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Tag: 2016

  • Steve Reed – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Steve Reed – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve Reed on 2016-03-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how much his Department spent on promotional material and publicity for (a) Community Clear Up Day in 2015 and (b) Clean for the Queen in 2016.

    Mr Marcus Jones

    In March 2015, communities across the country rolled up their sleeves and got behind a nationwide spring clean in order to spruce up our favourite public places. The Department for Communities and Local Government spearheaded this initiative and it was a success with several hundred clear-ups arranged by grassroots activists including community and faith groups, councils and parishes, and schools and sports teams.

    The Department spent £5,000 on solid, consistent branding for Community Clear Up Day which was clearly government backed, making the campaign recognisable for key stakeholders and the public alike.

    It also spent £5,000 on promoting Community Clear Up Day through Facebook. Having ownership of social media ensured the Department was able to engage with the public effectively, and be proactive and responsive when necessary in its social communications.

    In March 2016, the Clean for the Queen campaign, spearheaded by Keep Britain Tidy and backed by organisations including the Women’s Institute, the National Trust and the Campaign to Protect Rural England, was the biggest community-led clean-up the country has ever seen. Following the success of utilising Facebook for Community Clear Up Day, the Department for Communities and Local Government, in order to support the initiative, again spent £5,000 on this method of engaging with stakeholders and local communities.

  • Lord Berkeley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Lord Berkeley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Berkeley on 2016-04-11.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government who owns the RMS St Helena, and what financial support they have provided to operate the service between Cape Town and St Helena over the last three years.

    Baroness Verma

    The RMS St Helena is owned by St Helena Line, which is itself wholly owned by the St Helena Government. Her Majesty’s Government provided £3,199,382 of support to operate the service in 2013/14; £2,272,726 in 2014/15; and £619,751in 2015/16.

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

    Andrew Gwynne – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Gwynne on 2016-05-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has received an application from Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council to release the former Two Trees High School site in Denton for development.

    Edward Timpson

    The Education Act 2011 requires that the Secretary of State must give consent prior to the disposal of land which has been used for any school or academy in the last eight years. A key consideration for the government is whether the land proposed for disposal could be suitable for use by a new academy or free school.

    School playing fields are also protected by Section 77 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998. Schools and local authorities must obtain the Secretary of State’s approval before they can dispose of their land. Applications to dispose of school playing fields are first considered by the school playing fields advisory panel, who make a recommendation to the Secretary of State, before she then makes her final decision.

    At this time I am not aware of an application by Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council to seek approval to dispose of the former Two Trees Sports College, including the playing fields.

    Should an application be submitted, the Secretary of State would take into account any groups or organisations with permission to use the playing fields and what suitable alternative provision they may have been offered. Local schools, which are deficient in playing field land, should also be offered the opportunity to use the playing field before any application is presented. She will also take into account local school place needs and any academy requirement.

  • Christian Matheson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Christian Matheson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Christian Matheson on 2016-07-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will provide a schedule of documents held by his Department that relate to the disappearance of Rebecca Coriam from the Disney Wonder cruise ship in March 2011 and the investigation into that disappearance.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    Consular documents show that the Foreign and Commonwealth Office provided assistance to the Coriam family at the time of their daughter’s disappearance in 2011, and provided updates on the progress of the Bahamian investigation through the Family Liaison Officer assigned by Cheshire Police. We also facilitated the handover of a copy of the Bahamian investigation report to Cheshire Police.

  • Jim Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union

    Jim Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-09-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, pursuant to the Answer of 12 September 2016 to Question 43456; when he expects the objectives and approach of the UK to negotiations with the EU to be agreed.

    Mr David Jones

    The Prime Minister has been clear that we will trigger Article 50 b​efore the end of​ March 2017. The process for leaving the EU and determining our future relationship will clearly not be brief or straightforward, so we need to take time to think through our objectives and approach. We want to get the best deal for Britain, not the quickest one. We recognise the need to create certainty as soon as possible but also to get negotiations off to the right start.

