The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevan Jones on 2015-10-26.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many former members of each branch of the armed forces are in receipt of (a) child and (b) working tax credits.
Damian Hinds
The information is not readily available and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bob Blackman on 2015-10-26.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department has taken to minimise the extent and length of road works on the motorway network at times when work is not taking place.
Andrew Jones
Highways England combine maintenance and improvement schemes to maximise activity within roadworks. However, lane closures are sometimes left in place through the day and then work undertaken overnight. Removing these completely each day would be time consuming and would delay projects and motorists for longer.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Suttie on 2015-10-23.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what role in the Director of Labour Market Enforcement, as set out in the Immigration Bill, will play in setting the operational priorities of and in allocating resources to (1) the Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate, (2) the Gangmasters Licensing Authority, and (3) HM Revenue and Customs National Minimum Wage enforcement teams.
Lord Bates
The consultation we have recently published on tackling labour exploitation sets out the role envisaged for the Director of Labour Market Enforcement. The measures we have introduced in the Immigration Bill require the Director to set the priorities for the three enforcement bodies: the Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate, National Minimum Wage enforcement function of HMRC and the Gangmasters Licensing Authority. These will be set out in an annual strategic plan, subject to the approval of the Secretaries of State at the Department for Business Innovation and Skills and the Home Office. This will set out the clear priorities for tackling serious exploitation and the role of the agencies in delivering them.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bob Stewart on 2015-10-23.
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, which psychiatric disorder had the highest mortality rate in each of the last five years.
Mr Rob Wilson
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2015-10-27.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what commitments on human rights in China he secured during the recent state visit to the UK by President Xi Jinping.
Mr Hugo Swire
In talks with President Xi, the Prime Minister, my rt hon. Friend the Member for Witney (Mr Cameron) reaffirmed the importance we attach to the UK-China Human Rights Dialogue. President Xi acknowledged the importance of improving human rights protection, and that China was ready for increased exchanges and co-operation on this issue with the United Kingdom. In the UK-China Joint Statement, Britain and China agreed to continue exchanges on human rights and rule of law. We will continue to pursue our human rights concerns both privately and in public fora.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2015-10-27.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to reduce the prevalence of trans fats in food.
Jane Ellison
There have been no discussions with the royal colleges on measures to reduce the prevalence of trans fats in food.
Population average trans fats intakes account for 0.6-0.7% of food energy, which is well within the public health recommendation of 2% of food energy, and within the World Health Organisation’s recommendation of 1%.
Voluntary action by industry has been successful in removing artificial trans fats from a range of processed products. Over 70% of the retail and manufacturing market has committed to remove or not use artificial trans fats.
The European Commission’s report on trans fats intakes across the European Union, which is due to be published in December 2015, will inform our future thinking on trans fats.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Maria Caulfield on 2015-10-27.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent representations his Department has received on stem cell donation and transplantation.
Jane Ellison
A search of the Department’s central correspondence database has identified 99 items of correspondence received between 8 May and 27 October 2015 about stem cell donation and/or transplantation. Around two-thirds of this correspondence related to the Anthony Nolan report ‘Destination Care’.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Zeichner on 2015-10-27.
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment she has made of the potential role of agroecology in African rural development.
Grant Shapps
Agro ecological approaches have an important role to play in specific contexts, including in Africa, but DFID does not prescribe technical approaches centrally. The best approaches for interventions are identified in consideration of the specific context of implementation. DFID is supporting a wide range of programmes with agro-ecological components, from soil and water conservation and land use management to climate resilience and conservation agriculture. On the research front, DFID supports the Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security research programme as well as the Sustainable Agricultural Intensification Research and Learning in Africa. The Adaptation for Smallholder Agriculture Programme supports farmers to adapt agricultural systems to be climate resilient. The full range of our programmes can be found on our Development Tracker: http://devtracker.dfid.gov.uk/
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chi Onwurah on 2015-10-27.
To ask the Prime Minister, when he plans to respond to the letter he received from the charity Memorial 2007 in May 2015 on funding for the Enslaved Africans Memorial in Hyde Park.
Mr David Cameron
My office has no record of a letter to me from the charity Memorial 2007 in May 2015.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2015-10-27.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, for what reasons the proposal from High Speed UK on high speed rail has been rejected.
Mr Robert Goodwill
The proposals suggested by High Speed UK are similar to the Reverse ‘E’ considered by HS2 Ltd in their 2010 report submitted to the Government on the demand and business case analysis of the alternative proposals. It was considered that this proposal could not offer better journey times from London/Birmingham to Manchester/Liverpool than HS2 trains continuing to the north-west from Lichfield via the West Coast Main Line. Ministers considered the advice presented and views from a wide range of sources, and based on the evidence the decision was taken to proceed with the ‘Y’ shaped network.