The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine West on 2016-10-11.
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 10 October 2016 to Question 46319, what overseas visits he has made as Secretary of State for International Trade since the establishment of his Department.
Greg Hands
I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Westmorland and Lonsdale on 10 October, UIN 46309.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2016-01-04.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to ensure that new homes built on flood plains are able to access affordable home insurance through the Flood Re programme.
Rory Stewart
The Flood Re Scheme is only available to properties built before 2009.
This cut-off date recognises that new housing development should be located to avoid flood risk, or where development in a flood risk area is necessary, it should be designed to be safe, appropriately resilient to flooding and not increase flood risk elsewhere, in line with the national planning policies in place. This means properties built from 2009 should already be insurable at affordable prices.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevin Brennan on 2016-01-28.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, which public sector organisations will not be covered by the public sector exit payments cap proposed in the Enterprise Bill.
Greg Hands
The Government consulted on implementing a public sector exit payment cap in July 2015. The Government response to this consultation was published on 16 September 2015. This response provides detail on which organisations and types of payments the Government intends to capture within the scope of the public sector exit payment cap. This accords with the Government’s manifesto commitment to end tax payer funded six figure payoffs for public sector workers.
The response document can be found at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/464367/Public_sector_exit_payments_response.pdf
The exit payment cap will apply to payments made as a result of an employee leaving their employment. It will not affect any pension a person has earned through their years of service or have any impact on accrued pension rights or pension lump sum entitlements on retirement. It will capture contributions, made by the employer, to fund early access to an unreduced or partially reduced pension. This is because such costs are ultimately funded by the tax payer.
The Government has been clear that early retirements relating to ill health are outside the scope of the cap and will not be affected. Additionally, any payments directed by a Court or Tribunal will not be included in the scope of the cap.
Exits on compassionate grounds are not such a clearly defined concept as exits related to ill health or redundancy. There will generally be a large degree of employer discretion on the terms of such exits, and on any payments. In these cases there will be discretion available to relax the cap in individual cases, subject to relevant Ministerial or local council approval, as will be set out in further detail in forthcoming Treasury guidance and directions.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julie Cooper on 2016-02-24.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many NHS 111 calls were made in (a) 2014 and (b) 2015 in (i) Lancashire and (ii) Burnley.
Jane Ellison
The data is not held centrally.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Shinkwin on 2016-03-17.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to fulfil their obligations under the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, and in particular Article 23, subsection 3.
Lord Prior of Brampton
There is a long established Fetal Anomaly Screening Programme that prospective parents can choose whether to participate in. The United Kingdom National Screening Committee recommendation on non-invasive prenatal testing does not change the choices available to prospective parents within the programme. We are satisfied that the UK is compliant with its obligations under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and that the Programme is compliant with all obligations under the Equality Act 2010. We would also note that English law does not recognise a foetus as a separate legal person.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-04-22.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the estimated cost is to Highways England for monitoring the performance of its contract with Amey for services in Area 7; and what the scope is of monitoring to be undertaken by Highways England to ensure Amey’s compliance.
Andrew Jones
The estimated annual cost to Highways England for monitoring the performance of its contract with Amey for services in Area 7 is £207,840.This equates to approximately 0.75% of the total value of the contract with Amey annually.
Highways England has a robust bespoke performance management in place for the Area 7 Amey contract in the form of a Collaborative Management Toolkit. It is designed to drive continuous improvement in Amey’s performance and ensure compliance with the contract using a combination of quantitative metrics and performance indicators. Reporting is on a monthly basis.
Highways England will manage and monitor Amey’s performance, with evidence from non-conformity reports, service quality reviews and Quality Management Points.
Every three years, a full Service Review will be carried out to appraise the suitability of the service being delivered. It will include but is not limited to measuring their performance against the Health, Safety and Environment criteria, the scope of service being delivered and the extent to which Amey has delivered and is committed to delivering continual improvement to ensure value for money.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rob Marris on 2016-06-06.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what his Department’s policy is on requests from developing countries with whom the UK has taxation treaties to renegotiate the terms of such treaties.
Mr David Gauke
The UK responds positively to requests from developing countries for renegotiation of tax treaties.
The UK recognises that treaty partners may now want higher levels of source taxation than are contained in treaties negotiated many years ago. However, the eventual level of source state taxation in a renegotiated treaty reflects the balance of the agreed priorities.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Thangam Debbonaire on 2016-09-02.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many asylum applications have been transferred to another EU country under the Dublin III Regulation in the first six months of 2016.
Mr Robert Goodwill
In the first six months of 2016, our records indicate that the UK has returned 198 applicants to other Member States under the Dublin III Regulations to have their asylum applications considered.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nick Thomas-Symonds on 2016-10-11.
To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what discussions he has had with the Welsh Government on its role in negotiations on the UK leaving the EU.
Alun Cairns
The Prime Minister has committed to full engagement with the Devolved Administrations to get the best possible deal for all parts of our United Kingdom as we leave the EU.
We will give the Welsh Government every opportunity to have their say as we form our negotiating strategy and we will look at any suggestions they put forward.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kirsten Oswald on 2016-01-04.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what plans he has to replace the 7.62mm chain guns on Warrior infantry fighting vehicles.
Mr Philip Dunne
A contract was placed in October 2011 for the Warrior Capability Sustainment Programme which will keep this highly successful armoured fighting vehicle at the front and centre of combat capability for the next 25 years. The programme will include an improved turret with a new stabilised 40mm cannon and a tailored armour mounting system. The 7.62mm coaxial chain gun from the current in-service Warrior vehicle will be retained , but will receive a number of modifications including to the ammunition feed system