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Tag: 2015

  • Jim Shannon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    Jim Shannon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2015-12-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what recent discussions she has had with Bombardier about that company’s plans for the number of jobs it provides in Northern Ireland.

    Mr Ben Wallace

    Northern Ireland Office Ministers regularly meet a range of businesses and business organisations from across Northern Ireland.

    The Northern Ireland economic pact recognised the importance of Bombardier as one of Northern Ireland’s largest private sector employers. The Government continues to work with Invest NI to deliver on the commitments contained in the economic pact which included providing research and development funding to Bombardier.

  • 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 2015-11-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will make an assessment of whether there has been an increase in the use of mental health services by chemsex drug users in the last 12 months.

    Jane Ellison

    Public Health England is due to publish a briefing for commissioners and providers of drug and alcohol services highlighting issues for men who have sexual contact with other men (MSM) and chemsex. The briefing contains background information, recent data and survey findings, and prompts for local areas and drug services – including liaison and referral for sexual, mental and physical health problems. Information is also collected by the Health and Social Care Information Centre on contacts with drug and alcohol support teams, however data is not broken down by drug type or by behaviours associated with drug use.

  • Emily Thornberry – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Emily Thornberry – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emily Thornberry on 2015-12-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that conditionality requirements for jobseekers in receipt of universal credit are eased during periods when an individual claimant is homeless.

    Priti Patel

    Work Coaches regularly discuss a range of issues and circumstances with claimants. Where homelessness is raised, and is a barrier to employment, work coaches can temporarily lift or vary work search and availability requirements to help support in finding accommodation. Conditionality requirements reflect reasonable expectations given the claimants circumstance. These are recorded in the Claimant Commitment and regularly reviewed.

  • Catherine McKinnell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Catherine McKinnell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine McKinnell on 2015-11-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate he has made of the average cost to the public purse of a vacated trial in (a) Magistrates’ courts and (b) the Crown Court.

    Mr Shailesh Vara

    HMCTS is unable to provide the information requested, as this information is not held.

  • Steve McCabe – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Steve McCabe – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2015-12-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the 12 Portas Pilots.

    Mr Marcus Jones

    I chair a refocused Future High Street Forum to lead an ambitious programme of town centre restructuring. The Forum runs the Great British High Streets Awards which champion innovation, sharing best practice around the country.

    Entries to this year’s competition have come from a number of the 27 former Portas pilots. One of these – Rotherham – won the accolade of best town centre. And I congratulate them.

  • Stephen Doughty – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Stephen Doughty – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Doughty on 2015-11-09.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether the Prime Minister has had discussions with (a) the UN Secretary General, (b) the President of the International Criminal Court and (c) the President of the International Court of Justice on the recent amendments to the ministerial code and compliance with international treaties.

    Matthew Hancock

    The government publishes details of ministers’ meetings with external organisations as part of its wider commitment to transparency at www.gov.uk/government/collections/ministers-transparency-publications.

  • Lord Lester of Herne Hill – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    Lord Lester of Herne Hill – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Lester of Herne Hill on 2015-12-07.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Faulks on 4 December (HL3813), what is their assessment of whether they have the power under section 24 of the Northern Ireland Act 1998 to give direction to the devolved institutions in Northern Ireland to secure their compliance with the European Convention on Human Rights; and whether the Secretary of State has considered exercising any such power to secure full compliance in Northern Ireland with its obligations under the Convention in relation to equal marriage, blasphemy and defamation.

    Lord Dunlop

    The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland does not have the power under section 24 of the Northern Ireland Act 1998 to give direction to the devolved institutions in Northern Ireland to secure their compliance with the European Convention on Human Rights.

    The UK Government recognises and respects the devolution settlement in Northern Ireland and in any event does not have power under section 24 to secure full compliance in Northern Ireland with its obligations under the Convention in relation to equal marriage, blasphemy and defamation.

  • Jim Fitzpatrick – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Jim Fitzpatrick – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Fitzpatrick on 2015-11-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what penalties there are for London airports which breach the noise quota count designated in the Civil Aviation Act 1982.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    There have been no breaches of the night noise quotas in the last 10 years. For the night period (23.30 to 06.00), there is a limit on the number of movements (an aircraft landing or taking off) and noise quotas (each aircraft is given a noise quota according to the noise produced) at Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted for the summer and winter seasons.

    There are, and have been, no penalties for breaching the movement and noise quota limits. Details on these limits are set out in the London Heathrow, London Gatwick and London Stansted Airports Noise Restrictions Notices.

  • Lord Willoughby de Broke – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Willoughby de Broke – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Willoughby de Broke on 2015-12-07.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they were consulted on the EU–Turkey deal that will allow Turkish citizens visa-free access to the Schengen area and which provided for three billion euros of aid to Turkey over two years.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    The UK played an influential role in shaping the EU-Turkey summit on 29 November where these issues were discussed. The Prime Minister, my right Hon. Friend the Member for Witney (Mr Cameron), attended the summit, where the EU and Turkey agreed to step up cooperation on the many common issues that we face. We welcomed the clear message the summit sent of the importance the EU attaches to its wide-ranging partnership with Turkey. Turkey is a key partner in the EU’s response to the migration crisis and we commend its generosity in ably hosting over 2.2 million refugees from the crisis in Syria and Iraq. A funding package of €3 billion will help ease the refugee burden on Turkey whilst preventing further uncontrolled migration to the EU. Any progress in Turkey’s visa-liberalisation roadmap will not directly affect the UK as we do not participate in the immigration and border aspects of the Schengen acquis.

  • Chris Leslie – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Chris Leslie – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Leslie on 2015-11-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much his Department spent on tackling benefit fraud and error in each of the last five financial years.

    Justin Tomlinson

    Fraud and error is tackled within a number of areas across the Department. Specifically, the Fraud, Error and Debt Programme which commenced in June 2013 and delivers major change projects.

    Spending on the Fraud, Error and Debt Programme for the 5 years between 2010/11 and 2014/15 was £300m, delivering savings of circa £2bn. Further savings in the region of £2.9bn are expected by the end of 2021- 2022.

    In addition the Fraud and Error Service is a specialist organisation focused on identifying and correcting benefit fraud and the many Operational teams across the Department also play a critical role in preventing fraud and error occurring. The Department also provides financial incentives to Local Authorities with regard to identifying fresh initiatives to support the reduction of fraud and error in housing benefit.

    To provide a breakdown of how much the Department spent in aggregate on tackling benefit fraud and error in the last five years would incur disproportionate costs and we have therefore not provided a breakdown.