Tag: 2016

  • Lord Storey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Lord Storey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Storey on 2016-05-25.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what are the health and safety requirements for operators of rickshaws.

    Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

    In England and Wales, excluding London, rickshaws (in the form of pedal-powered vehicles for carrying passengers, often also referred to as pedicabs) are regulated as taxis. They are therefore required to meet a local licensing authority’s taxi licensing conditions and any applicable byelaws. Under the different legislation that applies to London, they fall outside the scope of taxi regulation. The police have some limited powers to address inappropriate behaviour such as obstructing footways or driving in a reckless manner. The Government has recently announced its intention to introduce legislation to enable Transport for London to regulate pedicabs in London.

  • Nia Griffith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Nia Griffith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nia Griffith on 2016-07-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to promote human rights in West Papua.

    Alok Sharma

    We follow the situation in the province of West Papua with close interest, whilst respecting the territorial integrity of Indonesia. The British Ambassador to Indonesia has visited West Papua a number of times to raise our concerns on this issue with members of the police, religious and community leaders.

  • Helen Hayes – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Helen Hayes – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

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

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether the Government has access to radar data covering Aleppo on 27 April 2016 that might identify the type, the origin and identity of aircraft present when al-Quds Hospital in the Sukari neighbourhood of Aleppo was attacked.

    Mike Penning

    I am withholding the information as its disclosure would, or would be likely to prejudice the capability, effectiveness or security of the Armed Forces.

    However, indiscriminate attacks which fail to distinguish between civilians and legitimate military targets would be a violation of International Humanitarian Law and we welcome the UN’s recent decision to establish an Internal Board of Inquiry into the attack on a UN aid convoy on 19 September.

  • Mary Creagh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Mary Creagh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mary Creagh on 2015-12-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what organisations provide Flood Defence Partnership Funding; and how much each such organisation has invested.

    Rory Stewart

    We are investing £2.3 billion in 1,500 flood defence improvement schemes over the next six years – which is a record capital settlement for government. This will provide better protection to at least 300,000 households.

    In addition to this, we have identified £600 million of additional partnership funding. Six months into a six-year programme, £250 million has been secured and potential funding contributions to cover the remaining £350 million have been identified.

    Of the £250 million secured contributions, £61 million comes from the private sector and £189 million comes from Local Authorities, Local Enterprise Partnerships and other public bodies.

  • Nusrat Ghani – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Nusrat Ghani – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nusrat Ghani on 2016-01-27.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what proportion of the revenue raised by Southern Rail in the last five years was passed back to GTR by his Department.

    Claire Perry

    Under the terms of its Franchise Agreement, Southern Railway Limited retained all of its revenue. The services operated by Southern Railway Limited were combined into a new franchise, the Govia Thameslink Railway franchise, on 26 July 2015 when the previous franchise ended.

    No Southern Railway revenue has been passed back to GTR by the Department for Transport.

  • Kate Hoey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Kate Hoey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kate Hoey on 2016-02-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many and what proportion of members in Northern Ireland of each trade union opted to pay the political levy; and which of those trade unions’ headquarters are in (a) Great Britain and (b) Northern Ireland.

    Nick Boles

    The latest Annual Report of the Certification Officer shows that 4,954,606 union members in Great Britain paid the political levy in the period 2013-2014. This represents 70.67% of the total number of individuals who were union members in the same period.[1]

    Employment law is a devolved matter in Northern Ireland and I am not able to respond to the questions relating to Northern Ireland.

    [1] Political Funds of Trade Unions, 2013-2014, Annual Report 2015/2016 of the Certification Officer, page 68-69, available at https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/449387/CO_Annual_Report__2014-2015_.pdf

    “

  • Paul Blomfield – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Paul Blomfield – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Blomfield on 2016-03-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many claims for underpayment of the national minimum wage have been brought before employment tribunals since 1 July 2015; and how many such claims referred to underpayment of the national minimum wage for a period of more than (a) two and (b) six years.

    Andrew Selous

    The number of National Minimum Wage claims accepted by the Employment Tribunal in each of the last five years, including those accepted by the Tribunal since 1 July 2015, are published in the Tribunal and Gender Recognition Certificate Statistics Quarterly. The number of successful National Minimum Wage claims are also published in the quarterly statistics. The most recent report, for the period October to December 2015, published on 10 March 2016, can be viewed at:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/tribunal-and-gender-recognition-statistics-quarterly-october-to-december-2015

    The Tribunal only records and publishes awards made to claimants in discrimination cases. The amount awarded in National Minimum Wage claims in each of the last five years can only be obtained at a disproportionate cost.

    Information relating to the period of time an Employment Tribunal claim refers to underpayment of the National Minimum Wage for a period of more than (a) two and (b) six years is not recorded by the Tribunal and can only be obtained at a disproportionate cost.

    “

  • David Warburton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    David Warburton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Warburton on 2016-04-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans her Department has to meet demand for school places in Somerton and Frome constituency.

    Mr Sam Gyimah

    Supporting local authorities to ensure sufficient school places continues to be one of the Government’s top priorities. That is why we have committed to spending £7 billion on school places up to 2021, which, along with our investment in the free schools programme, we expect to deliver 600,000 new places. Somerset received £14.6 million of basic need funding between 2011 and 2015, which helped to create almost 3,000 new places between 2010 and 2015. It has also been allocated a further £24.5 million to create the places needed by 2019.

  • Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2016-05-25.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether any vessels of the Royal Navy fleet have been built or serviced at the Nauta shipyard in Poland; and whether the Government is aware of the use of North Korean labour at that shipyard.

    Earl Howe

    I can confirm that no Royal Navy vessels have been built or serviced at the Nauta shipyard in Poland. We are aware of reports, however, that North Korean labour has been used at the shipyard.

  • Justin Tomlinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Justin Tomlinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Justin Tomlinson on 2016-07-21.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that people with type 1 diabetes are not disproportionately affected by the introduction of the soft drinks industry levy.

    Jane Ellison

    There will continue to be a range of drinks containing natural sugars which will not be subject to the Soft Drinks Industry Levy. These include fruit juices and smoothies. The NHS recommends drinking pure fruit juice as a way to combat low sugar levels that can affect type 1 diabetics.

    On 18th August, the Government published a consultation on the Soft Drinks Industry Levy and we will carefully consider all the points raised.