The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gregory Campbell on 2015-10-21.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an assessment of the potential effect on employment in the hospitality sector of reducing the VAT rate in that sector to 10 per cent.
Mr David Gauke
The Government has reviewed the economic case for a reduction in VAT for the hospitality sector.
The Government position was set out in the Westminster Hall debate on 17 March 2015.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Parminter on 2015-10-19.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how they plan to address reductions in woodland planting rates.
Lord Gardiner of Kimble
£31m per year of new RDP funding will be spent on forestry, with £13m being spent on woodland management and £18m on new planting. By investing in woodlands, Countryside Stewardship will help us fulfil the Government’s manifesto commitment to plant another 11 million trees by supporting the creation of around 24,711 acres of new woodland.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sharon Hodgson on 2015-10-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, by what process the decision to appoint Professor Waterson as Chair of the Secondary Ticketing Market was made.
Nick Boles
The independent Review requires a suitable qualified and experienced Chair, who is demonstrably independent of Government and has no link to any particular interest group on secondary ticketing.
Professor Waterson was invited to be the independent Chair by my right hon. Friends the Secretaries of State for the Business, Innovation and Skills and for Culture, Media and Sport.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Melanie Onn on 2015-10-19.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether the homelessness prevention grant will continue to be paid to local authorities after the phasing out of the core local government grant.
Greg Hands
We want a radical reshaping of the relationship between central and local government, ending the merry go round of clawing back local taxes into Whitehall and handing them out again in the form of grants. We will do this by giving local government full retention of its Business Rates by 2020, meaning all income from local taxes will go towards funding local services. We will work closely with the sector over the coming weeks and months to ensure local people have more control over how their money is spent. This will mean looking at the grants that currently go from central government to local authorities, and the range of responsibilities central government asks local government to deliver. There will still be redistribution between councils so that councils don’t lose out just because their area starts from a weaker position. We will set out more detail at the Spending Review.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ruth Cadbury on 2015-10-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if he will estimate the number of homes to be sold under the right to buy policy which are likely to become private rental properties (a) in total and (b) in London.
Brandon Lewis
Under Right to Buy there are financial restrictions in place for re-sale within 5 years, and councils have the right of first refusal to buy back the property for up to 10 years at market value.
What a Right to Buy owner chooses to do with their property after they’ve bought it is up to them, just as it is for other home buyers on the open market. Mortgage providers and landlords may place restrictions on letting in the terms of the sale.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Griffiths on 2015-10-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many and what proportion of children in need achieved five A* to C grades at GCSE, including English and mathematics, in the most recent year for which figures are available.
Nick Gibb
The requested information for 2013-14, the most recent year available, was published in table L5 of the ‘Additional tables’ available online here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/characteristics-of-children-in-need-2013-to-2014
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Lucas on 2015-10-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 14 October 2015 to Question 11059, whether officials in her Department have discussed with representatives of Malta the chairing of environment sessions during the Maltese Presidency of the European Union in 2017.
Rory Stewart
Officials from Defra, along with officials from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, have held preliminary discussions with representatives from Malta on support for chairing meetings during the Maltese Presidency of the European Union. These discussions are ongoing.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2015-10-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he is taking to protect the integrity of British territorial waters (a) in relation to Spain and (b) otherwise.
Mr David Lidington
The United Kingdom has a range of measures in place to defend British territorial waters, including British Gibraltar Territorial Waters (BGTW). The Royal Navy challenges all unlawful incursions by Spanish state vessels into BGTW, the United Kingdom makes diplomatic protests to Spain in respect of all such incursions. Incursions are violations of, rather than threats to, UK sovereignty over BGTW.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Anne-Marie Trevelyan on 2015-10-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the average retirement age of male GPs has been for each year from 2000 to 2014; and if he will make a statement.
Alistair Burt
This information is not held by the Department in the format requested.
The average age at which a National Health Service pension is drawn for general practitioners is 62 for males and 61 for females. Pension scheme members must leave their employment in order to claim their pension. This can be done at any time after the age of 55.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2015-10-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what discussions he has had with the Royal Colleges on the prevention of still births.
Ben Gummer
Since May 2015, Ministers at the Department have not held any meetings with the Royal Colleges to specifically discuss the prevention of stillbirths. However, the Department has been working in partnership with Sands (the Stillbirth and Neonatal Death charity) and a range of key organisations, including NHS England, Public Health England, the Royal College of Midwives and the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, to drive forward a stillbirth prevention work programme.