Tag: 2015

  • John Pugh – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    John Pugh – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Pugh on 2015-10-22.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment she has made of the effect on her Department’s work of re-allocating elements of her Department’s budget to help local authorities deal with Syrian refugees.

    Justine Greening

    There will be no substantive impact on existing DFID programming. It is right that we work with communities in the UK taking refugees as we do elsewhere in the world, but of course, we will stay within ODA rules.

  • Lord Scriven – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Lord Scriven – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Scriven on 2015-10-21.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the review of the framework within which police forces use and retain custody images is yet complete; if so, what advice has been circulated to police forces as a result; and if not, why not.

    Lord Bates

    The review has not yet been completed. It is important that the issues identified by the review are properly tested with operational decision makers, so as to appropriately balance the protection of personal data and privacy with the public protection benefits and the operational need.

    Due to the complexity of the operational and legal issues raised in the evidence gathering stage and the number of important stakeholders, this work is yet to be completed.

  • Lord Ouseley – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Lord Ouseley – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Ouseley on 2015-10-21.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many patients are detained in medium and high security psychiatric hospitals; and how many such patients there are broken down by (1) ethnicity, (2) gender, (3) age, and (4) the length of time detained under the different segregated regimes.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    The information is not collected in the format requested.

  • Margaret Ferrier – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Margaret Ferrier – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Margaret Ferrier on 2015-10-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of the level of energy prices on the steel industry; and if he will make a statement.

    Anna Soubry

    The Government recognises that energy costs are among the factors that have an impact on the competitiveness of the steel industry and for that reason has provided over £50 million compensation to steel makers for energy costs.

    We are also in advanced discussions with the European Commission to approve millions of pounds of further compensation for energy intensive industries, including steel makers. Many years of underinvestment in the UK’s energy infrastructure has meant wholesale prices of energy are higher in the UK than in some other EU countries. The Government is committed to addressing this long term issue through, for example, new nuclear plants and our support for shale gas extraction.

  • Stewart Jackson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Stewart Jackson – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

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

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many and what proportion of recipients of working tax credits in Peterborough constituency are citizens of non-UK EU member states; and if he will make a statement.

    Damian Hinds

    The information requested is not available. The Summer Budget offered a new deal for working people. It means Britain moving from a high welfare, high tax, low wage economy to a lower welfare, lower tax, higher wage society.

    A new National Living Wage for workers aged 25 and above, initially set at £7.20 per hour from April 2016, will directly benefit 2.7 million low wage workers, and up to 6 million could see a pay rise as a result of a ripple effect up the earnings distribution. The new National Living Wage will boost pay for those currently earning the National Minimum Wage by £4,800 a year by 2020 when the National Living Wage is expected to rise to over £9 per hour.

    To help working families keep more of what they earn, the personal allowance will increase to £11,000 in 2016-17 and £11,200 in 2017-18. The government has committed to increase the personal allowance to £12,500 by 2020 which will mean that a typical basic rate taxpayer will see their income tax cut by £1,205 a year compared to 2010.

    An illustrative renting family with two children, where one parent works full-time on the minimum wage, will be over £2,400 better off in cash terms by 2020.

    The government set out its assessment of the impacts of the Summer Budget policies in the Welfare Reform and Work Bill on 20th July 2015. Taken together, the introduction of the National Living Wage, increases in the personal allowance and welfare changes mean that 8 out of 10 working households will be better off as a result of the Summer Budget.

    In response to a request from the Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee, the government has chosen to produce and release an impact assessment on the tax credit changes to the Committee. The impact assessment shows that 60% of the tax credit savings come from the half of tax credit claimants with the highest income.

  • Andrew Rosindell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Andrew Rosindell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

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

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions he has had with (a) his ministerial colleagues and (b) external organisations on the future of the mortgage guarantee scheme of the Help to Buy policy; and if he will make a statement.

    Harriett Baldwin

    The Government is committed to addressing the affordability of housing and making the aspiration of home ownership a reality for as many households as possible. At Budget 2014, the Help to Buy: equity loan scheme was extended to 2020 and the Government also intends to support younger buyers through delivering 200,000 Starter Homes by 2020, to be sold at a 20% discount for first time buyers under 40. These measures will also be supported by the launch of a Help to Buy: ISA through which the Government will top up mortgage deposit savings for first time buyers by 25% up to a maximum of £3,000.

    Treasury Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery. Details of ministerial and permanent secretary meetings with external organisations on departmental business are published on a quarterly basis and are available at: http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/minister_hospitality.htm

    “

  • Bill Wiggin – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Bill Wiggin – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

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

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of likely spending by his Department on road repairs in each year between 2015 and 2020.

    Andrew Jones

    I refer my Honourable Friend to my answer dated 3 June 2015, UIN 365 (http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-questions-answers/?page=1&max=20&questiontype=AllQuestions&house=commons%2clords&uin=365).

    “

  • 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 2015-10-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much UK-produced steel has been used in the manufacturing of the three offshore vessels being procured by his Department.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 20 October 2015 to Question 11400 to the hon. Member for Dunfermline and West Fife (Douglas Chapman).

  • Lord Stoddart of Swindon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Stoddart of Swindon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Stoddart of Swindon on 2015-10-19.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Anelay of St Johns on 24 July (HL1516) concerning the decision of the government of Israel not to join the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, whether any safeguards are in place to discourage the extension or upgrading of Israel’s nuclear deployment capacity.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    Israel does have a facility-specific safeguards agreement in place with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), namely “The Agreement between the International Atomic Energy Agency, the Government of Israel and the Government of the United States of America for the Application of Safeguards” (commonly referred to as an INFCIRC 66-type agreement). The agreement applies to a single facility in Israel, which is the Soreq Nuclear Research Reactor. The facility is inspected by the IAEA to ensure that it is not used for weapons purposes. We continue to call on Israel to upgrade this arrangement to a full scope Comprehensive Safeguards agreement with the IAEA.

  • 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 2015-10-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to his Department’s press release Hancock: Every young person should be earning or learning from April 2017, published 17 August 2015, (a) what the evidential basis is for the effectiveness of each of the proposals of the Earn or Learn taskforce referred to in that press notice; (b) what he plans the criteria for referral to the three-week programme referred to in that press notice to be; (c) by what measures the success of that programme will be assessed; (d) when he plans for contracts for that programme to be put out to tender; (e) if he will launch a consultation on the design of such contracts; (f) what additional funding he plans to make available for skills training for programme participants lacking basic qualifications; (g) how much his Department has set aside to fund that programme; and (h) whether he plans for funding for skills training to be ring-fenced within the overall grant made to providers.

    Priti Patel

    The Youth Obligationfor 18-21 year olds includes a 3 week intensive activity programme at the start of the claim to Universal Credit. The detailed policy design is still under development.

    All spending decisions on skills training for 2016-17 and beyond will be taken as part of the Spending Review, which is due to be concluded in November.