The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jonathan Ashworth on 2016-02-24.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many times Dorneywood has been redecorated in each of the last five years.
Harriett Baldwin
The Dorneywood estate is the responsibility of the Dorneywood Trust. As such the Government does not hold details of redecoration or repairs to the estate.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Lord Bishop of Leeds on 2016-03-23.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of reports of the use of chemical weapons by Daesh in Iraq.
Baroness Anelay of St Johns
There are credible reports that Daesh has used chemical weapons in Iraq. The Government of Iraq, with support from the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), investigated allegations of chemical weapons use in Iraq last year and has concluded that sulphur mustard was used against Peshmerga fighters on 11 August 2015.
Allegations that Daesh attacked the village of Taza on 8 March 2016, possibly with sulphur mustard, are being investigated by the Government of Iraq, along with two other recent allegations of Daesh use of chemical weapons. Such behaviour would be consistent with Daesh’s record of complete disregard for human rights and international norms and values. We welcome the OPCW Director General’s press statement of 23 March offering assistance to the Government of Iraq.
We continue to monitor all allegations of chemical weapon use very closely, and condemn all such attacks by anyone, anywhere.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gordon Marsden on 2016-04-28.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, whether the Further Education Act 1992 gives HEFCE current statutory responsibility for degree standards.
Joseph Johnson
The Further and Higher Education Act 1992 enables the Privy Council to bestow degree awarding powers on institutions which provide higher education, and foundation degree awarding powers on institutions within the further education sector. The Privy Council bestows these powers upon the advice of the Secretary of State who, in turn, obtains information and advice from HEFCE and the Quality Assurance Agency. HEFCE’s role in this process is explained in government guidance. Guidance for foundation degrees is available at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/foundation-degree-awarding-powers.
Guidance for other degrees can be found at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/taught-and-research-degree-awarding-powers
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2016-06-13.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking in co-operation with the government of Lebanon and UN agencies to ensure that all refugee children in Lebanon receive the basic and remedial education that they need.
Baroness Verma
The UK has committed up to £40m per year to support education in Lebanon up to 2019/20 as part of our £2.3bn response to the Syria crisis. We are a key proponent of the regional No Lost Generation Initiative, and endorsed an agreement at the London Supporting Syria and the Region conference in February that all refugee and affected host community children should be in education by the end of the 2016/17 school year.
We are aligning our support behind the Government of Lebanon’s second Reaching All Children with Education Programme (RACE II), working with a range of partners to scale up quality formal and non-formal education. We have already helped expand the Lebanese education system to reach 200,000 Syrian children and are also supporting the expansion of high-quality, standardised non-formal education and training. This includes basic numeracy and literacy and catch-up learning programmes to reach the most vulnerable out of school Lebanese, Syrian and Palestinian children and youth. We are also tackling barriers to school entry, protection issues and pyscho-social problems that prevent children accessing education. We also support the United Nations Relief and Works Agency to ensure Palestinian refugees have access to education and training in Lebanon.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Karl McCartney on 2016-09-02.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department has taken to prepare for the UK to leave the EU since 23 June 2016; and what further such steps his Department plans to take in the remainder of 2016.
Sajid Javid
The Department for Exiting the European Union has responsibility for overseeing preparations for the withdrawal of the UK from the EU and conducting these withdrawal negotiations in support of the Prime Minister. In doing this it is working very closely with other government departments, including DCLG, and a wide range of other interested parties.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-10-18.
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to (a) reduce nuisance calls and (b) give advice to companies on how to contact the public appropriately on inheritance tax issues.
Matt Hancock
Companies who wish to make direct marking calls must abide by the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations(PECR). The Government has already taken a number of steps to reduce the problem of nuisance calls with further measures to be implemented in the near future. In May 2016, the Government introduced a new requirement for all direct marketing callers to provide caller line identification. In September 2016 we introduced a measure in the Digital Economy Bill that in currently going through Parliament that will make it a requirement for the Information Commissioner to issue a statutory code of practice on direct marketing, which will support the ICO in taking action against those who breach PECR. More recently, we announced the Governments intention to hold company directors to account for breaches of the PECR. In addition, the Government is considering extending the Information Commissioner’s powers of compulsory audit to organisations that generate nuisance calls. This measure amongst other measures will provide better consumer protection, from unsolicited telephone calls.
The Gov.UK website, provides information about inheritance tax and the support available from the Inheritance Tax and Probate helpline. HMRC works with advisers to direct them and the public to this.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Trefgarne on 2016-01-11.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government when they expect the Criminal Cases Review Commission to make and publish a decision in respect of the case of Sgt Alexander Blackman.
Lord Faulks
The Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) is independent of Government and it would be inappropriate for me to comment on specific cases. I understand the average time that it takes the CCRC to reach an initial decision is seven months, although the length of time will depend upon the complexity of the application and the individual case.
I am informed that the CCRC has assessed Mr Blackman’s case as a level one priority case and this has been communicated to him and his representatives
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Graham Brady on 2016-02-03.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, in which EU countries the purchasing power of sterling is currently less than in the UK; and whether the Government has made an assessment of the likelihood that, under proposals for reform of the UK’s relationship with the EU, EU law would require proposed child benefit payment adjustments to be increased in such countries.
Mr David Gauke
Information regarding the purchasing power of the sterling compared with other EU Member States is publically available at the following address:
ec.europa.eu/eurostat/tgm/table.do?tab=table&init=1&plugin=1&pcode=tec00120&language=en.
Details of the proposals for child benefit is subject to the ongoing negotiation.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Brendan O’Hara on 2016-02-24.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what his Department’s policy is on the provision of accommodation for naval personnel and their families visiting (a) HMNB Clyde and (b) RNAD Coulport.
Mark Lancaster
The provision of accommodation for all naval personnel and their families is contained within the Tri-Service Accommodation Regulations which are available at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/502127/20160222_-_JSP_464_Volume_1_Part_1_-_Version_3.pdf
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hodgson of Astley Abbotts on 2016-03-23.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many National Insurance numbers were in use at the end of each of the last five years for which records are available.
Lord Freud
The information requested is not available and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.