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Tag: 2015

  • Kevan Jones – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Kevan Jones – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevan Jones on 2015-10-15.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many non-UK overseas personnel the Royal Navy plans to recruit or loan from other countries’ armed forces for each year up to 2020.

    Penny Mordaunt

    The Royal Navy has no plans to recruit from non-UK armed forces.

    We work closely with many nations and provide opportunities for their personnel to serve with the Royal Navy through a range of schemes, such as loans, exchanges and liaison postings. There are no set targets, and these are conducted on a case by case basis.

  • Caroline Lucas – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Caroline Lucas – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Lucas on 2015-10-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 23 June 2015 to Question 2405, what the total cost to state-funded schools of hiring agency teachers was in (a) Brighton Pavilion constituency, (b) Brighton and Hove local authority area and (c) England in each year since 2010.

    Nick Gibb

    Information for the expenditure on agency supply teaching staff is available online in the following locations.

    Spend data on agency supply staff by maintained schools at a national level is available in the publication ‘Expenditure by Local Authorities and Schools on Education, Children and Young People’s Services: 2013-14’ (Table 3), at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/schools-education-and-childrens-services-spending-2013-to-2014

    Spend data on agency supply staff by academies at a national level is available in ‘Income and expenditure in Academies in England: 2012 to 2013 (Experimental Statistics)’ (Raw data SATS table) at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/income-and-expenditure-in-academies-in-england-2013-to-2014

    Detailed Information on the income and expenditure of local authorities and schools (including academies) can be found in the Department’s local authority and school finance data publications at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/statistics-local-authority-school-finance-data

    “

  • Caroline Spelman – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Caroline Spelman – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Spelman on 2015-10-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, on what occasions British consular officials in Indonesia have visited Rebecca Prosser since her detention on 28 May 2015; how long each such visit lasted; and when the next such visit will take place.

    Mr Hugo Swire

    Members of the consular team in Jakarta have visited Rebecca Prosser twice. The first visit took place on 2 June, shortly after her arrest, and lasted 30 minutes. The second, which lasted over two hours, took place on 10 September when she was moved from house arrest into a detention facility. Normal practice is to visit detainees in Indonesia every three months.

    Consular staff are in regular contact with Ms Prosser’s employer’s representatives, her legal team and her family. Since court proceedings began, we have provided a weekly written update to Ms Prosser, her family and their MPs. Our most recent contact with Ms Prosser’s family was on 21 October.

  • Hilary Benn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Hilary Benn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2015-10-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he is taking to encourage other nations to make a greater contribution to humanitarian aid for people affected by the situation in Syria.

    Mr Philip Hammond

    The UK has pledged over £1.1 billion aid in response to the crisis in Syria and the region, making us the second biggest bilateral donor. The UK continues to play a leading role in encouraging the international community to make generous pledges in response to the humanitarian crisis. We lobbied hard to mobilise funding from other donors ahead of the third Kuwait Pledging Conference on 31 March 2015 which raised $3.8 billion. The UK is committed to working with the UN and other major donors to ensure that the momentum on fund-raising is maintained over the longer term, including to respond to the 2016 Appeals, once these have been issued.
  • Andrew Gwynne – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Andrew Gwynne – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Gwynne on 2015-10-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if NHS England will take steps to terminate contracts for 0844 numbers entered into by GP surgeries.

    Alistair Burt

    Regulations introduced in 2010 prevented general practitioner practices from entering into, renewing or extending a contract for telephone services unless it was satisfied that, looking at the arrangements as a whole, patients would not pay more to make calls to the practice than they would to make calls to a geographical number.

    The number of practices using premium rate numbers is reducing as contracts come to an end, and a large number of practices using 084 numbers also have a local alternative. NHS England continues to work with practices that have premium rate numbers and will review progress periodically.

  • Anne-Marie Trevelyan – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Anne-Marie Trevelyan – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Anne-Marie Trevelyan on 2015-10-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to place Syrian refugees in Northumberland; and if she will make a statement.

    Richard Harrington

    Resettlement under the government schemes is voluntary on the part of local authorities. We are grateful to those who take on this role and will continue to work in partnership with them.

    We do not disclose the details of where refugees will be resettled upon their arrival in the UK under the Government resettlement schemes as this may undermine the privacy and recovery of this vulnerable group of people.

  • Bill Wiggin – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Bill Wiggin – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bill Wiggin on 2015-10-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to increase the number of appointments available for premium passport applications in London.

    James Brokenshire

    Her Majesty’s Passport Office continues to review services to ensure they meet customer expectations and needs. During 2015, the London Passport Office has consistently offered customers a premium service appointment the next day and has always remained within the target of 3 working days.

  • Craig Whittaker – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Craig Whittaker – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Craig Whittaker on 2015-10-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what risk assessments his Department has conducted on changes to court provision in Calder Valley.

    Mr Shailesh Vara

    An impact assessment was published alongside the consultation document, which can be found at: https://consult.justice.gov.uk/digital-communications/proposal-on-the-provision-of-court-and-tribunal-es.

    No decision has been taken to close any court. The consultation closed on 8 October and we are considering all responses carefully.

    “

  • Gregory Campbell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Gregory Campbell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gregory Campbell on 2015-10-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make an assessment of the viability of the use of E10 fuel in older vehicles and motorcycles.

    Andrew Jones

    The content of road transport fuel is governed by a combination of legislation and industry fuel standards, specifically the Motor Fuel (Composition and Content) Regulations and a European industry standard, in the case of petrol this is EN228. The EN specification incorporates the statutory requirements. The standards, and their maintenance, are industry agreed and informed by industry testing.

    Petrol currently sold in the UK may contain up to 5% ethanol (known as ‘E5’). A revised industry fuel standard for petrol (EN228) was agreed and published by the British Standards Institution in 2013. This allows up to 10% bioethanol content (known as ‘E10’). This means that fuel suppliers are free to supply petrol containing anything from 0-10% bioethanol.Most petrol sold in the UK is E5 and therefore contains up to 5% bioethanol. E10 is not yet on sale in the UK.

    Any decision to supply E10 is a commercial decision for fuel suppliers and we are not aware of any with immediate plans to introduce E10 into the UK. The Governmentrecognises the concerns of owners of some older vehicles and motorcycles that may not be compatible with E10, and the Department for Transport is in regular contact with fuel suppliers who in turn have been asked to write to us to give at least three months’ notice of plans to introduce this fuel. As yet no suppliers have indicated they have any immediate plans to introduce E10.

    The Department is also in regular contact with the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) who provide advice and data concerning the compatibility of UK petrol vehicles with E10 – which we are carefully monitoring.

    The Motor Fuel (Composition and Content) Regulations 1999 were amended in 2010 to comply with EU Directive 2009/30/EC which requires the UK Government to ensure that petrol with a maximum ethanol content of 5% remained available until the end of 2013. This mechanism was extended in 2013 in the UK to ensure that E5 continues to be available until the end of 2016.

  • Iain Stewart – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Iain Stewart – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Iain Stewart on 2015-10-21.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans he has to allow local authorities to retain business rate revenues.

    Mr David Gauke

    The Chancellor set out a radical devolution reform package for local government in his conference speech. This included plans to allow local government to retain 100 per cent of revenue from business rates to spend on local services, as well as giving local authorities the power to lower business rates to boost growth and support jobs.

    While there will still be redistribution between Local Authorities to ensure those with a lower tax base do not lose out, local areas will be able to keep all local growth in their business rates.