The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord West of Spithead on 2016-09-06.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether RFA Diligence has been fully manned since her refit in 2015.
Earl Howe
Since the refit that completed in February 2015, RFA DILIGENCE has not been fully manned by Royal Fleet Auxiliary personnel. In addition, personnel supplied by contractors ensure that the safety and integrity of the ship is maintained until she goes out of service in December 2016.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by David T. C. Davies on 2016-10-21.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department received any representations from King’s College Dental School, between 2012 and 2014, on the use of dental tests to establish the age of people claiming asylum.
Mr Robert Goodwill
The Home Office received representations from a number of bodies be-tween 2012 and 2014 about the possible use of dental tests to establish the age of people claiming asylum. The view of many of those making representations was that the use of dental tests for this purpose would be unreliable, inappropriate and unethical.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Phil Boswell on 2016-01-13.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, pursuant to the Answer of 12 January 2016 to Question 20474, which businesses have been in receipt of funding from the apprenticeship programme for the creation of apprenticeships in the retail and commercial enterprise sector subject area.
Nick Boles
Funding for training against apprenticeship frameworks is provided to education and training providers and not allocated to businesses.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julie Cooper on 2016-02-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has made to Bahraini government on the treatment of political prisoners in that country.
Mr Tobias Ellwood
We regularly discuss human rights and reform with the Government of Bahrain. The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond) most recently raised human rights with his Bahraini counterpart, Sheikh Khalid Bin Ahmad Al Khalifa on 4 February. Where we have specific concerns around convictions or sentencing, we raise these with the Government of Bahrain as part of our dialogue on human rights and reform.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tulip Siddiq on 2016-02-29.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate she has made of the average length of (a) domestic and (b) international calls to the Forced Marriage Unit; and what the cost of these calls were to (i) domestic and (ii) international callers in (A) each financial year since its establishment in 2005 and (B) 2015-16 to date.
Karen Bradley
Figures on the number of cases reported to the Forced Marriage Unit via its public helpline and email inbox are published annually and are available on GOV.uk. The figures include a breakdown of the countries involved for cases with an overseas element. Information on the origin, average length, and cost of calls is not collated centrally.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Howell on 2016-03-24.
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what reports she has received on the use of aid disbursed to the Palestinian Authority for purposes related to terrorist activity.
Mr Desmond Swayne
UK direct financial assistance to the Palestinian Authority (PA) is used to pay the salaries of civil servant and pensioners. Our support is provided through a multi-donor trust fund administered by the World Bank, which carries out close monitoring of PA expenditure. Only named civil servants from a pre-approved EU list are eligible, and the vetting process ensures that our funds do not benefit terrorist groups. The process is subject to independent auditing.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2016-05-04.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 25 April 2016 to Question 34910, how many Guided Learning Hours are required for recruits to complete a (a) GCSE and (b) Level 2 in numeracy or literacy.
Penny Mordaunt
The Ministry of Defence has no established policy relating to time allowed to deliver GCSEs and Level 2 functional skills. Armed Forces Training Establishments follow the Guided Learning Hours (GLH) guidance provided by Education Awarding Bodies. The GLH as identified by the course governing body are used as a starting point when teaching functional skills. Our aim is to provide our trainees with a framework to achieve the qualification with the best possible support, not to achieve it within a certain period of time.
The Royal Navy normally allocate three weeks for guided learning functional skills courses delivered as part of longer professional skills development training. The GLH for each qualification in the Army is 45 hours; however this can vary depending on individual needs and other factors such as location. Time allocated to functional skills training in the RAF will depend on the establishment delivering the training with some schools allocating between 45 and 64 hours.
GCSEs are treated as elective courses for Service Personnel and time allocated for GCSEs is dependent on the individual and varies between four weeks for an intensive course and up to 16 weeks for a part time course. Army Personnel can undertake GCSEs or IGCSEs through evening classes run by the Army Education Centres and there will be a set programme linked to the GLH which is usually a minimum of 125 hours. The RAF and Navy offer courses which can be intensive or delivered over an extended period of time delivered by external providers.
