Tag: Catherine West

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many country specialists for (a) Russia, (b) China, (c) North Korea, (d) the US, (e) Syria and (f) India are employed by his Department.

Sir Alan Duncan

It is not possible to identify the exact number of country specialists working on these countries within the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. Career Diplomats develop longer-term expertise on countries, linked to their language skills and pattern of relevant work in London or in post. We also have expertise within our local staff colleagues across the network. In London, we have at any one time approximately 10 specialist Research Analysts focussed on these countries and additional Research Analysts working on relevant regional issues and countries.

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 level of funding his Department has allocated to schemes that encourage investment in wind energy in each of the last five years.

Jesse Norman

Over the past five years, solar photovoltaic (PV), wind, wave and tidal electricity projects have received support from either the Renewables Obligation (RO) or the Feed-in Tariff (FITs).

Expenditure through the Renewables Obligation in 2011/12 to 2015/16 can be broken down by power generation technology shown in the table (£million in nominal prices). Solar PV and some small-scale onshore wind are also supported by the Feed In Tariff scheme, but costs are not available disaggregated by technology. Total support is shown below (£million).

RO (£million)	11/12	12/13	13/14	14/15	15/16
Onshore wind	£482.6	£557.1	£755.6	£786.8	£803.0
Offshore wind	£371.1	£698.5	£988.7	£1,108.0	£1,429.7
Solar PV	£0.1	£0.9	£34.9	£133.9	£264.8
Wave & Tidal	£0.1	£0.4	£0.4	£0.1	£0.2
TOTAL RO	£1,457.7	£1,991.3	£2,599.3	£3,114.2	£3,743.2
TOTAL FITs	£151	£506	£691	£866	£1,110

Renewables Obligations: Source Ofgem:

www.ofgem.gov.uk/environmental-programmes/ro/contacts-publications-and-data/publications-library-renewables-obligation

www.ofgem.gov.uk/publication-and-updates/renewables-obligation-ro-annual-report-2014-15

www.renewablesandchp.ofgem.gov.uk/Public/ReportManager.aspx?ReportVisibility=1&ReportCategory=0

FITs: Source Ofgem:

https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/environmental-programmes/fit/contacts-guidance-and-resources/public-reports-and-data-fit/levelisation-reports

The Contracts for Difference Scheme opened for delivery from 2015/16 onwards. No projects started deploying in 2015/16 so no payments were made.

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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, whether the Government plans continued participation in the European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training after the UK leaves the EU.

Joseph Johnson

The UK will continue to participate in the European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training until we leave the EU. Future participation after we leave the EU is a matter for the forthcoming negotiations.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what the cost to the public purse is of the airport at St Helena.

Rory Stewart

In 2011 DFID approved an allocation of £285.5 million for the airport at St Helena.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine West on 2016-10-12.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 10 October 2016 to Question 46317, whether he plans to review the terms of those trade deals.

Greg Hands

The Government is currently reviewing its trade policy as the UK prepares to leave the EU. This offers us an opportunity to forge a new role for ourselves in the world: to negotiate, in time, our own trade agreements and to be a positive and powerful force for free trade. We already enjoy excellent trading relationships with our Commonwealth partners and we are committed to strengthening these further.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine West on 2016-10-17.

To ask the Prime Minister, what overseas visits she has made since her appointment.

Mrs Theresa May

Details of Ministerial overseas travel is published quarterly and is available on the gov.uk website.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine West on 2016-10-18.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, to which destinations (a) Ministers and (b) officials of his Department have taken flights as part of their official duties since his appointment as Foreign Secretary.

Sir Alan Duncan

The details of overseas visits undertaken by Foreign and Commonwealth Office Ministers, including the mode of transport used, are published in quarterly returns, which are available at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/minister-data

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine West on 2015-12-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, whether apprentices are required to achieve a Level 1 qualification, including mathematics and English, in order (a) to be entered for an Intermediate Level Apprenticeship and (b) for entries to be in accordance with the Trailblazer Apprenticeships Standards.

Nick Boles

In order to maximise accessibility, there are no centrally set entry requirements to start an apprenticeship. However, as apprenticeships are jobs with training, individual employers may set their own entry requirements for a specific apprenticeship.

The government does set requirements relating to training and achievement in English and maths during apprenticeships. This is because English and maths are fundamental to career progression and access to further learning.

All apprenticeship frameworks must comply with the Specification of Apprenticeship Standards for England (SASE). Under SASE, English and maths qualifications are a mandatory component of all Intermediate and Advanced apprenticeships. However, all adult apprentices are assessed for prior learning, and people who start an apprenticeship with current English and maths qualifications at the right level need not repeat these.

We are reforming apprenticeships to ensure that they are based on standards designed by employers.The government sets minimum requirements for apprenticeship standards, though employers are able to go further in the standards they design. They are able to specify a higher level of English and/or maths achievement or to specify a particular qualification or qualifications where this is needed for a particular occupation or sector. . The minimum requirements are – passing level 1 English and maths and taking the test for level 2 before taking the end-point assessment for an intermediate apprenticeship; and passing level 2 English and maths before taking the end-point assessment for an advanced or higher apprenticeship.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine West on 2016-01-14.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department is taking to ensure children receive education and protection in conflict zones.

Mr Nick Hurd

DFID supports international efforts in conflict-affected and fragile countries to assist children and reduce their risks of violence, exploitation, abuse, and neglect. This work is in partnership with mandated protection agencies, including the International Committee of the Red Cross, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, and UNICEF, as well as non-governmental organisations.

DFID aims to improve learning outcomes, to reach all children in fragile states, and to keep girls in school. DFID supports children overseas to go to school and continue learning even when they are forced from their homes and this includes our flagship £355 million Girls’ Education Challenge that will enable up to 1 million more of the world’s most marginalised girls to benefit from an education of sufficient quality and transform their lives. In addition, DFID is supporting improvements to how the international community provides education in emergencies, including support for the ‘No Lost Generation’ Initiative to provide over 251,000 Syrian children with formal and informal education inside Syria and in the region, allowing them to catch up on lost learning time and sit public school examinations.

Education and protection will be key themes of the Syria Conference co-hosted by the UK in early February and the protection and education of children affected by natural disasters and conflicts will be addressed at the World Humanitarian Summit in May 2016.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Catherine West on 2016-01-28.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment she has made of the effect of high inflation in Malawi.

Mr Nick Hurd

Malawi has one of the highest rates of inflation in Africa: double digit inflation is commonplace. High inflation, alongside high fiscal deficits, debt and interest rates, are lowering business confidence and crowding out private investment. Social services are being delivered from a constrained budget with high levels of government borrowing. Poor harvests in 2015 and poor rainfall due to the ongoing El Nino are affecting the national economy and Malawi is now facing its worst food insecurity crisis in a decade. The UK and international partners are responding.

DFID Malawi works closely with other development partners, in particular the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), to monitor the macroeconomic situation in Malawi. The IMF’s Article IV Consultation in December 2015 concluded that “an appropriately tight fiscal policy is needed to support monetary policy actions aimed at placing inflation on a downward trajectory.” DFID is working with the World Bank to inform the Government of Malawi’s next Development Strategy.