Tag: 2014

  • John Robertson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    John Robertson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Robertson on 2014-06-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what strategic level his Department has agreed with industry for the amount of motor gasoline, diesel and aviation fuel products required to meet the compulsory stock oligations.

    Michael Fallon

    EU Member States are required under EU Directive 2009/119/EC to hold oil stocks at the higher of 90 days of average net daily imports or 61 days of average daily inland consumption in order to mitigate a substantial supply disruption. At present, the UK is obligated at 61 days of average daily inland consumption. The UK meets this obligation by directing substantial suppliers of oil products to the UK market to hold stocks.

    In order to meet the requirements of EU Directive, the UK requires that at least one-third of this obligation is held by industry in the form of gas/diesel oil, motor gasoline and Kerosene-type jet fuel.

  • Richard Burden – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Richard Burden – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2014-06-26.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps are being taken in response to EU Council Regulation 692/2014 to (a) identify goods originating in Crimea or Sevastopol and exclude them from entry into the UK and (b) ensure no individual or business based in the UK provides, directly or indirectly, financing, financial assistance or insurance or reinsurance related to the import of such goods from Crimea or Sevastopol.

    Mr David Gauke

    HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) has set up customs risk profiles to target goods originating in Crimea or Sevastopol in response to EU Council Regulation 692/2014. The profiles are targeting Crimean postcodes. The risk profiles are being monitored and will be adjusted as circumstances require.

    As with all sanctions introduced by the EU, they have direct effect in the UK and apply directly to UK persons and companies. The Government will take steps to ensure these measures are effectively implemented and enforced.

  • Luciana Berger – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Luciana Berger – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Luciana Berger on 2014-06-26.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many people aged (a) under 18 and (b) 18 years and over died as a consequence of a condition related to alcohol misuse in each year since 2010.

    Mr Nick Hurd

    The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.

  • Sarah Teather – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Sarah Teather – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sarah Teather on 2014-06-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the report by the Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration, Inspection into the Handling of Asylum Applications made by Unaccompanied Children, published in October 2013, what steps have been taken in response to recommendations 1, 3, 4 and 8 of that report.

    James Brokenshire

    In response to recommendation 1, a clear and consistent approach has been
    adopted. A pilot was run shortly after the inspection that led to the adoption
    of a new screening process for unaccompanied children; this has led to
    increased consistency between the Home Office and local authorities. All
    initial screenings take place within five days of initial claim. Local
    Authorities are clearly responsible for facilitating the access to legal advice
    and responsible adults prior to the screening interview.

    In response to recommendation 3, this guidance and policy has been reinforced
    locally. The Asylum Casework Directorate has implemented new structures that
    offer better technical support for promoting and monitoring family tracing.
    This guidance has been reinforced locally in all teams through the creation of
    specialised family and minors teams in each regional location. Work is
    ongoing with the Foreign Office on new family tracing arrangements for volume
    UASC nationalities (Albanian and Afghan) that should help to expedite the
    tracing process in these countries. The practicality of specialised teams
    will be reviewed once all decision units are fully staffed.

    In response to recommendation 4, the move to a single national directorate has
    led to greater consistency and control of asylum case work. This has helped to
    address the consistency of operations and outcomes in each of the seven
    casework locations. Customer service standards have been reviewed with the
    expectation that straightforward claims can expect to receive their decision
    within six months. Unaccompanied children should receive their decisions
    quicker than that.

    In response to recommendation 8, as part of the ongoing continuous improvement
    programme decision letters have been reviewed and changed. Templates are now
    clearer, more concise and customer friendly. This new approach to producing
    more concise grant letters and minutes has been implemented whilst a pilot
    regarding refusal letters is underway.

  • Sadiq Khan – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Sadiq Khan – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sadiq Khan on 2014-06-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many foreign national prisoners were repatriated to their home countries to serve their custodial sentence in each year since 2010.

    Jeremy Wright

    The tables below sets out the number of prisoners who have transferred from a prison in England andWales to a prison in their state of nationality since 1 January 2009.

