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Tag: 2015

  • Christopher Chope – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Christopher Chope – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Christopher Chope on 2015-10-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will make it his policy to allow UK citizens who have been awarded the NATO Africa Medal for efforts against piracy to wear that medal in public; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    The Government is immensely proud of the courage and professionalism displayed by the UK Armed Forces in support of NATO counter-piracy operations off the coast of Africa. Their effort has helped to deter and disrupt pirate attacks and set the conditions for a more viable and secure region.

    Members of the UK Armed Forces may accept foreign military awards, although only those medals that Her Majesty The Queen has approved for wear may be worn. The NATO Africa Medal has not been approved for wear and may not, therefore, be worn by Service personnel.

  • Frank Field – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Frank Field – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2015-11-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many new state pension statements have been returned due to being sent to the wrong address since May 2014.

    Justin Tomlinson

    We do not have the information requested. I can confirm we have a robust process in place to review all incorrect address returns and properly scrutinise and update customer account details when address is confirmed.

  • Lucy Powell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Lucy Powell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lucy Powell on 2015-10-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with how many headteachers who would like to recruit teachers through its STEM international recruitment programme her Department is discussing that programme.

    Nick Gibb

    Schools have always been able to recruit teachers from overseas. Outstanding mathematics and physics teachers are in demand across the globe, and where schools wish to recruit from overseas we want to ensure they are able to do so and from those countries whose education standards are as high as our own.

    The Department for Education is committed to ensuring that schools are able to recruit appropriately to fill their teacher vacancies. We are working to grow a strong pipeline of teachers from within the UK and have a package of measures in place to support both recruitment of trainees and retention of existing teachers.

    The Department for Education recently embarked on an additional £67 million package of measures to target recruitment of 2,500 additional specialist maths and physics teachers and up-skill 15,000 existing non specialist teachers in these subjects. The vast majority of these additional 2,500 teachers will come from within the UK, but the government recognises the valuable contribution made by overseas trained teachers particularly for certain shortage subjects. Therefore a small part of the package is focused on supporting schools to recruit internationally for qualified maths and physics teachers where necessary.

  • Lord Maginnis of Drumglass – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Maginnis of Drumglass – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Maginnis of Drumglass on 2015-11-25.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have made to the government of India concerning the case of six British ex-servicemen who were members of the crew of the US ship MV Seaman Guard Ohio, and who have been held in India since 2013.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    Foreign and Commonwealth Office Ministers have raised this case at the highest levels nearly thirty times since November 2013, making clear the enormous stress and difficulty the situation has caused these men and their families.

    We will continue to use every opportunity to raise this case. The Prime Minister, my right hon. Friend the Member for Witney (Mr Cameron), raised it most recently for the third time with Prime Minister Modi during his visit to the UK in November. The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond), raised the case with the Indian Minister of External Affairs at the UN General Assembly on 29 September, and Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for East Devon (Mr Swire), raised it on 24 November with Indian High Commissioner Mathai.

    We cannot interfere in the Indian legal process, but will continue to press for this case to be resolved.

  • David Hanson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    David Hanson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Hanson on 2015-10-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much her Department spent on tackling the illegal wildlife trade in each of the last five years.

    Rory Stewart

    Over the past five years, the total amount of funding committed by Defra to tackling the illegal wildlife trade is as follows:

    Financial Year

    Total committed

    2010/11

    £224,535

    2011/12

    £226,000

    2012/13

    £162,000

    2013/14

    £2,089,773

    2014/15

    £5,278,744

    In December 2013, Defra and DFID announced that £10m of funding would be made available over the period 2014/15 – 2017/18 to help developing countries tackle the illegal wildlife trade, to be administered by Defra. In March 2015, my Rt. Hon. Friend the Secretary of State for International Development announced that an additional £3m would be made available for this purpose.

    The DFID funding is largely distributed through the Illegal Wildlife Trade Challenge Fund, for which I announced the opening of a second round of applications in August 2015. In addition, Defra has supported projects which will help tackle the illegal wildlife trade through the Darwin Initiative and through direct awards to organisations such as the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). We also supported the London Conference on the Illegal Wildlife Trade in February 2014 and the Kasane Conference on the Illegal Wildlife Trade in March this year.

