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Tag: 2016

  • Virendra Sharma – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Virendra Sharma – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Virendra Sharma on 2016-07-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if her Department will increase its contribution to the Global Fund to fight AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria.

    James Wharton

    The Global Fund has announced its 2017-2019 replenishment target – seeking to mobilise US$13billion to save 8 million lives and avert up to 300 million new infections. The UK is planning to support a successful Fifth Replenishment of a strong, value for money Global Fund and a decision on the size of our investment will be made later in the summer.

  • John Pugh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    John Pugh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Pugh on 2016-10-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what proportion of staff on the payroll of his Department who work in Westminster are (a) British nationals and (b) nationals of another country.

    Mr John Hayes

    Many staff self-declare their nationality on the staff system. Evidence of nationality is checked at the point of recruitment into the Civil Service as part of wider pre-employment checks and copies of this evidence are held on file for the duration of the person’s employment and for a further two years after they cease working for the department.

  • Caroline Lucas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Caroline Lucas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Lucas on 2016-01-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many section 95 support claims for asylum seekers have been subject to processing delays of more than 14 days in the last 12 months; and how many on-going claims are subject to delays of more than 14 days.

    James Brokenshire

    The information requested is not readily available and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

    However we continue to meet our statutory duties to accommodate and support destitute asylum seekers. Assessment of eligibility for support remains a priority. Since April 2015, 82% (14,112) of section 95 applications have been processed within 10 working days.

  • Kate Hoey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Kate Hoey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kate Hoey on 2016-01-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the perceptions of the Shia in Bahrain as to the legitimacy of the Alkhalifa government in that country.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    We follow the political situation closely in Bahrain, including Shia interests. We encourage all political parties, to engage constructively in political dialogue in order to reach an inclusive political settlement. Despite the opposition’s decision to boycott the 2014 elections, we commended the participation of a broad range of candidates which saw 14 independent Shia candidates win seats, of which three were women.

  • Roger Godsiff – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Roger Godsiff – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2016-02-22.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the effect on teachers’ workloads of the new system for assessment of pupils’ achievement in reading, writing and mathematics at Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2.

    Nick Gibb

    We have made removing unnecessary workload a priority so that the efforts of teachers are focused on teaching. Our primary assessment reforms have been designed to put arrangements for the majority of classroom assessment back into the hands of the school and to reduce the tracking burdens that national curriculum levels encouraged. We believe schools are best placed to decide how to assess pupils in line with their curriculum and that over time this should lead to a reduction in teacher workload.

    Following the introduction of the new national curriculum and the removal of levels, we have developed new forms of statutory assessment at the end of Key Stages 1 and 2. The duty to report assessment at these points remains unchanged from previous years. We do recognise, however, that in this first year the new forms of assessment are used pupils and teachers will be adapting their approach. The best way to prepare pupils remains to focus on teaching the new national curriculum, which schools have been doing since September 2014.

    Throughout the introduction of our important reforms to primary assessment, we have worked closely with teachers and head teachers and continue to listen to the concerns of the profession as the details of the new arrangements are finalised. We are working constructively with the teaching profession and their representatives to find solutions to some of the remaining issues.

  • Kevan Jones – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Kevan Jones – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevan Jones on 2016-03-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what work was undertaken to modify Warthog vehicles for post-Afghan use after the 2013 decision to keep the platform; and what the cost of that work was to the public purse.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    The Warthog vehicle entered service in 2010 as an urgent operational requirement for use in Afghanistan. Since the end of operations in Afghanistan a range of armoured vehicles purchased specifically for operations in that theatre have been brought into the MOD’s core inventory; the Warthog vehicle was not one of these. The options for disposing of the Warthog are now being considered, including the possiblity of an export route, but no decisions have been taken at this time.

    5 and 32 Regiments Royal Artillery will receive the Bulldog armoured vehicle as a replacement for Warthog. 47 Regiment Royal Artillery will continue to use the Coyote armoured vehicle.

  • Alison Thewliss – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Alison Thewliss – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alison Thewliss on 2016-04-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many times on which dates in 2014 specialist contractors were used to facilitate the enforced return to Yemen of people from that country who had unsuccessfully claimed asylum in the UK.

    James Brokenshire

    All escorting services to facilitate enforced returns are provided by the Home Office’s main contractor, Tascor. In 2014, detainee custody officers from the Pilgrims Group, who are sub-contracted by Tascor were used on one occasion on 23rd July to facilitate the enforced return of an individual to Yemen.

  • Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-05-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions he has had with BT on the time taken to repair faulty telephone lines.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    Ministers have raised the issue of the time taken for service requests and repairs with senior management at BT and Openreach.

    Government supports the measures Ofcom announced in its Digital Communications Review to address the problem across all communication service providers, including: raising minimum standards for the time taken to install new lines and make repairs; and encouraging proactive behaviour in the maintenance of the network. Government expects Openreach’s performance to be consistently above the minimum standard.

  • Kelvin Hopkins – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Kelvin Hopkins – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kelvin Hopkins on 2016-07-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether under the terms of its franchise agreement Govia Thameslink Railway is required to consult stakeholders before introducing a change to the timetable for its services.

    Paul Maynard

    For planned timetable changes, Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) is required to consult stakeholders before introducing them. However, when – as is the case for the revised timetable which came into effect on Southern and Gatwick Express services on 11 July a revised timetable has been introduced to mitigate the impact of official and unofficial industrial action – no consultation is required. GTR has an overriding obligation to act in the overall interests of passengers and to take all reasonable measures to avoid or reduce the impact of any disruption.

  • John Pugh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Wales Office

    John Pugh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Wales Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Pugh on 2016-10-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what proportion of staff on the payroll of his Department who work in Westminster are (a) British nationals and (b) nationals of another country.

    Guto Bebb

    The Wales Office is not an employer in its own right and payroll services are provided by the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) on our behalf.