The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Blomfield on 2016-07-11.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she plans to issue statutory guidance for identifying and supporting victims as set out in section 49 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015.
Karen Bradley
Guidance for identifying and supporting victims will be published once the National Referral Mechanism pilot has concluded. The guidance is being developed in consultation with NGOs and frontline agencies.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead on 2016-09-13.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions they have had with Kofi Annan and members of the new panel investigating the conflict in Rakhine State in Burma.
Baroness Anelay of St Johns
On 15 September, the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my Honourable Friend the Member for Reading West (Alok Sharma), spoke on the phone with Kofi Annan, Chair of the new Advisory Commission on Rakhine State. He commended Mr Annan on his appointment and expressed the UK’s support for the work of the Commission. We welcome State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi’s initiative in establishing this Commission, whose work will play an important part in providing independent advice on how to resolve intercommunal tensions in Rakhine state.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Michael Fabricant on 2016-01-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what guidance his Department has provided to Europe Direct on the information it provides to people in the UK in the period before the referendum on the UK’s membership of the EU.
Mr David Lidington
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has not provided any guidance to Europe Direct on the information it provides.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emily Thornberry on 2016-02-10.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to paragraph 4.61 of the National Security Strategy and Strategic Defence and Security Review 2015, whether civilians employed by (a) the Royal Fleet Auxiliary, (b) Defence Equipment and Support and (c) trading funds are included in his Department’s calculation of the size of the workforce he expects to cut by 30 per cent by the end of this Parliament.
Mark Lancaster
The Royal Fleet Auxiliary, Defence Equipment and Support and the Trading Funds were included in the baseline workforce calculation.
The Ministry of Defence is managing a range of change programmes designed to deliver Defence outputs more efficiently and effectively, including Army 2020 and outsourcing logistics to Leidos. A Business Improvement Review has been set up to identify opportunities to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of support activities across Defence. This Review will look at the total shape, size and structure of our civilian workforce, the functions and processes that they are engaged in, and how those can be made more efficient.
The Department expects the civilian workforce to reduce to around 41,000 by 2020. However, the timing and reductions associated with individual programmes are still to be determined and final decisions will be subject to consultation with employee representatives, value for money considerations and, where appropriate, commercial negotiation.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2016-03-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 7 March 2016 to Question 29565, in which areas the Jobcentre Plus support for schools initiative will be initially rolled out.
Priti Patel
Jobcentre Plus Support for Schools will be rolled out to 10 Jobcentre Plus Districts over the course of the current (15/16) academic year:
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Judd on 2016-04-11.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what are their plans to strengthen UK contributions of military, police and civilian personnel both in operational activities and at headquarters level of the UN.
Baroness Anelay of St Johns
The Strategic Security and Defence Review sets out the Government’s plan to: double the number of military personnel the UK contribute to UN peacekeeping operations; increase UK law enforcement and civilian experts on UN peace operations and in UN headquarters; and continue to train international peacekeepers.
We are working with the UN to finalise the new military deployments announced in September 2015 by the Prime Minister, the Rt Hon. Member for Witney (Mr Cameron). The UK will deploy up to 70 personnel to UN peacekeeping operations in Somalia, and 250-300 to the UN peacekeeping mission in South Sudan. We will continue to identify and offer policing expertise where UK skills match UN missions’ requirements, with the objective of steadily increasing the number of officers the UK deploys. We will also continue to support British candidates for senior positions in the UN, and deploy civilian staff with relevant expertise to key roles in UN missions and at UN headquarters.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by William Cash on 2016-05-18.
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what discussions she has had with (a) OFGEM and (b) the National Grid on encouraging the construction of new combined cycle gas turbine power stations.
Andrea Leadsom
Ministers and officials are in regular contact with OFGEM and National Grid including in relation to the prospects for new gas power stations.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Helen Jones on 2016-07-11.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many coroners’ reports in the last five years have cited over-prescribing by online pharmacies as a (a) cause and (b) contributory cause of death; and what action the Government has taken as a result of those reports.
Caroline Dinenage
Until 31 March 2013 the Ministry of Justice published twice yearly updates on coroners’ reports to prevent future deaths. The relevant information can be found in the links below to the four reports which cover the period 1 April 2011 to 31 March 2013:
Reports since 1 April 2013 are posted on the Chief Coroner’s website at https://www.judiciary.gov.uk/related-offices-and-bodies/office-chief-coroner/pfd-reports/
Any review of the law relating to the operation of on-line prescribing would be the responsibility of the Department of Health.
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Willis of Knaresborough on 2016-09-13.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government when they plan to make a decision about commencing recruitment of nursing students onto nursing associate programmes of study.
Lord Prior of Brampton
In May 2016, the Government confirmed proposals to introduce a new nursing support role, a nursing associate. Health Education England (HEE) are in the process of establishing test sites to educate and train the new nursing associates, which will be confirmed in the autumn. Once the test sites are confirmed with health and care employers, HEE will recruit at least 1,000 nursing associates into training by the end of 2016.
A draft Higher Degree Level Nurse Apprenticeship Standard has been submitted to the Department for Education for approval by the Nurse Apprenticeship Trailblazer Group. Trailblazer Group members are from a wide variety of health and care employers. Once the standard is approved, the Trailblazer Group will commence work on the associated assessment plan which will ensure employers and training providers are geared up to support the apprenticeship when it is ready to deliver.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Natalie McGarry on 2016-01-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the number and extent of civilian casualties incurred in the conflict in predominately Kurdish areas of Turkey.
Mr David Lidington
The ongoing violence in the predominantly Kurdish areas of south east Turkey is extremely concerning. The Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) continues to kill members of the Turkish police service and security forces in violent terrorist attacks. The Turkish Government has responded by striking PKK targets in Turkey and Northern Iraq. They have also launched large-scale security operations involving curfews in some towns and cities in order to clear them of suspected terrorists.
We are aware of reports of civilian casualties in the region, and a worsening humanitarian situation in certain areas in south east Turkey. The Turkish Government have said that 48 civilians lost their lives in clashes between 23 July and 23 December 2015. They also said that 93,000 people have fled their homes. We also understand that there have been investigations launched against elected officials and politicians. Any such investigations should be undertaken transparently and fully respect the rule of law.
We believe Turkey has a legitimate right to defend itself against the PKK, whose attacks we condemn as we condemn all terrorism. Our thoughts are with the victims of these attacks, and the civilians who have been caught up in the violence. As in any conflict, civilian casualties should be avoided and human rights need to be fully protected. We have been clear, in public and private, that PKK violence must end and we support a return to the peace process, in the interests of Turkey and the region. We stand ready to help in any way we can.
We continue to monitor the situation closely. The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge and our Ambassador to Turkey have emphasised to the Turkish government the need to respect human rights, avoid civilian casualties and return to the peace process. I raised these issues with my Turkish counterpart the last time we met in August 2015.