Tag: 2015

  • Jim Cunningham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Jim Cunningham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

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

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what (a) military and (b) financial support his Department has provided to the Kurdish region in northern Iraq and Syria in the last year; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    Militarily, the UK is conducting air operations as part of the Global Coalition to assist the Iraqi Government and Kurdish Regional Government in their fight against ISIL. The UK is also providing training and equipment to Iraqi Security Forces and Kurdish Peshmerga in northern Iraq. The UK has provided over 50 tonnes of non-lethal support, 40 heavy machine guns, nearly half a million rounds of ammunition and £600,000 worth of military equipment to the Kurdish Peshmerga. We have gifted 1000 counter-IED VALLON detectors to Iraqi Security Forces, including Kurdish fighters. We have also delivered over 300 tonnes of weapons and ammunition on behalf of other Coalition nations. In Syria, the UK is not providing material support to Kurdish groups. Financially, the UK, through the Department for International Development, is providing £79.5 million in humanitarian assistance to help those across Iraq, including in the Kurdistan Region, who have been affected by ISIL’s brutality. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office also manages a portfolio of projects under the Conflict, Security and Stability Fund worth £10 million in Iraq, aimed at helping political reconciliation, building community cohesion and encouraging security sector reform – a portion of which will benefit the Kurdish Region. The UK is providing over £1.1 billion in humanitarian assistance across the region to help those affected by the conflict in Syria.

  • Lord Hylton – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Lord Hylton – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2015-12-10.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussion, if any, they have had with the government of Turkey and the UNHCR about urgent plans for the return home of Yazidi refugees, currently in a camp near Diyarbakir.

    Baroness Verma

    The UK Government is not aware of plans to return Yezidi refugees to their homes from Diyarbakir. The UK works with the Government of Turkey, the United Nations and the international community to support the rights of all minorities.

  • Alison McGovern – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Alison McGovern – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alison McGovern on 2015-11-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions on support for people with mental health conditions who claim jobseeker’s allowance.

    Alistair Burt

    Ministers at the Department of Health and Department for Work and Pensions met on 3 June and agreed to greater cross government working between our respective Departments. Following that meeting, the Department of Health and Department for Work and Pensions Work and Health Unit was created to improve the health and employment outcomes of benefit claimants. Next year, the unit will launch a range of voluntary mental health and employment pilots to support working age individuals with or at risk of developing a mental health condition retain and return to employment.

    We know that people come into contact with the welfare system at a time when they may be vulnerable because of unemployment and its associated consequences. The Department for Work and Pensions provides guidance and training for staff to help them identify and support people who may be vulnerable.

  • Lord Mawson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Lord Mawson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Mawson on 2015-12-10.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what practical actions they are taking to promote and encourage inward investment into the Lower Lea Valley.

    Lord Maude of Horsham

    UK Trade and Investment (UKTI) has overall responsibility for attracting foreign direct investment (FDI) into the UK. For investors with an interest in London it shares leads with London & Partners (London’s promotional organisation) to land those investors here in what is a very competitive international market for FDI.

    The Mayor of London is also responsible for attracting FDI into London and as such London & Partners also generates its own leads.

    As part of its ‘UK First’ approach to attracting inward investment, UKTI actively supports these efforts and those of London Councils, including those that cover the Lower Lea Valley.

  • Frank Field – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Frank Field – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2015-11-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she plans to publish the report on overseas domestic worker visas carried out by James Ewins.

    James Brokenshire

    Mr Ewins’s report has been submitted to the Home Office and will be published shortly.

  • Lord Rogan – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    Lord Rogan – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Rogan on 2015-12-10.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government which peers and MPs were invited to attend a briefing with the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland on the Northern Ireland (Welfare Reform) Bill on 23 November.

    Lord Dunlop

    An invitation to the briefing on the Northern Ireland (Welfare Reform) Bill held on Monday 23 November was circulated electronically to all Peers via the Usual Channels.

  • 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 2015-11-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many mental health in-patient units and beds there have been in English prisons in each year since 2010.

    Ben Gummer

    Whilst healthcare wings within some prisons provide 24 hour health care, beds within these units are not specifically designated for mental health and may be used by prisoners with a range of physical or mental health problems.

  • Lord Wigley – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Lord Wigley – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Wigley on 2015-12-10.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether, in the context of the 2021 Census topic consultation, they will consider including a question on the date when persons who were not born as UK citizens acquired UK citizenship.

    Lord Bridges of Headley

    The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.

  • Cheryl Gillan – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Cheryl Gillan – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Cheryl Gillan on 2015-11-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, which companies have expressed an interest in bidding for the seven engineering contracts announced by the Chancellor of the Exchequer on his recent visit to China.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    I am not able to disclose the identities of companies who may have expressed interest in the HS2 Phase One Main Works Civils Contracts since that procurement process is ongoing at the present time and this information is commercially sensitive.

  • Peter Kyle – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Peter Kyle – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Peter Kyle on 2015-12-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, whether the apprenticeship targets for public sector organisations announced in the report, English Apprenticeships: Our 2020 Vision, published on 7 December 2015, will include targets for the creation of apprenticeships at Level 3 and above.

    Nick Boles

    We do not intend to set any targets for the creation of apprenticeships at specific levels.