Tag: Angus Brendan MacNeil

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Angus Brendan MacNeil on 2015-11-25.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the potential effect on steps to tackle ISIS in Iraq of UK involvement in military operations in Syria.

Penny Mordaunt

The fight against ISIL needs to be carried forward in both Syria and Iraq. We judge that increasing action against ISIL’s command and control capacity, its military materiel and its cross-border communication and supply routes in Syria will assist the Counter-ISIL/Da’esh campaign in Iraq.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Angus Brendan MacNeil on 2016-01-22.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, when the CfD allocation round will open for applications from renewable energy developers; and what the conditions will be for applications to a second CfD allocation round.

Andrea Leadsom

The Government will hold three Contracts for Difference auctions in this Parliament with the next auction for less established technologies expected to take place by the end of 2016. We are currently working with HM Treasury to finalise the budget for future auctions and will set out more information in due course.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Angus Brendan MacNeil on 2015-10-21.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, when she expects to inform the Swansea Bay Tidal Lagoon renewable energy project of its contract for difference strike price.

Andrea Leadsom

We are in the first phase of a negotiation with Tidal Lagoon Swansea Bay PLC for a Contract for Difference (CFD) for the proposed Swansea Bay Tidal Lagoon project.

This first phase is a due diligence exercise to establish a better understanding of the project, including detailed scrutiny of its costs, timescales and potential benefits.

Being in a bilateral negotiation does not mean that an agreement on a strike price will be reached or that a CFD will necessarily be awarded.

If there were to be a decision to offer a CFD, it would be subject to strict value for money considerations, the funds available within the Levy Control Framework at the time of a decision and be subject to State aid approval by the European Commission.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Angus Brendan MacNeil on 2015-10-20.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how often his Department has made use of its agreement with Storas Uibhist to turn off the turbines when the range has been used for training purposes or has been otherwise active.

Mark Lancaster

It has not been necessary for the Ministry of Defence (MOD) to exercise its rights under the agreement with Storas Uibhist to turn off the turbines. However, the MOD retains its rights, under the agreement, to do so in the interests of air safety should this be deemed necessary.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Angus Brendan MacNeil on 2015-10-20.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when the area of North Uist was last used for military exercise prior to the North Uist Development Company applying for planning permission in 2013.

Mark Lancaster

The Ministry of Defence holds no records of a training area in North Uist in the past 10 years.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Angus Brendan MacNeil on 2015-10-20.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent reports he has received on the whereabouts of Sombath Somphone who disappeared in Laos in December 2012; and what representations his Department has made to the Laos government on Mr Somphone.

Mr Hugo Swire

We remain very concerned as to the whereabouts of Mr Sombath Somphone. We regularly raise his disappearance with the Lao government. Laos underwent its second UN Universal Periodic Review under the auspices of the UN Human Rights Council, earlier this year. The United Kingdom’s recommendation calling on the Lao government to conduct a thorough, transparent and impartial investigation into Mr Somphone’s disappearance was formally accepted by the Lao government. On 11 September, 1000 days since Mr Somphone’s disappearance, I wrote to the Lao Ambassador to the United Kingdom, to urge the Lao government to rapidly proceed with conducting an investigation. Next month, at the EU-Laos Human Rights Dialogue in Vientiane, the United Kingdom, along with our EU partners, will highlight the lack of progress in the investigation into Mr Somphone’s disappearance.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Angus Brendan MacNeil on 2015-10-20.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will estimate the cost to the public purse of deporting people who moved to the UK planning to work in the Scottish fishing industry.

James Brokenshire

Border Force has not deported anyone working in the Scottish Fishing Industry at public expense within the last 5 years.

Immigration Enforcement cannot estimate the cost of deporting people who moved to the UK to work in the Scottish fishing industry as to do so would involve a manual search of records which could only be conducted at disproportionate cost.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Angus Brendan MacNeil on 2015-10-26.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what plans his Department has for the replacement of radar capable of distinguishing between wind turbines and missiles at its Hebridean range.

Mr Philip Dunne

Air space management and missile tracking activity at the Hebrides Test and Evaluation Range requires interaction between three local radar systems. A technical upgrade of one radar system was undertaken earlier this year including capability to potentially mitigate the detection of aircraft type targets from possible interference from wind turbines. In the next few years it is also planned to replace a second radar system, although on current plans this will not include capability to mitigate wind turbine interference. There are no plans to replace the third radar system which is not susceptible to interference from wind turbines.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Angus Brendan MacNeil on 2015-10-26.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what plans she has for future levels of feed-in tariffs to community groups.

Andrea Leadsom

The consultation on the future of the FIT scheme closed on the 23rd October. We are currently analysing feedback submitted during the consultation. We will publish a government response to the consultation in due course.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Angus Brendan MacNeil on 2015-02-10.

To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, pursuant to the Answer of 10 December 2014 to Question 217539, when he plans to publish (a) the Invitation to Quote for that contract including the Specification Requirements document, (b) details of the criteria against which suppliers were judged and (c) the invoice submitted for that work; and what the reasons are for the time taken to publish those documents.

Mr Sam Gyimah

The Cabinet Office contracted Engine Partners LLP to provide communications support work for the Scottish independence referendum. The relevant tender documents and contract are available on the UK Government’s transparency portal, Contracts Finder, on the following web page:

https://online.contractsfinder.businesslink.gov.uk/Common/View%20Notice.aspx?site=1000&lang=en&NoticeId=1674856.

Information about the costs of this work is already publicly available as part of our routine transparency publications at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cabinet-office-spend-data

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