Tag: 2016

  • Lord Roberts of Llandudno – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Lord Roberts of Llandudno – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Roberts of Llandudno on 2016-06-09.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many hospitality industry employees in the UK were from other EU member states in each of the last five years, and which countries they were from.

    Baroness Neville-Rolfe

    In 2011, 2.8 per cent of employment in all UK tourism industries came from the pre-accession EU 15 member states. An additional 3.9 per cent of employment in all UK tourism industries came from the newer EU states: Poland, Lithuania, Hungary, Bulgaria, Slovakia, Romania, Latvia, Czech Republic, Malta, Estonia, Cyprus, and Slovenia. This data is the most up to date that we hold.

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

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

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Taylor of Warwick on 2016-09-06.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the impact of higher stamp duty costs on activity in London’s housing market throughout 2016.

    Lord O’Neill of Gatley

    The housing market is affected by a wide variety of factors including exchange rates and the economic outlook. The Government continually monitors the housing market as part of the ordinary process of policy development.

    At Autumn Statement 2014 the Government announced a radical reform of Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) on residential properties, cutting the tax for 98% of homebuyers who pay it.

    The Government believes it is fair that those who can afford to buy the most expensive properties contribute the most. Whilst the reform does increase the SDLT paid on the top 2% of transactions, this increase is small relative to the price of the property.

  • Lord Hunt of Kings Heath – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Lord Hunt of Kings Heath – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 2016-10-21.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions they have had with NHS England over the proposed closure of the congenital heart disease service at the Royal Brompton and Harefield NHS Trust.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    The national review of congenital heart disease services is an NHS England led review. Department officials regularly meet with NHS England colleagues to keep abreast of progress, and keep Ministers updated on the review.

    No final decisions have been made on the future of congenital heart disease services at the Royal Brompton and Harefield NHS Foundation Trust. NHS England will conduct a service change process in relation to the proposed changes at this and other trusts affected by the review’s proposals, before finally deciding on and implementing any change. This process will include full public consultation.

  • Andy McDonald – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Andy McDonald – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy McDonald on 2016-01-13.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an assessment of the benefits of retaining the existing HM Revenue and Customs’ operation in Middlesbrough.

    Mr David Gauke

    HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) announced the planned locations of its future Regional Centres based on a number of key principles that will enable it to deliver more for less. In addition to cost, these include quality of local and national transport links, the local labour market and future workforce supply, the retention of current staff and skills and capacity to host multiple lines of business which are required to continue its transformation.

    HMRC’s plans to open a Regional Centre in Newcastle in 2018-19 demonstrate its long-term commitment to the North East. It intends to remain in Washington as a transitional site until 2024-25.

  • Julie Cooper – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Julie Cooper – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julie Cooper on 2016-02-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many NHS trusts are running a deficit.

    Alistair Burt

    Latest available data on NHS provider deficits has been published in the “NHS providers: quarterly performance report” available via the following link:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/nhs-providers-quarterly-performance-report-quarter-2-201516

  • Roger Godsiff – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Prime Minister

    Roger Godsiff – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Prime Minister

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2016-02-29.

    To ask the Prime Minister, whether he plans to attend the World Humanitarian Summit in Istanbul in May 2016.

    Mr David Cameron

    I welcome the UN Secretary-General’s leadership in convening the World Humanitarian Summit which comes at a critical time given that there are currently more displaced people globally than at any time since the Second World War. We want to see a renewed commitment to the protection of civilians in conflict, a stronger focus on protecting and empowering women and girls, smarter financing, and a new approach to building resilience to natural hazards before they take place.

    No decision has yet been taken about the composition of the UK’s delegation to the Summit.

  • Paul Beresford – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Paul Beresford – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Beresford on 2016-03-24.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what discussions he has had with officials of the Home Office and the police on proposals to allow members of the public to take their own ID photos for official documents on their own digital devices and the potential effect of this on ID fraud and quality of images.

    Matthew Hancock

    Government departments are fully committed to ensuring that the risks of identity fraud are minimised in transactions requiring photographs to be submitted. Currently applicants send paper photographs through the postal service. Technology now enables digital photographs to be submitted in online applications. In whichever channel is used the applicant must attest that the picture is a true likeness and departments put processes in place to assess the end-to-end risks of identity fraud. New technology has the potential to reduce fraud in this process, and we are investigating how technology can be used in a way that is both safe and cost effective.

  • Fabian Hamilton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Fabian Hamilton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Fabian Hamilton on 2016-05-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has made to the government of Bangladesh on the increase in and alleged official toleration of extra-judicial killings in that country; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr Hugo Swire

    Allegations of extra-judicial killings in Bangladesh are deeply concerning. We follow progress closely and raise concerns where there are credible allegations. We take human rights in Bangladesh seriously, naming it as one of 30 Human Rights Priority Countries in this year’s Foreign and Commonwealth Office Human Rights and Democracy report. In my speech during a House of Commons debate on the future of Bangladesh in June 2015 I reiterated our call for the Bangladesh Government to hold the perpetrators to account through impartial, transparent investigations.

  • Dan Jarvis – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Dan Jarvis – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dan Jarvis on 2016-06-08.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many meetings Ministers of his Department had to discuss tax evasion and avoidance between (a) 5 April 2016 and 5 May 2016 and (b) 6 May 2016 and 6 June 2016.

    Mr David Gauke

    In line with the practice of successive administrations, details of ministerial discussions are not normally disclosed.

    The government is committed to ensuring that everyone makes a fair contribution towards reducing the deficit. We have already announced, during this Parliament, that we will legislate for over 25 measures to tackle avoidance, evasion and aggressive tax planning, which are forecast to raise £16 billion by 2021.

    We also announced that HMRC would receive an extra £800 million, at Summer Budget 2015, to fund additional work to 2020-21. This will enable HMRC to recover a cumulative £7.2 billion in tax over the next five years by tackling evasion and non-compliance.

  • Ronnie Cowan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Ronnie Cowan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ronnie Cowan on 2016-09-06.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to improve nuclear safety at the Atomic Weapons Establishment to ensure that it no longer requires enhanced regulatory attention from the Office of Nuclear Regulation.

    Harriett Baldwin

    The Office for Nuclear Regulation has stated that safety at the Atomic Weapons Establishment remains acceptable. The enhanced regulatory attention relates to issues which do not pose any immediate safety concerns and the regulator is satisfied that work is well advanced to address these. The Ministry of Defence works closely with AWE, monitoring all aspects of its performance, including regulatory compliance.