UKPOL.CO.UK

Tag: 2016

  • Andrew Rosindell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Andrew Rosindell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2016-01-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he is taking to ensure that the views of Britain’s Overseas Territories are represented during his renegotiation of the UK’s relationship with Europe.

    Mr David Lidington

    I outlined the Government’s objectives for reform of the European Union at the Overseas Territories Joint Ministerial Council (JMC) in December 2015. Representatives of the Overseas Territories met on two occasions last year with officials from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office to discuss the renegotiation agenda. The JMC Communiqué acknowledges the interests of the Territories in the forthcoming referendum and recognises the strength and importance of the relationship between the Territories and the EU. It also confirms that we will continue to consult the Territories in order for their views on reform to be taken into account. Gibraltar has particular interest, being a European territory, and Gibraltarians will vote in the referendum. I have held discussions with the Chief Minister of Gibraltar, most recently on 2 February, and officials have been in regular contact. The Government of Gibraltar shares this Government’s aim of the UK and Gibraltar remaining part of a reformed EU.

  • Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2016-02-22.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether Ofsted plans to inspect academy chains as well as individual academies; and if she will make an assessment.

    Edward Timpson

    Ofsted already inspects multi-academy trusts (MAT) through focused inspections of batches of academies within MATs. The published inspection outcome letters describe Ofsted’s assessment of the overall performance of the MAT, as well as a summary of the outcome of the individual academy inspections. The EFA provides assurance over the use of public funds and the MATs’ compliance with the accountability framework.

  • Kevan Jones – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Kevan Jones – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevan Jones on 2016-03-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many (a) senior military officers and (b) civilian staff ranked one star or above or the civil service equivalent were employed by his Department (i) in each year since 2010 and (ii) on the latest date in 2016 for which figures are available.

    Mark Lancaster

    At 1 April 2011, 38.8 per cent of Senior Personnel in the Ministry of Defence (MOD) were Senior Civil Servants (SCS) and 61.2 per cent were UK Regulars at One Star (Army Brigadier and equivalent) and above. At 1 April 2015, 39.2 per cent were SCS and 60.8 per cent were UK Regulars at One Star and above.

    At 1 April 2011, there were 480 UK Regular personnel ranked One Star and above; by 1 April 2015 this figure had decreased by 6.9 per cent to 450.

    At 1 April 2011, there were 300 SCS personnel in the MOD; by 1 April 2015 this figure had decreased by 5.3 per cent to 290.

    The following tables provide the requested breakdown, by year, of UK Regular Strength at One Star and above, and SCS headcount:

    UK Regular Strength at One Star and above

    1 April 2010

    1 April 2011

    1 April 2012

    1 April 2013

    1 April 2014

    1 April 2015

    1 Oct 2015

    500

    480

    470

    440

    440

    450

    440

    SCS Headcount

    1 April 2010

    1 April 2011

    1 April 2012

    1 April 2013

    1 April 2014

    1 April 2015

    1 January 2016

    320

    300

    270

    280

    280

    290

    310

    The strength of UK Regular Personnel at 1 April 2011 was 186,360. The strength of UK Regular Personnel at 1 April 2015 was 153,720. This represents a 17.5 per cent decrease between 2011 and 2015.

    The MOD civilian staff (CS) headcount at 1 April 2011 was around 87,000. The CS headcount at 1 April 2015 was 59,900. This represents an estimated decrease of 31.2 per cent between 2011 and 2015.

  • Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-04-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 12 April 2016 to Question 32506, how many (a) unaccompanied children and (b) partners of refugees who had already been granted asylum in the UK were granted asylum in the UK in each year since 2010.

    James Brokenshire

    I refer the Rt Hon Member to the answer I gave on 15 March 2015 to his question 30648.

    The Home Office publishes quarterly figures on asylum claims from Unaccompanied Asylum Seeking Children (UASC) in the Immigration Statistics release. This includes information on applications received, decisions made by sex, age and country of nationality.

    The Home Office does not centrally record the number of people that apply for asylum who have a partner in the UK who has already been granted. This could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

  • Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-05-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many (a) helicopters, (b) Royal Navy ships and (c) Royal Air Force aircraft are stationed in the Falkland Islands.