    Year

    Transfers

    2009

    40

    2010

    46

    2011

    33

    2012

    40

    2013

    43

    The list includes one foreign national prisoner who was returned to a British Overseas Territory in 2011 under the Colonial Prisoners Removal Act 1884.

    We remain determined to secure compulsory Prisoner Transfer Agreements wherever possible, in order to increase the number of foreign national prisoners who are able to transfer to prisons in their home countries. In January this year we signed a compulsory transfer agreement with Nigeria and last year we signed an agreement with Albania. We expect to see prisoner transfers to both these countries before the end of this year.

    We are also working hard to increase the number of foreign nationals who are removed from prison under the Early Removal Scheme (ERS) and the Tariff Expired Removal Scheme (TERS). In 2013, we removed nearly 2,000 FNOs under ERS and under TERS, which we introduced in May 2012, we have removed 256 prisoners to date.

    The numbers reported here are drawn from a Prison Service Case Tracking System. Care is taken when processing these cases but the figures may be subject to inaccuracies associated with any recording system.

    Whereas this Government has begun to reduce the foreign national population in prison since 2010, between 1997 and 2010, the number of foreign nationals in our prisons more than doubled.

  • Chris Bryant – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Scotland Office

    Chris Bryant – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Scotland Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Bryant on 2014-06-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, if he will estimate the cost to the public purse of extending entitlement to the energy assistance package, stage 3, to all claimants of universal credit once universal credit has been fully rolled out in Scotland.

    David Mundell

    The Scottish Government is responsible for defining the entitlement criteria for these passported benefits. They will need to consider the current eligibility criteria and make arrangements to ensure that they can continue to deliver these benefits as Universal Credit is introduced.

    There is ongoing engagement between the Scottish Government and the Department for Work and Pensions to ensure that any solution is simple, fair, easy to understand and affordable.

  • Chris Ruane – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Speaker’s Committee on the Electoral Commission

    Chris Ruane – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Speaker’s Committee on the Electoral Commission

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Ruane on 2014-06-26.

    To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker’s Committee on the Electoral Commission, if the Electoral Commission will publish the names of the 10 local authorities with the (a) smallest and (b) biggest percentage increase in registration after the implementation of the Standard Three door-to-door canvassing for 2013 canvass; and which parliamentary constituencies each such local authority covers.

    Mr Gary Streeter

    The Electoral Commission informs me that the table below shows the ten local authorities with the biggest increases and decreases in electorate between the start and end of the 2013 canvass.

    Local authority

    Change (November 2013 – Feb/March 2014

    Edinburgh, City of

    20,241

    Cheshire West and Chester

    14,676

    Tower Hamlets

    10,566

    Newcastle upon Tyne

    9,550

    Taunton Deane

    9,023

    North Lanarkshire

    9,001

    South Lanarkshire

    8,926

    Glasgow City

    8,710

    Huntingdonshire

    8,023

    Mole Valley

    7,866

    Northampton

    -10,309

    Barnet

    -12,743

    Newham

    -16,617

    Maidstone

    -10,121

    Cornwall

    -13,195

    East Devon

    -6,424

    Birmingham

    -20,572

    Shropshire

    -14,350

    Leeds

    -24,119

    Renfrewshire

    -7693

    These local authorities cover the following parliamentary constituencies:

