Tag: 2014

  • Lord Hylton – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Lord Hylton – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2014-04-08.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of recent deaths in the Yarmouk section of Damascus, reported by Amnesty International in its report Squeezing the life out of Yarmouk: War crimes against besieged civilians, and, in particular, of that organisation’s attribution of the deaths to starvation and lack of medical care.

    Lord Bates

    DFID is deeply concerned by reports of Palestinian refugees in the Yarmouk refugee camp in Damascus suffering and dying as a result of malnutrition and lack of medical care. Yarmouk has been under siege for some time and we are calling for unfettered access to all affected communities and for all sides to lift sieges to end this suffering.

  • Lord Patten – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Patten – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Patten on 2014-04-08.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the announcement by the government of Argentina that their new 50 peso banknote will show the Falkland Islands as part of their national territory.

    Lord Wallace of Saltaire

    The British Government obviously has no control over what other countries choose to put on their currency. However, we are clear that incorporating the Falkland Islands in this way in no way affects either the UK’s sovereignty or the right of the Falkland Islanders to self–determination, which they exercised in March 2013 in an overwhelming vote to remain part of the UK.

  • Chuka Umunna – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Chuka Umunna – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chuka Umunna on 2014-04-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, pursuant to the Answer to Lord Adonis of 3 June 2013, Official Report, House of Lords, column 122WA, on government departments: secondments, of those secondments to his Department listed on that date, how many of these secondments related (a) wholly, (b) partly and (c) incidentally to the privatisation of Royal Mail; and how many of those secondments took place primarily for the purpose of helping with the privatisation of Royal Mail.

    Michael Fallon

    Of the secondees listed in the answer given to the noble Lord, Lord Adonis on 3 June 2013, two worked on the Royal Mail privatisation in the Shareholder Executive.

  • Karen Buck – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Karen Buck – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Karen Buck on 2014-04-07.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how much each local authority in England reported as its (a) budgeted and (b) outturn expenditure on all youth work and provision of activities for young people in each year since 2010.

    Mr Nick Hurd

    The information requested is collected by Department for Education and published on gov.uk. I have asked that this information for each year since 2010 is placed in the Library of the House as soon as is practicable.

    Figures for actual spend by local authority in 2013-14 will be available in December 2014.

  • Charlie Elphicke – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Charlie Elphicke – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Charlie Elphicke on 2014-04-07.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether HM Revenue and Customs supports in principle the sale of part of the Custom House site adjacent to Dover Priory Railway Station for the development of new parking facilities.

    Mr David Gauke

    HM TREASURY

    Charlie Elphicke MP

    DOVER

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether HM Revenue and Customs supports in principle the sale of part of the Custom House site adjacent to Dover Priory Railway Station for the development of new parking facilities. 195498

    DAVID GAUKE

    HM Revenue and Customs does not own the freehold interest of the Custom House site (also known as Priory Court) adjacent to Dover Priory railway station. HMRC occupies the site as part of the STEPS PFI agreement and will consider any proposals from the freeholder Mapeley that affect our rights of occupation.

  • Chris Leslie – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Chris Leslie – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Leslie on 2014-04-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, which 10 consultancy firms were paid the most by his Department in the last financial year; and how much each of those firms was paid.

    Brandon Lewis

    The table below sets out the ten consultancy firms that were paid the most by my Department in the last financial year

    The data complies with definitions on Consultancy laid down by the Cabinet Office which excludes agency staff and interim (contingent) labour.

    Financial Year 2013-14

    Organisation

    Total Expenditure (excluding VAT)

    Local Partnership LLP*

    £150,918

    PricewaterhouseCoopers

    £108,516

    Ove Arup & Partners

    £66,790

    Amec Environment & Infrastructure

    £62,509

    Ernest & Young LLP

    £20,000

    Capgemini UK Plc

    £17,000

    Grant Thornton UK LLP

    £8,815

    Giant Professional Limited

    £6,400

    Oakleigh Consulting Ltd

    £4,950

    Land Use Consultants

    £1,345

    * Local Partnerships is a company that is jointly owned by HM Treasury and the Local Government Association; it provides commercial expertise on matters of infrastructure, legal and contractual complexity and acts for the benefit of the public sector.

    My Department has cut spending on consultancy from £36.6 million in 2009-10 to £0.5 million in 2013-14. This represents a saving of £36.1 million a year (2013-14 compared to 2009-10) and has been achieved through contract renegotiations, terminations and adherence to Cabinet Office controls on consultancy spending.

    To put this in context, based on current estimates (which reflect accounting consequences from machinery of government changes) the DCLG Group is reducing its annual running costs by around 40% in real terms between 2010-11 and 2014-15. This equates to net savings of at least £532 million over this spending review period and includes savings of around £420 million from the closure of the Government Offices for the Regions.

  • Tim Loughton – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Tim Loughton – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Loughton on 2014-04-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what progress he has made on the Social Work Practice pilots; and which local authorities are taking part in those pilots.

    Mr Edward Timpson

    The Social Work Practices pilot concluded in 2012. In November last year the Government commenced Part 1 of the Children and Young Persons Act 2008 to allow all local authorities to explore new models of provision if they wish to.

  • Simon Kirby – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Simon Kirby – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Simon Kirby on 2014-04-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to deter inappropriate development in National Parks in England and Wales; and if he will make a statement.

    George Eustice

    Policy on national parks and planning are devolved matters. For Wales, they are a matter for the Welsh Assembly Government. National parks and areas of outstanding natural beauty are given the strongest protection from damaging development through the National Planning Policy Framework.

    Defra works closely with the Department for Communities and Local Government to ensure planning policies take account of the special character of England’s protected landscapes. For example, as made clear on 6 March by the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, Nick Boles, the extended permitted development rights for conversion of agricultural buildings to a dwelling house will not apply in national parks or areas of outstanding natural beauty (6 Mar 2014, Official Report, column 50WS).

  • Douglas Alexander – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Douglas Alexander – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Alexander on 2014-04-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether he has asked President Rajapaksa of Sri Lanka to resign as Chairperson in Office of the Commonwealth in the light of the decision to investigate potential human rights abuses in Sri Lanka.

    Mr William Hague

    Any decision on the Chair-in-Office role is for all Commonwealth Heads of Government to take by consensus.

  • Robert Buckland – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Robert Buckland – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Robert Buckland on 2014-04-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will bring forward legislative proposals to (a) criminalise a pattern of partner abuse and (b) ensure that the police are not required only to treat each incident comprising such a pattern as a separate crime.

    Norman Baker

    Domestic abuse is already a crime. There are a number of offences that make domestic abuse illegal, including actual bodily harm, grievous bodily harm and assault. The cross-Government definition is clear that domestic abuse is any incident or pattern of incidents of controlling, coercive or threatening behaviour, violence or abuse between those aged 16 or over who are or have been intimate partners or family members regardless of gender or sexuality.

    Assault can extend to non-physical harm, and this can include psychological, financial, and emotional abuse. Stalking and harassment legislation, which criminalises a course of conduct, can apply to intimate partner relationships.

    Last September, the Home Secretary commissioned Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary to conduct a review of the response to domestic abuse across all police forces. HMIC published its findings in March 2014, emphasising that the key priority is a culture change in the police so that domestic violence and abuse is treated as the crime that it is, and pointing out that the police use the full range of tools already available to them.

    The Home Secretary will chair a national oversight group to oversee delivery against each of HMIC’s recommendations on which I will also sit.