The below Parliamentary question was asked by Christopher Chope on 2014-05-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what proportion of defendants being held in custody pending trial are foreign nationals.
Jeremy Wright
Information on the remand population is published quarterly and the latest available data is as at 31 March 2014 and can be found in Table 1.6 of the Prison Population spreadsheet Q1 2014 via the weblink below:
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Christopher Chope on 2014-06-18.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when he expects work to all properties identified by the Environment Agency in Christchurch constituency as being suitable for Property Level Protection against flooding to be completed.
Dan Rogerson
As part of schemes funded through Local Levy and Flood Defence Grant-in-Aid, work to protect ten properties in the Mudeford and Stanpit area is planned for 2015.
Property-level protection measures were installed at twelve properties in Stony Lane, Christchurch earlier this year.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Christopher Chope on 2014-06-18.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what progress his Department has made on placing the public forest estate on a sustainable footing; and if he will make a statement.
Dan Rogerson
I refer my hon. Friend to the answer that I gave to the hon. Member for Bristol East (Kerry McCarthy), on 17 June 2014, Official Report, column 516W.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Christopher Chope on 2014-06-18.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether garages, boiler rooms and other non-habitable areas affected by flooding are eligible for the Repair and Renew Grant.
Dan Rogerson
The “Repair and Renew” grant is available to establish resilience and resistance measures in properties to minimise the risk of damage caused by flooding. As it stands, the grant only applies to homes and businesses affected by flooding and excludes non-habitable areas.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Christopher Chope on 2014-06-18.
To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker’s Committee on the Electoral Commission, what recent estimate the Electoral Commission has made of the number of British citizens registered as overseas voters and the number of such citizens eligible for registration.
Mr Gary Streeter
Every British citizen who has been registered to vote in the UK within the last 15 years is eligible to vote in UK Parliamentary (general) elections and European Parliamentary elections.
The Electoral Commission informs me that the most recent figure showed that there were 15,848 registered overseas voters on the UK electoral registers.
The most recent estimates of the total number of UK citizens living abroad are of 5.5 million (The Institute for Public Policy Research in 2006) and 4.7 million (The World Bank in 2010). However, it is not possible from this data to establish how many citizens living abroad were registered to vote in the UK within the last 15 years and are therefore eligible to vote from abroad. Even in the absence of a reliable estimate, it is nonetheless clear that the number of UK citizens living abroad who are eligible to register to vote is considerably more than those currently registered.
The Commission runs public awareness campaigns to encourage British expatriates to register to vote; the most recent took place ahead of the European elections this year.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Christopher Chope on 2014-06-17.
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if he will place in the Library a copy of his Department’s response to the letter of 2 May 2014 from Mr Kishore Rao, the Director of the UNESCO Culture Sector, World Heritage Centre.
Mr Edward Vaizey
DCMS has not issued a formal response to the letter of 2 May 2014. The letter has been passed to the planning authorities as part of that process.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Christopher Chope on 2014-06-17.
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that the Dorset and East Devon coast continues to enjoy World Heritage status and remains in compliance with Article 4 of the World Heritage Convention; and if he will make a statement.
Mr Edward Vaizey
The Dorset and East Devon Coast World Heritage Site continues to enjoy World Heritage status and it is not currently under threat. The UK Government takes its responsibilities to conserve World Heritage Sites very seriously. The planning systems in place provide robust processes for assessing the potential impact of proposals on heritage assets and dealing appropriately with them.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Christopher Chope on 2014-06-17.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what environmental impact assessment the Forestry Commission has carried out in respect of the proposed corridor up to 65 metres wide through Hurn Forest for cables connecting Navitus Bay Offshore windfarm with the national grid.
Dan Rogerson
The Forestry Commission is fully committed to protecting and improving the nation’s public forests for the benefit of people, nature and the economy. It is not required to carry out a formal Environmental Impact Assessment in this case but it has considered the potential impact of the cable route and is working with the developer to ensure that the impact is minimised. Any woodland that is lost will be restored to heathland to improve the diversity of habitat, as well as opening the views and improving public access.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Christopher Chope on 2014-06-17.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will place in the Library a copy of the Government’s written submission to the European Court of Justice which was the subject of the hearing before the Court in April 2014 about the EU application to accede to the European Convention on Human Rights.
Damian Green
The European Court of Justice held a hearing on 5-6 May 2014 before a full court in proceedings under article 218 (11) of Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union regarding the European Commission’s request for an Opinion on the compatibility of the draft Accession Agreement with the EU Treaties.
I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to him on 10 December 2013, Official Report, Column 123W.
My subsequent letter to the European Scrutiny Committee of 20 December 2013, as referenced in the Committee’s Twenty-ninth Report of session 2013-2014 of 8 January 2014, clarifies the basis on which documents in the proceedings are confidential.
My most recent letter to the European Scrutiny Committee of 18 June 2014 outlines that the UK’s oral submissions supported the compatibility of the draft Accession Agreement with the EU Treaties, and sought to encourage the Court to robustly test the draft Accession Agreement and its implications while steering clear of making any findings that prejudge the content of the internal EU rules.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Christopher Chope on 2014-04-30.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what information his Department holds on how many UK citizens are not being paid those Zimbabwean government pensions to which they are entitled; and what steps the UK Government is taking to end that default.
Mark Simmonds
The Overseas Service Pensioners Association (OSPA) have estimated that there are approximately 1250-1500 pensioners who are entitled to a pension from the Government of Zimbabwe, of whom 300-400 are estimated to be resident in the UK. This is unverified by the Government of Zimbabwe.
The payment of Zimbabwe public service pensions is the responsibility of the Government of Zimbabwe. We appreciate the frustration and financial burden the non-payment of pensions puts on many pensioners and have continually pressed the Government of Zimbabwe to fulfil their obligations.