Tag: 2016

Diana Johnson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Diana Johnson on 2016-09-14.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment the Government has made of the practicability of prosecuting potential acts of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes committed in Syria and Iraq by radicalised UK citizens in British courts.

Alok Sharma

As the Foreign Secretary, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Uxbridge and South Ruislip (Boris Johnson), said to the UN Security Council on 21 September, we are very concerned about the appalling crimes committed in Iraq and Syria and are committed to bringing to justice those responsible for alleged acts of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes. There have not been any prosecutions to date for such crimes in British courts. Most of the prosecutions of those returning to the UK from Iraq or Syria have been for terrorism-related offences. UK nationals can be prosecuted for genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes in domestic courts; but the practical difficulties involved in investigating crimes that have taken place abroad and apprehending suspects outside the jurisdiction will need to be considered by police and prosecutors on a case-by-case basis.

01/01/2023
Pauline Latham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Pauline Latham on 2016-01-14.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if her Department will take steps to encourage greater education about sun safety and skin cancer in schools.

Edward Timpson

We recognise the importance of teaching children and young people about the importance of sun safety and the risks of skin cancer. The primary science national curriculum emphasises the need for pupils to recognise the different ways in which light from the sun can be dangerous and how they should protect their eyes. Skin cancer and other health issues can also be covered in the key stage 4 science curriculum when pupils can be taught about the impact of lifestyle factors on the incidence of non-communicable diseases. Schools can choose to include cancer awareness in their Personal, Social, Health and Economic (PSHE) education lessons. The non-statutory programme of study for PSHE education enables schools to teach young people about cancer prevention, checking for cancer and other illnesses, and how to overcome worries about seeking help.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) published guidance on “Skin Cancer Prevention” in January 2011.

01/01/2023
Lord Mancroft – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Mancroft on 2016-02-09.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what progress Operational Delivery Networks have made in establishing services for prisoners diagnosed with hepatitis C.

Lord Prior of Brampton

NHS England, Public Heath England, the National Offender Management Service and other organisations including the Royal College of General Practitioners have developed resources to support prison healthcare teams in delivering a blood-borne virus (BBV) opt-out testing programme. This covers all aspects of prevention, diagnosis and treatment of hepatitis C (HCV) and other BBVs including testing, managing positive and negative test results, providing advice on harm minimisation and supporting prisoners into treatment.

Specialised HCV Operational Delivery Networks (ODNs) ensure specialist oversight of HCV services in order maximise uptake and completion of HCV treatment. NHS England has linked every prison to the relevant ODN and a service specification for ODNs directs specialist service providers to accept patients from prisons.

01/01/2023
Gloria De Piero – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gloria De Piero on 2016-03-04.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether his Department offers e-cigarettes on prescription or at a reduced price to people living in deprived areas.

Jane Ellison

Prescriptions for e-cigarettes will be charged like any other medication and normal exemption arrangements will apply including for those on low incomes.

In August 2015 Public Health England published a report that outlined evidence that e-cigarettes can help people quit smoking. Data from local stop smoking services shows that 2/3 of smokers are successful in their quit attempts when combining e-cigarettes with behavioural support. Data from Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) suggests in 2015 there were 2.6 million e-cigarette users of which nearly 2 out of 5 no longer smoked tobacco products. This data is available at ASH ‘Use of electronic cigarettes (vapourisers) among adults in Great Britain’, 2015.

http://www.ash.org.uk/files/documents/ASH_891.pdf

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01/01/2023
Grahame Morris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Grahame Morris on 2016-04-08.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans are in place to upgrade trains and services on the Sunderland to Nunthorpe line.

Andrew Jones

Services between Sunderland and Middlesbrough will benefit from additional morning and later evening trains. The line between Whitby and Middlesbrough (including Nunthorpe) will benefit from an earlier morning arrival from Whitby into Middlesbrough and the provision of Sunday services all year round.

All trains on the franchise will be upgraded and fully refurbished to include improved seating, repainted interiors, Wi-Fi, real time passenger information screens and improved lighting. In addition, all the existing Pacer trains will be withdrawn by the end of 2019.

01/01/2023
Nic Dakin – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nic Dakin on 2016-05-06.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what proportion of enlisted soldiers attain (a) Level 1 and (b) Level 2 literacy and numeracy skills by the end of their third year of service.

Penny Mordaunt

The Army has traditionally linked the recording and attainment of english and maths qualifications to the point at which an individual is ready for promotion to Corporal or Senior Non Commissioned Officer ranks, rather than as a factor of time. The growth in numbers of personnel joining the Army and pursuing an apprenticeship has changed this approach and simplified the measurement of attainment by time.

