Tag: Catherine West

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine West on 2016-03-14.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the political and security situation in Turkey since the recent terrorist bombing in Ankara; and if he will make a statement.

Mr David Lidington

The Government condemns the attacks in Ankara on 13 March and in Istanbul on 19 March. The UK stands in solidarity with Turkey, a NATO ally and valued partner for the UK. As noted in our travel advice, the threat from terrorism remains high, with the Kurdish separatist PKK, Daesh and other terrorist organisations continuing to plan and carry out attacks. The UK condemns terrorism in all its forms, and is clear that PKK terrorist attacks must end. We welcome Turkey’s invaluable contribution to the international campaign against Daesh as a member of the Global Coalition committed to defeating it.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine West on 2016-03-23.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many leave to remain applications have been refused as a result of the good character test in each year for which information is available.

Mike Penning

We are unable to supply the information requested, as Leave to Remain (LTR) applications are not assessed or refused on the basis of ‘the good character test’ . LTR applications are assessed against a range of criteria, including on the basis of the applicants suitability – which may be their character, convictions, associations or other reasons which may mean that their being in the UK is not ‘conducive to the public good’.

The specific refusal reasons entered onto the Home Office IT system during the assessment of a case, consist of a free-form text field, which can only be accessed on a case-by-case basis and therefore a wider Management Information report is not available for this question.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine West on 2016-04-15.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will hold a public consultation on the level of fees charged by the Office of the Public Guardian.

Caroline Dinenage

Work to review the Office of the Public Guardian’s (OPG) fee structure is ongoing. Depending on the outcome of that work, a consultation will be published in due course if required.

No estimate has been made of the average cost to a user of OPG services of the over recovery of costs.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine West on 2016-04-28.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has made to his Burmese counterpart on the arrest and imprisonment of human rights activist U Gambira; and whether he has made an assessment of the living conditions of his imprisonment.

Mr Hugo Swire

We are concerned by the arrest and imprisonment of U Gambira. Together with our international partners we have been following his case closely, including attending court hearings on his case. While we have not made a formal assessment of the living conditions of his imprisonment, we are aware that a number of local and international NGOs have expressed general concerns about the
conditions in Burmese prisons. The UK has consistently lobbied the Government of Burma to release all political prisoners.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine West on 2016-05-23.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the press notice entitled Next Steps to spread educational excellence everywhere announced, published on 6 May 2016, how long before she made the announcement of her decision to change her policy on schools becoming academies that decision was made.

Edward Timpson

When our White Paper Educational Excellence Everywhere was published, we were clear that we would be listening and reflecting on discussions with MPs and the education sector about all of the proposals in the White Paper. Following these discussions, we have decided it is not necessary to take blanket powers to convert good schools in strong local authorities to academies at this time.

We remain committed to the vision of a dynamic high-performing education system where every school is an academy. We believe that this is the best way to tackle underperformance and ensure the best schools expand their reach.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine West on 2016-07-11.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what her Department’s target waiting time is for a Disclosure and Barring Service local intelligence check to be completed by the police.

Karen Bradley

In 2015/16, the Disclosure and Barring Service processed 87% of all applications within 21 days, against a target of 85%.

Some of the over four million applications received each year need to be referred to one or more police forces for further checks. There is a service level agreement between the Disclosure and Barring Service and police forces in relation to the time taken to complete these local disclosure checks.

These standards are: –

85% of police checks must be completed in 14 days;

90% of police checks must be completed in 18 days;

95% of police checks must be completed in 25 days; and – 100% of police checks must be completed in 60 days.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine West on 2016-09-14.

To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, what discussions he has had with with Guy Verhofstadt on the UK’s exit from the EU.

Mr David Jones

The Prime Minister has been clear we will not give a running commentary on Brexit negotiations. We will ensure that we engage closely with all relevant interlocutors.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine West on 2016-10-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether the Government plans to continue to participate in the European Environment Agency after the UK leaves the UK.

Dr Thérèse Coffey

While the UK remains a member of the EU we are required to fully participate in the European Environment Agency (EEA) as an EEA member country.

As we start the process of leaving the EU, we will aim to deliver a stable and clear legislative framework for the environment, including maintaining standards that underpin trade and deliver on our international commitments. It is within this framework that we will plan our future participation in the EEA.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine West on 2016-10-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what his policy is on the UK’s status as a signatory to the Euratom Treaty after the UK leaves the EU.

Jesse Norman

The Government is assessing the legal and policy implications of the public’s vote to leave the EU including the UK’s membership of EURATOM.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine West on 2016-10-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department is taking to assist with humanitarian action in the Lake Chad basin; and what funds have been allocated to programmes in (a) Cameroon, (b) Chad, (c) Niger and (d) Nigeria that assist with such action.

James Wharton

We are deeply concerned about the scale of the humanitarian crisis across the Lake Chad Basin. This will require a sustained, multi-year response to support communities devastated by the conflict. The UK is scaling up our support.

In addition to the £90 million of humanitarian assistance we are already delivering in the region, the UK has now pledged a further £80 million of humanitarian funding. £50 million will go towards meeting the needs of the worst affected communities in Nigeria with food assistance and access to essential household items and services, and £30 million to support those who have been affected by the spread of Boko Haram into Cameroon, Chad and Niger.

HMG is using a range of opportunities to push our partners and governments across the region on scaling up and improving the quality of the response. This includes calling for a Security Council briefing on the humanitarian situation which took place in July 2016; a joint demarche to the UN with the French and USA on the need to improve humanitarian capacity and performance in mid-August; chairing a Lake Chad Basin meeting in the margins of UN General assembly in September 2016, and ongoing high level bilateral meetings with UN officials.