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Tag: 2015

  • Andrew Smith – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Andrew Smith – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Smith on 2015-11-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department is taking to improve the reliability and collection of data on nutrition in countries in Asia and Africa.

    Mr Desmond Swayne

    DFID has been taking a range of steps to improve the reliability and collection of data on nutrition. These include organising an informal expert consultation on nutrition data gaps in June this year; working with the European Commission to establish National Information Platforms for Nutrition; developing innovative metrics and methods for agriculture for nutrition; continuing to fund the Global Nutrition Report, which gives particular focus to data quality and availability and continues to undertake analysis to identify priority areas for investment; funding the Global Open Data for Agriculture and Nutrition (GODAN) programme; and continuing to work with other donors to coordinate our funding on nutrition.

    In addition, the UK and US jointly announced that they will partner with the GODAN Secretariat to organise a 2016 GODAN Summit. We will also commission research in early 2016 to test innovative and feasible approaches to collect data, with sufficient frequency in more fragile settings, which should enable better management of malnutrition when shocks and disasters arise.

    The UK will continue to provide strong leadership to maintain global momentum on nutrition and will continue to work hard to deliver its promises to scale up its work on nutrition between now and 2020.

  • Baroness Sharp of Guildford – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Baroness Sharp of Guildford – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Sharp of Guildford on 2015-12-11.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what are their estimates for the extra cost of supply teachers of HMRC’s proposals on not allowing staff engaged through agencies to claim tax relief on their travel and subsistence expenses.

    Lord O’Neill of Gatley

    No estimates have been made for the extra cost of supply teachers following restrictions to tax relief on travel and subsistence expenses for those working through employment intermediaries. The planned changes will put supply teachers employed through an intermediary on the same terms as other supply teachers, either contracted directly, or through an agency contract.

  • Richard Burden – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Richard Burden – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2015-11-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the total number of passengers travelling independently through flight-only sales or independent bookings that have been affected by recent restrictions on UK-bound flights from Sharm el-Sheikh airport; and what steps the Government has taken to support those passengers.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    The Department for Transport has been in constant contact with tour companies and airlines operating in Sharm-el-Sheikh. All have been working in collaboration to ensure that information on flights to the UK has been provided to UK nationals on a timely basis, supported by travel advice issued through the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, who have also been providing consular assistance on the ground. Since flights restarted on Friday 6 November 2015, over 16,000 passengers have returned to the UK. This includes those that travelled independently, for example on a flight only basis. Flights on 17 November saw the return of all UK nationals that wished to do so.

  • Richard Burgon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Richard Burgon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burgon on 2015-12-11.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to his Department’s announcement on Government shares in Lloyds Banking Group, published on 18 December 2014, whether he had set a target for the (a) number of shares to be sold and (b) price per share for Lloyds Banking Group at the time of that announcement.

    Harriett Baldwin

    In December 2014 the Chancellor launched a trading plan to sell the Government’s stake in Lloyds Banking Group, which has since been extended twice; in June and December 2015. The number of shares sold over the course of the trading plan is subject to an overall volume limit of up to but no more than 15% of the aggregate total trading volume in the LBG over the duration of the trading plan.

    The final amount sold will depend on market conditions, among other factors. Shares will not be sold below the average price the previous government paid for them, which was 73.6p.

    As outlined to the House at the time of the trading plan’s launch, a statement with further details will be laid before Parliament when the plan concludes.

  • Roger Godsiff – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Roger Godsiff – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2015-11-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what procedure his Department follows in investigating cases of discrepancies between statements in disability benefit claimant questionnaires and assessor reports.

    Justin Tomlinson

    Following the gathering of evidence, including the assessor’s report which would reflect the claimants own evidence from the consultation and the questionnaire, a DWP decision maker will decide the facts of the case and then make a decision, applying those facts to the conditions for benefit. Any contradictions within the evidence will be decided on the balance of probabilities. The claimant can raise any such issues again at the Mandatory Reconsideration stage.

  • Tulip Siddiq – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Tulip Siddiq – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tulip Siddiq on 2015-12-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, with reference to paragraph 19 of the Prime Minister’s written response to the Foreign Affairs Committee’s report on British military operations in Syria published on 26 November 2015, what the evidential basis is for the statement that within Syria local councils and emerging local governance structures (a) have become stronger and (b) deliver basic services to a population of over 1.1 million people.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    The UK, through the Conflict, Security and Stability Fund, is supporting local councils and emerging local governance structures in 28 communities across Syria. These communities contain a population of 1.1 million people. Our support means that local councils have the assistance they need to deliver essential services, including health, education and utilities, in a way that they were not able to previously. This also includes specific support for building good governance practices. This is confirmed by our project partners who operate in Syria.

  • Alex Cunningham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Alex Cunningham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2015-11-18.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether his Department has made an assessment of the air quality benefits of using liquefied petroleum gas in transport to inform its taxation policies.

    Damian Hinds

    The Government recognises that there are environmental benefits to Liquefied Petroleum Gas and other road fuel gases compared to petrol and diesel, and as a consequence fuel duty on such fuels is much lower than the main rate – with a 39.79 pence per litre duty differential.

  • Wayne David – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Wayne David – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Wayne David on 2015-12-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how much will be spent from the public purse on Christmas parties (a) in each prison and (b) across the prison estate in 2015.

    Andrew Selous

    There will be no Christmas parties held in any prison across the prison estate in 2015.

    There are no public funds or opportunities provided to facilitate Christmas parties for prisoners.

  • Dan Jarvis – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Dan Jarvis – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dan Jarvis on 2015-11-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, for what reasons the triple lock on pensions does not apply to disability war pensions.

    Mark Lancaster

    Compensation payments under the War Pensions Scheme are uprated annually in line with the Consumer Price Index (CPI) figure. This is the same measure the Department for Work and Pensions uses for uprating social security disability benefits and is in keeping with other public service schemes. Our approach ensures consistency with the measure of inflation used by the Bank of England.

    The triple lock applies only to the State Pension. Members of the Armed Forces will therefore benefit from the triple lock once they reach State Pension age.

  • Tulip Siddiq – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Tulip Siddiq – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tulip Siddiq on 2015-12-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many times claimants of working age on unemployment benefits have been interviewed under caution by staff of his Department in each of the last five years.

    Priti Patel

    We do not hold official statistics to the National Statistical Authority and so we are unable to provide this information.