-21.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Anelay of St Johns on 24 February (HL6089), which specific Democratic People’s Republic of Korea ministries the British Embassy in Pyongyang has met with since the release of the report of the UN Commission of Inquiry on 7 February 2014.
Baroness Anelay of St Johns
As stated in my previous response, our Embassy in Pyongyang has met a number of officials from various ministries of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea since 7 February 2014, including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of People’s Security, the Ministry of Public Health and the Ministry of Education.