Between 1 August 2012 and 31 July 2015 1,028 soldiers gained both Level 1 functional skills (FS) english and maths qualifications; and a further 722 soldiers gained the comparable qualifications at Level 2. This represents 11.8% of those enlisting (14,816) during the same period. This does not include those who gained just a functional skill in english or a functional skill in maths qualification, nor those who already held english and maths qualification on enlistment.

In total 23,699 FS (english and maths) qualifications at Level 1 and 2 were gained by Regular soldiers through apprenticeship and AEC provision in 2014-15. Of these 41% were at Level 1 and 59% at Level 2.

01/01/2023
Viscount Waverley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Viscount Waverley on 2016-06-27.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the result of the EU referendum, whether British companies can still tender freely and on equal terms for active public procurement opportunities in other EU member states; and whether they will be able to do so (1) after Article 50 is invoked, and (2) up until negotiations for the UK’s withdrawal from the EU are concluded.

Lord Bridges of Headley

The current public procurement rules will continue to apply until the UK has left the EU following the successful conclusion of exit negotiations.

01/01/2023
Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2016-09-14.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what plans he has to raise the situation of Rohingya refugees at the UN Summit on Refugees on 19 September 2016.

Alok Sharma

Whilst the British Government did not raise the subject of Rohingya refugees at the UN Summit on Refugees on 19 September 2016, we remain keen to play our part in helping refugees globally. We are deeply concerned about the ongoing persecution of the Rohingya and have repeatedly raised our concerns with the Burmese Government at the highest levels. The Foreign Secretary, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Uxbridge and South Ruislip (Boris Johnson), discussed the Rohingya with State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi during her visit to the UK in September and I raised the issue in my intervention at the UN Secretary General’s Partnership Group during my visit to the UN General Assembly in September.

The British Government is one of the largest bilateral donors to Rakhine providing over £18 million in humanitarian assistance since the intercommunal violence of 2012. Across the border in south east Bangladesh, a total of 82,000 people have benefitted from UK funded humanitarian programmes. Since 2014, the British Government has provided nearly £8 million to address the humanitarian suffering of Rohingya refugees and the vulnerable Bangladeshi communities that host them.

We are encouraged to see the new Burmese Government has started to take real steps to try to defuse tensions in Rakhine while making progress for the Rohingya, including through the recently announced Rakhine Commission led by former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, formation of a cross-Government Rakhine committee and re-starting the citizenship verification exercise. On 25 August I issued a statement welcoming the establishment of the Rakhine Commission, and on 14 September I spoke by phone with Mr Annan to convey the UK’s strong support for his appointment and mandate.

01/01/2023

Clive Lewis – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Clive Lewis on 2016-01-14.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what expenditure has been allocated to the Civil Nuclear Constabulary in (a) 2015-16, (b) 2016-17, (c) 2017-18, (d) 2018-19 and (e) 2019-20.

Andrea Leadsom

The Civil Nuclear Constabulary is funded by industry through arrangements for it to charge nuclear sites for provision of service to those sites, as set out in the Energy Act 2004. The published Civil Nuclear Police Authority business plan sets out the forecast expenditure up to 2017/18:

Financial year (£000)	2014-15 (actual)	2015/16 (budget)	2016/17 (budget)	2017/18 (budget)
Staff Costs	71,296	78,203	83,700	87,200
Non-Staff Costs	21,392	28,077	32,000	31,500
Capital Spending	2,006	3,364	4,500	1,600

Some costs that are not for provision of service to nuclear sites, such as the cost of redundancies or employment tribunals, and including other factors cannot be charged to industry and are covered by the Department of Energy and Climate Change. In 2015/16, £268,000 has been budgeted to cover such costs by the Department of Energy and Climate Change.

01/01/2023

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

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Taylor of Warwick on 2016-02-09.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the case for £50 notes no longer being issued by central banks in order to help tackle crime.

Lord O’Neill of Gatley

The Government is fully committed to fighting all forms of financial crime, including money laundering and terrorist financing. In 2010, UK banks voluntarily withdrew the €500 note from sale in this country on the basis of analysis from our law enforcement agencies regarding its use by criminal groups. Such high denomination notes are attractive to criminals due to their high-value to low-volume ratio.

By contrast, the highest denomination note issued by the Bank of England is the £50 note whose value is far less than that of truly high denomination notes. Furthermore, the £50 note plays an important role as a reliable store-of-value and enables financial inclusion.

01/01/2023