UKPOL.CO.UK

Tag: 2015

  • Derek Thomas – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Derek Thomas – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Derek Thomas on 2015-12-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will assess the practicality of putting in place standard blocks to child pornography on the internet similar to those obtained by members of the BPI British Recorded Music Industry Ltd on material where access would cause commercial damage.

    Karen Bradley

    Reports of Indecent Images of Children (IIOC) can be made to the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) which is an industry funded body. In 2014 the IWF processed 74,119 reports, of which 31,443 were confirmed as depicting illegal content. The IWF can proactively search the Internet for IIOC and this has vastly increased the number of webpages being taken down.

    100% of UK-hosted webpages confirmed by the IWF as containing IIOC were removed within four days, although most were taken down within two hours. 84% of webpages hosted outside the UK, and confirmed by the IWF as containing IIOC, were removed within 10 days. This material has been removed permanently, rather than simply having access to it blocked. The IWF also provides a list of webpages containing IIOC, primarily hosted outside the UK, to enable companies to block or filter them for their customers’ protection. This approach uses the same technology used by ISPs to block access to copyright-infringing websites.

  • Lord Stoddart of Swindon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Lord Stoddart of Swindon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Stoddart of Swindon on 2015-11-17.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action, if any, they plan to take to ensure that sections 406 and 407 of the Education Act 1996 are complied with between now and 2017 to ensure that lessons and discussions relating to the UK membership of the EU are balanced and impartial.

    Lord Nash

    My earlier response to Lord Stoddart‘s PQ HL 521 refers:

    ‘Schools are aware of their duties regarding impartiality and treatment of political issues. Sections 406 and 407 of the Education Act 1996 require maintained schools to prevent political indoctrination and secure the balanced treatment of political issues. This duty is reflected in the model funding agreement for academies and free schools.

    In Citizenship education, pupils are taught about local, regional and international governance and the United Kingdom’s relations with the rest of Europe, the Commonwealth, the United Nations and the wider world. Pupils will be equipped with the skills to think critically and debate political questions.’

    School governing bodies and academy trusts are responsible for considering if a member of staff has acted improperly in presenting their own views or beliefs to pupils.

    The Department’s ‘Teacher Misconduct: the prohibition of teachers’ advice is used by those involved in the teacher regulatory process, professional conduct panels and NCTL officials, to identify factors that should be taken into account when considering whether prohibition is appropriate. This advice makes clear that in considering the seriousness of a teacher’s behaviour it is important to consider the influential role that a teacher can play in the formation of pupils’ views and behaviours. A teacher’s behaviour that is judged to promote extremist political or religious views or actions should be viewed very seriously in terms of its potential influence on children and young people and as a possible threat to the public interest, even if no criminal offence is involved.

    This advice can also be used to indicate to teachers the sorts of behaviour that could constitute serious misconduct, and so lead to prohibition and to help employers make a judgement on which cases should be referred to the NCTL.

  • Luciana Berger – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Luciana Berger – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Luciana Berger on 2015-12-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 7 December 2015 to Question 18596, if he will make it his policy to collect data on the proportion of the prison population who have mental health problems and identify as LGBT.

    Ben Gummer

    Health and wellbeing needs assessments provide information on the mental illness incidence in individual prisons. There is no current requirement for NHS England to record sexual orientation details in patient records, so no data on the proportion of prisoners with both mental health problems and who identify as LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) is known.

    The Health and Social Care’s Information Centre’s Standardisation Committee for Care Information is currently considering a proposal for a mandatory requirement to record a patient’s sexual orientation in all NHS services.

  • Sharon Hodgson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Sharon Hodgson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sharon Hodgson on 2015-11-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential effect of proposed changes to Tier 2 visas on the recruitment of people with specific skills from overseas to the video games industry.

    James Brokenshire

    The Government has commissioned the independent Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) to advise on restricting Tier 2 to genuine skills shortages and jobs which require highly-specialised experts, but with sufficient flexibility to include high value roles and key public service workers. There are 18 jobs in the video games industry currently included on the Shortage Occupation List.

    The MAC is looking at selection criteria such as, but not limited to, salaries, particular attributes, economic need and skills level. The MAC is not due to report until December and we do not yet know what its findings and recommendations will be. We await the report with interest and will consider it carefully before making any significant changes to the Tier 2 route.

  • Ian C. Lucas – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Ian C. Lucas – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian C. Lucas on 2015-12-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent representations he has received on rail paths from North Wales to Manchester Airport.

