The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Haigh on 2015-11-05.
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, when he plans to publish details of his Department’s expenditure over £25,000 from September 2014 to date.
Matthew Hancock
The Cabinet Office fully committed to transparency, and I am taking steps to publish the Department’s outstanding spend data, including details of any spend of £25,000 and above, as soon as possible.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Liam Fox on 2015-12-04.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether food security is part of the Government’s agricultural planning; and what assessment her Department has made of the amount of farmland required to guarantee food supplies in a time of crisis.
George Eustice
The Government sees the contribution of UK agriculture as vital to our food security. A detailed analysis of the global and domestic factors affecting UK food security, the UK Food Security Assessment, was published in 2010 and refreshed in 2012. Its main conclusion was that UK food security depends on a combination of a strong domestic food production base and access to a wide variety of world markets. The assessment also analysed the impact of extreme scenarios and concluded that if necessary the UK could feed itself from domestic resources.
The Government is working on a 25 Year Plan for Food and Farming which will set out ways our domestic food production base can be further strengthened, building on the Great British brand.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Durkan on 2015-11-05.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the progress made by Anguilla since June 2013 in meeting the Prime Minister’s ambition for a public register of beneficial ownership.
Mr Hugo Swire
I refer the Honourable Gentleman to the answer given by my Rt Hon Friend, the Member for South West Hertfordshire (David Gauke MP), the Financial Secretary to the Treasury, to questions 10437, 10438 and 10448, which sets out the criteria we expect the Overseas Territories to meet in relation to their central register of company beneficial ownership, or similarly effective system.
We are continuing our dialogue with the Anguilla authorities on this and have offered any technical support that might be required as they develop their proposals.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nicholas Soames on 2015-12-04.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will place in the Library a copy of the timetable for transition of the emergency services from Airwave to the emergency services network, for each (a) service and (b) region.
Mike Penning
The supporting transition plan attached is a provisional plan and, therefore, subject to change.
Note:
• This is for the 3 Emergency Services only and does not include British Transport Police (BTP), Civil Nuclear Constabulary (CNC), Ministry of Defence Police (MDP) and National Crime Agency (NCA)
• Dates are shown in months from Effective Date (ED)
• Kent Constabulary is shown in East of England transition group as per ESMCP Programme Board decision; Kent Fire and Rescue Service is still in South East
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nigel Evans on 2015-11-05.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the reasons were for the Ministry of Defence Police denying Lt. Col. Jolley his own military records for him to use at his trial in 2013.
Mark Lancaster
A Special Investigation Branch Report was served as evidence at Lt Col Jolleys’ trial and was provided to his Defence team pre-trial.
It will take time to gather the further information and I will write to the hon. Member shortly.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jonathan Ashworth on 2015-12-03.
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 11 September 2015 to Question 8466, whether any further Departments have established or are planning to establish an Extended Ministerial office.
Matthew Hancock
An Extended Ministerial Office has been approved in the Scotland Office.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alan Brown on 2015-11-05.
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what comparative cost-benefit analyses her Department has made of electricity storage and constraint payments.
Andrea Leadsom
The Network Options Assessment (NOA) was introduced as a result of Ofgem’s Integrated Transmission Planning and Regulation project.It is an holistic, forward-looking analysis of the options for the development of the transmission system.The NOA has a 10-year outlook and will be published annually.In developing the annual statement, National Grid as System Operator must work closely with the three GB transmission operators to propose network solutions which facilitate an efficient, coordinated and economical system of electricity transmission. As part of this process, National Grid is required to consider the merits of solutions other than transmission build, such as storage. A cost-benefit analysis of storage compared to other assets is performed by National Grid as a part of this assessment, in which constraint payments form a part.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Liz McInnes on 2015-12-03.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what the average response time to dwelling fires was for Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service in 2013-14.
Mike Penning
I have been asked to reply on behalf of the Home Office.
Information on average response times to dwelling fires for each fire and rescue service and for each year is available in Table 3b of the Department’s Fire incidents response times: England publication at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/fire-incidents-response-times-england-2014-to-2015
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Amess on 2015-11-05.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how the Government plans to develop a more comprehensive strategy to combat ISIL that prioritises protecting civilians in Syria.
Mr Tobias Ellwood
The UK has a long-term, comprehensive strategy to degrade and defeat ISIL. We are working to protect UK citizens, both domestically and overseas, from the threat posed by ISIL, and playing a leading role in the 65-member Global Coalition that is tackling ISIL on the ground. That international effort includes military action against ISIL in its heartlands in Iraq and Syria, cutting off its finances, tackling foreign fighter flows, stabilising areas which have been liberated from ISIL, and countering its poisonous ideology through strategic communications.
Unlike the Assad regime and its allies, who are bombing indiscriminately, Coalition military efforts in both Iraq and Syria are specifically designed to minimise civilian casualties. UK strike aircraft (which are currently operating only in Iraq) are equipped with advanced targeting systems and precision weapons to target ISIL by day or night whilst minimising civilian casualties.
In addition to our efforts as part of the Global Coalition, the UK is directly helping protect Syrians on the ground. We are training Search and Rescue teams and supporting local Moderate Opposition structures to deliver governance, infrastructure, health services, education and livelihoods services. We also give more humanitarian aid to Syria than any other bilateral donor except the US.
Ultimately, the only way to protect civilians in Syria is by achieving the mutually reinforcing objectives of defeating ISIL and ending the Syrian conflict. The latter can only be achieved through a political transition away from the Assad regime, whose brutality created and continues to fuel the conflict, and has led to ISIL’s expansion.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Mearns on 2015-12-03.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will take steps to update the National Maritime Security Strategy to 2019 to include the Government’s policy on the role of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary.
Penny Mordaunt
The National Strategy for Maritime Security was published in May 2014 and remains relevant to today’s challenges in the maritime domain. However, as we implement the outcomes of the Strategic Defence and Security Review 2015, we will consider whether the strategy should be reviewed.