  • Baroness Kennedy of Cradley – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Baroness Kennedy of Cradley – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Kennedy of Cradley on 2015-11-25.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many prisoners are presently held at HMP Holloway.

    Lord Faulks

    As published on the MOJs website, on Friday 30 October 2015 there were 544 prisoners held in HM Prison and Young Offender Institution Holloway.

    A figure for Friday 27 November 2015 will be published on the 11 December 2015 on the Ministry of Justice website.

    Individual prison population and capacity information for every prison in England and Wales, as well as the total population and useable operational capacity of the prison estate is published monthly on the Ministry of Justice website.

  • Grahame Morris – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Grahame Morris – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Grahame Morris on 2015-10-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many hospitals in the North East are treating brain tumour patients with stereotactic radiosurgery; and how many patients have been treated in each such hospital in each year since NHS England was created.

    Jane Ellison

    There was no recorded activity of stereotactic radiosurgery or radiotherapy in 2013-14 for hospitals in the North East¹.

    ¹Source: The Health and Social Care Information Centre, Hospital Episodes Statistics database 2013-14.

    Notes:

    1. 2013-14 is the latest data available.
    2. Return is based on using the codes supplied by the classifications service (A10.7 Stereotactic radiosurgery on tissue of the brain and Y91.5 Megavoltage treatment for hypofractioned stereotactic radiotherapy).
    3. There are no specific OPCS-4.7 codes that classify stereotactic ablative radiotherapy. The terms stereotactic radiosurgery and stereotactic radiotherapy are sometimes used synonymously.
  • Baroness Gardner of Parkes – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Baroness Gardner of Parkes – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Gardner of Parkes on 2015-11-25.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will clarify the measures that can be taken to enable works to be carried out when they are wanted or needed by a majority of leaseholders in leasehold residential properties.

    Baroness Williams of Trafford

    The maintenance and repair of a block of flats containing leasehold properties is normally the responsibility of the landlord and will be set out under the terms of the lease. This responsibility can pass to a Right to Manage Company where leaseholders have exercised and acquired that right, allowing them to exercise direct control over how their block is maintained.

    Landlords, or those who have acquired the Right to Manage, have a contractual obligation under the terms of the leases to carry out necessary works to the properties that they are responsible for maintaining. Where works are suggested by a majority of leaseholders that are not essential to the repair or maintenance of the property, we would expect landlords to engage with their leaseholders to discuss the feasibility of the suggested works, but there are no plans to legislate to obligate landlords to carry out such work.

    There are also no plans to legislate to provide a limited time within which non-resident leaseholders who fail to respond to a proposal for qualifying works, are deemed to have agreed to the proposed works. The statutory consultation process (known as section 20) gives leaseholders the ability to have a greater say on proposed works to their property by making observations. It does not require leaseholders to make observations, but any observations that are made must be made within a specified time limit. The landlord (or Right to Manage Company) is therefore in the knowledge that subject to observations made, they are able to proceed with necessary works.

  • Paul Blomfield – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Paul Blomfield – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Blomfield on 2015-10-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 11 September 2015 to Question 10040, whether she plans that the Protocol to the 2014 Forced Labour Convention will be ratified before the end of 2015.

    Karen Bradley

    The Government intends to ratify the Protocol to the Forced Labour Convention. We are taking forward the formal ratification process and we expect this to be complete within three months.

  • Baroness Byford – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Baroness Byford – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Byford on 2015-11-25.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many cases of diversion or extinguishment of paths that pass through gardens, farmyards or business remain outstanding.

    Lord Gardiner of Kimble

    We aim to make it easier to divert or extinguish paths that pass through gardens, farmyards or commercial businesses through the Stakeholder Working Group’s reform package. Local Authorities handle the actual diversion and extinguishment orders and therefore hold the relevant information on the number of outstanding applications. The Government does not collect this information.