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  • Kevin Hollinrake – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Kevin Hollinrake – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevin Hollinrake on 2016-03-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make representations to Highways England and Transport for the North on extending the A64 dual carriageway to Barton Hill.

    Andrew Jones

    Highways England’s forthcoming work on the next iteration of their Route Strategies is the means of assessing pressures and needs and generating proposals across the entire strategic road network, including the A64. The Route Strategies will inform the preparation of the next Road Investment Strategy. Any specific proposals that require investment will of course need to be underpinned by a strong and clear business case.

  • David Burrowes – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    David Burrowes – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Burrowes on 2016-03-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will ensure that the Government publishes a family impact test in respect of all future primary and secondary legislation.

    Priti Patel

    While we encourage departments to publish Family Test assessments, there is no requirement to do so, as this may not always be appropriate. Assessments against the Family Test are completed by policy officials in the course of developing advice on new policy; this may include some ideas that do not progress beyond the design stage.

  • Mary Creagh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Mary Creagh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mary Creagh on 2016-03-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many inmates of Wakefield prison have been granted legal aid to pursue civil action in each of the last five years.

    Mr Shailesh Vara

    The information requested is not held centrally. The Legal Aid Agency (LAA) does not identify or record in its databases whether civil legal aid applicants are prisoners as this does not affect eligibility for legal aid funding.

    Information on how much in legal aid was granted to prison inmates within the prison law category of criminal legal aid in each of the last five years is published by the Ministry of Justice as part of the Legal aid statistics at the following link on the gov.uk website.

    https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/legal-aid-statistics-quarterly-july-to-september-2015

    “

  • Mary Creagh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Mary Creagh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mary Creagh on 2016-03-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how much in legal aid was granted to prison inmates in England and Wales in each of the last five years.

    Mr Shailesh Vara

    The information requested is not held centrally. The Legal Aid Agency (LAA) does not identify or record in its databases whether civil legal aid applicants are prisoners as this does not affect eligibility for legal aid funding.

    Information on how much in legal aid was granted to prison inmates within the prison law category of criminal legal aid in each of the last five years is published by the Ministry of Justice as part of the Legal aid statistics at the following link on the gov.uk website.

    https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/legal-aid-statistics-quarterly-july-to-september-2015

    “

  • Craig Whittaker – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Craig Whittaker – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Craig Whittaker on 2016-03-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department is taking to protect and support the rights of women and girls in South Sudan.

    Mr Nick Hurd

    The UK continues to press the Government of South Sudan to progress its commitments to tackle violence against women, to push for both the Government and Opposition to meet the agreed quotas for women’s participation in the transitional government of national unity.

    Our development programmes in country dovetail with HMG’s overall efforts to support the rights of women in South Sudan. Through our Access to Justice Programme we seek to improve access to justice for those subjected to sexual and gender based violence. Our education programmes seek to empower women including the Girls Education South Sudan programme which operates in all South Sudanese states to help 200,000 girls complete secondary school. Our humanitarian support funds projects in the conflict-affected Greater Upper Nile region to prevent and respond to Gender-Based Violence against women and girls. Women’s empowerment projects in Lakes and Central Equatoria states are funded through the cross-governmental Conflict, Stability and Security Fund and the FCO’s Human Rights and Democracy Programme.

  • Emma Reynolds – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Emma Reynolds – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emma Reynolds on 2016-03-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many times the UK has requested information (a) under the Prüm convention DNA sharing, (b) relating to the European Arrest Warrant about criminal records, (c) from the EU Passenger Name Record sharing scheme, (d) from a Europol Joint Investigation Team, (e) under the Schengen Information System, (f) from Europol’s HAVEN project to combat sexual abuse and trafficking and (g) from other EU member states about stadium bans and previous offenders at football matches.

    James Brokenshire

    The United Kingdom is not yet connected to any other country for the sharing of DNA under the Prüm Council Decisions.

    The UK shares criminal record information with Member States via the European Criminal Records Information System (ECRIS). In 2015, the UK made 105,164 requests for overseas criminal record checks to other EU Member States, compared to 8,536 in 2010, an increase of over 1100%.

