Tag: 2016

  • Steve Rotheram – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Steve Rotheram – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve Rotheram on 2016-01-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to reduce the level of violence in prisons.

    Andrew Selous

    Our prison system needs reform. There is much more to do to ensure prisons are places of decency, hope and rehabilitation.

    Violence in prisons has increased in recent years. The nature of offenders currently in custody and the widespread availability of novel psychoactive substances have both contributed to making prisons less safe. There is no single, simple solution to the problems we face but we are making progress.

    We have launched a two year Violence Reduction project to reduce violent incidents and the propensity of violence in prisons. This project will help us to gain a better understanding of the causes and characteristics of violence in prisons and to strengthen the handling of this. We are also trialling the use of body worn cameras in prisons, developing better case management of individuals identified as being at heightened risk of harming others, introducing a psychologically based assessment tool to understand better local factors driving violence in prisons, and training sniffer dogs to detect novel psychoactive substances. We have also made it an offence to smuggle novel psychoactive substances into prison. However, ultimately the only way to reduce violence in our prisons is to give governors and those who work in prisons the tools necessary to more effectively reform and rehabilitate offenders, which we are determined to see through.

  • Baroness Tonge – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Baroness Tonge – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Tonge on 2016-02-02.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how they will help to ensure that women have access to family planning throughout Latin America and the Caribbean in the light of the spread of the Zika virus and its potential link to birth defects.

    Baroness Verma

    The importance of comprehensive Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights for all women is brought home by the emergence of Zika. There may be increased demand for voluntary rightsbased Family Planning from women in affected countries seeking to avoid pregnancy, and there is a risk of a rise in unsafe abortion in some countries. DFID has a track record of promoting rights based family planning and in highlighting the contribution safe abortion makes to saving women’s lives.

    We are in close contact with DFID-funded partners, including in the UN system and civil society, active in affected regions and will continue to do all we can to support their efforts. The Government is determined to support the international community in responding to the Zika virus. The UK has been at the forefront of global efforts to ensure the World Health Organisation (WHO) has the funding, expertise and systems to respond to emerging disease threats like Zika. We are the second largest national funder of WHO and have also provided political and technical support to strengthening the organisation and its preparedness. As part of the UK effort to strengthen global health security DFID contributed £6.2 million to WHO’s contingency fund for emergencies which is available for the management of Zika.

    Affected countries are working closely with the Pan American Health Organisation (PAHO) which serves as the Regional Office of the World Health Organisation. PAHO and governments across the region are issuing information on the emerging Zika infection. DFID will keep under review its support to countries affected by Zika viral infections and along with other Government Departments we welcome the WHO emergency committee statement issued on Monday 1st February.

  • Dan Jarvis – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Dan Jarvis – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dan Jarvis on 2016-02-29.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what proportion of senior civil servants in his Department are women.

    Mark Lancaster

    As at 1 January 2016, 25.1% of senior civil servants in the Ministry of Defence were women.

  • Tom Brake – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Tom Brake – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Brake on 2016-03-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will estimate the number of UK firms based in Yorkshire and the Humber that trade with other EU member states; and how many people are employed by each such firm.

    Anna Soubry

    HMRC Regional Trade Statistics on the number of firms trading with the EU are publically available through the UKTradeInfo website.

    HM Treasury has published estimates of the number of UK jobs linked to EU exports broken down by region. These are available through the GOV.UK website.

  • Alan Brown – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Alan Brown – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alan Brown on 2016-04-27.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether the Government is taking steps to encourage progress towards the holding of a referendum in Western Sahara.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    It is for the parties to the dispute to agree a resolution of the final status of Western Sahara. The UK encourages both sides to cooperate with the United Nations process to reach a mutually acceptable solution that provides for the self-determination for the people of Western Sahara.

  • Lord Moynihan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Lord Moynihan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Moynihan on 2016-06-10.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the advice by Europe Direct that providing unique reference numbers on tickets by primary and secondary market ticket sellers is not regulated under the Consumer Rights Directive, and is therefore permitted.

    Baroness Neville-Rolfe

    The Government has not made an assessment of advice by Europe Direct on this issue.

  • Stephen Doughty – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Stephen Doughty – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Doughty on 2016-09-06.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what meetings at official level her Department has had with the Department for International Trade in which her Department’s budget was discussed.

    Rory Stewart

    We hold regular meetings with colleagues across Whitehall including with the Department for International Trade.

  • Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2016-10-17.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether any approach has been made to the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority regarding the possibility of performing spindle-chromosome complex transfer in the UK; and if so, when any such approaches were made and by whom.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority has advised that no such approach has been made to the Authority.

  • Andrew Percy – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Andrew Percy – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Percy on 2016-01-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many defibrillators are provided in each building his Department manages.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    There are 15 defibrillators provided in the buildings managed by the Department for Transport.

  • Lord Laird – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    Lord Laird – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Laird on 2016-02-02.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the section of the Belfast Agreement 1998 entitled Human Rights, in the subsection Comparable Steps by the Irish Government, what is their interpretation of the meaning of the statement that that government will bring forward measures to ensure at least an equivalent level of protection of human rights as will pertain in Northern Ireland”; how that commitment is monitored; and what changes the government of the Republic of Ireland reported to them as a result of that commitment.”

    Lord Dunlop

    The Belfast Agreement commits the Irish Government to ensuring an equivalent level of protection for human rights in Ireland to that established in Northern Ireland by the Agreement. As a result of this commitment, the Irish Government established the Irish Human Rights Commission, which in November 2014 merged with the Equality Authority to form the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission. The UK and Irish Governments meet regularly both at ministerial and official level to discuss issues of mutual interest and concerns including matters relating to the implementation of the Belfast Agreement in each jurisdiction. These include matters relating to human rights in Northern Ireland and Ireland.