Tag: 2016

  • Richard Arkless – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Richard Arkless – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Arkless on 2016-03-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, who will be eligible to vote in the forthcoming EU referendum; and for what reason he plans to exclude European citizens resident in the UK from voting in that referendum.

    Mr David Lidington

    The franchise for the EU referendum was debated and agreed by both Houses during the passing of the EU Referendum Act 2015. This has now received Royal Assent and is set in law.

    The franchise for the EU referendum includes those enfranchised for UK parliamentary elections, with the addition of Members of the House of Lords and Commonwealth and Irish citizens in Gibraltar.

    Amendments during the passage of the EU Referendum Bill, seeking to include EU citizens in the franchise for the EU referendum, were considered and overwhelmingly rejected by both Houses.

  • Craig Whittaker – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Craig Whittaker – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Craig Whittaker on 2016-04-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps he is taking to work with the Football Association to raise awareness of doping issues at all levels of football.

    David Evennett

    The Football Association operates a sport-specific anti-doping education programme for players of all ages. UK Anti-Doping – the relevant Arm’s Length Body of DCMS – works closely with the Football Association on this programme.

  • Ian Blackford – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Ian Blackford – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Blackford on 2016-05-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with which other EU countries the UK has a bilateral arrangement for the payment of annual uprating of pensions that would remain in force in the event of the UK leaving the EU.

    Justin Tomlinson

    The terms of the UK’s bilateral social security agreements with EU Member States, some of which date from the 1950s, are generally superseded by EU Regulations.

    The Government’s position is that the UK will be stronger, safer and better off remaining in a reformed EU. If the result of the referendum is a decision to leave, then the Government will have two years under the Article 50 process to seek to negotiate the terms, including the payment of pensions, of the UK’s exit, with the possibility of extending this time frame with the agreement of the other 27 Member States.

  • Christina Rees – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Christina Rees – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Christina Rees on 2016-06-15.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the finding of Lord Justice Briggs in his report entitled, Civil Courts Structure: Interim Report, published in December 2015, that personal injury should be excluded from the Online Court.

    Mr Shailesh Vara

    The Government welcomes Lord Justice Briggs’s interim report on the review of civil court structures. Our courts and tribunals are antiquated and need urgent reform. We are considering the recommendations of the interim report and will also pay close attention to the content of Lord Justice Briggs’s final report. Our work to reform the courts and tribunals includes consideration of a range of innovative approaches to provide more effective access to justice. In particular we want to make better use of technology to provide simpler court processes. As part of this we will consider the extent to which technology can be used to resolve some of the most complex cases, including personal injury claims.

    Lord Justice Briggs has undertaken extensive consultation as part of his Review. In addition to this, the Government will continue to engage and consult with the judiciary, practitioners and court users on our wider programme to reform the courts and tribunals.

  • Crispin Blunt – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Crispin Blunt – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Crispin Blunt on 2016-09-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what payments his Department has made or is projected to make to Network Rail in respect of the rail network used by Govia Thameslink Railway for each financial year of the franchise period.

    Paul Maynard

    The Department for Transport does not make payments to Network Rail on a route by route basis.

  • Charlotte Leslie – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Charlotte Leslie – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Charlotte Leslie on 2016-01-18.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the financial effects of removing contributory third party funding from the Landfill Communities Fund.

    Damian Hinds

    A policy costing for the changes to the LCF announced at Autumn Statement 2015 was published in Spending Review and Autumn Statement 2015: policy costings. This document is available at:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/spending-review-and-autumn-statement-2015-documents

    “

  • Daniel Zeichner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Daniel Zeichner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Zeichner on 2016-02-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many (a) officials, (b) other staff and (c) contracted workers in his Department are working on licensing of taxi and private hire vehicles in the Buses and Taxis division.

    Andrew Jones

    There are currently (a) two officials, (b) one further official on secondment to the Department and (c) no contracted workers working on taxi and private hire vehicle policy in the Department for Transport. All work in the Buses and Taxis division. The subject forms one part of the officials’ roles. This level of staffing for work on taxis and private hire vehicles is essentially consistent with that going back to 2009/10.

  • Philip Davies – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Philip Davies – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Philip Davies on 2016-03-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what checks are made to determine whether an individual who is not a British citizen has committed any crimes in the UK on a previous occasion at the time of their entry to the UK from another EU country.

    James Brokenshire

    We take the issue of preventing criminals entering the UK extremely seriously, and we continue to strengthen our borders so that we can prevent crime and protect the public. We carry out 100% checks at passport control to identify persons of interest entering the UK. All passengers are checked against police, security and immigration watchlists and where we are aware of individuals who pose a risk, Border Force officers can – and do – refuse them entry. Checks are also carried out against the vast majority of passengers before they arrive in the UK and, where we can, we stop them from travelling in the first place.

    Those required to obtain a visa to enter the UK are also checked against a range of police, security and immigration databases for details of any UK or overseas criminal record. All applicants are required to provide details of their criminal history. Where they fail to declare relevant offences/convictions, their application will be refused and they will be subject to a ten-year ban from applying to enter the UK.

  • Emily Thornberry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Emily Thornberry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emily Thornberry on 2016-04-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, on how many occasions the chairs of the (a) Defence, (b) Foreign Affairs and (c) Intelligence and Security Committee were briefed on special forces operations in each of the last 10 years.

    Penny Mordaunt

    This Government has demonstrated its commitment to our Special Forces by announcing a £2 billion programme of investment over the course of this Parliament. All military operations, including the activities of the Special Forces, are discussed and scrutinised at the highest levels of Government, including at the National Security Council. However, as it is the longstanding policy of the Government not to comment on our Special Forces, or to release information relating to them, I cannot comment on specific questions about personnel, equipment, discussions or activities in relation to these units.

  • Mary Glindon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Wales Office

    Mary Glindon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Wales Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mary Glindon on 2016-05-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change on the Swansea Bay tidal lagoon project.

    Guto Bebb

    My office remains in close contact with the Department of Energy and Climate Change on the potential development of a tidal lagoon in Swansea Bay.

    We have announced an independent review into tidal power which will be led by industry expert Charles Hendry, who is well regarded across the energy industry and on both sides of the House.