Tag: 2016

  • Damian Collins – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Damian Collins – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Damian Collins on 2016-01-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will publish advice received by his Department from Highways England on the sites considered for providing off-road lorry parking to address Operation Stack on the M20 in Kent; and what the reasons were for rejecting sites not included in the current consultation.

    Andrew Jones

    Taking account of past studies and the work of the European Gateway Group, Highways England and local partners drew up a number of criteria for a proposed lorry park. Based on these criteria, a range of sites were considered, and two viable sites were identified.

    The current public consultation describes these two potential sites and invites suggestions as to other sites that may be suitable. Following the consultation, Highways England will assess all sites suggested and report on their suitability for an off road lorry area.

  • Alex Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Alex Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2016-02-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many children and women were seriously injured by a perpetrator of domestic violence after a Family Court decision to allow child access for a perpetrator of that crime in each of the last five years.

    Mike Penning

    Every family court has a system to support vulnerable court users. Protective measures are put in place whenever a court is aware that an individual involved in a case may be violent. These can include separate waiting areas, additional security and the use of separate entrances where appropriate.

    Information on the number of children or women injured by a perpetrator of domestic violence after a Family Court decision relating to child contact is not held centrally and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost by manually checking case files in criminal and family courts and matching records.

    The family court takes the issue of domestic violence extremely seriously. Where domestic violence or abuse is admitted or proven, any child arrangements order put in place must protect the safety and wellbeing of the child and the parent with whom the child is living, and not expose them to the risk of further harm. In particular, the court must be satisfied that any contact ordered with a parent who has perpetrated violence or abuse is safe and in the best interests of the child.

    Where the court does conclude that direct contact is safe and beneficial for the child, it can impose conditions such as supervised contact to protect the child.

  • Martyn Day – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Martyn Day – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Martyn Day on 2016-03-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how the Government plans to use its position on the UN Security Council to help facilitate diplomatic negotiations on protecting civilians in Burundi; and if the Government will negotiate for a UN police peacekeeping mission with a Chapter VII mandate.

    James Duddridge

    The UK has been at the forefront of UN Security Council efforts to seek an end to violence in Burundi in order to protect civilians. Under the UK’s Presidency, the Security Council passed Resolution 2248 in November 2015, which among other things authorised the Secretary General to send a mission to Burundi to help create conditions for dialogue. Dialogue is crucial to securing a peaceful and stable outcome to the current crisis. During my visit to Burundi in December 2015 I used meetings with Burundian Foreign Minister Alain Nyamitwe, and Major General Prime Niyongabo, Army Chief of Staff, to press the Government of Burundi to engage in inclusive dialogue without preconditions. At the African Union (AU) Summit in January, I also discussed the situation in Burundi with AU Chairperson Madame Zuma, AU Peace and Security Commissioner Chergui and Burundian Foreign Minister Nyamitwe. The UK also made these points as part of a Security Council visit to Burundi in January this year. We have urged the Burundian government to accept an international peacekeeping deployment, which would render a Chapter VII mission unnecessary.

  • Douglas Carswell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Douglas Carswell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Carswell on 2016-03-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many Army Air Corps pilots have resigned due to his Department’s plans to recover over-payment of flying pay; how many of those pilots (a) are currently serving and (b) have retired; what assessment he has made of the effect on (i) staffing levels and (ii) the effectiveness of that corps; whether any of those pilots affected have been subject to disciplinary proceedings due to non-repayment of such over-payments; what the value is of such over payments; over what period such over-payments relate to; and if he will make it his policy to not recover such over-payments.

    Mark Lancaster

    I refer the hon. Member to the response given by my noble Friend, the Minister of State for Defence, the Rt Hon. Earl Howe, to the noble Lord, the Rt Hon. the Lord Trefgarne, in the House of Lords (Official Report, column 2379). In addition to this I can confirm that an overpayment of recruitment and retention pay amounting to £829,000 in total was made to 146 Army aircrew personnel over a number of years. Of the 146 personnel affected, 97 are still serving. We have apologised and explained the circumstances of the overpayments to all affected. Each individual has the opportunity to object, appeal, and if necessary submit a Service Complaint against recovery action receiving individual and tailored advice as required. Since notification of the recovery action, the Army Air Corps is not aware of any resignations as a direct result. The error was caused by differing interpretations and use of the Recruitment and Retention Pay (Flying) policy across the Army Air Corps. As such there are no disciplinary issues associated with the overpayment.

