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Tag: 2016

  • Lord Hylton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Hylton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2016-02-22.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have made to the government of France about their plans for the refugee camp at Calais, known as The Jungle; in particular (1) whether the site will be forcibly reduced to 500 women and children in the Jules Ferry Centre, and 1500 others in container units; (2) what facilities for cooking and education there will be for the latter; and (3) what is to happen to current residents who are not willing to move to the semi-permanent units or to go to centres d’accueil.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    The management of the migrant camp in Calais is the responsibility of the French government. The French authorities plan to reduce the size of the Calais camp and improve humanitarian conditions, and are encouraging migrants to move into the heated containers or to one of the reflection centres (centres d’accueil) across France. We do not have details of how many people will remain at the site nor further information of the facilities in the camp. We have however cooperated closely with the French in their efforts to improve conditions in Calais by: providing support and facilities elsewhere in the country; carrying out joint visits to the camps to inform migrants about their rights and responsibilities; putting in place a joint programme to identify the most vulnerable migrants and moving them to a place of safety; increasing the number of places in the French asylum system and encouraging those in Calais to claim asylum. Migration issues were discussed at the UK-France Summit on 3 March. The summit communiqué provides details of the further cooperation agreed.

  • Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2016-03-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 8 March 2016 to Question 29762, on universal credit, how long it took to complete the reset.

    Priti Patel

    The Universal Credit Programme Reset was carried out from February 2013 to May 2013. This provided sufficient levels of confidence to the Major Projects Authority on plans for delivery, affordability and value for money.

  • 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 2016-04-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what process his Department will adopt for evaluating responses received to the consultation on proposals to move all policy roles to the 1 Victoria Street office in London and close the St Paul’s Place office in Sheffield.

    Joseph Johnson

    The BIS Executive Board will take account of all consultation responses from the Departmental Trades Unions and staff when they decide whether to proceed with proposals to move policy roles to London and to close the Sheffield office.

  • Lord Beecham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Lord Beecham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Beecham on 2016-05-23.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether VAT paid by EU migrants is included in the recently announced figures of taxes paid by EU migrants, and if not what is the estimate of such payments.

    Lord O’Neill of Gatley

    The analysis on recently arrived non-UK EEA nationals subject to income tax and National Insurance contributions or receiving HMRC administered benefits became available on 12 May 2016 when it was published on HMRC’s publications page on GOV.UK.

    No estimate of VAT paid by EU Nationals is held. VAT is levied on most goods and services, with the person’s nationality not generally recorded.

  • Diana Johnson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    Diana Johnson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Diana Johnson on 2016-07-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what his policy is on future British involvement with the European Space Agency once Britain exits the EU.

    Joseph Johnson

    The European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) and the European Space Agency (ESA) are separate organisations from the European Union and thus the UK’s memberships of CERN or ESA are not dependent on its EU membership. The UK will continue to play a leading role in major non-EU research collaborations, including CERN and ESA. In July we confirmed the UK’s application to become a full member of a major new particle accelerator, the European Spallation Source in Sweden.

  • Ian Austin – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Ian Austin – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

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

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, with reference to section 6.5 of the Memorandum of Understanding between her Department and the Palestinian National Authority, whether the implications of any breach of the commitment on human rights was discussed at the annual partnership talks between her Department and that Authority.

    Rory Stewart

    The UK raised the issue of human rights as part of the FCO-led UK-Palestinian strategic talks and in the DFID- Palestinian Authority (PA) annual talks that review the broader DFID-PA Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), with a clear message that we take very seriously any allegations of human rights abuses. The UK assesses that the PA is not in breach of its commitment to respecting human rights.

  • Heidi Alexander – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Heidi Alexander – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Heidi Alexander on 2016-01-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what plans his Department has to support the implementation of the UK Chief Medical Officer’s proposed new alcohol guidelines, published in January 2016.

    Jane Ellison

    The guidelines are currently out for consultation. They are available at:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/health-risks-from-alcohol-new-guidelines

    We will consider any next steps once we have feedback from the public on the guidelines.

    “

  • The Lord Bishop of Southwark – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The Lord Bishop of Southwark – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Lord Bishop of Southwark on 2016-02-22.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to include vulnerable Iraqi refugees in Jordan who are registered with the UN High Commissioner for Refugees in their resettlement plans.

    Lord Bates

    The UK operates three resettlement routes, Gateway, Mandate and the Syrian Vulnerable Persons Resettlement (VPR) Scheme, working closely with the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) on each.

    There are no current plans to resettle Iraqis registered with UNHCR and currently seeking refuge in Jordan under any of our resettlement schemes. However, we plan to continue to resettle Iraqi refugees currently in Syria under the Gateway programme. The case load for the Gateway programme is reviewed annually in consultation with UNHCR.

  • Lord Taylor of Warwick – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Lord Taylor of Warwick – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Taylor of Warwick on 2016-03-17.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of criticism from the British Retail Consortium that proposed changes in business rates are inadequate.

    Lord O’Neill of Gatley

    The Government announced at Budget 2016 the biggest ever cut in business rates in England – worth £6.7 billion over the next five years. All ratepayers will benefit from the package and 600,000 of the smallest businesses, including many retailers, will not have to pay business rates again.

  • Kate Hoey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Kate Hoey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kate Hoey on 2016-04-14.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate his Department has made of the number of small businesses which will not be able to afford the digital accounting software to enable them to submit digital tax returns; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr David Gauke

    The Government has committed to ensuring free software is available for those with the simplest affairs in order that businesses can meet the requirements of Making Tax Digital. In addition, many businesses are already using digital record-keeping tools to deal with their tax affairs.

    The Government has received a number of representations from individuals, businesses, professional bodies and the software industry about Making Tax Digital. Both I and officials from HM Treasury and HM Revenue and Customs have discussed the reforms with a wide range of professional bodies and advisory groups representing small businesses and the self-employed. Extensive consultation will take place throughout 2016.