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Tag: 2014

  • Jim Sheridan – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Jim Sheridan – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Sheridan on 2014-06-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what estimate he has made of the proportion of Royal Mail staff who bought shares in the newly-privatised company in (a) Paisley and Renfrewshire North constituency, (b) Renfrewshire and (c) Scotland.

    Michael Fallon

    The Government has not made any estimates by constituency, county or country of shares bought by Royal Mail staff.

    As part of the Royal Mail Initial Public Offering, each eligible employee has now received 729 shares free of charge. Only 372 of the 147,000 eligible employees opted out of the scheme. Approximately 99.75% of employees accepted the shares that we offered them. Under the Employee Priority Retail Offer, over 15,000 employees (just over 10%) bought additional shares in Royal Mail.

  • Nicholas Soames – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Nicholas Soames – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nicholas Soames on 2014-04-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate his Department has made of the level of traffic congestion in Mid Sussex constituency in each year since 1997.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    Estimates of road congestion levels for Parliamentary constituencies are not held centrally.

    We do however hold data at the local authority level. Road congestion is measured in the Department by morning peak speeds, defined as 7am to 10am. In 2013, the average weekday morning peak speed, on locally managed ‘A’ roads in West Sussex County (local authority), which contains Mid Sussex constituency, was estimated to be 30.2 miles per hour.The equivalent figure for the whole of England in 2013 was 24.7 miles per hour.

    Equivalent figures for earlier years back to 2007, and all other local highway authorities in England, can be found on the Department for Transport’s website at:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/279125/cgn0206.xls

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  • Laurence Robertson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Laurence Robertson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Laurence Robertson on 2014-06-17.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will take steps to increase the compensation paid to Equitable Life policyholders.

    Andrea Leadsom

    The Government has no plans to alter the design or rules of the Equitable Life Payment Scheme, including those which relate to the level of payments. Decisions on the level of ex-gratia payments took account of the fiscal situation and wider fairness concerns across all taxpayers. The payments for different types of policyholder were made on the basis of recommendations made by the Independent Commission on Equitable Life Payments.

  • Stephen Timms – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Stephen Timms – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2014-04-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will make it his policy that Work Programme participants should be eligible for the new enterprise allowance; and if he will make a statement.

    Esther McVey

    Work Programme Providers have the freedom to provide whatever support they think will be effective in supporting claimants into employment and self-employment.

    Work programme participants may be able to access a loan to support them in setting up a business through the BIS start-up loan scheme

  • Stephen Timms – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture Media and Sport

    Stephen Timms – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2014-06-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate he has made of the number of homes in the UK served by fibre to the home broadband services.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    Ofcom monitors and publishes broadband coverage data for the UK indicated in its 2013 UK fixed broadband market report that superfast broadband was available to 73% of UK premises. Ofcom did not, however, publish a separate figure for the number of homes with fibre to the home broadband services.

  • Baroness Tonge – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Baroness Tonge – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Tonge on 2014-04-02.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether, in the light of the perpetration of forced marriage becoming a criminal offence later in 2014, they have any plans to increase funding to United Kingdom charities helping victims of forced marriage and honour-based abuse.

    Lord Taylor of Holbeach

    The Home Office and Ministry of Justice have collectively ring-fenced nearly £40 million of stable funding up to 2015 for specialist local support services and national help lines to tackle violence against women.

    The Forced Marriage Unit has also allocated £150,000 to the domestic programme fund, which supports local forced marriage-related projects in the UK.

    We keep funding for the provision of national services under review. Decisions on how best to fund local services for victims of forced marriage are a local matter and it is the responsibility of the Local Authorities to identify any gaps in service provision and put in place appropriate solutions to address this.

  • Mark Hendrick – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Mark Hendrick – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Hendrick on 2014-06-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will add a category of name of medal requested to the Certificate of Kinship Request for the Medals of a Deceased Ex-Serviceman/woman form.

    Anna Soubry

    The existing combined medal application and next of kin form contains a box where the applicant can specify which medal they are applying for.

  • Lord West of Spithead – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Lord West of Spithead – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord West of Spithead on 2014-04-02.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many frigates (1) are deployed on operational tasks, (2) are fully stored, including complete ammunition outfit, (3) have a full complement according to the Type 23 approved watch and station bill, and (4) are in repair or maintenance periods.

    Lord Astor of Hever

    As of 3 April 2014 four Frigates are deployed in UK waters or overseas on operational tasks and six are engaged in training or work up periods. The remaining three Frigates are in refit. We do not release the details of the ammunitions carried by deployed ships as to do so would, or would be likely to prejudice the capability, effectiveness or security of the Armed Forces. I can however, confirm that all Royal Navy ships deploy with the ammunitions and personnel required to undertake their operational tasking.

  • Alex Cunningham – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Alex Cunningham – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2014-06-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the estimated value of the land is for which academy trusts have a freehold interest.

    Mr Edward Timpson

    When community schools convert to academies, the freehold is retained by the local authority and a lease is granted to the academy trust. In some circumstances, where the school governors or supporting foundation already hold the freehold, my Rt hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, may allow publicly-funded school land to be transferred to an academy trust, which will have satisfied the Secretary of State as to its ability to operate a state-funded school.

    There are strict rules protecting publicly funded land used by academies, regardless of who holds the freehold. This is set out in published guidance, which is available online:

    www.gov.uk/government/publications/protection-of-school-playing-fields-and-public-land-advice

    A copy of the guidance has been placed in the House Library.

    The Department does not hold information about the average value of land used for academies on a freehold or leasehold basis. Information about the number of academies that occupy land on a leasehold and freehold basis is not held centrally.

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  • The Earl of Sandwich – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The Earl of Sandwich – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Earl of Sandwich on 2014-04-02.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have any plans significantly to reduce the involvement of expert non-legal members in the Immigration and Asylum Chamber; if so, in the light of the volume of deportation appeals and of unrepresented appellants, what alternative provision there will be for expert advice in sensitive cases; and how they will ensure that the public interest is fully represented on panel hearings.

    Lord Faulks

    The panel composition for Tribunals within the unified Tribunal structure are matters for the Senior President of Tribunals under the Tribunals, Courts & Enforcement Act 2007. These powers are delegated where appropriate to Chamber Presidents of individual chambers of the First-tier and Upper Tribunals. The Senior President published a consultation document regarding the deployment of non-legal members within the Immigration and Asylum Chamber in November 2013. The consultation sought views on whether senior judges within the Chamber should decide on a case-by case basis whether a non-legal member should sit on a Tribunal panel “where the President of First-tier Tribunal (Immigration and Asylum) or a Resident Judge has decided that there are strong public interest reasons”. The Senior President will publish a response to the consultation on www.judiciary.gov.uk. A copy of the consultation document published in November 2013 is available at the following link:

    http://www.judiciary.gov.uk/about-the-judiciary/the-judiciary-in-detail/judicial+roles/tribunals/senior-president-tribunals .

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