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Tag: 2015

  • Jim Shannon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Jim Shannon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2015-12-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to encourage British Muslims to join the armed forces to tackle ISIL.

    Penny Mordaunt

    The Ministry of Defence is working up plans to meet the Government’s commitment to increase the number of black, Asian, ethnic minority (BAME) recruits into the Armed Forces to 10% by 2020, and have allocated additional resources for this purpose.

    Diversity and inclusion is a Defence Board priority and we recognise that there are challenges we need to address and we are engaging with all communities that are under-represented in the Armed Forces to consider ways and means of doing so.

    Some examples of actions we have taken that are aimed at increasing BAME, including Muslim, recruitment are:

    Highlighting the benefits of a career in the Armed Forces including the ability to develop a trade or gain professional skills; as well as being a force for good, for example through conducting humanitarian operations.

    Trying to build mutual understanding between the Armed Forces and local communities including highlighting the role that Muslims have played in operations from World War One to the present day.

    Tackling the perception that there are no role models for Muslims in the Armed Forces.

    The Armed Forces have recently (October 2015) won two of the seven awards being presented at the Race for Opportunity Awards. The Armed Forces Muslim Association, of which the Chief of Defence Staff is patron, won the Public Sector Employee Network Award and the Royal Air Force won the Future Workforce Award for their STEM/Employability Skills programme.

  • Jim Cunningham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Jim Cunningham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2015-11-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what estimate his Department has made of how many people were recorded as homeless in each county region in the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr Marcus Jones

    The Department for Communities and Local Government collects and publishes data on statutory homelessness in England at a local authority district level only.

    The figures for the number of households accepted as statutorily homeless for each local authority district are available within Live Tables 784 and 784a at the following link:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-homelessness

    This Government has provided more than £500 million to tackle and prevent homelessness since 2010. This has resulted in local authorities preventing 935,800 households from becoming homeless since then.

  • 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 2015-12-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many mental health trusts (a) Simon Stevens and (b) Sir Bruce Keogh have visited in each year since their appointments as Chief Executive and Medical Director respectively of NHS England.

    Alistair Burt

    Since taking up post on 1 April 2014, Simon Stevens has either visited or met mental health providers on at least 18 occasions.

    Sir Bruce Keogh has visited one mental health trust since his appointment.

  • Jo Stevens – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Jo Stevens – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jo Stevens on 2015-11-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will make representations to the Colombian government about the FARC prisoners on hunger strike.

    Mr Hugo Swire

    We understand that there are members of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) on hunger strike in 13 prisons across the country. Whilst the United Kingdom cannot interfere in Colombia’s judicial process, we have in the past raised concerns regarding due process and prison conditions with the Government of Colombia – particularly in relation to imprisoned trade unionists. That said we do not currently intend to make specific representations to the Colombian government about the current hunger strike by members of the FARC.

  • Maria Eagle – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Maria Eagle – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Maria Eagle on 2015-12-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what proportion of those eligible service personnel who have left the armed forces have participated in the Specialist Support Programme of the Careers Transition Partnership in each year since 2010.

    Mark Lancaster

    Information is held on personnel that have participated in the Specialist Support Programme (SSP) (formerly the Recovery Careers Service and now called CTP Assist) for the period 1 April 2013 – 30 September 2014. Data prior to this date is not held as there was no requirement to collate this information prior to April 2013.

    All eligible individuals who require support from the SSP are referred to it. Between 2013-14 and 2014-15 the following numbers of personnel have participated in the SSP:

    2013-14 – 3,000

    2014-15 (1 April 2014 – 30 September 2014) – 1,960

  • Barry Sheerman – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Barry Sheerman – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Sheerman on 2015-11-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps he is taking to ensure that people with dyslexia obtain functional skills qualifications.

    Nick Boles

    The Department enables providers to remove barriers to education and training, and aids progression to higher levels of training, by funding additional learning support to help all eligible learners with an identified support need. The support for those with learning difficulties and/or disabilities, including dyslexia, is an important part of the support the government provides to help individuals maximise their potential and gain employment.

    The Education and Training Foundation will consult with a range of organisations, including those representing learners with particular needs, as part of the programme of reform to English and maths Functional Skills launched last month.

  • Maria Eagle – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Maria Eagle – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Maria Eagle on 2015-12-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many Boeing P-8 Poseidon Maritime Patrol Aircraft he expects to enter service in 2019-20.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    The Ministry of Defence is currently engaged in detailed negotiations on the Boeing P-8 Poseidon Maritime Patrol Aircraft. As the Prime Minister announced to the House on 23 November 2015 (Official Report, column 1059), we intend for at least three of the aircraft to be in place by the end of the Parliament.

  • Anna Turley – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Anna Turley – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Anna Turley on 2015-11-13.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assessment he has made of the effect of raising the minimum wage on the capacity of charities to deliver public services.

    Mr Rob Wilson

    The National Living Wage will benefit low paid workers across all sectors, including charity workers delivering public services on behalf of the state.

    Government is taking steps to support employers with the transition. For example, the employer National Insurance Bill for businesses and charities will be cut by £1000 from April 2016.

  • Mike Kane – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Mike Kane – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mike Kane on 2015-12-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the reasons for trends in the levels of extremism in Pakistan.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    The UK and Pakistan share a commitment to defeating extremism. As the Prime Minister, my right hon. Friend the Member for Witney (Mr Cameron) has said, this is one of the greatest threats that we face. Extremist narratives underpin all acts of terrorism, whether the tragic events that took place in Paris last month, or the murder of 132 innocent children in Peshawar in 2014. That is why we strongly support Pakistan’s efforts to tackle terrorism and the extremism that sustains it. As in the UK, this requires effort in a number of areas, including investment in education, tackling poverty and confronting the extremist narrative.

    The Government’s Counter-Extremism Strategy sets out our approach to tackling all forms of extremism in the UK. It recognises that the problem is a global one. We are therefore working with international partners, including Pakistan, to reinforce our efforts at home and to build a more robust international response to extremism. As part of this, we continuously assess the threat to the UK and our partners to inform our efforts to combat extremism wherever it emerges. We are also working with Pakistan to deepen our shared understanding of the issue and to develop and implement effective responses.

    Extremism is a complex and multi-faceted issue. In assessing the nature of extremism, Her Majesty’s Government captures a broad spectrum of internal and external source material, including working closely with academics, civil society groups and other governments.

  • Alex Cunningham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Alex Cunningham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2015-11-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the effect of the starter homes policy on access to (a) home ownership and (b) affordable rented accommodation in (i) London and the South East and (ii) England.

    Brandon Lewis

    Evidence shows that young first time buyers have been priced out of home ownership. Since the early 1990s, the proportion of under 40s who are homeowners in England has declined by over a third from 62% in 1993/4 to 39% in 2013/14. The Housing and Planning Bill will require local planning authorities to promote Starter Homes and ensure Starter Homes are included on all suitable, reasonably-sized developments in future.