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Tag: 2016

  • Baroness Thomas of Winchester – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Baroness Thomas of Winchester – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Thomas of Winchester on 2016-05-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to gather evidence on food insecurity in the UK.

    Lord Gardiner of Kimble

    There is no single definition of food insecurity. The factors that impact on household food security are complex. There are multiple indicators such as quality, variety and desirability of diet as well as total intake, not all of which are measured consistently. It is, therefore, very difficult and potentially misleading to attempt to develop a single classification of food insecurity.

    Defra publishes annual statistics to show the proportion of household income spent on food by (a) all households and (b) the lowest income 20% of households. Lower income families spend a greater proportion of household income on food (15.7% compared to 11.4% for the average household). This has remained stable over recent years: 16.5% in 2013, 16.6% in 2012, 16.6% in 2011, 15.8% in 2010 and 16.1% in 2009. The most recent statistics are in the Food Statistics Pocketbook 2015 on the GOV.UK website.

    Year on year food prices have continued to fall with an annual rate of inflation of -2.7 per cent in the year to March 2016. General inflation is 0.3 per cent, unchanged from January.

  • Jonathan Ashworth – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Attorney General

    Jonathan Ashworth – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Attorney General

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jonathan Ashworth on 2016-06-15.

    To ask the Attorney General, what information he holds on whether the Serious Fraud Office plans to investigate the UK office of the law firm Mossack Fonesca.

    Jeremy Wright

    On 10 April, the Prime Minister set up a multi-agency taskforce to obtain and analyse the leaked “Panama Papers” and take action where possible. The taskforce comprises HMRC, the National Crime Agency, the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) and the Financial Conduct Authority who are working collaboratively to investigate any evidence of wrong-doing identified within the “Panama Papers”. The taskforce will report on its progress later this year.

  • The Marquess of Lothian – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The Marquess of Lothian – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Marquess of Lothian on 2016-09-12.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many staff are employed by Border Force; whether that number has decreased in the past year; and what assessment they have made of whether Border Force has sufficient immigration officers to operate effectively.

    Baroness Williams of Trafford

    This Government has always made the integrity of the UK border a priority and we will never compromise on keeping the people of this country safe from terrorism, criminality and illegal immigration.

    We have pursued an ambitious programme of reform at the border to keep this country safe. Border Force has transformed its working practises, command and control and leadership. And we have invested in new technology, like e-Gates at airports and heartbeat monitors at freight ports, to improve security and prevent illegal entry to the UK to improve security, benefit passengers and deliver efficiencies.

    These reforms are working. Border security has been enhanced. Border Force continues to perform 100 per cent checks on scheduled passengers arriving in the UK.

    Deployments are made across a wide range of activities based on levels of demand and intelligence and will take into consideration the requirement for deployment of a flexible seasonal workforce, which is prone to fluctuations depending on seasonal pressures.

  • Henry Smith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Henry Smith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Henry Smith on 2016-10-19.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the effect of the increase in the national minimum wage on the incomes of low income households; and if he will make a statement.

    Jane Ellison

    The introduction of the National Living Wage in April 2016 marked an important step towards building an economy that works for everyone. At £7.20, it represented a 50p increase on the National Minimum Wage, and a pay rise for over a million low paid workers across the UK, many of whom will be in low income households.

    The estimated impacts of the National Living Wage are set out in the impact assessment and Annex B of the Office of Budget Responsibility’s July Economic and Fiscal Outlook (available at http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukdsi/2016/9780111141625/impacts/2016/3 and http://budgetresponsibility.org.uk/docs/dlm_uploads/July-2015-EFO-234224.pdf respectively).

  • Nigel Huddleston – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Nigel Huddleston – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nigel Huddleston on 2016-01-13.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent steps he has taken to widen access to basic bank accounts.

    Harriett Baldwin

    Improving access to banking services is central to the Government’s agenda. I am therefore delighted that the nine largest personal current account providers in the UK have been offering new basic bank accounts since January 2016.

