Tag: 2016

  • Jo Churchill – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Jo Churchill – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jo Churchill on 2016-07-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how much funding he allocated for housing regeneration in (a) Bury St Edmunds constituency, (b) Suffolk and (c) the East of England in the last five years.

    Gavin Barwell

    Government expenditure on housing regeneration over the last five years is listed by programme and by the requested geographical areas below.

    Help to Buy*

    Expenditure

    St Edmundsbury LA

    £8,078,832

    Suffolk

    £12,627,929

    East of England

    £131,886,007

    Affordable Housing Programme*

    Expenditure

    Number of homes

    St Edmundsbury LA

    £6,611,142

    331

    Suffolk

    £42,209,973

    1,924

    East of England

    £136,907,510

    7,652

    Get Britain Building, Local Infrastructure Fund, Builders Finance Fund, Build to Rent

    Expenditure

    Bury St Edmunds Parliamentary Constituency

    nil

    Suffolk

    £4,258,400

    East of England

    £81,464,427

    *This data is not aggregated by constituency, and is provided instead for the St Edmundsbury Borough Council local authority area.

  • Roger Godsiff – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Trade

    Roger Godsiff – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Trade

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2016-10-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what policies UK Export Finance has developed for investigating transactions involving foreign bribery which cannot be investigated by law enforcement authorities.

    Greg Hands

    UK Export Finance takes issues of bribery extremely seriously. It takes precautions, including by making reasonable enquiries, to avoid financial loss by becoming involved in transactions that may be tainted by corruption.

    Before providing support, it carries out anti-bribery due diligence in line with the 2006 OECD Bribery Recommendation. This informs how export credit agencies such as UK Export Finance should undertake anti-bribery due diligence.

    UK Export Finance does not have investigatory powers, but will not grant its support until it has satisfied itself from the information it has available that exports are not tainted by bribery or corruption. Where UK Export Finance suspects foreign bribery it reports it to the Serious Fraud Office.

  • Diana Johnson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Diana Johnson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Diana Johnson on 2015-12-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how many press or public relations officers are employed by (a) Ofgem, (b) the Oil and Gas Authority, (c) the Civil Nuclear Police Authority, (d) the Coal Authority, (e) the Committee on Climate Change and (f) the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority; how many of those staff earn more that (i) £50,000 and (ii) £100,000; and what the total cost is of running the press office in each of those organisations in the most recent period for which figures are available.

    Andrea Leadsom

    The most recent information for each of the bodies is:

    a) Ofgem

    Ofgem employs a small team of six press officers. The total cost of running the press office including pay, pensions and all other costswas £642,000 in the financial year April 2014 to Mar 2015.

    b) Oil and Gas Authority

    The Oil and Gas Authority has a small communications and external affairs team, currently consisting of four staff. There is no dedicated press officer.

    For 2015/16 costs for this team (including IT, staff costs & necessary subscriptions) are projected to be c£203,000.

    c) Civil Nuclear Police Authority

    The Civil Nuclear Constabularly/Civil Nuclear Police Authority employs a total of two members of staff: a Head of Engagement and Communications and one Communications Manager. It has no press or public relations officers. The only costs of running this small communications team are salary costs.

    d) Coal Authority

    There are two members of staff (one of which is part-time) working on press and public relations in the Coal Authority. The only costs of running this team is salary cost plus £7,300 establishment costs for the year.

    e) Committee on Climate Change

    There are two members of staff in the Committee on Climate Change Communications Team. The running costs of the team are salary costs plus other running costs (e.g. IT, website) of £18,934.

    f) Nuclear Decommissioning Authority

    The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority does not have a press office. Two members of staff have responsibility for media relations as a substantive part of their role: the Head of Stakeholder Communications and Corporate Communications Manager.

    Given the small size of these teams, providing the information requested on salaries would enable individual members of staff to be identified. This information has not, therefore, been provided.

  • Kevin Brennan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Kevin Brennan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevin Brennan on 2016-01-27.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what assessment he has made of differences in the ability of the Green Investment Bank to secure investment in (a) offshore wind power generation, (b) commercial and industrial waste processing and recycling, (c) energy from waste generation, (d) non-domestic energy efficiency and (e) support for the Green Deal as (i) public and (ii) private sector organisation.

