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Tag: 2016

  • Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2016-03-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, to how many appeal hearings her Department did not send a representative at (a) First-tier Tribunal (Immigration and Asylum) and (b) Upper Tribunal (Immigration and Asylum) in (i) 2012-13 (ii) 2013-14 and (iii) 2014-15.

    James Brokenshire

    The Government publishes the percentage of appeal hearings at which the Secretary of State for the Home Department was represented on a quarterly basis. Below is a table covering the 2012-2015 period.

    Appeal Representation Rates

    Quarters

    All hearings (%)

    First Tier (%) 3

    Upper Tier (%) 3

    Deportation (%) 2

    2012 Q1

    83%

    80%

    100%

    100%

    2012 Q2

    83%

    80%

    100%

    100%

    2012 Q3

    87%

    85%

    100%

    100%

    2012 Q4

    94%

    93%

    100%

    100%

    2013 Q1

    95%

    94%

    100%

    100%

    2013 Q2

    98%

    97%

    100%

    100%

    2013 Q3

    98%

    98%

    100%

    100%

    2013 Q4

    99%

    99%

    100%

    100%

    2014 Q1

    99%

    98%

    100%

    100%

    2014 Q2

    99%

    99%

    100%

    100%

    2014 Q3

    99%

    99%

    100%

    100%

    2014 Q4

    99%

    99%

    100%

    100%

    2015 Q1

    97%

    97%

    100%

    100%

    2015 Q2

    86%

    83%

    100%

    100%

    2015 Q3

    85%

    82%

    100%

    100%

    2015 Q4

    98%

    97%

    100%

    100%

    Appeal Representation Rates

    1

    The percentage of appeal hearings at first tier/upper tier/deportation where the Home Office was represented.

    2

    Deportation appeals show both first tier and upper tier representation rates.

    3

    The first tier/upper tier information excludes entry clearance appeals and deportation appeals.

    4

    All figures quoted have been derived from management information and are therefore provisional and subject to change.

    5

    This information has not been quality assured under National Statistics protocols.

    6

    Data refers ONLY to those cases recorded on the Casework Immigration Database.
  • Nick Smith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Nick Smith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nick Smith on 2016-05-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what proportion of dairy products procured for his Department was sourced from British producers in the latest period for which figures are available.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    The Department does not undertake procurement of dairy products. Catering is available to the department but this is not managed by DCMS.

  • Toby Perkins – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Toby Perkins – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Toby Perkins on 2016-06-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what additional funding his Department plans to make available for walking and cycling initiatives as a result of the cycling and walking investment strategy.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    The Government has made clear its intention to make this country a cycling nation. The Cycling and Walking Investment Strategy will be published in the summer and will include details of how the £300m committed in the last Spending Review will be invested to support cycling and walking.

    In addition to the dedicated cycling and walking programmes, there are a number of wider funding streams which are devolved to local bodies and which can and are being used to support cycling and walking projects. In particular, billions are available to Local Enterprise Partnerships and local authorities through the Local Growth Fund and Integrated Transport Block allocations.

    In addition to the above, a record £6.1 billion has been allocated to local highways authorities between 2015 and 2021 for road maintenance, and this funding can help maintain footways and cycleways.

  • Lord Bradshaw – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Lord Bradshaw – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Bradshaw on 2016-09-06.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 17 June (HL518), how many unplanned closures of the East Coast Main Line there were in August.

    Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

    Network Rail and the relevant train operators will continue to develop the detail and performance implications of the 2021 timetable in line with the industry’s normal timetable development process, under the oversight of the Office of Rail and Road.

    With regard to the operation of the Thameslink central core, this is a matter for Network Rail and the relevant train operators, under the oversight of the Office of Rail and Road. The industry is continuing to develop plans for integrating the 24 trains per hour proposed to run on the Thameslink route at peak times from December 2018 with other services on the East Coast Main Line, including the implications for punctuality and reliability.

    After consulting with Network Rail we have established that there were five ‘unplanned closures’, on various sections of the line, on five separate days in August, two of which were infrastructure related and three as a result of passenger action.

    Network Rail have defined days with ‘unplanned closures’ of the East Coast Main Line as days where there are more than five cancellation events. A cancellation event covers any service suffering one or more of the below events:

    • Full Cancellation
    • Part Cancellation
    • Diversion
    • Fail to stop
    • Change of Origin
  • Cheryl Gillan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Cheryl Gillan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Cheryl Gillan on 2016-10-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the project management section of the High Speed Rail (Preparation) Act 2013 Expenditure Report, 1 April 2015 to 31 March 2016, what incentive payments were made to HS2 Ltd’s development partners and professional services contractors; to whom such payments were made; and what exceptional performance was relevant in each such case.