    European legislation is currently under consideration that would require EU Member States to process Passenger Name Records (PNR) on scheduled aviation flights. The proposed legislation would require the data to be analysed by a central Passenger Information Unit and all relevant and necessary PNR to be shared with the Passenger Information Units of other Member States in compliance with data protection obligations. Receiving PNR before travel allows law enforcement authorities to plan and respond proactively to threats. PNR plays a vital role in intelligence-led operations, post-incident investigations and judicial proceedings.

    Joint investigation teams are Member State led processes. Europol staff may participate in a supporting capacity.

    According to the EU’s Justice and Home Affairs IT Agency (eu-LISA), the UK had the following numbers of alerts active (that is, broadcast to Member States and not subsequently revoked) on 17 February 2014:

    People wanted by the UK on a European Arrest Warrant (EAW) 231

    Missing adults 6,121

    Missing children 2,589

    Wanted for judicial purposes (e.g. Witnesses to be traced) 1,884

    Discreet alerts 10,438 Discreet alerts (national security) 478

    Europol’s Project HAVEN – Halting Europeans Abusing Victims in Every Nation- is part of Europol’s work under Focal Point Twins. The UK participates in and exchanges information under Europol’s Focal Point Twins and the aim is to support Member States and third countries to prevent or combat the activities of criminal networks involved in the sexual exploitation of children. Operations in the UK to counter organised crime relating to Child Sexual Exploitation have been supported by Europol, and the UK exchanges information on crimes of this nature with and through Europol via our Liaison Bureau, rather than through Project HAVEN.

    Between April 2014 and the end of December 2015,UK Football Policing Unit within the Home Office, the national football information point, requested information from other EU member states about stadium bans on 101 occasions. No figures are held on individual offenders with football bans.

  • Alison Thewliss – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Alison Thewliss – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alison Thewliss on 2016-03-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many initially rejected visa applications have been reconsidered as a result of changes in circumstances during the assessment process.

    James Brokenshire

    The Home Office does not hold the information requested.

  • Royston Smith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Royston Smith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Royston Smith on 2016-03-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the Prevent strategy.

    Mr John Hayes

    As part of the Prevent Strategy we have trained over 450,000 frontline workers in spotting signs of radicalisation. In Channel, hundreds of people have been successfully provided with support. 130 community based projects were delivered in 2015, up from 70 in 2014, reaching over 25,300 participants. Our local coordinator network has dramatically increased its reach, working with over 2,790 different institutions and engaging nearly 50,000 individuals over the course of 2015.

    Following referrals from the Counter Terrorism Internet Referral Unit, social media providers removed 58,000 pieces of illegal terrorist material in 2015, compared with 46,000 in 2014. This brings the total to 140,000 since February 2010 when the police Counter Terrorism Internet Referral Unit was set up.

    We report on Prevent delivery annually through the CONTEST Annual report. The next report will be published shortly.

  • Mark Hendrick – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Mark Hendrick – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Hendrick on 2016-03-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 11 March 2016 to Question 30239, if her Department will collect centrally information on the number of warrants that are being issued in order to establish whether women are being trafficked.

    Karen Bradley

    The Home Office has no current plans to collect information on the number of warrants issued specifically in relation to trafficking offences. Warrants are one tool used by law enforcement officers to pursue potential perpetrators and collect evidence. We are already seeing an increase in the number of prosecutions and convictions for modern slavery offences and we will continue to ensure that the police have the necessary powers to tackle modern slavery wherever it occurs.

  • Royston Smith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Royston Smith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Royston Smith on 2016-03-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to increase stem cell donations from the 16 to 30 age group.

    Jane Ellison

    Since 2010, the Department has provided £19 million funding to improve the provision of stem cells in the United Kingdom. As part of this investment, the Department has supported the work of our delivery partners, NHS Blood and Transplant and the charity Anthony Nolan, to recruit young male donors, who are approximately 10 times more likely to be asked to donate. The cohort of young male donors, known as the Fit Panel, currently has 66,365 registered donors. Funding from the Department in the current financial year is supporting the recruitment further 20,000 young male donors.