    Anna Soubry

    The Green Investment Bank (GIB) contributes to UK green policy objectives by mobilising much needed private capital into green sectors, demonstrating that green investment can be profitable.

    GIB will continue to perform that role in private ownership – increasing investment and making profits from green sectors that are relatively mature but nevertheless suffer from a lack of investment.

  • Catherine West – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Catherine West – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine West on 2016-02-19.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the rate of pay is for cleaners in his Department.

    Matthew Hancock

    The pay range for directly employed London cleaning staff is £19,988 – £24,430 per annum.

    The rates of pay for cleaning staff employed by our Facilities Management contractors around the country range from £6.70 per hour to £7.62 per hour, depending on the contract.

    The pay of contracted cleaners will increase to the National Living Wage when that is introduced in April. As the living wage increases the minimum paid to cleaners will also increase.

  • Baroness Garden of Frognal – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Baroness Garden of Frognal – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Garden of Frognal on 2016-03-16.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the case for highlighting play as a key strand of the Government’s policy on parenting and life chances.

    Lord Nash

    I refer my Rt Hon. Friend to the answer given on 9 March to PQ 29736, which I have also set out below:

    The Department for Education recognises that play has an important role in supporting all young children to develop and prepare for later learning.

    Play is integral in the early years and is covered in the statutory Early Years Foundation Stage framework which states: “Play is essential for children’s development, building their confidence as they learn to explore, to think about problems, and relate to others.” The framework is attached [for your attention].

    The Government’s forthcoming Life Chances Strategy will set out a comprehensive plan to fight disadvantage and extend opportunity. Within this, we are considering how we can support early years and parenting to give children the best start in life.

  • Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-04-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 11 April 2016 to Question 32377, what proportion of local authorities will receive the Targeted Affordability Funding referred to; and whether Birmingham City Council qualifies as an area for such funding.

    Justin Tomlinson

    This information is not currently available.

    We are considering options as to how best to allocate the Targeted Affordability Funding, including the assessment of areas that will qualify.

  • Hilary Benn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Hilary Benn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2016-05-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what reports he has received on alleged serious abuses of human rights by Turkish security forces in Cizre.

    Mr Philip Hammond

    We are aware of several public reports regarding alleged events in Cizre. We agree with the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Ráad al Hussein that it is essential that authorities respect human rights at all times while undertaking security or counter-terrorism operations.

    We believe Turkey has a legitimate right to defend itself against the PKK, a terrorist organisation which has killed hundreds of innocent people in the past year. A PKK offshoot – the Kurdistan Freedom Falcons, or TAK – has also claimed responsibility for a number of recent attacks, including an indiscriminate suicide car bombing in central Ankara on 13 March that killed over 30 people. Our thoughts are with the victims of PKK attacks, and the civilians who have been caught up in the recent conflict.

    Our Ambassador to Turkey and I have discussed with the Turkish government the importance of respecting human rights and avoiding civilian casualties in the fight against terrorism. We believe the first responsibility for investigating any alleged violations falls to Turkey. And that the PKK needs to cease violence in order to create the conditions for political resolution of the difficulties in the south east.

  • Nigel Huddleston – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Nigel Huddleston – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nigel Huddleston on 2016-07-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the potential correlation between left-handedness and levels of educational attainment; and if she will make a statement.

    Nick Gibb

    The Department does not hold data on whether pupils are left-handed and therefore has not made an assessment of their levels of educational attainment.

  • Hilary Benn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union

    Hilary Benn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2016-10-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, whether it is the Government’s policy to remain part of the European Arrest Warrant.

    Mr David Jones

    I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 16 September 2016 to the Question 45271.

    We are leaving the EU but cooperation on security with our European and global allies will be maintained. We will do what is necessary to keep our people safe – our aim will be to continue cooperation where it is in the national interest to protect the public. We are about to begin these negotiations and it would be wrong to set out unilateral positions in advance.