    Local authority

    Constituencies covered

    Edinburgh, City of

    Edinburgh East

    Edinburgh North and Leith

    Edinburgh South

    Edinburgh South West

    Edinburgh West

    Cheshire West and Chester

    City of Chester

    Eddisbury

    Ellesmere Port and Neston

    Tatton

    Weaver Vale

    Tower Hamlets

    Bethnal Green and Bow

    Poplar and Limehouse

    Newcastle upon Tyne

    Newcastle upon Tyne Central

    Newcastle upon Tyne East

    Newcastle upon Tyne North

    Taunton Deane

    Taunton Deane

    North Lanarkshire

    Airdrie and Shotts

    Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill

    Cumbernauld, Kilsyth and Kirkintilloch East

    Motherwell and Wishaw

    South Lanarkshire

    Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale

    East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow

    Lanark and Hamilton East

    Rutherglen and Hamilton West

    Glasgow City

    East Dunbartonshire

    Glasgow Central

    Glasgow East

    Glasgow North

    Glasgow North East

    Glasgow North West

    Glasgow South

    Glasgow South West

    Huntingdonshire

    Huntingdon

    North West Cambridgeshire

    Mole Valley

    Epsom and Ewell

    Mole Valley

    Northampton

    Northampton North

    Northampton South

    South Northamptonshire

    Barnet

    Chipping Barnet

    Finchley and Golders Green

    Hendon

    Newham

    East Ham

    West Ham

    Maidstone

    Faversham and Mid Kent

    Maidstone and The Weald

    Cornwall

    Camborne and Redruth

    North Cornwall

    South East Cornwall

    St Austell and Newquay

    St Ives

    Truro and Falmouth

    East Devon

    Central Devon

    East Devon

    Tiverton and Honiton

    Birmingham

    Birmingham, Edgbaston

    Birmingham, Erdington

    Birmingham, Hall Green

    Birmingham, Hodge Hill

    Birmingham, Ladywood

    Birmingham, Northfield

    Birmingham, Perry Barr

    Birmingham, Selly Oak

    Birmingham, Yardley

    Sutton Coldfield

    Shropshire

    Ludlow

    North Shropshire

    Shrewsbury and Atcham

    The Wrekin

    Leeds

    Elmet and Rothwell

    Leeds Central

    Leeds East

    Leeds North East

    Leeds North West

    Leeds West

    Morley and Outwood

    Pudsey

    Renfrewshire

    Paisley and Renfrewshire North

    Paisley and Renfrewshire South
  • Heidi Alexander – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Heidi Alexander – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Heidi Alexander on 2014-06-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what target his Department sets for the amount of time for people to receive an accurate assessment for personal independence payments under (a) normal rules claiming and (b) special rules claiming.

    Mike Penning

    There are no legal requirements to complete action on a claim to PIP within a specified time, but we continuously monitor how long the claimant journey is taking against original estimates and implement measures to speed up the process.

  • Simon Danczuk – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Simon Danczuk – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Simon Danczuk on 2014-06-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will request that the Office of Fair Trading investigates the level of competition in the car insurance industry.

    Jo Swinson

    The competition powers of the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) passed to the new Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) on 1 April 2014. Like the OFT, the CMA is an independent authority, and therefore has complete discretion to investigate those cases, which, according to its prioritisation principles, it considers most appropriate.

    In the case of the private motor insurance industry, the CMA is already conducting a market investigation, and on 12 June set out for consultation its proposed changes to the market. These include a cap on the charges to the insurer of an at-fault driver in an accident for the cost of providing a replacement vehicle to the non-fault driver; better information for consumers; and a ban on price parity agreements between price comparison websites and insurers. Further details are available via this link to the CMA press release:https://www.gov.uk/government/news/cma-sets-out-changes-for-private-motor-insurance

    “

  • Hilary Benn – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Hilary Benn – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2014-06-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what his policy is on permitting motorists to park briefly on double yellow lines, single yellow lines or loading bays; and if he will make a statement.

    Brandon Lewis

    In December, our consultation on parking asked for comments on the scope for introducing new grace periods for parking, including what areas it should apply to. In the recently published Government response to the consultation, we announced we will introduce a mandatory 10 minute free period (a) at the end of paid-for on-street parking, (b) at the end of free on-street parking, and (c) extend the same grace period to local authority off-street parking.

    This measure will support local shops and stop shoppers being penalised for returning to their car a few minutes late. This Government recognises that if parking on local high streets and shopping parades is made too difficult, shoppers will merely drive to out of town superstores or just shop online. Our position is in stark contrast to the Labour Government which actively encouraged councils to hike parking charges, cut the number of car parking spaces and adopt aggressive parking enforcement.