The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tulip Siddiq on 2016-03-01.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much HM Revenue and Customs spent on auditing Google’s tax returns in each of the last 10 years; and how many full-time equivalent staff worked on that task in those years.
Mr David Gauke
HM Revenue and Customs does not disclose details of its work on the affairs of particular taxpayers.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sir David Amess on 2016-04-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to his Department’s Written Statement of 10 March 2016, HCWS605, on Air Cadet Aviation Re-launch, whether a decision has been taken to close MDP Wethersfield airfield; and if he will make an assessment of the potential contribution of that facility to supporting 614 Volunteer Gliding Squadron operations in the future.
Mr Julian Brazier
I refer the hon. Member to the Written Statement made by my hon. Friend the Minister for Defence Personnel, Welfare and Veterans (Mark Lancaster) on 24 March (Official Report, column 75WS) which confirmed the release of MOD Wethersfield. It is intended that the site will close before this Parliament ends in 2020.
All units based at the site, including 614 Volunteer Gliding Squadron, will be provided for elsewhere.
Work to identify the potential future location for these units will be completed later this year.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julian Knight on 2016-05-10.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he plans to take to offer public financial advice on Lifetime ISAs.
Mr David Gauke
The new Lifetime ISA will provide savers with the flexibility to save towards a first home and retirement at the same time.
From April 2017, people aged 18 to 40 will be able to save up to £4,000 each year into a Lifetime ISA and receive a 25% bonus from the Government.
The Government is engaging with the industry on the detail of implementation, regulation and advice on the Lifetime ISA. Further details will be announced when the Government brings forward legislation to enact the Lifetime ISA in the autumn.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tasmina Ahmed-Sheikh on 2016-06-15.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many re-assessments for people already receiving disability living allowance for children have been conducted in the last three years for which figures are available.
Justin Tomlinson
For Disability Living Allowance children are given fixed term awards and it is the responsibility of the parent to make a new application once the award ends if the child still has additional needs as a result of disability. If a relevant change of circumstances is reported then the claim could be reassessed.
The table below shows the number of Renewal decisions cleared on an existing award and the number of Supersession decisions cleared which relate to a change of circumstance on an existing award, for the last three years.
|
Disability Living Allowance |
2013/14 |
2014/15 |
2015/16 |
|
Child Renewals total clearances |
54,772 |
68,148 |
69,436 |
|
Child Supersessions total clearances |
17,339 |
16,275 |
19,588 |
|
Total Child Supersessions + Renewals |
72,111 |
84,423 |
89,024 |
Source: Department of Work and Pensions, Disability Living Allowance Computer System – RDA 80123 report
This type of internal management information does not form part of the official statistics outputs that are released by the Department in accordance with the UK Statistics Authority’s Code of Practice and should be used with caution.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Zeichner on 2016-09-12.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, for what reason the Government’s £60 million investment in Reaction Engines to help support the development of SABRE, as announced on 16 July 2013, has been delayed.
Joseph Johnson
The announcement in July 2013 was an in principle decision to fund, subject to the development of a suitable business case. The reason the funding was not disbursed sooner was because Reaction Engines had not produced a business case that met the Government’s requirements.
The funding for SABRE was confirmed to Reaction Engines as a grant in December 2015, and milestone payments began in April 2016.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2016-01-18.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what proportion of the housing on the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park is affordable.
Brandon Lewis
There is outline planning permission for approximately 6,800 homes on the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. The target is for 31 per cent of these homes to be affordable, which means over 2,100 affordable homes across the entire site.
The exact percentage of affordable homes delivered will depend on the market conditions as each scheme comes to market.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Drew Hendry on 2016-02-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what proportion of (a) premises in the Highlands and Islands he estimates will have indoor 4G coverage, (b) the Highlands area he estimates will have complete not-spots for voice and SMS text by 2017.
Mr Edward Vaizey
Improving mobile coverage remains a priority for the Government, and our landmark agreement in December 2014 with the four mobile network operators (MNOs) for each to provide voice and SMS text coverage to at least 90% of the UK landmass by 2017 will significantly improve coverage in the UK, including the Highlands area. The additional licence obligation on Telefonica will deliver significant improvements in 4G coverage as well and whilst we have no specific 4G coverage figures for the Highlands and Islands, the obligation will deliver indoor 4G coverage to 95% of premises in Scotland by end 2017.
These obligations will also more than halve complete not spots for voice calls across the Highland area landmass over the same period.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Cat Smith on 2016-03-01.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many GPs have notified cases of Myalgic Encephalomyelitis in each of the last five years.
Jane Ellison
This information is not collected in England.
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence clinical guidance, Chronic fatigue syndrome/myalgic encephalomyelitis (or encephalopathy): Diagnosis and management of CFS/ME in adults and children, published in 2007, estimates that the annual prevalence is approximately 4,000 cases per million of the population.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julie Cooper on 2016-04-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to paragraph 1.37 of her Department’s White Paper, Educational Excellence Everywhere, published in March 2016, when she plans to convene leading headteachers and other experts to design the new voluntary National Professional Qualifications for leadership roles.
Nick Gibb
To develop a reformed suite of National Professional Qualifications, which better prepare new leaders for the full range of leadership roles, the Department for Education anticipates convening a group of leading experts, including school leaders, in the coming months.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Flynn on 2016-05-10.
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what assessment she has made of the implications for her policy on the building of a nuclear power plant at Hinkley Point C of the finding of the UN Economic and Social Council in the Report of the Implementation Committee on its thirty-fifth session, page 21, that the UK is in non-compliance with its obligations to examine the potential adverse transboundary impacts of an accident at any new nuclear plant constructed in the UK.
Andrea Leadsom
Compliance with international obligations is something we take very seriously. The proposed recommendations published by the Implementation Committee are still subject to adoption by the Meeting of the Parties to the Espoo Convention at their next meeting which is due to take place in June 2017.
We are confident that we have met the relevant international requirements in relation to Hinkley Point C, however we will consider the Implementation Committee’s report in advance of the meeting.