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Tag: 2015

  • Jonathan Edwards – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Jonathan Edwards – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jonathan Edwards on 2015-10-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what representations he has received from the Welsh Government on the Barnett consequentials for Wales resulting from public expenditure on High Speed 2.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    Ministers in the Department for Transport are in regular contact with the Welsh Assembly on a variety of matters. However, Ministers have not received representations from the Welsh Government regarding HS2 and Barnett consequentials.

    Details of ministerial meetings with external organisations are published quarterly and can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dft-ministerial-gifts-hospitality-travel-and-meetings-january-to-march-2015

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  • Dr Paul Monaghan – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Dr Paul Monaghan – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dr Paul Monaghan on 2015-10-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what measures he has put in place to ensure that the Royal Mail Universal Service obligation remains active and in force across Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross constituency; and what information his Department holds on planned closures of post offices in that constituency.

    George Freeman

    Royal Mail, as the designated Universal Service Provider for the United Kingdom, is required under the Universal Service Obligation (USO) to deliver the universal service to all communities – urban and rural – throughout the UK – and that includes the communities of the constituency of Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross.

    However, some postcode areas around the country, which may include addresses in Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross, are subject to local exemptions under the USO. Such exemptions are only allowed where geographical conditions or other circumstances are considered to be exceptional by Ofcom, the independent regulator for postal services. These exceptions are carefully monitored by Ofcom and are subject to an established appeals process. Quality of service targets for all postcode areas are published quarterly by Royal Mail.

    Post Office Limited (POL) has no planned post office closures in the constituency. There is one possible planned change in Brora where there is a consultation underway to move the local post office to a new location in the community.

  • Christian Matheson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Christian Matheson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Christian Matheson on 2015-10-09.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, when his Department plans to respond to the Eleventh Report of the Treasury Committee, Conduct and competition in SME lending, Session 2014-15, HC 204, published on 10 March 2015.

    Harriett Baldwin

    The Parliament, and its then Treasury Select Committee, dissolved shortly after this report was published and HM Treasury was not able to prepare a response before dissolution.

    HM Treasury is considering the Committee’s recommendations and will be responding to the new Committee in due course.

  • Louise Ellman – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Louise Ellman – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Ellman on 2015-10-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what assessment he has made of the effect of the abolition of the university maintenance grant on student numbers.

    Joseph Johnson

    I refer the hon Member to my answer to question 6380

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  • Alison Thewliss – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Alison Thewliss – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alison Thewliss on 2015-10-09.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, for what reasons the Government does not respond to correspondence written in Scottish Gaelic with a reply in Scottish Gaelic.

    Mr Oliver Letwin

    The Government recognises and supports the cultural and historical significance of all languages spoken within the United Kingdom, and as a demonstration of its support for Scottish Gaelic, is providing the broadcaster MG ALBA with funding of £1 million in the previous and current financial years.

    Given the current low levels of demand for such a service, providing official responses to correspondence in Scottish Gaelic would represent a disproportionate cost. Therefore, we have no plans to introduce a Gaelic language policy for written correspondence.

  • Ian Murray – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Ian Murray – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Murray on 2015-10-09.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, when HM Revenue and Customs will send a notification letter to Scottish taxpayers to inform them of the introduction of the new Scottish rate of income tax.

    Mr David Gauke

    HM Revenue and Customs plans to send a notification letter to Scottish taxpayers in December of this year, informing them of the introduction of the new Scottish Rate of Income Tax. As the Scottish Government is yet to set a date for the announcement of its intended rate, it is not possible to state whether the letters will be sent before or after the rate has been announced.

  • Alistair Carmichael – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Alistair Carmichael – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alistair Carmichael on 2015-10-09.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what his policy is on the introduction of a tax on food with a high sugar content; and what assessment his Department has made of the effect of food taxes on improving dietary choices.

    Mr David Gauke

    At present the Government has no plans to introduce new taxes on food and drinks.

    The Government is using a range of approaches to promote health outcomes, including working with the food and drink industry to encourage the reformulation of products. A comprehensive ‘childhood obesity strategy’ will be launched later this year.

  • Cat Smith – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Cat Smith – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Cat Smith on 2015-10-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what steps he plans to take to ensure that women’s refuges (a) have a sustainable source of funding and (b) continue to enable women to move between local authority areas after 31 March 2016.

    Mr Marcus Jones

    The Government is committed to a secure future for refuge provision, as set out in our Manifesto, and is determined to ensure that no victim is turned away from the support they need. At Budget the Chancellor announced an additional £3.2 million to increase specialist accommodation support for victims, including refuges, and provide more help for victims to access that support. This is in addition to the £10 million announced in 2014 to enable local authorities to strengthen refuge services. Our significant investment shows our clear commitment to maintaining and boosting refuge provision. Future funding arrangements are a matter for the Spending Review.

  • Grahame Morris – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Grahame Morris – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Grahame Morris on 2015-10-09.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what estimate the Government has made of the number of people in Easington constituency who have never used the internet.

    Matthew Hancock

    Information provided by ONS for the period January to March 2015 shows that 11% of adults in the UK (5.9 million) had never used the internet. In 2015 14% of households in Great Britain had no internet access.Official data at local constituency level is not available.

    The Digital Inclusion Strategy launched in 2014 outlined that by 2016 we will have reduced the number of people who are offline by 25% and by 2020 everyone who can be online should be online. 85 partners work with government to reach this goal, including the Tinder Foundation, Post Office, Argos, Barclays, LGA, Go ON UK, Society of Chief Librarians, Digital Unite and Age UK.

    The government recognises that there are many reasons for not being online. We will always provide assisted digital support for people who need help accessing government services.

    Many of these partners have local delivery networks, and work with hard to reach groups. Details of local resources can be found from a number of sources, including libraries and the Post Office. A range of services are available in Easington, including Easington Colliery Library, which provides internet and email facilities; and there are a number of UK Online Centres in the Easington area.

  • Robert Jenrick – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Robert Jenrick – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Robert Jenrick on 2015-10-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the average cost of building a primary school in England was in 2014 excluding the cost of land.

    Edward Timpson

    The Department for Education does not centrally collect data on building new primary schools across all local authorities in England. The cost of building schools varies significantly depending on local factors, including the size of the school. Local authorities report the cost per place of providing new school places through the annual School Capacity data collection. For primary schools this data has been used to produce basic need scorecards. The scorecards detail the cost per place, including for new schools, for each local authority. The latest published scorecards are for the academic year 2013/14 and can be accessed at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/primary-school-places-local-authority-basic-need-scorecards-2014.

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