The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gregory Campbell on 2016-01-05.
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what information her Department holds on the average life expectancy for girls aged 15 in sub-Saharan Africa between 2005 and 2015.
Mr Nick Hurd
The UN Population Division estimates that total average life expectancy for fifteen year old girls in Sub-Saharan Africa was 63.53 years between 2005 and 2010 and 66.12 years between 2010 and 2015.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Stephens on 2016-01-29.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how the replacement of the HM Revenue and Customs IT Aspire contract will be conducted; and whether it will be conducted in separate tranches.
Mr David Gauke
On 5 August 2015, HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) announced the next step in its plans to transition from the Aspire contract. The Department is seeking to establish a truly world class IT operation that has the right mix of technology, processes and skills in a multi-sourced model to deliver its digital vision – and savings of up to 24 per cent on its £800m annual IT budget by 2020-21.
HMRC is making significant progress in preparing for the end of the Aspire IT contract in 2017. In December 2015, three services previously delivered by Capgemini were successfully brought under HMRC’s direct control.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Luciana Berger on 2016-02-24.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many and what proportion of (a) all children and (b) children with mental health conditions aged five to 16 have conduct disorder.
Alistair Burt
Data on the number and proportion of children aged 5–16 years diagnosed with a conduct disorder is not routinely collected centrally. The most recent survey, Mental health of children and young people in Great Britain, 2004, published by the Office for National Statistics in 2005, showed that 5.8% of children aged five to 16 had conduct disorders. This represents 60.4% of the 9.6% of children with any mental health disorder at that time.
However, the Department is commissioning a new national prevalence survey of children and young people’s mental health – the first since 2004. The survey will estimate the extent of mental ill health in the 2-19 year old population. Final publication of findings is expected in 2018.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ruth Smeeth on 2016-03-17.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what examination of job roles her Department undertakes when issuing Tier 2 (ICT) visas.
James Brokenshire
Each application for a Tier 2 (ICT) visa must be accompanied by a certificate of sponsorship (COS) issued by the applicant’s sponsor. The COS will set out the job description and the job role the applicant is required to perform, as well as the salary they will be paid and the hours of work they will undertake. The Secretary of State will examine the information on the COS against the codes of practice for skilled workers to ensure the criteria under the Tier 2 (ICT) arrangements are met. The codes of practice set out the relevant skill level and minimum rates of pay that apply to any job.
The Secretary of State may also consider whether the application meets the genuine vacancy requirements set out in the Immigration Rules. This assessment is to satisfy that the information in the certificate of sponsorship has not been tailored specifically to meet the requirements of the Tier 2 criteria.
Entry Clearance Officers within visa sections overseas also have the discretion to conduct additional assessments should they have concerns about specific sponsors. Further compliance checks are carried out after the visa has been issued during compliance visits to ensure roles are genuine and meet the appropriate skill level for sponsorship. Compliance officers routinely assess the credibility of the job roles and collect evidence that the duties of sponsored migrants are in accordance with those stated by the sponsor in the certificates of sponsorship.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Marquess of Lothian on 2016-04-25.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Immigration Minister, James Brokenshire, on 14 March (HC29894), and in the light of the figures released by the Home Office on the number of non-EU students who had their visas curtailed in the three years to the end of December 2015 as part of their strategy to clamp down on immigration abuse, how many educational institutions were affected, and whether any of those educational institutions remain open to British and EU students.
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
It is not possible to run a report linking each curtailment decision to a specific educational institution. To provide the information requested would require a manual check of every curtailment in the cohort referenced which would incur a disproportionate cost.
The Immigration Rules allow for leave of an individual to be curtailed for a variety of reasons, not only as a result of an institution losing its sponsor licence but also, for example, is a student drops out of their course of study and is reported to the Home Office by the sponsor. Sponsors have a number of reporting duties in respect of their students, and these can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/sponsor-a-tier-4-student-guidance-for-educators
The Home Office does not close down educational institutions. The revocation of a Tier 4 sponsor licence means that an educational institution can no longer recruit non-EEA students under the Points Based System. The institution may, however, continue to operate and teach UK and EEA students. The Home Office does not routinely monitor educational institutions who do not hold a sponsor licence.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Judd on 2016-06-06.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what new developments and initiatives they are currently undertaking as part of their support for British candidates for senior positions in the UN and for the deployment of UK civilian staff with relevant expertise to key roles in the UN, both in its operations and at the UN Headquarters.
Baroness Anelay of St Johns
It is in UK interests, and it is a Government priority, to encourage and support British candidates for senior positions in the UN and to promote the deployment of UK civilian staff with relevant expertise to key roles in the UN, both in its operations and at the UN Headquarters.
To this end the Foreign and Commonwealth Office has strengthened and restructured its team of officials working in this area. In collaboration with other government departments it is;
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(i) |
Targeting a broader range of UN agencies. |
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(ii) |
Expanding the talent pool of potential UK candidates for top jobs and in parallel further developing pipelines for UK nationals coming through the ranks. |
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(iii) |
Encouraging British nationals interested in international jobs to register on a specifically developed International Opportunities Database. |
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Providing targeted support to candidates applying for positions of strategic importance to the Government. |
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Ensuring that these opportunities are communicated as widely as possible to attract candidates from diverse backgrounds. |
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Diana Johnson on 2016-07-20.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions he has held with the European Commission on whether the Commission will honour the full amounts of financial grants awarded for regional development in the most recent spending round.
Mr David Gauke
The UK will continue to have all of the rights, obligations and benefits that membership brings, including receiving European funding, up until the point we leave the EU. The UK has not commenced negotiations for what happens after we leave the EU. At every step of the upcoming negotiations we will work to ensure the best possible outcome for the British people.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gerald Jones on 2016-10-11.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many police cars were sold by police forces in England and Wales in each year between 2010 and 2015.
Brandon Lewis
The Home Office does not hold this information.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lilian Greenwood on 2016-01-05.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 5 January 2016 to Question 20639, whether franchise agreements for future franchises within the South East Flexible Ticketing geographical area will include an obligation for operators to subscribe to that programme.
Claire Perry
We are keen that operators significantly increase the uptake of smart ticketing across all franchises and we have challenged the industry to move forward with the development of new ticketing technologies. We are working with the Rail Delivery Group to work out what would need to be specified in franchises, but it is too early to say what those specifications could look like.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Brendan O’Hara on 2016-01-29.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether Ministry of Defence Police Officers are subject to disciplinary or unsatisfactory performance procedures in the event that they are unable to undertake additional work in excess of contractual hours; and what plans he has to review that policy.
Mark Lancaster
In line with the rest of the police service, Ministry of Defence Police officers may be subject to disciplinary action if they fail to attend for duty when directed to do so. There are no plans to review this policy.