Tag: 2016

  • Ian C. Lucas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Ian C. Lucas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian C. Lucas on 2016-02-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many applications for legal aid were (a) made by and (b) granted to victims of people charged with domestic violence in each local authority area in the North West Police Authority in each year since 2010.

    Mr Shailesh Vara

    The LAA does not routinely collect information on whether applicants for legal aid are victims of people charged with domestic violence.

    Prior to 2013, when people applied for legal aid they were not asked to declare whether domestic violence had occurred. Since 2013, applications for legal aid do not routinely request this information. Therefore the data requested is not available.

    People seeking protective injunctions, like non-molestation orders, remain eligible for legal aid. Legal aid also remains available in private family cases that involve domestic violence. We have listened closely to any concerns about how the system has been operating, and made changes in response, such as making it easier to prove abuse and so get legal aid.

    The number of applications which require Domestic Violence evidence received and granted following LASPO, and figures for civil representation in the ‘Domestic Violence’ category both pre and post LASPO, are published in the official statistics on legal aid published quarterly on the Gov.uk website at the following link https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/legal-aid-statistics

    “

  • Andy Slaughter – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Andy Slaughter – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2016-02-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the average amount of time is a prisoner spends on education or work-related activities at Feltham Young Offenders Institution.

    Andrew Selous

    HMP&YOI Feltham is a split site which holds both young people (under 18’s) and young adults (18-20 year olds). The two cohorts are managed distinctly and there are separate education contracts and different providers for each.

    The Youth Justice Board oversees the management of the education contract for young people at Feltham. Prior to August 2015, education providers were only required to deliver 15 hours of education. In August 2015, we increased the requirement for education providers in public sector Young Offender Institutions (YOIs) to 27 hours of education a week, which is supplemented by 3 hours of physical exercise.

    Whist the majority of education time is protected, it is expected that young people will miss some lessons to attend appointments such as court appearances, medical appointments and legal visits.

    The following table provides the average number of classroom based education hours, alternative activities hours and physical education hours per week accessed by young people at Feltham YOI since 16 August 2015.

    Education

    Average hours per week

    Classroom based learning

    13.99

    Alternative activities(1)

    7.72

    Physical education(2)

    1.43

    Total

    23.15

    (1) Alternative activities include interventions relating to offending behaviour, focus groups, Release on Temporary licence etc.

    (2) Data is from 9 October only.

    This table does not include outreach education provision which is provided to young people who are not able to engage with class room based education.

    The National Offender Management Service (NOMS) and the Youth Justice Board are working with education providers to address delivery challenges and increase the number of education hours received by young people.

  • Douglas Carswell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Douglas Carswell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Carswell on 2016-03-17.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what planning his Department is undertaking in relation to the effect of crypto-currencies on traditional banking models.

    Harriett Baldwin

    Digital currencies, and the distributed ledger technology that underpins them, have the potential to bring innovative services and products to UK customers and firms – particularly in areas like international transfers.

    The Chancellor announced in March 2015 that the Government will bring digital currency exchange firms into regulation in the UK to help the legitimate industry flourish, and to create a hostile environment for illicit actors. We will publish proposals on this regulatory regime in due course.

    As outlined in Deputy Governor, Ben Broadbent’s recent speech, the Bank of England is also exploring this emerging sector and the implications it could have for monetary and financial stability as part of its broader research agenda.

    Separately, academics at University College London’s (UCL) digital currency research centre have also been looking at how the distributed ledger technology that underpins digital currencies could be harnessed by central banks. The Government is encouraged to see this research from one of the UK’s world-leading universities. However, this a theoretical paper by an independent institution, separate from the Bank of England’s work and from Government policy.

    It is the Government’s ambition to foster the growth of legitimate digital currency firms as part of the wider FinTech ecosystem here in the UK. As part of this, the Government will consider the wider implications of a growing digital currencies sector for the financial services sector and the economy as a whole. Some parts of Government are also looking at how the benefits of distributed ledger technology can be harnessed to deliver greater innovation. However, the Government and the Bank of England do not currently have any plans to introduce a centrally issued digital currency.