    Penny Mordaunt

    Four contractor-owned and operated helicopters are currently stationed in the Falkland Islands. Two AW-189 helicopters deliver search and rescue services and two S-61 helicopters deliver a medium lift capability. One River Class patrol ship (HMS CLYDE), one C-130, one Voyager air-to-air refuelling aircraft, and four Typhoon aircraft are also currently stationed in the Falklands.

    In accordance with the Secretary of State’s announcement to the House on 24 March 2015 (Official Report, column 1302), two Chinook helicopters are due to return to the Falkland Islands. The first of these will begin operations in July 2016.

  • Alan Meale – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    Alan Meale – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alan Meale on 2016-07-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many posthumous claims for compensation under the (a) Pneumoconiosis etc (Workers’ Compensation) Act 1979 and (b) Coal Workers Pneumoconiosis Scheme 1974 were successful in each of the last 30 years.

    Jesse Norman

    With regards to the Pneumoconiosis etc (Workers Compensation) Act 1979, the Department for Work and Pensions have advised that the information requested is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.

    For the Coal Workers Pneumoconiosis Scheme 1974 (CWPS) the figures for posthumous claims received and paid, and the reasons for the difference between the two are shown in the table below:

    Year

    Deceased Claims Received

    Dec’d Claims Paid

    Denials & Work In Progress (WIP)

    Duplicate Claim Denial

    Failed Eligibility Denial

    Nil Offer*

    Work In Progress/Withdrawn/ Other Denial

    2011

    41

    17

    5

    15

    3

    1

    2012

    104

    65

    20

    6

    3

    10

    2013

    160

    103

    18

    13

    14

    12

    2014

    153

    96

    19

    13

    18

    7

    2015

    169

    101

    20

    20

    24

    4

    2016

    70

    33

    6

    7

    7

    17

    * Nil Offer – a claim under the 1979 Act resulted in a higher award than would have been payable under the CWPS

    N.B. Figures only available from July 2011 onwards when current claims handler took on the contract.

    “

  • Paul Flynn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Wales Office

    Paul Flynn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Wales Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Flynn on 2016-10-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what steps his Department has taken to ensure that GMB is able to negotiate on behalf of 200 workers at the Lidl warehouse in Bridgend.

    Alun Cairns

    The Government has put in place a robust legal framework to ensure workers can be represented by unions if that is their clear, democratic choice. The Government cannot get involved in individual cases such as this one. However, the law states that for a trade union to have the right to negotiate collectively and for its workplace representatives to be eligible for time off to carry out union duties, the union must be recognised by the employer.

    Statutory recognition (achieved through the Central Arbitration Committee – CAC) requires that a majority of the workforce support union recognition for collective bargaining with the employer.

  • Andy Slaughter – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Andy Slaughter – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2016-01-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many times the National Tactical Response Group has been called out to (a) privately run prisons, (b) publicly run prisons and (c) the youth estate since May 2010; on what date each such callout occurred; and what the nature of the incident was on each of those occasions.

    Andrew Selous

    I refer the honourable member to my answer given to PQ 22415 on 1st March 2016.

  • Jim Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Jim Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-01-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much the National Institute for Health Research has invested in research into (a) lung cancer, (b) adult asthma, (c) pneumonia, (d) chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, (e) idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, (f) mesothelioma and (g) childhood wheezing and childhood respiratory infection in each of the last five years.

    George Freeman

    The information requested is not available. Spend on research funded directly by the Department’s National Institute for Health Research is categorised by Health Research Classification System (HRCS) health categories including ‘cancer’ and ‘respiratory’. There are no HRCS health sub-categories, such as for specific cancer sites or respiratory diseases.

  • Nicholas Soames – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Nicholas Soames – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nicholas Soames on 2016-02-22.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what progress her Department has made in identifying ash trees with resistance to ash dieback disease; and if she will make a statement.

    Rory Stewart

    Investing in research is one of our key commitments in response to ash dieback. We have invested over £21 million into tree health research and the UK is leading the way on the work to identify resistant strains. Defra funded research has already identified three genetic markers for tolerance. This is a significant first step in developing trees with tolerance to the disease and testament to the innovation and dedication of our world leading scientists.

    The Government-funded screening trial of 155,000 ash saplings is also unprecedented in its scope.

    Collectively, our research is investigating the genetic basis for natural tolerance and screening our native ash trees for genetic markers; work is also underway to further our understanding of the pathogen, how it spreads and local management approaches to protect individual, high value trees.