Tag: 2016

  • Diana Johnson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Diana Johnson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Diana Johnson on 2016-07-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what her policy is on future collaboration with the EU on fish stock management; and what discussions she has had to date with the European Commission on that matter.

    George Eustice

    Exit from the EU presents us with an opportunity under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea to improve the way in which waters within the UK’s Exclusive Economic Zone are managed. Defra officials will be working with the new Department for Exiting the European Union, Devolved Administrations and stakeholders to develop proposals that will allow the UK to best take advantage of this opportunity.

    No formal discussions have taken place with the European Commission at this stage.

  • George Howarth – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    George Howarth – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by George Howarth on 2016-10-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department is taking to increase investment in decentralised renewable energy to benefit the world’s poorest people.

    James Wharton

    The UK Government is playing a leading role in improving energy access in developing countries. DFID has a range of programmes which are working with developing countries to ensure renewable energy markets work effectively as well as supporting energy businesses to grow, and providing consumers with access to funding to buy solar goods. For example, our Energy Access Ventures programme is investing in off-grid electric and we are delivering green mini-grid solutions across Africa.

    Through the UK Government’s Energy Africa campaign we are working with solar firms to help them access the finance they need to expand their businesses, create jobs and help reach millions of people in Africa without electricity access.

  • Nicholas Soames – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Nicholas Soames – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nicholas Soames on 2016-01-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, under which circumstances Southern Railway’s franchise would be withdrawn.

    Claire Perry

    Schedule 10.2 of the TSGN Franchise Agreement (https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/488198/tsgn-franchise-agreement.pdf p.506) specifies how this franchise can be terminated by the Department.

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  • Jess Phillips – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Jess Phillips – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jess Phillips on 2016-01-29.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate her Department has made of the effect on the number of school support staff of the Government’s policy to consider for deportation after five years non-EU migrants earning less than £35,000 per annum.

    Nick Gibb

    The Department does not collect data on the nationality or immigration status of the school workforce.

    This is a local matter for schools and all schools must employ members of the school workforce in accordance with employment law.

  • Stephen Doughty – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Stephen Doughty – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Doughty on 2016-02-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many social media accounts promoting extremist content were recommended for closure by her Department in each of the last 12 months; and what proportion of such content related to Daesh.

    Mr John Hayes

    We have seen an increase in the scale and pace of terrorist communications by groups like ISIL, encouraging vulnerable young people to travel to conflict zones like Syria and Iraq. This Government takes seriously the threat from online terrorist and extremist propaganda, which can directly influence people who are vulnerable to radicalisation.

    Since 2010 over 140,000 pieces of terrorist-related material have been removed by industry from various online platforms at the request of the dedicated police Counter-Terrorism Internet Referral Unit (CTIRU). Approximately 55,000 removals were made in 2015 alone. Removal requests are now at over 1,000 a week and approximately 70% of CTIRU’s caseload is Daesh related.

    We are pressing industry to take a lead in tackling the abuse of their services by terrorist and extremist groups.

  • Dan Jarvis – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    Dan Jarvis – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dan Jarvis on 2016-03-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how much funding her Department received from the European Social Fund (a) between 2007 and 2014 and (b) from 2014 to the last month for which data is available.

    Mrs Theresa Villiers

    My Department has not received any funding from the European Social Fund in either of the periods requested. Implementation of the European Social Fund in Northern Ireland is the responsibility of the Northern Ireland Executive.

  • Kevan Jones – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Kevan Jones – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevan Jones on 2016-04-22.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps his Department is taking to sustain aerospace engineering capability and capacity in the South West region.

    Anna Soubry

    We work closely with aerospace companies and their representative organisations, in particular the West of England Aerospace Forum (WEAF), in the South West through the Aerospace Growth Partnership (AGP) to tackle barriers to growth, boost exports and grow high value jobs. As part of this work we are investing heavily in the sector to support the industry’s private investment in technology, competitiveness and productivity, manufacturing capability and skills.

    The work of the AGP includes businesses of all sizes in the South West region including large players such as Airbus, Finmeccanica Helicopters, GE Aviation, GKN, Rolls-Royce, Safran Messier-Bugatti-Dowty, UTC Aerospace Systems, as well as their many medium and small sized suppliers, and other specialist aerospace businesses.

  • Lord Willoughby de Broke – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Lord Willoughby de Broke – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Willoughby de Broke on 2016-06-06.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the Rural Payments Agency expects to complete Basic Payment Scheme payments to qualifying farmers during the payments window ending in June 2016. [I]

    Lord Gardiner of Kimble

    The Rural Payments Agency continues to make the remaining top up BPS payments to those that received a bridging BPS payment and anticipates completing this work by the end of June 2016.

  • The Lord Bishop of Coventry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The Lord Bishop of Coventry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Lord Bishop of Coventry on 2016-07-20.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have made this year to the government of Saudi Arabia regarding the use of beheading and crucifixion as criminal punishments.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    The UK opposes the death penalty in all circumstances and in every country, especially for crimes other than the most serious and for juveniles, in line with the minimum standards set out in the EU Guidelines on the Death Penalty of 2008 and the provisions of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the Arab Charter on Human Rights.

    We continue to raise the cases of Ali Al-Nimr, Dawood Al-Marhoon and Adullah Al-Zaher with the Saudi authorities at the highest levels, including during the former Foreign Secretary, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond)’s most recent visit to Saudi Arabia on 29 May. We expect that Ali Al-Nimr and the two others who were convicted as juveniles will not be executed.

  • Rupa Huq – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union

    Rupa Huq – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rupa Huq on 2016-10-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, whether he plans for any trade agreement between the UK and EU to come into force after the UK leaves the EU to be undertaken alongside negotiations on the UK leaving the EU.

    Mr Robin Walker

    We are considering in detail the advantages and disadvantages of several different approaches. But we will not undermine the Government’s negotiating position by giving a running commentary on our position before negotiations have even started.

    The Prime Minister has spoken of getting a bespoke deal for the country – what we want is the right deal, on both trade for the UK and our relationship with the EU.