    Andrew Jones

    We are aware that Arriva Trains Wales (ATW), and other operators, are seeking to introduce additional services to Manchester Airport; however, capacity through central Manchester and at the Airport is limited. Infrastructure investment to deliver the Northern Hub (including the recently-opened fourth platform at the Airport) will improve the situation, but there are more aspirations for direct services to the Airport than even the post-Hub infrastructure will be able to accommodate.

    Please note that it is the Independent Office of Road and Rail which is responsible for the allocation of train paths and not the Department and it is therefore for the Office of Road and Rail to consider ATW’s application alongside other requests submitted for use of the limited available capacity for additional rail services to/from Manchester Airport.

  • Philip Davies – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Philip Davies – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Philip Davies on 2015-11-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of adult education courses in helping people into work.

    Nick Boles

    The Department commissioned econometric research to estimate the labour market impact of Further Education (FE), which found that FE generates significant economic effects, resulting in sustained higher earnings and increased employment chances. This report was published in December 2014 and is available at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/further-education-comparing-labour-market-economic-benefits-from-qualifications-gained

    “

  • John Healey – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    John Healey – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Healey on 2015-12-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much will be made available in additional discretionary housing payments for people in supported accommodation in each financial year from 2018-19 to 2020-21.

    Justin Tomlinson

    In the Autumn Statement it was announced that additional Discretionary Housing Payment funding will be made available to Local Authorities to protect the most vulnerable, including those in supported accommodation. A further £70 million will be made available across 2018-19 and 2019-20.

    This will be in addition to the funding for the Discretionary Housing Payment scheme that was announced in the Summer Budget where the allocation for 2018-19 to 2020-21 is as follows:

    2018/19

    2019/20

    2020/21

    £170m

    £155m

    £140m

    It should be noted that local authorities have the discretion to set their own priorities to ensure Discretionary Housing Payments are awarded to those who most require assistance based on local circumstances.

  • Richard Burgon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Richard Burgon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burgon on 2015-11-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment he has made of the effect of the provision of high-speed broadband infrastructure on productivity.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    SQW Consulting’s UK Broadband impact study in 2013 estimates that the availability and take-up of faster broadband speeds will add about £17 billion to the UK’s annual Gross Value Added (GVA) by 2024.

    This Government is helping increase productivity across the UK by investing in and widening access to key digital infrastructure. We are on track to deliver our commitment to provide superfast broadband coverage to 95% of the UK by the end of 2017.Our£40m Broadband Connection Voucher Scheme was taken up by over 55,000 small and medium sized businesses – who employ a million people right across the UK and are already reporting, on average, a £1,300 per year increase in profits and a new job being created for every four new connections. ThePrime Minister recentlyannounced plans to ensure that every home and business can have access to fast broadband by the end of this Parliament.

  • 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 2015-12-08.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Anelay of St Johns on 7 December (HL4065), whether they are in the process of submitting evidence of genocide against Yazidis and Assyrian Christians to international courts, and if so, which ones; when the international courts last declared a genocide to have taken place; and when the international courts last initiated a trial for genocide, and against whom.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    We are not submitting any evidence of possible genocide against Yezidis and Christians to international courts, nor have we been asked to.

    The most recent occasion on which an international court found genocide to have occurred was on 10 June 2010, when the Trial Chamber of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) convicted several of the accused in the Prosecutor v. Popović et al. case for either committing, conspiracy to commit, or aiding and abetting, genocide in and around Srebrenica and Žepa in 1995. These convictions were subsequently upheld by the Appeals Chamber of the ICTY on 30 January 2015.

    The Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC) initiated a trial against Khieu Samphan and Nuon Chea, two former Khmer Republic senior officials, which remains ongoing, and includes charges of genocide against the Cham and Vietnamese people. Evidence relating to the genocide charges began being heard on 7 September 2015.

  • Joan Ryan – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Joan Ryan – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Joan Ryan on 2015-11-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the (a) human rights situation in Sri Lanka and (b) detention of Tamil political prisoners in that country.

    Mr Hugo Swire

    We warmly welcomed the resolution on promoting reconciliation, accountability and human rights which was co-sponsored by Sri Lanka and adopted by the UN Human Rights Council on 1 October. Since President Sirisena came to power in January, there have been improvements in the human rights situation in Sri Lanka, including on freedom of expression, some return of military held land, and improved relations between different communities. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office will provide a further assessment in our 2015 Annual Human Rights and Democracy Report. We regularly raise matters of concern with the Sri Lankan government, including the detention of Tamil political prisoners without trial. We have been encouraged by the recent announcements that bail has been granted to 39 prisoners being held under the Prevention of Terrorism Act.