Tag: 2016

  • Baroness Byford – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Baroness Byford – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Byford on 2016-05-04.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government why processing claims to the Flood Recovery Fund have been delayed, and when they estimate that the processing of such claims will be completed.

    Lord Gardiner of Kimble

    The Farming Recovery Fund closed on 1 April in all areas except Greater Manchester, where it closed on 15 April. Of the total 1,103 applications received by 15 April, 515 were received in the week 28 March to 1 April and a further 18 were received by 15 April.

    The Rural Payments Agency (RPA) is taking measures to assess all the remaining applications received, including more staff resources and a review of the administrative checks required before approval. The RPA expects to process most applications by the end of May 2016.

  • John Redwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Wales Office

    John Redwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Wales Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Redwood on 2016-06-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, which EU (a) legislative and (b) other proposals his Department is leading negotiations on for the Government in the Council of the EU.

    Alun Cairns

    None.

  • Gareth Johnson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Attorney General

    Gareth Johnson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Attorney General

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gareth Johnson on 2016-09-05.

    To ask the Attorney General, how many sentences referred to the Court of Appeal under the unduly lenient sentence scheme were (a) increased and (b) kept the same in each of the last five years.

    Jeremy Wright

    The Government has committed to extending the scope of the Unduly Lenient Sentence scheme and is carefully considering its approach.

    The number of offenders who have had their sentence increased under the unduly lenient sentence scheme in each of the last five years is set out below.

    Year

    2011

    2012

    2013

    2014

    2015

    Offenders who have had their sentence increased by the Court of Appeal

    95

    62

    61

    106

    102

    Some cases attract multiple referrals from various sources and we do not record how many referrals each case has received. The total number of cases where requests were received by the Attorney General’s Office for sentences to be reviewed in each of the last five years is set out below.

    Year

    2011

    2012

    2013

    2014

    2015

    Total number of referrals received by the Attorney General’s Office for sentences to be reviewed under the scheme

    377

    435

    498

    674

    713

    The number of sentences referred to the Court of Appeal under the unduly lenient sentence scheme that were (a) increased and (b) kept the same in each of the last five years is set out below.

    Year

    2011

    2012

    2013

    2014

    2015

    Total number of sentences referred to the Court of Appeal

    117

    82

    70

    122

    136

    Total number of sentences that were increased

    95

    62

    61

    106

    102

    Total number of sentences that remained unchanged

    22

    20

    9

    16

    34

    The number of referrals under the unduly lenient sentence scheme that have been rejected due to falling outside the remit of the scheme in each of the last five years is set out below.

    Year

    2011

    2012

    2013

    2014

    2015

    Number of referrals that have been rejected due to the offence falling outside the remit of the scheme

    62

    75

    131

    194

    228

    Number of referrals received out of time

    3

    12

    9

    10

    16

  • Patrick Grady – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Patrick Grady – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Patrick Grady on 2016-10-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will issue a response to Early Day Motion 448, on Death of political prisoners in Iran in 1988, tabled on 13 September 2016.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    I refer the hon. Member to my answer of 17 October 2016 (PQs 47087, 47085 and 47084).

  • Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-01-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department is taking to support global efforts against neglected tropical diseases.

    Mr Nick Hurd

    DFID is a global leader on Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs). At the high profile London Declaration on NTDs in 2012 the UK brought together the International Community including Leading pharmaceutical companies. We are meeting our commitments including spending £195m on NTDs through multi-year programmes and as a result of the London Declaration pharmaceutical companies have pledged drugs valued at US$17.8 billion from 2014 to 2020. We support programmes that tackle a range of NTDs including schistosomiasis (bilharzia), blinding trachoma, lymphatic filariasis (elephantiasis), onchocerciasis (river blindness) and visceral leishmaniasis. Eradication of Guinea worm disease is in sight and the UK has played a key role in this, supporting the work of the Carter Center and the World Health Organisation.

    DFID support research through a range of initiatives which include the development of new treatment and diagnostic products, as well as implementation research

  • David Simpson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    David Simpson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Simpson on 2016-02-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the cost to the public purse was of the campaign to encourage (a) young people and (b) first-year university students to take up the Men ACWY vaccine.

    Jane Ellison

    The total marketing budget for the campaign to encourage the uptake of the Men ACWY vaccine was £99,000.

    The paid-for activities formed part of an integrated communications and marketing approach which involved Public Health England working closely with NHS England, meningitis charities and Universities UK. National, regional, online and specialist print and broadcast media coverage of the vaccination campaign was secured at no cost. The vaccination programme was also promoted through university networks at national and regional/local level.

  • George Kerevan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    George Kerevan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by George Kerevan on 2016-03-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the effect of the 2003 Memorandum of Understanding between Cyprus and the UK on implementation of the Protocol on the Sovereign Base of Akrotiri and Dhekelia in Cyprus in so far as it concerns illegal migrants and asylum seekers on where responsibility for refugees who enter those bases rests.

    Penny Mordaunt

    No assessments have been made.

    Under the 2003 Memorandum of Understanding, Republic of Cyprus asylum officials assess asylum claims of migrants arriving directly into the Sovereign Base Areas. If they are granted asylum, they will have the same rights as those granted refugee status in the Republic of Cyprus. These collaborative arrangements between the UK and the Republic of Cyprus on the handling and processing of the migrants are being applied to those who arrived in the Sovereign Base Areas in October 2015 and the process is working well.

  • Robert Syms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Robert Syms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Robert Syms on 2016-03-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the potential reduction in revenue to the public purse resulting from the EU Tobacco Products Directive.

    Jane Ellison

    The Department assesses the impact of all proposed measures before laying legislation using standard government methodology. These assessments are set out in Impact Assessments which are scrutinised by the Regulatory Policy Committee before publication alongside the Statutory Instrument. Impact Assessments include a thorough analysis of the costs, benefits and risks associated with policy options.

    A number of the tobacco measures contain commitments to further review the impact of the legislation within five years of them coming into force.

  • Graham Allen – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Graham Allen – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Graham Allen on 2016-05-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of the proposed increase in charges for NHS dentistry on people’s ability and inclination to visit a dentist regularly.

    Alistair Burt

    In considering the possible impact on patients of the increased charges for 2016/17 and for 2017/18, we concluded that the existing exemptions and Low Income Scheme will protect the most vulnerable, ensuring there should be no significant impact on an individual’s inclination to visit the dentist.

  • Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer on 2016-06-20.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many postgraduates enrolled at UK universities and colleges are specialising in soil science.

    Baroness Evans of Bowes Park

    Information on enrolments at UK Higher Education Institutions are collected and published by the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA). The latest data for the 2014/15 academic year suggests there were about 40 full-person equivalent postgraduate students enrolled in soil science across three UK universities and colleges; these are the University of Aberdeen, University of Nottingham and the University of Reading. Of these, about 15 full-person equivalents were masters students studying at the University of Aberdeen.

    Soil science has a Joint Academic Coding System (JACS) code of F770. This is a detailed level code and some universities may occasionally allocate students to more general codes.