Tag: Alison Thewliss

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alison Thewliss on 2016-04-18.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what advice was provided by UK service personnel to the Saudi military prior to 8 May 2015 on international humanitarian law and the designation of civilian populated city regions as valid military targets.

Penny Mordaunt

The Ministry of Defence has a longstanding relationship with Saudi Arabia, including the provision of training and advice in a broad range of areas including International Humanitarian Law. The education and training courses which Saudi Arabian military personnel have completed includes courses such as Managing Defence in a Wider Security Context, the Strategic Leadership Programmes, and Initial Officer training courses. These courses expose Saudi military personnel to UK policy, and promote concepts of accountability, compliance with International Humanitarian Law and transparency. They are important in building skills which enable Saudi Arabia to deal appropriately with their own security problems, thereby contributing to regional security.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alison Thewliss on 2016-05-26.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many claims for asylum from people from Yemen have been refused in 2016 to date.

James Brokenshire

There were 111 asylum applications from Yemeni nationals in 2015, and 15 in Quarter 1 (January to March) 2016.

There were 12 refusals of asylum or an alternative form of protection, at initial decision, to Yemeni nationals in Quarter 1 (January to March) 2016.

The Home Office publishes figures on asylum applications and initial decisions by nationality in the quarterly Immigration Statistics release. A copy of the latest release, Immigration Statistics, January to March 2016, is available from:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/immigration-statistics-january-to-march-2016/asylum

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alison Thewliss on 2016-09-13.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many complaints his Department has received from hon. Members on the service of Concentrix in the last 12 months.

Jane Ellison

Between 1 September 2015 and 31 August 2016, HM Revenue and Customs received 670 formal complaints in writing or via e-mail from hon. Members relating to Concentrix service.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alison Thewliss on 2016-09-15.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many Brimstone missiles have been used in Syria and Iraq to date as part of Operation SHADER; and what the cost of the use of those weapons has been to the public purse.

Mike Penning

Between November 2014 and 16 September 2016 there have been 230 Brimstone missiles used in Iraq and Syria as part of Operation SHADER. The estimated cost of the use of these missiles is £18.7million.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alison Thewliss on 2015-12-17.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will estimate how many foreign direct investment projects were developed in Scotland originating from other EU countries in (a) 2012-13, (b) 2013-14 and (c) 2014-15; and how many jobs were (i) created by each of those projects and (ii) safeguarded by those projects.

Anna Soubry

Below is a breakdown of successful foreign direct investment projects into Scotland from EU countries in 2012-13, 2013-14 and 2014-15 together with the estimated number of jobs created and safeguarded, as recorded by UK Trade & Investment.

	Projects	New Jobs	Safeguarded jobs
2012-13	27	2,110	491
2013-14	33	1,960	968
2014-15	34	883	648

Source: UKTI FDI projects database.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alison Thewliss on 2016-03-16.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to paragraph 1.144 of the Spending Review and Autumn Statement 2015 and to paragraph 2.16 of the Budget 2016, for what reason only £12 million of the £15 million annual fund has been committed.

Mr David Gauke

As announced at Autumn Statement 2015, the Tampon Tax Fund is a £15 million annual fund to support women’s charities, equivalent to the amount of VAT raised on sanitary products. The Chancellor announced initial donations at Autumn Statement totalling £5m. Further grants totalling £12 million have been announced at this Budget.

The Government has introduced legislation in the Finance Bill to enable the zero rate of VAT for women’s sanitary products.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alison Thewliss on 2016-04-18.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many people under the age of 25 in (a) Scotland, (b) Glasgow and (c) Glasgow Central constituency are employed on zero-hours contracts.

Mr Rob Wilson

The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alison Thewliss on 2016-05-26.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, which companies were contracted to facilitate enforced returns to Yemen for failed asylum seekers from that country in 2015.

James Brokenshire

There were no escorted enforced returns to Yemen in 2015.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alison Thewliss on 2016-09-13.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many HM Revenue and Customs staff were employed in Scotland in each year since 2006.

Jane Ellison

The number of HM Revenue and Customs staff employed in Scotland each year since 2006 is shown in the following table.

Year Ending	Head Count
31/03/2006	11,415
31/03/2007	11,464
31/03/2008	11,018
31/03/2009	11,160
31/03/2010	10,031
31/03/2011	9,860
31/03/2012	9,839
31/03/2013	9,437
31/03/2014	8,959
31/03/2015	8,331
31/03/2016	9,147

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alison Thewliss on 2016-10-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what arrangements he plans to put in place for milk bank sharing between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland when the UK leaves the EU.

Kris Hopkins

The issue of milk bank sharing is a devolved matter and as such falls to the Department of Health in Northern Ireland. However, the UK Government’s focus remains on making a success of exiting the European Union and getting the right deal both for Northern Ireland and the UK as a whole.