    For the first time, truly fee-free basic bank accounts are available for anyone who doesn’t have an account, or can’t use their account due to financial difficulty.

  • Lord Krebs – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Lord Krebs – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Krebs on 2016-02-04.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the finding of the Lead Advisory Group, reported by the Chairman in his letter of 3 June 2015 to the Secretary of State, that 10,000 children are growing up in households where they could regularly be eating sufficient game shot with lead ammunition to cause them neurodevelopmental harm and other health impairments”.”

    Lord Gardiner of Kimble

    The Food Standards Agency has identified that lead shot game is unlikely to be a significant source of exposure for the majority of consumers but recognises that it may be a significant additional contribution for frequent consumers and vulnerable groups. The FSA has advised that those consuming high levels of such game should reduce their intake, especially vulnerable consumers such as children and pregnant women. The FSA is considering what further action is required to raise awareness of their advice, particularly with vulnerable groups such as parents and carers of young children.

  • Andrew Smith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Andrew Smith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Smith on 2016-03-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many children are being supported under section 17 of the Children Act 1989 where their parents have no recourse to public funds.

    Edward Timpson

    Information on children supported under section 17 of the Children Act 1989 is published in the annual Children in Need Census statistical first release. This data collection does not identify the number of children supported where their parents have no recourse to public funds.

    Information in the form requested is therefore not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

  • Derek Twigg – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Derek Twigg – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Derek Twigg on 2016-03-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many GPs retired in Halton constituency in the last 12 months; and how many GPs in that constituency have given notice of their intention to retire in 2016.

    Alistair Burt

    This information is not collected centrally. However, this information is available from the Halton Clinical Commissioning Group.

  • Adam Afriyie – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Adam Afriyie – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Adam Afriyie on 2016-05-03.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps he has taken to support (a) peer-to-peer lending and (b) challenger banks.

    Anna Soubry

    Access to finance on flexible, competitive terms is essential for growing businesses. Challenger banks and alternative finance providers have an important role to play in widening choice and promoting competition.

    Government is bringing into effect provisions in the Small Business, Enterprise and Employment Act 2015 which will require the largest banks – where they decline lending requests from small business customers – to offer those customers the opportunity for their details to be referred to a government-designated funding platform. These platforms will be brought into operation later this year and will allow SMEs to match their requirements with offers from peer-to-peer platforms and challenger banks.

    During the last 12 months, the British Business Bank has supported 3,301 businesses through the peer-to-peer platforms Funding Circle, RateSetter and Zopa. The British Business Bank also supports the growth of challenger banks by providing wholesale funds alongside private sector investors.

  • Richard Burgon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Richard Burgon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burgon on 2016-06-15.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what correspondence he has had with (a) the Competition and Markets Authority, (b) the Prudential Regulation Authority and (c) new entrant banks about the internal ratings-based approach and the standardised approach for risk weights in capital requirements regulation; and if he will place a copy of that correspondence in the Library.

    Harriett Baldwin

    The government is committed to increasing banking competition and meets with a wide range of institutions as part of the process of developing policy to help drive more competition.

    We have already taken significant action to improve competition in banking. This includes:

    • Delivering the Current Account Switch Service and midata so customers are able to compare personal current accounts and switch where they see a better deal – simply, quickly and reliably;

    • Lowering barriers to entry and helping to establish the New Bank start-up Unit, making it quicker and easier for new banks to enter the market and compete effectively with the incumbents;

    • Creating the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) as a single, stronger competition regulator, to promote competition and ensure markets work well for consumers, businesses and the wider economy.

    The government is also taking action by working with the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) and the Bank of England to introduce a more proportionate prudential regime for smaller banks and building societies. The exchange of letters between the Economic Secretary and Andrew Bailey published in November 2015 highlights this work.

    In its retail banking market investigation, the CMA provisionally found that banks on the standardised approach are at a competitive disadvantage in the provision of lower LTV mortgages compared to banks using internal models. It also stated that the capital requirements regime has the potential to impact on competition in retail banking in a range of areas. The government, working with the PRA and Bank of England will take forward the issues identified by the CMA.