    Andrew Jones

    Incentive payments were based on accrued estimates of the contractually obliged sums payable to the company’s Development Partner CH2M Hill and its Professional Service Contractors. These contractors have provided critical support to HS2 Ltd in its undertaking of both its preparatory works and its ongoing hybrid Bill management. Assessment is undertaken by a multi-disciplinary panel from across HS2 Ltd to consider the case made by each contractor as to the additional value provided over and above the original contracted scope.

    The accrued estimates accounted for in support of HS2 Ltd’s preparatory works are £1.4m, split over the following suppliers: CH2M Hill, Arup, Atkins, Capita Symons / Ineco, ERM / Temple / Mott McDonald, Mott.

  • Teresa Pearce – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Teresa Pearce – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Teresa Pearce on 2016-01-13.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what his policy is on public sector and charitable provision of consumer debt advice services.

    Damian Hinds

    The Money Advice Service (MAS) is responsible for the coordination of publicly funded free to client debt advice. MAS is financed by a levy on the financial services industry. MAS is currently consulting on its business plan; it has proposed levying for a constant budget for debt advice for 2016/17 providing around £45 million to its third sector partners for the provision of debt advice.

    More broadly the Government is currently reviewing how the public provision of free-to-client, impartial financial guidance, including consumer debt advice services, should be structured to give consumers the information they need to make financial decisions. The Public Financial Guidance consultation closed in December 2015 and the Government will report back by budget.

  • Diana Johnson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Diana Johnson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Diana Johnson on 2016-02-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations his Department has made to the government of (a) Italy and (b) Egypt on the case of Giulio Regini.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    We are aware of the tragic death of Mr Regini, an Italian national, following his disappearance on 25 January and pass our condolences to his friends and family at this difficult time. We support Italian and Egyptian efforts to investigate into the circumstances of his death.

  • Tulip Siddiq – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Tulip Siddiq – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tulip Siddiq on 2016-02-29.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much funding the Government has allocated to the NSPCC’s Modern Slavery helpline in financial year (a) 2014-15 and (b) 2015-16; how many full-time equivalent staff have been employed by that helpline; how many calls the helpline has received; and how much funding the Government plans to allocate to the helpline in 2016-17.

    Karen Bradley

    The NSPCC-run modern slavery helpline was launched in July 2014, as part of a wider awareness-raising campaign, to better support potential victims of modern slavery. For the financial year 2014-15, £35,000 was made available to the NSPCC to run the modern slavery helpline and, in 2015-16, £15,000 was made available.

    The NSPCC run Modern Slavery helpline does not employ dedicated staff. Instead, training was provided to existing NSPCC call handlers by existing staff in the NSPCC child trafficking advice centre, the Metropolitan Police’s Human Trafficking Unit and the Modern Slavery Unit. For the period 31 July 2014 to 11 February 2016 the helpline received 1,005 contacts.

    No funding has been allocated for the financial year 2016-17. Polaris, a US-based Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO), is establishing an enhanced UK helpline in collaboration with a UK-based NGO, which will supersede the current NSPCC helpline. The new helpline will provide increased analytical capability and is expected to be in operation later this year.

  • Tom Brake – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Tom Brake – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Brake on 2016-03-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what information his Department holds on whether Passenger Service Performance by the TSGN has exceeded the Default Performance Level for any benchmark for any (a) three consecutive reporting periods, (b) four reporting periods within a period of 13 consecutive reporting periods or (c) any five reporting periods within a period of 26 consecutive reporting periods except in relation to any reporting periods falling within a no breach reporting period.

    Claire Perry

    The Department receives information on each franchised operators’ performance against respective benchmarks every four weeks. Delays and Peak Short formations have not exceeded the Default Performance level as defined in the Franchise Agreement. However, GTR exceeded the breach performance level for cancellations last year and the Secretary of State issued Govia Thameslink Railway with a Remedial Plan Notice requiring them to set out the measures they will take in order to improve performance. Subsequently, the Secretary of State has accepted the Remedial Plan that sets out the steps the operator is taking to improve their performance.

  • 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 2016-05-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans she has to update guidance for sex and relationships education so that it is inclusive of LGBT young people.

    Edward Timpson

    The Government believes that sex and relationship education (SRE) is essential for children’s development and preparation for responsible adult life. The Secretary of State’s guidance makes clear that all schools should ensure that young people, whatever their developing sexuality or identity, feel that SRE is relevant to them and sensitive to their needs. We have received requests about updating the guidance and have made a commitment to develop an action plan for improving PSHE and have agreed to consider updating the 2000 statutory SRE guidance. In her letter of 10 February 2016 to the Education Select Committee, the Secretary of State said that she would consider updating the SRE guidance.