Tag: 2016

David Jones – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Jones on 2016-04-18.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the effect of microbeads on marine ecosystems.

George Eustice

Defra has funded a project, undertaken by the University of Plymouth, to study the effects of microplastics in the marine environment. The project studied whether chemical pollutants stick to plastic particles, whether marine organisms ingest plastic particles and pass them along the food chain, and whether the plastics themselves, or associated chemical pollutants, could cause harm to those organisms. The final report for this project is expected to be published shortly.

01/01/2023
Baroness Featherstone – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Featherstone on 2016-05-18.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the carbon savings that could result from increasing the use of biofuels in UK aviation.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

The Government believes sustainable aviation fuels are of strategic importance, both in reducing carbon emissions and to drive the development of an advanced biofuels industry in the UK.

Those developing sustainable aviation biofuels were eligible to apply for funding under the Department’s Advanced Biofuel Demonstration Competition, the winners of which were announced last September.

In early 2015 a Transport Energy Taskforce including aviation industry experts considered, amongst other things, the potential for sustainable aviation fuels to contribute to our climate change commitments to 2030 and beyond. Further to that work we are planning to consult on potential changes to the Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation later this year, including to make renewable fuels used in aviation eligible for reward under the scheme.

01/01/2023

Luciana Berger – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Luciana Berger on 2016-07-12.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how much funding from the (a) European Regional Development Fund and (b) European Social Fund was spent in (i) Liverpool, Wavertree constituency and (ii) each borough of the Liverpool City Region in each year since 2010.

Margot James

Information is not held for individual constituencies or boroughs. Figures are recorded for Merseyside and are from the 2007-13 programming period where projects could spend money up to the end of 2015, with some reimbursements taking place in 2016.

The figures for the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) are:

Year	£m Merseyside
2009	£77.30
2010	£25.00
2011	£28.80
2012	£27.00
2013	£29.70
2014	£21.60
2015	£33.50
2016	£20.75
Total	£263.65

For the European Social Fund (ESF) figures as follows:

Year	£m Merseyside
2010	£44.04
2011	£20.58
2012	£11.61
2013	£8.75
2014	£7.70
2015	£9.93
2016	£0.29
Total	£102.90

01/01/2023

Heidi Allen – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Heidi Allen on 2016-10-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what reports he has received on the case of the Syrian journalist, Zaina Erhaim.

Mr Tobias Ellwood

My officials have been in contact with the UK Border Force about this case. We are aware that the passport presented by Zaina Erhaim has been retained by UK Border Force officials. The passport was listed on an international database as lost or stolen. In such circumstances the Border Force will confiscate the document. Since the passport is listed as lost or stolen, it is no longer valid for travel to the UK or elsewhere and as such the Border Force is not able to return the passport to Ms Erhaim. The passport is therefore being retained by the British authorities.

01/01/2023
Gareth Thomas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gareth Thomas on 2016-01-26.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of the number of people who have suffered a six-month or longer period of sickness in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

Justin Tomlinson

Department for Work and Pensions does not routinely capture management information on the number of people who have suffered a six-month or longer period of sickness.

01/01/2023
Lord Turnberg – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Turnberg on 2016-02-11.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the recent statements by Ismael Haniyeh, a Hamas leader, that they are rebuilding tunnels from Gaza with the intention of attacking Israel.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

We remain deeply concerned by Hamas’ attempts to rearm and its efforts to rebuild infrastructure, including the tunnel network in Gaza. We are clear that Hamas and other militant groups in Gaza must permanently end rocket fire and other attacks against Israel. Any Hamas rearmament undermines efforts to improve the situation in Gaza and harms prospects for peace and stability in the Middle East.

01/01/2023
Craig Whittaker – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Craig Whittaker on 2016-03-11.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the effect of the UN and African Union missions in South Sudan; and what discussions he has had with the UN since the publication of its report, Assessment Mission by the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights to improve human rights, accountability, reconciliation and capacity in South Sudan: detailed findings, published March 2016.

James Duddridge

The UK is deeply concerned by the findings of the African Union Commission of Inquiry (AU-COI) report and the recent UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) assessment. Both reports detail appalling levels of human rights violations and abuses, including widespread levels of sexual violence, and that these may constitute war crimes and/or crimes against humanity.

We are pressing for action on multiple levels. We are raising our serious concerns directly with the government in Juba, and when I visited South Sudan in January 2016 I pressed both the President and the Foreign Minister on human rights issues. At the same time, we are also encouraging the African Union to establish the Hybrid Court for South Sudan and pressing the UN Security Council to agree an arms embargo. At the UN Human Rights Council we are pressing for a UN Special Rapporteur to be agreed and the OHCHR report’s findings to be followed up on. We will continue to work to ensure those who are responsible for abuses are held to account.

01/01/2023
Julie Cooper – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julie Cooper on 2016-04-18.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the political situation in Kashmir.

Mr Hugo Swire

The British High Commission in Delhi is closely following the situation in Kashmir. I welcome the recent formation of a new State Government.

01/01/2023
Lord Oates – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Oates on 2016-05-18.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the signals that would be sent to the government of Zimbabwe were the IMF and other international financial institutions to resume financial assistance to Zimbabwe, in the light of the current activities of the Zimbabwe Republic Police and other elements of the security forces there.

Baroness Verma

Donors have consistently made clear that resumption of financial assistance to Zimbabwe from the international financial institutions would need to be based on the Government of Zimbabwe’s commitment to make significant process across a broad range of reforms, including rule of law and constitutional alignment. It is of course vital that the right signals are sent to both the government and the people of Zimbabwe.

01/01/2023
Andrew Stephenson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Stephenson on 2016-07-12.

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what representations he has received on making refuges a statutory-funded service; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Marcus Jones

Domestic Abuse is a devastating crime and we are determined to ensure that everyone receives the support they need when they need it. This Government recognises the important role played by refuges in keeping victims of domestic abuse safe and we have made a clear commitment to secure a future for refuges.

Many refuges already receive public funding via housing benefit, local authorities and health services. In the Violence Against Women and Girls Strategy published on 8 March, we set out our ambition to improve services for women suffering from domestic abuse, committing to a new Statement of Expectations to set out for the first time what we expect from local areas. To support this, we are launching a new two year fund for refuges and other forms of accommodation based support and to help local areas take the steps they need to meet the expectations set out in the Statement.

01/01/2023