Tag: Charles Walker

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Charles Walker on 2015-10-20.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what representations she has received from the Environment Agency and Angling Trust on removing the current £5 charge for a junior rod licence.

George Eustice

The Environment Agency has submitted for Defra approval proposals for restructuring the rod licence charges from April 2017. This includes removal of the junior rod licence fee.

In making this proposal, the Environment Agency consulted stakeholders through its England Fisheries Group, which includes the Angling Trust.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Charles Walker on 2015-10-20.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, if she will take into account the implications her decision will have on proposals for further lagoons in the Severn Estuary and Bristol Channel when negotiating a contract for difference and strike price for the proposed tidal lagoon in Swansea Bay.

Andrea Leadsom

The Government is currently in the first phase of a Contract for Difference negotiation with the developer of the proposed Swansea Bay tidal lagoon project. This process of due diligence will enable us to gain a better understanding of the potential of a tidal lagoon programme in the UK.

Any proposals for further tidal lagoons would need to be considered separately by the relevant consenting authorities and would require assessments to be undertaken that consider the impacts of both an individual project and multiple projects on a cumulative basis.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Charles Walker on 2015-10-20.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many freshwater rod licence sales there have been for (a) junior anglers aged 12 to 16 years and (b) adult anglers in the last five years; and if she will make a statement.

George Eustice

The number of annual and short term (one day or eight day) rod licences sold to junior anglers (aged 12-16 years inclusive) and adult anglers in each of the last five years are shown in the table below.

Year	Junior			Adult
Coarse & Trout	Salmon	Total	Coarse & Trout	Salmon	Total
2010/11	110738	2742	113480	1228580	25742	1254322
2011/12	103347	3030	106377	1230155	26094	1256249
2012/13	82978	2675	85653	1119920	25015	1144935
2013/14	71713	2257	73970	1145897	24430	1170327
2014/15	61411	1915	63326	1123046	23706	1146752

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Charles Walker on 2015-02-11.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the cost of treating alcohol-related illnesses in each of the last three years.

Jane Ellison

Estimates have been made of the cost to the National Health Service of alcohol related harm at around £2.7 billion per year in 2006-07 and £3.5 billion per year in 2009-10.

Work is under way in the Department to produce estimates for more recent years.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Charles Walker on 2015-02-11.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will review the effect of the regulation of alcohol (a) packaging and (b) advertising on public health.

Jane Ellison

We have asked Public Health England to provide a report to Government in spring 2015 on the public health impact of alcohol and the evidence-base for actions to reduce health harms. We expect that any evidence-base for the impact of labelling and advertising on public health should be included.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Charles Walker on 2015-02-11.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what representations he has received on the adoption of standardised packaging for alcohol.

Jane Ellison

I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave on 29 January 2015 to Question 221956. That question is the only representation received on the adoption of standardised packaging for alcohol.

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Charles Walker on 2014-07-15.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether the Solicitors Regulation Authority is continuing to endorse the Law Society practice note on Sharia succession rules; and whether such an endorsement is compatible with the SRA’s obligations under the Equality Act 2010; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Shailesh Vara

Sharia law has no jurisdiction in England and Wales and the Government has no intention to change this position.

The legal profession is independent of Government and is regulated by approved regulators for which the Legal Services Board has oversight responsibility. The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) is the independent regulatory arm of the Law Society, the approved regulator for solicitors under the Legal Services Act 2007. The SRA has advised that its recent guidance issued on the drafting and preparation of wills relates to conduct issues concerning the drafting and preparation of wills, rather than their content. At the end of that guidance, reference was made and links attached to other sources of information, amongst which was a link to the practice note issued by the Law Society. The SRA advise that such references are regularly attached to their guidance and are not an endorsement of their content. The SRA advise that the reference to the Law Society practice note has now been removed from the appendix to its guidance note.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Charles Walker on 2014-07-15.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what guidance judges will receive on settling inheritance disputes which were initially settled under the Sharia succession rules guidance issued by the Law Society.

Mr Shailesh Vara

Sharia law has no jurisdiction in England and Wales and the Government has no intention to change this position.

The legal profession is independent of Government and is regulated by approved regulators for which the Legal Services Board has oversight responsibility. The Law Society is the approved regulator for solicitors under the Legal Services Act 2007. On 13 March it published a practice note on Sharia succession rules to assist its members preparing wills for clients under the law of England and Wales. The Secretary of State has not had any discussions with The Law Society about its practice note. It is not for the Government to comment on the compatibility of the guidance with equalities legislation as the courts in England and Wales interpret and apply the law.

The guidance does not, and cannot, change the law of England and Wales. The courts will continue to apply the law of England and Wales relating to the making of wills in exactly the same way as they did before the practice note was issued.

The judiciary of England and Wales is independent of the Government and it would not be appropriate for the Ministry of Justice to issue guidance to the judiciary on how judges are to apply or interpret the law.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Charles Walker on 2014-07-15.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what discussions he has had with the Law Society on its inclusion of Sharia succession rules in its guidance; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Shailesh Vara

Sharia law has no jurisdiction in England and Wales and the Government has no intention to change this position.

The legal profession is independent of Government and is regulated by approved regulators for which the Legal Services Board has oversight responsibility. The Law Society is the approved regulator for solicitors under the Legal Services Act 2007. On 13 March it published a practice note on Sharia succession rules to assist its members preparing wills for clients under the law of England and Wales. The Secretary of State has not had any discussions with The Law Society about its practice note. It is not for the Government to comment on the compatibility of the guidance with equalities legislation as the courts in England and Wales interpret and apply the law.

The guidance does not, and cannot, change the law of England and Wales. The courts will continue to apply the law of England and Wales relating to the making of wills in exactly the same way as they did before the practice note was issued.

The judiciary of England and Wales is independent of the Government and it would not be appropriate for the Ministry of Justice to issue guidance to the judiciary on how judges are to apply or interpret the law.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Charles Walker on 2014-07-15.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment she has made of the Law Society’s inclusion of Sharia succession rules in its guidance and its compatibility with existing equalities legislation.

Mr Shailesh Vara

Sharia law has no jurisdiction in England and Wales and the Government has no intention to change this position.

The legal profession is independent of Government and is regulated by approved regulators for which the Legal Services Board has oversight responsibility. The Law Society is the approved regulator for solicitors under the Legal Services Act 2007. On 13 March it published a practice note on Sharia succession rules to assist its members preparing wills for clients under the law of England and Wales. The Secretary of State has not had any discussions with The Law Society about its practice note. It is not for the Government to comment on the compatibility of the guidance with equalities legislation as the courts in England and Wales interpret and apply the law.

The guidance does not, and cannot, change the law of England and Wales. The courts will continue to apply the law of England and Wales relating to the making of wills in exactly the same way as they did before the practice note was issued.

The judiciary of England and Wales is independent of the Government and it would not be appropriate for the Ministry of Justice to issue guidance to the judiciary on how judges are to apply or interpret the law.