Tag: 2016

  • Lilian Greenwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Lilian Greenwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lilian Greenwood on 2016-04-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many (a) male and (b) female employees (i) his Department, (ii) Network Rail, (iii) Highways England, (iv) HS2 Ltd, (v) the Office of Rail and Road, (vi) the DVLA, (vii) the Drive Vehicle Standards Agency and (viii) the VCA has.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    The numbers of male and female employees as at 31st March 2016 are as follows:

    (a)

    (b)

    Organisation

    Male

    Female

    I. DfT(c)

    1,267

    798

    II. Network Rail

    31,658

    5,696

    III. Highways England

    2,574

    1,297

    IV. HS2 Ltd

    446

    307

    V. Office of Rail and Road

    192

    120

    VI. Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA)

    2,403

    3,803

    VII. Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA)

    3,199

    1,305

    VIII. Vehicle Certification Agency (VCA)

    114

    42

  • Baroness Royall of Blaisdon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Baroness Royall of Blaisdon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Royall of Blaisdon on 2016-05-25.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions they have had regarding the creation of a legal status for those participating in full-time, long-term volunteering programmes, such as those run by City Year UK, vInspired and Volunteering Matters, under the proposed National Citizen Service Bill.

    Lord Bridges of Headley

    The National Citizen Service Bill will place the NCS programme on permanent statutory footing. It is estimated that NCS participants have dedicated over 8 million hours of volunteering to their local communities to date. Other opportunities for young people to participate in social action, such as those run by City Year UK, vInspired and Volunteering Matters, have contributed to the success of NCS and made sure that young people have opportunities to develop new skills that extend and transform their life chances. The government is committed to increasing volunteering and social action, and to providing support for different opportunities and programmes that encourage volunteering.

  • Simon Hoare – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Simon Hoare – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Simon Hoare on 2016-07-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what representations his Department has received on the references to dairy products in the revised Eatwell Guide.

    Nicola Blackwood

    Following the publication of the Eatwell Guide, representations about dairy contribution towards the diet have been received from the Farmers’ Union of Wales, Dairy UK and the Agricultural and Horticultural Development Board.

    Government continues to encourage the consumption of dairy products as part of a healthy, balanced diet and acknowledges their role as an important source of a range of nutrients.

  • Poulter – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Poulter – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Poulter on 2016-10-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what plans his Department has for the future of Wattisham Airbase.

    Harriett Baldwin

    The estate optimisation strategy aims to provide a more efficient and better quality Defence estate to support our Armed Forces, which will be fit for purpose for future generations.

    This long-term, detailed work seeks to identify a rationalised Defence estate which more appropriately meets the needs of our Armed Forces by being of better quality, more cost effective and more efficient, as well as 30% smaller overall, by 2040.

    No decision about the future of individual sites has been made at this point, other than those that have been previously announced

  • Kerry McCarthy – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Kerry McCarthy – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kerry McCarthy on 2015-12-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the process and timetable is for the European Food Safety Agency’s review of its restrictions on the use of neonicotinoids; and what representations the UK has made on that review.

    George Eustice

    The European Food Safety Agency (EFSA) recently completed the data collection phase of its review of restrictions on the use of neonicotinoids. EFSA has now been mandated by the Commission to deliver its conclusions by October 2016. The UK will contribute fully as it progresses. This is an important opportunity to produce an up-to-date assessment of this issue.

    In the UK, the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology are undertaking comprehensive field trials which will help inform the review

  • Tulip Siddiq – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Tulip Siddiq – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tulip Siddiq on 2016-01-27.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what representations his Department has received on the protection of hedgehogs in Regent’s Park from trucks using the London Zoo car park for the construction of High Speed 2.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    12 petitions to the 3rd additional provision to the Phase One hybrid Bill were received that included concerns regarding the impact on the hedgehog population in Regent’s Park of the proposed lorry holding area in the London Zoo car park. Additionally, one of the responses to the AP3 Environmental Statement Consultation raised concerns about the hedgehog population in the Regents Park area. As part of the ongoing engagement with the Zoological Society of London, HS2 Ltd are considering locations for replacement habitats to mitigate the impact on the hedgehog population.

  • 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.

  • Margaret Ritchie – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Margaret Ritchie – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Margaret Ritchie on 2016-03-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what plans he has to consult on proposals to repeal the Human Rights Act 1998.

    Dominic Raab

    We will bring forward proposals for a Bill of Rights, which will replace the Human Rights Act. Our Bill will protect fundamental human rights, but also prevent their abuse and restore some common sense to the system. We will fully consult on our proposals before introducing legislation and will publish our proposals in due course.

  • James Morris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    James Morris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by James Morris on 2016-04-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans the Government has to support the most vulnerable children and families.

    Edward Timpson

    It is a fundamental priority for this Government to keep children safe from harm and improve their life chances. We are reforming children’s social care, putting practice excellence and achieving more for children at its heart. We have made significant progress, reducing bureaucracy and recently announced a further £200m to support innovative new ways of working that focus on the needs of children and families.

  • Karl Turner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Attorney General

    Karl Turner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Attorney General

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Karl Turner on 2016-05-25.

    To ask the Attorney General, how many (a) prosecutions and (b) convictions there have been for each category of hate crime since 2010.

    Robert Buckland

    The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) maintains a central record of the number of prosecutions flagged as hate crimes. Hate crimes comprise offences motivated by hostility or prejudice to a person’s race or perceived race, religion or perceived religion, sexual orientation or perceived sexual orientation, disability or perceived disability and transgender identity or perceived transgender identity. These data are accurate only to the extent that the flag has been correctly applied.

    The tables below show the number and proportion of convictions and overall prosecutions, by each category of hate crime, during each of the last five available years:

    TOTAL HATE CRIME PROSECUTIONS

    Convictions

    Total

    2010-11

    12,651

    82.8%

    15,284

    2011-12

    11,843

    83.4%

    14,196

    2012-13

    10,794

    82.6%

    13,070

    2013-14

    11,915

    84.7%

    14,074

    2014-15

    12,220

    82.9%

    14,738

    RACIAL HATE CRIME PROSECUTIONS

    Convictions

    Total

    2010-11

    10,566

    83.1%

    12,711

    2011-12

    9,933

    84.4%

    11,774

    2012-13

    9,107

    83.3%

    10,935

    2013-14

    10,069

    85.2%

    11,818

    2014-15

    10,123

    83.5%

    12,130

    RELIGIOUS HATE CRIME PROSECUTIONS

    Convictions

    Total

    2010-11

    472

    83.4%

    566

    2011-12

    479

    80.8%

    593

    2012-13

    308

    77.2%

    399

    2013-14

    463

    84.2%

    550

    2014-15

    557

    83.8%

    665

    HOMOPHOBIC & TRANSPHOBIC HATE CRIME PROSECUTIONS (1)

    Convictions

    Total

    2010-11

    1,034

    80.7%

    1,281

    2011-12

    951

    78.7%

    1,208

    2012-13

    885

    80.7%

    1,096

    2013-14

    913

    80.7%

    1,132

    2014-15

    1,037

    81.2%

    1,277

    (1) A separate flag for Transphobic crime was introduced in December 2012 following the amendment to the Criminal Justice Act 2003.

    DISABILITY HATE CRIME PROSECUTIONS

    Convictions

    Total

    2010-11

    579

    79.8%

    726

    2011-12

    480

    77.3%

    621

    2012-13

    494

    77.2%

    640

    2013-14

    470

    81.9%

    574

    2014-15

    503

    75.5%

    666

    Data Source: CPS Management Information System