    Although there are manning pressures within the Army Air Corps they are able to meet all current commitments. In recognition of these pressures a Financial Retention Incentive was introduced in 2015 and 81% of the eligible personnel have taken up this offer resulting in a stabilisation of Army Air Corps pilot manning levels.

    In accordance with HM Treasury Policy and Guidance, pay has been reverted to the correct levels and recovery action has now begun. This guidance requires that efforts are made to recover incorrect payments in all cases across the public sector. I am satisfied that this is the correct approach to take under these circumstances and reflects the previous recovery of overpayments within the Armed Forces.

  • Baroness McIntosh of Pickering – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Baroness McIntosh of Pickering – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness McIntosh of Pickering on 2016-05-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the possible impact on the local economy and the environment of hydraulic fracturing in Ryedale, and what were the results of the economic impact assessment carried out on that proposed development.

    Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth

    A planning application for the extraction of shale gas in Ryedale is currently under consideration by North Yorkshire County Council. It would not be appropriate for the Government to comment on the specifics of any proposal. It will be for the Council to take into account the impacts of the proposed development on the local economy and the environment as relevant in its determination of that application.

    The Government continues to support the development of the shale industry in the UK. It has the potential to power economic growth, create tens of thousands of jobs and provide a new domestic energy source, making us less reliant on imports from abroad.

  • Lord Rennard – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Lord Rennard – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Rennard on 2016-06-15.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government when they expect to ratify the WHO protocol on the illicit trade in tobacco.

    Lord O’Neill of Gatley

    The Government is fully committed to implementation and ratification of the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control Illicit Trade Protocol. The majority of the requirements of the Protocol are already in place in the UK. HM Revenue and Customs has recently consulted on the implementation of Article 6 of the Protocol, which includes the requirement to license tobacco manufacturing machinery. The Government will ratify the Protocol once we are satisfied that the legislation is in place to meet this requirement.

  • Lord Stoddart of Swindon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Lord Stoddart of Swindon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Stoddart of Swindon on 2016-09-12.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the cost to date of keeping Peter Sutcliffe at Broadmoor Hospital, and what is the projected annual cost of keeping him at a category A high security prison.

    Lord Keen of Elie

    Decisions over whether prisoners are to be sent back to prison from secure hospitals are based on clinical assessments made by independent medical staff.

    The Department for Health advise that information quantifying the costs to date of treating Peter Sutcliffe (now known as Peter Coonan) at Broadmoor Hospital between 1984 and 2016 is not available and would vary throughout the period of detention according to the care and interventions provided to meet his clinical needs and security requirements.

    The annual cost in 2014/15 of keeping a prisoner in a High Security prison was £57,000. This information can be found in the attachment.

  • Richard Burden – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Richard Burden – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-10-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many meetings (a) Ministers of her Department and (b) officials of HM Prison Service have had with drone manufacturers in each quarter of each of the last five years; and if she will make a statement.

    Mr Sam Gyimah

    Details of all ministerial meetings with external companies are published on gov.uk. Information on officials’ meetings is not held centrally.

    We remain vigilant to all incidents involving drones and take the threat they pose to prison security very seriously. We have already introduced new legislation to further strengthen our powers, so that anyone found using a drone in an attempt to get contraband into prisons can be punished with a sentence of up to two years imprisonment. We take a zero tolerance approach to smuggling of contraband into prisons and work closely with the police and Crown Prosecution Service to ensure those caught are prosecuted.

    A range of methods to counter the threat posed by drones are continuously being trialled and evaluated for their effectiveness across the prison estate.

  • Chris Stephens – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Chris Stephens – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Stephens on 2016-01-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proportion of staff working in his Department are employees on fixed-term contracts.

    Justin Tomlinson

    There are 2,006 employees on fixed term contracts out of a workforce of 84,429, which equates to 2.4%.

  • Frank Field – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Frank Field – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2016-02-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will estimate the likely change in the number of (a) children and (b) working-age adults who will be in households with net equivalised income below 60 per cent of the median (i) before and (ii) after housing costs, not including the effect of transitional protection for claimants migrated onto universal credit, in 2020-21 as a result of changes to universal credit work allowance announced in the Summer Budget 2015.

    Priti Patel

    The impact of the work allowance change cannot be considered in isolation – it is part of a broader package of measures announced at the Summer Budget which were updated for the Autumn Statement. This included the increase to the personal tax allowance and introduction of the national living wage. Taken together, these reforms are designed to support people into employment and then enable them to progress in work and generate more income for themselves.

    Universal Credit is a key element of these reforms. It is designed to ensure that work always pays. The single taper rate means people have a clear incentive to work, and to work more.