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Tag: 2015

  • Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2015-10-27.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have made to the government of Iran about the use of capital punishment, in particular regarding the case of Fatemeh Salbehi, and what assessment they have made of the report by Amnesty International that over 700 executions have occurred in Iran this year.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    The British Government opposes the use of the death penalty in all circumstances. There has been no real improvement in the human rights situation in Iran, and in some cases, such as use of the death penalty, the situation appears to have worsened. We have made our position clear to Iran both publicly and privately, and continue to urge Iran to abide by its international commitments to ensure all Iranians enjoy the rights and freedoms they are entitled to.

  • Margaret Ritchie – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    Margaret Ritchie – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Margaret Ritchie on 2015-11-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what assessment she has made of the effect of the Human Rights Act 1998 on society and communities in Northern Ireland; and if she will make a statement.

    Mr Ben Wallace

    The Government was elected in May with a clear mandate to implement its manifesto commitment to replace the Human Rights Act with a British Bill of Rights.

    We believe that it is entirely possible to do that in ways that are consistent with the Belfast Agreement.

  • Lord Falconer of Thoroton – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Lord Falconer of Thoroton – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Falconer of Thoroton on 2015-10-27.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the new Ministerial Code, whether the duty of ministers to comply with the law continues to include international law and treaties.

    Lord Bridges of Headley

    The Ministerial Code is normally updated and reissued after a General Election. The updated Code makes clear that Ministers must abide by the law. The obligations of Ministers under the law including international law remain unchanged.

    Information relating to internal discussions and advice is not disclosed.

  • Rebecca Pow – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Rebecca Pow – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rebecca Pow on 2015-11-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions he has had with his ministerial counterparts on ensuring that road and rail links through Somerset are protected by stronger flood defences and mitigation measures.

    Claire Perry

    The Department for Transport continues to meet regularly with Somerset County Council to discuss a number of issues related to transport, including resilience. The Minister with responsibility for roads, my Hon Friend, the Hon Member for Harrogate and Knaresborough (Andrew Jones), recently sent a letter to all local highway authorities in England with respect to this including reminding councils of their duties in respect to clearing drains and gullies to prevent the risk of surface water flooding on the local road network . In addition the Department for Transport provided over £22 million, as part of the Government response to the flood events of 2013/14 and the Somerset Flood Action Plan. This funding helped in raising the main road into Muchelney and also installing four culverts at Beer Wall to reduce the risks of flooding and local communities being cut-off in the future.

    Following flooding incidents in 2012-14,Network Rail iscurrently implementing a £31million package of schemes to improve the resilience of the Great Western route through the Thames Valley and the West of England. Work has already been completed at Whiteball Tunnel, near Taunton.

  • Lord Laird – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Lord Laird – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Laird on 2015-10-27.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the estimated cost to answer a media query to the Government and whether they impose a limit on the number of questions a member of the media can ask in a week.

    Lord Bridges of Headley

    The Government receives a large number of media queries each day, which are received and managed by the relevant department.

    The amount of time each media query takes depends on many factors and variables, so it is not possible to estimate an average cost or time. No restriction is placed on the number of queries a journalist can make.

  • Baroness Gould of Potternewton – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Baroness Gould of Potternewton – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Gould of Potternewton on 2015-11-24.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the effect of the £200 million reduction in the Public Health Grant to local authorities for 2015–16 on (1) teenage pregnancy rates, and (2) rates of unintended pregnancy.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    The under-18 conception rate is an indicator within the Public Health Outcomes Framework and we continue to see a sustained reduction in teenage pregnancy, improved detection of sexually transmitted infections, and increasing access to the more effective long acting contraception.

  • Caroline Lucas – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Caroline Lucas – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Lucas on 2015-10-27.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how the Green Investment Bank has been classified in the Government accounts since its creation.

    Anna Soubry

    UK Green Investment Bank plc has been treated as a central Government body since its establishment in 2012.

  • Baroness Lister of Burtersett – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Baroness Lister of Burtersett – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Lister of Burtersett on 2015-11-24.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what proportion of respondents supported each of the proposals in the consultation Reforming support for failed asylum seekers and other illegal migrants.

    Lord Bates

    The consultation response published on 5 November 2015 provides an overview of the responses, including by category of respondent, and summarises the responses to the proposals and questions set out in the consultation document. The individual responses varied in scope, detail and the extent to which they directly addressed those proposals and questions and it is not possible therefore to quantify the responses in the manner sought.

  • Karen Buck – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Karen Buck – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Karen Buck on 2015-10-27.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the average duration is of a tax credit claim.

    Damian Hinds

    The information is not readily available and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

  • Baroness Tonge – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Baroness Tonge – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Tonge on 2015-11-24.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have made to the government of Israel regarding the retention by Israel of the bodies of suspected Palestinian combatants, rather than returning those bodies to their families.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    The Deputy Head of Mission at our Embassy in Tel Aviv raised this issue with Israel’s National Security Council Director on 18 November. We continue to urge both the Israelis and Palestinians to maintain calm and refrain from taking actions which could make peace more difficult to achieve.