Tag: 2016

  • Christian Matheson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Christian Matheson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Christian Matheson on 2016-02-03.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many (a) deaths, (b) missing persons incidents and (c) sexual assaults or serious crimes against the person have been reported against UK citizens whilst at sea in each year since and including 2010.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    The Department for Transport does not hold statistics on the number of UK citizens who die at sea, become missing persons or are the victims of sexual assault or serious crimes against the person whilst at sea.

  • Karl McCartney – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Karl McCartney – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Karl McCartney on 2016-02-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what assessment the Government made of the effect on (a) high streets, (b) small businesses and (c) post offices of the temporary changes to Sunday trading laws during the 2012 Olympic Games in London.

    Anna Soubry

    The Office for National Statistics analysed the impact of the short term Olympic relaxation of the Sunday trading rules and found that it was not possible to make any inference from the data. They found no definite pattern amongst the growth rates of retail sales and noted that other factors, such as the weather and time of year, will have impacted sales.

  • Ruth Cadbury – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Ruth Cadbury – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ruth Cadbury on 2016-03-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans his Department has to increase capacity on public transport links to Heathrow Airport from central London.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    The Elizabeth line will replace the existing two train per hour Heathrow Connect service from May 2018 providing a 4 train per hour service to Terminals 1 to 4, operating alongside the existing 4 train per hour Heathrow Express service. This will offer significant improvements in connectivity from and to Heathrow, particularly from the West End, the City and Canary Wharf.

    Heathrow is also served by regular Piccadilly line services from central London. Upgrading this line is a matter for the Mayor and Transport for London who plan to introduce new modern signalling systems and new trains to provide 60% more capacity (the equivalent of up to 21,000 customers per hour).

    For any improvements associated with airport expansion, the Government will agree the nature and scale of the surface access transport as part of its decision on its preferred scheme for additional airport capacity in the South East. The Government has also been clear that it expects the scheme promoter to meet the costs of any surface access proposals that are required as a direct result of airport expansion and from which they will directly benefit.

  • Lord Kennedy of Southwark – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Kennedy of Southwark – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Kennedy of Southwark on 2016-04-28.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their latest assessment of the human rights situation in Zimbabwe.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    We consider the human rights situation in Zimbabwe to be fragile. This Government’s manifesto included a commitment to stand up for the rule of law and human rights in Zimbabwe. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s 2015 Annual Human Rights Report lists Zimbabwe as a Priority Country. We continue to call, both bilaterally and in partnership with others, for an end to abuses and the restoration of internationally accepted standards.

  • Baroness Tonge – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Baroness Tonge – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Tonge on 2016-06-13.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government at what intervals female newborn babies born to mothers who have been victims of female genital mutilation will receive follow-up health and welfare checks.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) is illegal, extremely harmful and it is child abuse. Girls born to mothers who have had FGM are offered the same range of newborn and infant health checks as offered to all families.

    In addition to the routine newborn and infant health checks offered to all families as part of the Healthy Child Programme, professionals have safeguarding responsibilities meaning that if they have any concerns about FGM they should take appropriate safeguarding actions, including sharing this with key professionals within the child’s life as part of local safeguarding procedures. In addition, any concerns about potential risk of FGM must be recorded within the child’s Red Book.

    A multi-agency approach is essential to protect girls from harm and as such, midwives, health visitors, general practitioners and school nurses amongst others are all responsible for the health and welfare of all children they see, irrespective of whether the mother has had FGM or not.

    The document Female Genital Mutilation Risk and Safeguarding Guidance for professionals (Department of Health, May 2016) provides information for health professionals on the specific issues frequently encountered when dealing with FGM. A copy of this document is attached.

  • Ian Murray – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Ian Murray – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Murray on 2016-09-02.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the effect of the recent changes to mortgage interest relief on the private-rented sector in relation to (a) average rents, (b) availability of private sector accommodation, (c) housing benefit levels and (d) quality of rental properties.

    Jane Ellison

    HMRC estimate that 1 in 5 landlords will pay more tax as a result of this measure.