  • Grahame Morris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Grahame Morris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Grahame Morris on 2016-01-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many inspections have been carried out into the quality of the food served to UK Armed Forces in each of the last five years.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    All food procured for Ministry of Defence (MOD) personnel must comply with MOD food quality standards. These standards comply with all UK and EU production standards, Farm Assurance or equivalent. The Defence Food Quality Standards (DFQS) establishes the minimum quality criteria that the Department requires a supplier to deliver. It sets the standard of what food and ingredients should be provided as part of the contracts to provide nutritious and balanced meals to Service Personnel. The DFQS publication is available online through the gov.uk website at:

    (www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/479299/20151006-DFQS-V12-U.pdf).

    The MOD requires all of its food suppliers to comply with both EU and National legislation whilst operating to industry standards and monitors the suppliers’ compliance with the DFQS through a combination of product testing and conducting inspections of their premises/production facilities.

  • David Hanson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    David Hanson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Hanson on 2016-02-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many vessels (a) completed and (b) failed to complete the C1331 customs declaration form in each of the last five years.

    James Brokenshire

    The table below outlines the number of completed C1331 customs declaration forms received by Border Force in each of the last 5 years. This data has been drawn from basic IT systems used for management information which are not subject to internal quality checks and may be subject to change.

    Year

    Number of completed C1331 Forms received by Border Force

    2011

    408

    2012

    331

    2013

    399

    2014

    391

    2015

    319

    There are no records held that could adequately answer the question of how many vessels failed to complete the C1331 form.

  • Patrick Grady – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Patrick Grady – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Patrick Grady on 2016-03-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the Written Statement of 4 March 2016, HCWS581, whether the gift of 40 Land Rovers to Bulgaria counts towards (a) the target two per cent of GDP on defence spending and (b) 0.7 per cent of GNI on Overseas Development Assistance.

    Michael Fallon

    No and no.

  • Lord Cashman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Cashman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Cashman on 2016-04-11.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the benefits of including the Department for International Development in discussions and representations at the Global LGBTI Human Rights Conference in Uruguay from 13 to 15 July.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    As I set out to the House on the 21 March, and in my answers of 5 April, and the noble Baroness Verma’s answer of 31 March, the British Government will send a delegation to the Global Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and/or Intersex (LGBTI) Human Rights Conference taking place in Montevideo in July.

    The Government is clear in its belief that human rights are universal and should apply equally to all people everywhere. We are opposed to all forms of discrimination and work to uphold the rights and freedoms of LGBTI people in all circumstances. We support the key objectives of the conference: to provide an important opportunity to share information, best practice and lessons learned with partners and to discuss how to better coordinate international efforts to support the promotion and protection of the rights of LGBTI people worldwide. We are committed to working with those countries that will be represented at the conference, and others, to better coordinate work to combat discrimination and violence against LGBTI people. This forms an important part of our wider international human rights work.

    Precise composition of the UK delegation to the conference remains to be confirmed. With the exception of the co-hosts, the Governments of the Netherlands and Uruguay, we judge it likely that countries will be represented at official level.

  • Barry Gardiner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Barry Gardiner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Gardiner on 2016-05-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, if her Department will maintain the 2014 commitment to ring-fence spending through the Contracts for Difference (CfD) for 100MW of marine energy in the UK and make the full 100MW available to developers during the 2016 CfD auction process.

    Andrea Leadsom

    In July 2014 the Government announced a 100MW minimum for wave and tidal stream technologies, including capacity from both the Renewables Obligation and Contracts for Difference, to the end of the first Delivery Plan period in 2019.

    During the Budget on 16 March 2016, the Government announced the budget for CfD auctions this Parliament and that the Contract for Difference allocation round, planned to open later in 2016 will be available for projects with a Target Commissioning Window starting in the 2021/22 delivery year. We will be publishing further details in relation to the next allocation round, including on strike prices and whether there will be any minimum allocation later for wave and tidal stream technologies in due course.