    The UK has been rated as having the world’s leading FinTech ecosystem in a recent global benchmarking exercise and attracted c. £524mn in investment in 2015.

  • Antoinette Sandbach – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Antoinette Sandbach – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Antoinette Sandbach on 2016-04-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what information his Department holds on whether there have been any meetings between HS2 Ltd and King Street Energy Ltd to discuss the proposed gas storage project near Northwich.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    According to the Department for Transport’s records, representatives from HS2 Ltd met with King Street Energy on 25 September 2013 and 22nd May 2014 to discuss interactions with the proposed HS2 route.

    A further meeting between HS2 Ltd and King Street Energy is scheduled to take place later this year.

  • Gregory Campbell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Gregory Campbell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gregory Campbell on 2016-05-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many meetings of the British-Irish Council Ministers of his Department took part in since May 2013.

    Joseph Johnson

    Information on Ministerial attendances can be found on the British-Irish Council website:

    https://www.britishirishcouncil.org/communique/ministerial-meetings

    “

  • David Amess – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    David Amess – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Amess on 2016-07-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, with reference to Written Statement HCW588 on Infected Blood Payment Scheme, whether his Department has made an estimate of how many bereaved people will receive less support after 2016-17 than they do now.

    Nicola Blackwood

    The reformed scheme will provide a payment to all those with hepatitis C, even if they have been treated, for the current spending review period. A review of the scheme will take place towards the end of this spending review period.

    All those who are currently bereaved partners/spouses and all those who will be bereaved partner/spouses in future will receive a £10,000 lump sum payment and will have continued access to discretionary support. Discretionary support will continue to be available to the bereaved, as well as to infected individuals.

    All infected individuals who are registered with Skipton as having hepatitis C stage 1 (nearly 2,500 people) will be eligible for the new stage 1 annual payment.

  • Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-10-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate her Department has made of the number of cattle which have died of disease or were put down on account of disease in each of the last five years.

    George Eustice

    Defra collects data on cases of notifiable or reportable diseases, as per a legal requirement. The department does not estimate the number of all cattle or all pigs which have died of disease or were put down on account of disease as the department does not collect cattle or pigs death data.

    There have been no pig deaths due to notifiable disease in Great Britain in the last 5 years. There were two cattle deaths in 2015 from Anthrax. The most recent data on Bovine Tuberculosis is available at:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/incidence-of-tuberculosis-tb-in-cattle-in-great-britain

    “

  • Jim Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Jim Cunningham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-01-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent representations he has made to his Saudi Arabian counterpart on prisoners sentenced to death in that country; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    The British Government opposes the death penalty in all circumstances and firmly supports freedom of expression in every country. We continue to communicate to the Saudi authorities, our stance on the death penalty at every suitable opportunity. I refer the hon. Member to my statement of 5 January on Saudi Arabia (Official Report, Column 93).

  • Lilian Greenwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Lilian Greenwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lilian Greenwood on 2016-02-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to page 2 of the actions of the meeting of the Rail Delivery Group National Taskforce of 30 September 2015, what the effect of the Autumn Statement and Spending Review 2015 is on the funding of the British Transport Police.

    Claire Perry

    Funding for the British Transport Police is not derived directly from a specific Government grant but from holders of police service agreements. However, during the recent spending review, the Department has made clear to the British Transport Police Authority that it considers that appropriate efficiencies should be identified and made. However, it has also emphasised that any efficiencies should not materially impact on the operational policing capability of the British Transport Police, including in relation to counter-terrorist activity.

  • Margaret Ferrier – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Prime Minister

    Margaret Ferrier – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Prime Minister

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Margaret Ferrier on 2016-02-23.

    To ask the Prime Minister, what recent representations he has made to officials working on the Chilcot Inquiry; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr David Cameron

    I refer the hon. Member to Sir John Chilcot’s letter to me of 28 October 2015, and my reply of 29 October, copies of which can be found on the Iraq Inquiry website.