All Armed Forces Training Establishments have the ability to deliver functional skills training and GCSEs flexibly and time allocated is dependent on the individual and their needs as reflected in each individual’s learning plan.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-06-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 27 May 2016 to Question 37474, on children: maintenance, what specific areas of case closure require less effort than earlier analysis suggested.
Priti Patel
The impact assessment was completed in 2013, well before CSA cases started to be closed. These numbers have since been reviewed to reflect the experiences of the case closure journey. The initial estimate of £103m to review the cases has reduced to £75m as the updating work has taken less time than assumed when the impact assessment was completed. The initial estimate to set up the arrears on the CMS system was £20m and this is proving to take longer than anticipated, with the latest estimate at £26m. The revised figures are still subject to further change as we move more cases and update estimates.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hague of Richmond on 2016-09-06.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they plan to take to close the domestic ivory market, including the market in ivory products, and what assessment they have made of the potential economic impact of that closure.
Lord Gardiner of Kimble
The Government has conducted informal discussions with representatives of the arts and antique sector on the scale of legal trade in ivory currently taking place. An accurate assessment is challenging as records for antiques may not necessarily record an item as containing ivory where this is only a small component of a larger item. Extrapolation from available data indicates that sales of items containing ivory may be worth in the order of several tens of millions of pounds per annum.
TRAFFIC, the wildlife trade monitoring organisation, has recently published its report: “A Rapid Survey of the UK ivory market”. Although not an exact comparison with a survey conducted in 2004, TRAFFIC’s survey found the number of market stalls offering ivory for sale had declined by approximately two-thirds and the number of items offered for sale had halved. No new or raw ivory was seen in any of the physical market outlets or online platforms; only one ivory item seen for sale was reportedly from after the legal cut-off (1947) for antique ivory being sold without Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) documentation within the EU. Ivory is a key UK wildlife crime priority with an enforcement action plan in place to tackle risk. For example, UK Border Force through Operation Quiver has in particular successfully targeted ivory sent through postal systems.
We are actively exploring options with interested parties and other Government Departments about how to implement the UK Government’s manifesto commitment to press for a total ban on ivory sales. The UK has successfully lobbied for the EU-wide adoption of the existing UK ban on trade in raw ivory tusks, which was agreed through European Council Conclusions on an EU Action Plan on Wildlife Trafficking adopted in June. Trade in such tusks presents the greatest risk of poached ivory entering the legal market. In addition, these conclusions urged EU Member States to consider further measures to put a halt to commercial trade in ivory from elephants.
A substantial number of proposals on elephant and ivory related issues will be discussed at the Conference of Parties to CITES to be held in South Africa between 24 September and 5 October 2016. This will include discussions on the existing global ban on the trade in ivory, which the UK is committed to maintaining, and the role of domestic ivory markets in illegal trade. The UK is, and will continue to, play a full role in these discussions.
In relation to the confirmation by the USA Government to limit commercial trade in African elephant ivory to items more than 100 years old, with some exemptions, the then Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Environment and Rural Affairs, Rory Stewart, discussed this issue with the USA Government during a trip earlier this year. In addition officials in Defra are in regular contact with their US counterparts and have discussed the US measures on a number of occasions.
Finally on the Elephant Protection Initiative, this has grown from 5 to 14 members since the London Conference in February 2014. A Ministerial-level meeting of members to agree governance arrangements took place in Addis Ababa in September 2015. Range states have been supported to develop their National Elephant Action Plans and through these a number of priority conservation projects have been funded.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Royston Smith on 2016-10-21.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 26 May 2016 to Question 37550, what further progress has been made on reviewing the legal and financial implications of an alternative pavement parking regime; and if he will make a statement.
Andrew Jones
The process for putting in place traffic regulation orders (TROs) was identified as a major factor affecting the enforcement of pavement parking. The Department for Transport is therefore now considering how best to address the general improvement of the TRO-making process and will provide further information once this is available.