The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kate Osamor on 2015-11-17.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many women detained in Yarl’s Wood Immigration Removal Centre went on hunger strike in 2015.
James Brokenshire
For the period 1 January 2015 to 30 June 2015 provisional management information shows that 84 women were recorded as refusing food or fluid at Yarl’s Wood immigration removal centre (IRC).
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hay of Ballyore on 2015-12-15.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans, if any, they have for reducing the rate of VAT on the hospitality sector in Northern Ireland.
Lord O’Neill of Gatley
Normal EU VAT rules do not permit the variation of rates within a Member State. The Government currently has no plans to introduce a reduced rate of VAT for the UK hospitality sector.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Fiona Mactaggart on 2015-11-17.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if his Department will conduct a peer review into the death of Alan McCardle in Slough.
Priti Patel
The department is unable to comment on individual cases.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Naseby on 2015-12-15.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Prior of Brampton on 8 December (HL3846), how much grant the Department of Health will provide to Action on Smoking and Health in the current financial year, and whether they will place a copy of any grant application and award letter in the Library of the House.
Lord Prior of Brampton
The Department will provide a grant of £150,000 to Action on Smoking and Health in the 2015/16 financial year. This grant is awarded under Section 64 of the Health and Social Care Act 1968.
A copy of the signed award letter, including the detailed deliverables of the grant, has been attached.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nic Dakin on 2015-11-17.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps his Department is taking to embed the family test into its policy making.
Mr David Gauke
Officials in my Department have liaised with DWP as the lead Department for the Family Test to embed it into the policy process. This has included training officials on applying the Test, disseminating relevant evidence, learning materials and best practice.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Williams on 2015-12-15.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what progress has been made in negotiations with Barclays Bank plc about business banking services being offered through the Post Office.
George Freeman
The Post Office is negotiating with the major banks, including Lloyds and Barclays, with a view to extending and standardising the services available to the banks’ small business customers. These are commercial negotiations which are still ongoing. The Government is clear that completion of these negotiations should be a priority.
The Government is keen to see continued and wider availability of banking services through Post Office branches. In this context, we welcome the recent agreement between HSBC and the Post Office to provide HSBC’s business customers with services through Post Office branches.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Yasmin Qureshi on 2015-11-17.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he plans for UK personnel to train at or otherwise attend the new General Atomics unmanned aircraft business park being built in North Dakota.
Penny Mordaunt
A number of options are being developed to meet the training demand for UK Reaper aircrew in the coming years. It is anticipated that initial training for some UK student aircrew will be conducted under contract by General Atomics at their North Dakota facility.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rebecca Long Bailey on 2015-12-15.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to paragraph 1.122 of the Spending Review and Autumn Statement 2015, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of reducing the income rise disregard on the household income of a tax credit claimant family with one earner and two children whose income rose from £20,000 to £25,000 during the year.
Damian Hinds
Reducing the income rise disregard to £2,500 brings forward some of the benefits of Universal Credit, so that tax credit entitlement reflects claimant’s recent earnings. It makes the system fairer so claimants on similar incomes will receive similar awards. The effect of reducing the income rise disregard on a family claiming tax credits will depend on the household’s income level before it increased.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2015-11-17.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent review his Department has conducted into the adequacy of suicide prevention support for (a) men and (b) women; and if he will make a statement.
Alistair Burt
There has not been a formal review of the adequacy of suicide prevention support for men and women. However, we published a national strategy, Preventing Suicide in England: a cross-Government strategy to save lives in 2012. I announced in a Westminster Hall Debate on 19 November 2015 that this strategy was a dynamic one, being reviewed and refreshed regularly. We continue to monitor and track trends in suicide and work with organisations across Government and industry and with a range of stakeholder organisations to implement the national strategy. We publish an annual report on our progress. The next annual report will be published early next year.
The Department provides financial support to the National Suicide Prevention Alliance consisting of a range of organisations concerned with suicide prevention which provides expert advice on implementing the national strategy.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julian Knight on 2015-12-15.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if he will ensure that affordable rent to buy housing is exempt from the Government’s pay to stay proposals for higher income social tenants.
Brandon Lewis
Higher income social tenants in a Rent to Buy scheme will not face increased rent under proposals for pay to stay. This is because the rent they pay is an intermediate rent which is excluded from social rent policy.