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Tag: 2016

  • Alex Chalk – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Alex Chalk – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Chalk on 2016-05-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that the decision-making process followed by local enterprise partnerships is transparent.

    Anna Soubry

    We’ve set out clear standards on transparent decision making, which Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) must comply with through their local assurance frameworks. These are verified by their accountable section 151 officers. We commissioned the Government Internal Audit Agency to review the quality of these frameworks, and keep the system under review through annual performance conversations with each LEP.

  • Barry Gardiner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Barry Gardiner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Gardiner on 2016-06-27.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the Convention on Biological Diversity Strategic Plan, what discussions she has had with stakeholders on the integration of her Department’s agricultural objectives with its biodiversity objectives.

    Rory Stewart

    Defra has regular discussions with a wide range of stakeholders, including the agricultural industry and environmental organisations. These discussions have included developing our agri-environment schemes, particularly the new Countryside Stewardship scheme, which are designed to deliver biodiversity objectives along with other environmental benefits.

  • Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town on 2016-09-14.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government when they plan to publish the responses to the call for evidence on improving the consumer landscape and quicker switching published by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills in May.

    Baroness Neville-Rolfe

    Responses to the call for evidence on the consumer landscape and quicker switching are still being considered. The Government will publish a summary of the responses in due course.

  • Rosie Cooper – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Rosie Cooper – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rosie Cooper on 2016-01-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to ensure that people using mobile telephones to call 999 are put in touch with the correct police force; and if she will make a statement.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    I have been asked to reply on behalf of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS).

    The 999/112 Liaison Committee, chaired by DCMS, provides a forum for representatives from Government; Communications Providers, including BT (which provides the 999 call handling agency) and Mobile Network Operators (MNOs); emergency services and Ofcom, to discuss 999 operational matters The LC’s main concern is the effective handling and transfer of emergency calls from the public, through call handling agents ,to emergency authorities.

    The “Code of Practice for the Public Emergency Call Service (PECS) between Communications Providers, Call Handing Agencies and the Emergency Authorities” sets out protocols governing 999 calls. This includes guidelines for the Emergency Authorities to manage any occasional situation in which an emergency 999 call is misdirected.

  • Baroness Quin – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Baroness Quin – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Quin on 2016-02-08.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what estimate they have made of the start-up and annual costs of administering the new health and dental charges for New Zealand citizens coming into force on 6 April.

    Lord Bates

    An Impact Assessment was published on 4 February 2016, alongside the draft Immigration (Health Charge) (Amendment) Order 2016. The draft Order will, subject to Parliamentary approval, remove the surcharge exemption for nationals of Australia and New Zealand and reduce the Youth Mobility Scheme charge from £200 to £150.

    The Impact Assessment, which can be viewed at the link below, sets out the reason for these changes and estimates associated costs and benefits: http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukdsi/2016/9780111143278/impacts

    These documents are available in the following locations of the House: The Vote Office (Commons) Printed Paper Office (Lords)

  • 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 2016-03-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have made any assessment of the report from UBS predicting that, if the UK left the EU, sterling could hit parity with the euro.

    Lord O’Neill of Gatley

    Britain is stronger, safer and better off by remaining in a reformed European Union.

    The Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors of the G20 concluded that a British exit would cause an economic shock not just to the UK but to Europe and the world.

    The Treasury will publish a comprehensive analysis of our membership of a reformed EU and the alternatives, including the long-term economic costs and benefits of EU membership and the risks associated with an exit before 23 June. The Government notes wider evidence on an ongoing basis.

  • Baroness Barker – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Baroness Barker – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Barker on 2016-04-12.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what meetings or other communications took place between Cabinet Office ministers and Mr Chris Snowdon of the Institute of Economic Affairs relating to government funding of voluntary organisations in the twelve months prior to the announcement on 6 February of the new clause in grant agreements restricting the use of government grants for lobbying purposes.

    Lord Bridges of Headley

    The Institute of Economic Affairs’ written research into the misuse of government grants was acknowledged at the time that the clause was first introduced by the Department of Communities and Local Government before the last general election, and also by the Cabinet Office when it published its guidance on the new clause.

    Details of Cabinet Office Ministers’ meetings, and those of the Cabinet Office Permanent Secretaries, are centrally collated and routinely published in transparency returns available on the Gov.uk website.

    Information relating to the meetings and communications of Cabinet Office civil servants, including special advisers, is not routinely collated and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

  • Nigel Adams – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Nigel Adams – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nigel Adams on 2016-05-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, when her Department intends to publish its report on the whole system costs of different sources and methods of low-carbon and renewable energy generation.

    Andrea Leadsom

    Following peer review by experts in the field of whole system impacts, DECC will publish the methodology report of the Whole System Impacts of Electricity Generation Technologies project in due course, taking into account timing restrictions relating to purdah(s). The report sets out a comprehensive framework to define whole system impacts and their components and drivers, which can be applied to conventional, low-carbon and renewable large- and small-scale technologies.

  • Tommy Sheppard – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Tommy Sheppard – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tommy Sheppard on 2016-06-27.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, with reference to paragraph 2.1(5) of the Principles for maintaining continuity of care when moving across borders within the United Kingdom, published in March 2015, what mechanism would be used to resolve or arbitrate on a disagreement between local authorities relating to the moving of an adult’s care package from one UK country to another.

    Alistair Burt

    The “Principles for maintaining continuity of care when moving across borders within the United Kingdom” provide a framework for local authorities to support adults with care and support who move between countries in the United Kingdom without having their care interrupted.

    Adhering to the principles should reduce the potential for disagreement, however, where disagreements do arise, the Department and the Devolved Administrations would expect the parties to act reasonably and to make full efforts to resolve the dispute between themselves through constructive dialogue, cooperation and communication, including the timely sharing of information, and focussing on the well-being of the adult. The timely and effective resolution of disputes is in the interest of all parties, not least, the adult in question.

    It is not possible to be definitive about which authority a cross-border continuity of care matter should be pursued with because it will depend on the facts and the nature of the issue. The adult may wish to approach their own local authority in the first instance. However where an issue raised with an authority falls within the remit of the other, the principle that the authorities should work together and share information should apply.

  • The Earl of Listowel – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The Earl of Listowel – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Earl of Listowel on 2016-09-14.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assurances they have received from the media, or its representative bodies, that the issue of children being named before they are charged will be addressed through the new system of press regulation.

    Lord Ashton of Hyde

    The Government is committed to a free and open press and does not interfere with what the press does and does not publish, as long as the press abides by the law. The new system of independent press self-regulation protects press freedom and the industry develops its own standards and codes. The Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO) handles complaints about its members under the Editors’ Code of Practice. The Independent Monitor for the Press (IMPRESS) is currently consulting on its new Standards Code.