Tag: 2016

  • Alex Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Alex Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2016-01-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what criteria were applied when determining the boundaries of blocks offered in the 14th Onshore Oil and Gas Licensing Round by the Oil and Gas Authority.

    Andrea Leadsom

    The boundaries of those blocks offered in the 14th Onshore Oil and Gas Licensing Round mirrored those covered by the Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) assessment carried out prior to the launch of the 14th Round. The area of the SEA was determined by the areas with most potential for hydrocarbons in Great Britain.

  • Jonathan Ashworth – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Jonathan Ashworth – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jonathan Ashworth on 2016-02-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many meetings he has held with UK Trade and Investment trade envoys since May 2015.

    Anna Soubry

    My Rt hon Friend the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills hosted a roundtable alongside my noble Friend Lord Maude of Horsham at the House of Lords for all Trade Envoys on 9th February 2016. To the best of our knowledge, my Rt hon Friend the Secretary of State has not held individual meetings with any of the Trade Envoys.

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

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

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Gethins on 2016-03-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Answer of 21 March 2016 to Question 31131, for what reason the amount of financial assistance her Department has provided to UNOCHA for its work in Libya since 1 April 2015 was not supplied in that Answer.

    Mr Desmond Swayne

    DFID has provided £19,867 to support UNOCHA for its work in Libya since 1 April 2015. This was to provide surge support for coordination to UNOCHA during the production of the Humanitarian Response Plan. The secondment came to a close unexpectedly early. Following a decision by OCHA not to replace the coordinator, we have used some of the remaining funds to second an Emergency Health Sector Coordinator within WHO since November 2015 at a cost of £34,614 in response to priority needs. In addition, we are currently brokering a further surge secondment to OCHA and at this point in time the costs are not finalised.

  • Viscount Waverley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Viscount Waverley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Viscount Waverley on 2016-04-21.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what mechanisms the Department for International Development has in place to monitor the quality and real developmental impact of their aid programmes.

    Baroness Verma

    DFID has rigorous programme and financial management procedures and systems in place. This government has significantly strengthened these procedures and systems, placing a strong emphasis on ensuring programmes are high quality and deliver value for money and real development impact. Each DFID project is rigorously appraised before approval to establish value for money. During implementation, projects are measured against a robust monitoring framework through mandatory annual reviews to ensure they remain cost effective and are delivering expected outputs, outcomes and development impact. The results of these annual reviews are scored by the managing team and are then monitored through regular management information reports to management and Ministers. We take decisions to exit underperforming programmes and redirect resources into those that deliver poverty reduction and value for money for taxpayers.

    DFID is also committed to generating high quality evidence through independent evaluations which look in detail at the impact that our interventions are having and what lessons can be learnt for the future. In addition the Independent Commission for Aid Impact assesses the effectiveness of DFID’s programming.

  • Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Haigh on 2016-06-06.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how much was spent on non-payroll staff in her Department in 2015-16.

    Andrea Leadsom

    The Department is in the process of finalising its Annual Report and Accounts – the information will be available in public domain in due course.

  • Danny Kinahan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    Danny Kinahan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Danny Kinahan on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what discussions he has had on maintaining the level of funding for disabled people in Northern Ireland when support for such people from the European Social Fund ceases.

    Kris Hopkins

    My Rt hon Friend the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland has regular discussions with colleagues on a range of issues regarding the UK’s exit from the European Union.

    The Chancellor of the Exchequer confirmed on 13 August that European Structural and Investment Funds (ESIFs) projects signed before the Autumn Statement will be fully funded, even when these projects continue beyond the UK’s departure from the EU.

    For projects signed after the Autumn Statement, the Government will work with the devolved administrations on funding arrangements to allow them to prioritise projects within their devolved responsibilities. As we transition to longer-term arrangements, we will ensure the devolved administrations are treated fairly and that their circumstances are taken into account.

  • Lord Ouseley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Lord Ouseley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

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

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Chisholm of Owlpen on 16 September (HL1556), how many young people participated in the National Citizen Service programmes during (1) 2014, and (2) 2015; how those participants were recruited; and how much expenditure was incurred in each year.

    Lord Ashton of Hyde

    In 2014, 57,789 young people took part in NCS throughout England. The number of young people who took part in the programme in 2015 will be released as part of the independent evaluation of the 2015 programme in due course.

    Information on annual NCS expenditure can be found in the published NCS Trust accounts, which are available online through Companies House.

    All recruitment is the responsibility of the NCS Trust, the independent organisation which delivers NCS. Recruitment is carried out through the NCS supply chain which includes more than 200 delivery organisations. NCS recruitment primarily takes place in schools, but young people can also sign up through the NCS website.

    A range of other local channels support NCS recruitment, including partnerships with local authorities, youth groups, community and voluntary organisations, as well as NCS graduates.

  • Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Haigh on 2016-01-11.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the Autumn Statement and Summer Budget 2015, paragraph 2.172, what estimate he has made of the rent that the Cabinet Office will need to pay to the Government Property Unit for its own buildings.

    Matthew Hancock

    The Government Property Unit is working with departments to agree a detailed timeline for the transfer of assets and on the detail of implementation, including the finance and charging regime.

  • 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 2016-01-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of whether the 119 Saudi-led coalition sorties documented in the Final Report of the UN Panel of Experts in Yemen represent potential violations of international humanitarian law.

    Mr Philip Hammond

    We take all allegations of International Humanitarian Law (IHL) violations very seriously. The MOD monitors incidents of alleged IHL violations using available information which in turn informs our overall assessment of IHL compliance in Yemen. This includes looking at the allegations raised in the UN Panel of Experts’ report. Looking at the information available to us, we have assessed that there has not been a breach of IHL by the coalition, but continue to monitor the situation closely, seeking further information where appropriate.

  • Paul Blomfield – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Paul Blomfield – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Blomfield on 2016-02-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, whether employers named and shamed by his Department on 5 February 2016 for non-payment of the national minimum wage and found to be owing arrears to a select number of employees subsequently had their whole workforce investigated by HM Revenue and Customs to ascertain if the same practice applied to all other workers employed.

    Nick Boles

    HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) fully investigate all worker complaints and where they identify arrears of pay, issue a Notice of Underpayment to recover arrears for the complainant. Since 2015, HMRC have also instructed the employer to "self-correct" for all other workers and report the details to HMRC. An assurance process is in place to make sure employers have fully self-corrected. If they do not, and HMRC believes other workers are likely to have been underpaid, the employer will be investigated again.

    HMRC are unable to provide an exact figure for how many of the 92 employers have been investigated beyond the original complaint. The information is not readily available and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.