    Given that only a small proportion of the housing market is affected by this change, the Government does not expect these changes to have a large impact on rent levels or house prices. The Office of Budget Responsibility (OBR) also expects the impact on the housing market will be small.

    The Government will double the housing budget from 2018-19 and has set out the most ambitious affordable housing plan since the 1970s to support working people in their aim to own their own home, together the measures in the plan amount to over £20 billion of investment in housing between 2016-17 and 2020-21.

    The level of housing benefits is dependent on a number of factors such as, household and individual circumstances in regards to employment and household income, inflation and rents. The Government does not expect a large impact on rent levels from this policy, and any impact would be dampened in the short term due to other policy decisions. Therefore, the government does not anticipate changes to the overall level of housing benefits as a result. Nevertheless, the government will continue to monitor rental levels charged in the private rented sector.

    Landlords are required to maintain their properties to a legal minimum standard. The reform to the wear and tear allowance means that all landlords will now be able to offset the costs of replacing furnishings in their properties removing the previous disincentive to do so. The Government therefore does not think that the changes to the tax rules will reduce standards for tenants.

    Some landlords may face difficult decisions regarding their properties. This is why the Government has chosen to act in a proportionate and gradual way. Basic rate income tax relief will still be available on a landlord’s finance costs, the restriction will not be introduced until April 2017 and then it will be phased in over 4 years. This gives landlords time to plan ahead of the changes.

  • Christopher Chope – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Christopher Chope – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Christopher Chope on 2016-10-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 17 October 2016 to Question 48308, when he expects to reach a conclusion on whether the proposal for the combined authority meets the statutory test; and if he will place in the Library a copy of the summary of consultation responses submitted on 26 July 2016.

    Andrew Percy

    In reaching a decision, the Secretary of State will take into account the governance review, the councils’ statutory scheme setting out their proposals, the summary of responses which is available on the councils’ web site at the link below, and any other relevant information, and plans to take decisions, likely to be around the start of 2017, on a timetable that would enable the combined authority to be established on 1 April 2017.

    https://www.dorsetforyou.gov.uk/article/421739/Dorset-Combined-Authority-proposals-and-consultation

    “

  • Lord Rennard – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Lord Rennard – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Rennard on 2016-01-11.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of research from the University of East Anglia forecasting that the introduction of Individual Voter Registration will lead to a decline in levels of electoral registration.

    Lord Bridges of Headley

    The Government is aware of research by the University of East Anglia into Individual Electoral Registration (IER) that was submitted to the Political and Constitutional Reform Committee in 2011. The electoral registers used for the 2015 General Election contained over 400,000 more entries than the last registers published prior to the introduction of IER. As such, suggestions that IER would lead to a decline in registration levels were proved incorrect.

  • Oliver Dowden – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Oliver Dowden – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Oliver Dowden on 2016-02-03.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, pursuant to the Answer of 25 January 2016 to Question 23018, on lasers: regulation, what steps he is taking to restrict direct sale into the UK to individual customers.

    Anna Soubry

    I refer to my answer of 25 January.

    Under the Consumer Protection Act 1987 and the General Product Safety Regulations, a business importing into the EU/EEA must have a representative within the EU/EEA who is responsible and liable for the safety of imported goods. This enables Customs and Trading Standards to check that imported laser products comply with safety standards. It is harder for them to carry out these checks where customers order goods from a company outside the EU and receive them directly through the post.

    We therefore advise customers who want to buy laser products to go to a reputable dealer with authorised representation in the European Union. If consumers are concerned about the safety of laser products on sale they should report the website or retailer to their local Trading Standards department.

  • Andrew Rosindell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Andrew Rosindell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2016-02-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what discussions he has had with (a) members of the public and (b) law professionals on proposed changes to the system of probate fees charged to activate a will.

    Mr Shailesh Vara

    The Government published a consultation on proposals to reform fees for applications for a grant of probate on 18 February. The consultation will run for six weeks, closing on 1 April. It is open to all members of the public, law professionals or other persons to respond.