The below Parliamentary question was asked by Marion Fellows on 2016-09-06.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what her Department’s policy is on the granting of visas to Syrian passport holders to enter the UK on a short term basis.
Mr Robert Goodwill
It is not Home Office policy to refuse an application for a visa on the basis of an applicant’s nationality. All visa applications are considered on their merits, in accordance with the Immigration Rules.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Pursglove on 2016-10-18.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what support his Department provides for communities in which Post Offices require relocation.
Margot James
The provision and location of Post Offices is the operational responsibility of Post Office Limited.
Any proposal by Post Office Limited to relocate a post office within a community includes a six week local consultation conducted by the Post Office to let the community know what is happening and seek feedback from interested customers and stakeholders within the community. The Post Office carefully considers all feedback received during the consultation process before making a final decision on whether to relocate.
The Government recognises the importance of post offices to communities and will have invested £2 billion in the Post Office during the period 2010 to 2018 to maintain the network and invest in transformation of the business which includes money to help relocate post offices to more sustainable locations in their communities. This investment has led to the highest level of network stability in decades.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Percy on 2016-01-14.
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many defibrillators are provided in each building her Department manages.
Mrs Theresa Villiers
My Department is based at two locations; one in Belfast and one in London. There is no defibrillator on site in Belfast. The London office is situated in a building which is shared between several Government departments and there are 10 defibrillators on site.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Warner on 2016-02-02.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the objection submitted to the Office of the Schools Adjudicator that a state-funded school sought to prioritise the admission of children on the basis of whether or not their parents have sex during the period of a mother’s menstruation.
Lord Nash
Admission authorities for all state-funded schools, including schools with a religious designation, are required to comply with the mandatory provisions of the School Admissions Code and other admissions law.
Where an objection is made to the Schools Adjudicator, if the arrangements are found to be unfair or fail to comply with the Code, the admission authority must make changes to ensure their arrangements are compliant without undue delay. Where an admission authority fails to implement decisions of the adjudicator, the Secretary of State may direct the admission authority to do so.
We continue to keep the Code under review, and, where we consider any changes are necessary to make the admissions system work more effectively for parents, these will be subject to a full public consultation.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevan Jones on 2016-02-29.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many armed forces personnel are expected to be deployed in support of the UN and African Union missions to South Sudan.
Penny Mordaunt
The UK is preparing to deploy approximately 300 troops to the UN mission in South Sudan, focussed on providing vital engineering support. Up to 70 troops will also deploy to Somalia, as part of UN support for the African Union force building stability in the country and countering the threat posed by the terrorist group al-Shabaab.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Chapman on 2016-03-24.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what applications for arms export licences were rejected by his Department in each year since 2010.
Anna Soubry
Information on military and dual use export licences is published as Official Statistics in the quarterly and annual reports on Strategic Export Controls which are all available to view on GOV.UK. These reports contain detailed information on export licences issued, refused or revoked, by destination, including the overall value, type (e.g. Military, Other) and a summary of the items covered by these licences.
Data covers all years from 2008 up to 30 September 2015. Information covering the period 1 October to 31 December 2015 will be published on 19 April 2016.
Bespoke reports on the published data can be run via https://www.exportcontroldb.bis.gov.uk/
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Oliver Colvile on 2016-04-27.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he is taking to support a UN implementing agreement for the establishment and management of marine protected areas in the high seas.
James Duddridge
The UK supports the need for a new implementing agreement and the need to establish a mechanism to deliver Marine Protected Areas in areas beyond national jurisdiction. This is because whilst a range of different bodies with varying responsibilities address the protection of marine bio-diversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction, these bodies have sectorally or regionally restricted mandates.
The first session of the Preparatory Committee (Prepcom) to develop a new implementing agreement took place at the UN from 28 March to 8 April. The UK was represented by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and Defra officials. We will continue to engage on this issue in preparation for the remaining three sessions of the Prepcom.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Lord Bishop of Rochester on 2016-06-10.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many prisoners have been identified as having been radicalised whilst in custody in England and Wales since the beginning of 2014.
Lord Faulks
Radicalisation is a process rather than an event and therefore it is not possible to identify with any certainty which prisoners have been radicalised specifically during their time in prison.
Extremism is one of the biggest threats facing this country. That is why the Justice Secretary commissioned a review of Islamist extremism in prisons.
As we have made clear, the report has been received and a summary document will be published in due course.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Hendrick on 2016-09-06.
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what activities have been undertaken by Ministers of her Department to promote breastfeeding during World Breastfeeding Week 2016.
Rory Stewart
DFID supports breastfeeding. Interventions to improve early infant feeding can save newborn lives in less developed settings, and early initiation of breastfeeding has been shown to have a major additional impact in reducing neonatal deaths.
DFID Ministers did not undertake activities to mark World Breastfeeding Day specifically. Our country offices regularly work with local partners to promote breastfeeding and other public health interventions.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Berkeley on 2016-10-17.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government why the Royal Parks have not yet completed the construction of the sections of the East-West London Super Cycle highway which are planned to pass through Hyde Park and St James Park; and when it is expected that the work will be complete and open to cyclists.
Lord Ashton of Hyde
The East West Cycle Superhighway is a Transport for London (TfL) project carried out by their contractors. The Royal Parks has issued licenses to TfL to permit the work to take place within the parks. Part of the cycle route in Hyde Park is already open. TfL estimates that the remainder of the Hyde Park route will be open in the New Year.
The work in St James’s and Green Parks is being planned in stages and the complete route should be finished by next summer although parts may be open sooner.