Tag: Fiona Bruce

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Fiona Bruce on 2016-01-21.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps the Government is taking to ensure that all children and young people affected by the Syrian conflict are in school and learning by the 2016-17 school year.

Mr Desmond Swayne

At the Conference on Supporting Syria and the Region taking place on February 4^th in London co-hosted by the UK, Norway, Germany, Kuwait and the UN, we want the international community to agree a new goal that all Syrian refugee children and affected host country children are in education – formal school or non-formal – by the end of 2016/17. Equally, for inside Syria, it is our aim to increase access to good quality schooling or other learning opportunities such as self-learning and non-formal education. In neighbouring countries we will also increase access to vocational or skills training and higher education for children and youth.

At the Conference our ambition is that international donors, governments from countries in the region hosting refugees, non-governmental organisations and the private sector come together to agree a set of reciprocal financial and policy commitments. The UK and co-hosts are working with donors and other partners to secure increased funding for education under the UN-led appeals for 2016 and longer term, multi-year education funding commitments to ensure sustainability. We are also working with refugee hosting governments in particular to agree the policy commitments necessary to turn increased funding into delivery on the ground.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Fiona Bruce on 2016-02-22.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, with reference to the Answer of 5 January 2015 to Question 219046, what response his Department has received from Democratic People’s Republic of Korea authorities; and whether progress has been made on improving North Korean women’s rights in China.

Mr Hugo Swire

We continue to urge the DPRK authorities, through both our Embassy in Pyongyang and the DPRK Embassy in London, to respond in detail to the contents of the Commission of Inquiry report, including the violence and exploitation of women that it documents. The DPRK continues to reject the Commission’s findings and will not engage on the detail of the Commission’s report.

Women trafficked out of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) are among the most vulnerable of those who flee the country. We call on the DPRK to improve its appalling human rights record and create better conditions for its women. We regularly discuss our concerns about the DPRK with China, as I did with the Vice-Minister of the Chinese Communist Party, Chen Fengxiang, in December 2015. We will seek to include this issue in the next UK-China Human Rights Dialogue due to be held in April. We also work directly with the Chinese authorities on a number of projects to counter human trafficking, which seek to protect the most vulnerable from exploitation, abuse, neglect and violence.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Fiona Bruce on 2016-05-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what representations his Department has received on (a) noise and dust and (b) other disruptions affecting local residents caused by current major road works on the M6; and whether he has considered taking steps to reduce that disruption to those residents by those works.

Andrew Jones

Since work commenced on the smart motorway upgrade on the M6 between junctions 16 and 19 in December 2015, a total of 4 representations from local residents have been made to Highways England in regards to noise from the construction work. These representations were also made to Cheshire East County Council, who made Highways England aware of them.

A further 4 representations have been made concerning an increase in traffic on the A50 to the east of the M6 due to vehicles choosing to divert on to the local road network to avoid the roadworks on the motorway. This concern was also raised with Highways England by Brereton Parish Council.

A number of measures are in place to reduce the disruption to local people including the use of temporary noise screens to minimise noise from excavation works near homes and dust suppression measures. Highways England are in regular communication by letter, email and newsletter with local people to keep them informed about up-coming works.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Fiona Bruce on 2016-06-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the Answer to Lord Ahmad of 7 April 2016 to Question HL7297, if her Department will make it its policy to use in all future documents and legislation a definition of extremism which includes the phrase mutual respect and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs, rather than the phrase mutual respect and tolerance of different faiths and beliefs.

Karen Bradley

The Counter–Extremism Strategy set outs our approach to tackling extremist ideologies. We will challenge all those groups or individuals who vocally or actively oppose our fundamental values, who seek to promote, encourage and spread intolerance of individuals of different faith and beliefs. We are clear that this approach tackles all forms of extremism: violent and non violent, Islamist and neo-Nazi.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Fiona Bruce on 2015-11-04.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what proportion of the referrals made by the NSPCC human trafficking and modern slavery helpline between July 2014 and June 2015 were made to the police.

Karen Bradley

The NSPCC-run modern slavery helpline was launched in July 2014, as part of a wider awareness-raising campaign, to better support potential victims of modern slavery. For the period July 2014 to July 2015, £50,000 was made available to the NSPCC to run the modern slavery helpline. To support the launch of the helpline, training was provided by existing staff in the NSPCC child trafficking advice centre, the Metropolitan police’s human trafficking unit and the Modern Slavery Unit to NSPCC call-handlers at zero cost.

The NSPCC helpline routinely records the number of contacts made each month, how they are made, and by whom. The helpline also records the gender, age and nationality of potential victims, where that information is known or presumed. Between 31 July 2014 and 31 July 2015 the NSPCC modern slavery helpline received, in total, 849 contacts. These were comprised of 491 referrals, 107 advice cases and 251 enquiries. During the period 31 July 2014 to 31 July 2015 the helpline received a total of 57 contacts from potential victims themselves and in that same period the NSPCC made 272 referrals to the police. The NSPCC does not hold data on the number of contacts referred to the helpline by the police and other agencies that were subsequently referred back to those agencies.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Fiona Bruce on 2015-11-23.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what proportion of prisoners are identified as having an alcoholic disorder.

Ben Gummer

According to the most recent centrally collected data published in 2013, (the Ministry of Justice Surveying Prisoner Crime Reduction data collection of prisoners sentenced to between one month and four years in 2005 and 2006 in England and Wales), 32% of male and female prisoners who reported drinking in the four weeks before custody said they drank on a daily basis.

Prisoners who consumed alcohol at any stage in the four weeks prior to custody consumed a median of 12 units, which is indicative of binge drinking, according to NHS Choices. Using this measure, 63% of prisoners who drank alcohol in the four weeks before custody would be classified as binge drinkers.

The 2013 report, Gender differences in substance misuse and mental health amongst prisoners Results from the Surveying Prisoner Crime Reduction (SPCR) longitudinal cohort study of prisoners, is available from the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/220060/gender-substance-misuse-mental-health-prisoners.pdf

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Fiona Bruce on 2016-01-11.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what plans the Government has to produce further guidance on the definition of extremism used in her Department’s Counter-Extremism Strategy, Cm 9148, published in October 2015.

Karen Bradley

The Government definition of extremism is ‘vocal or active opposition to our fundamental values, including democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty and the mutual respect and tolerance of different faiths and beliefs.’ We have been consistent on this since 2011 and have reaffirmed this definition in the Counter-Extremism Strategy.

Vocal or active opposition to our fundamental values, in particular mutual respect and tolerance of different faiths and beliefs within the Counter-Extremism Strategy definition of extremism is consistent with the incitement provisions within the Public Order Act 1986, in particular Part 3 aimed at those who stir up racial or religious hatred.

We are clear that Government should not restrict anyone’s freedom of speech or right to practise a faith. These are core values. But we shouldn’t allow the extremist voice to go unchallenged, causing harm to our society and promoting hatred and division.

Government has engaged widely on the Counter-Extremism Strategy, and continues to engage with partners – including faith groups and communities on the implementation of the Strategy’s measures.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Fiona Bruce on 2016-02-09.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how his Department has applied the family test to its proposals for draft legislation to devolve Sunday trading regulations; and what the outcome of the application of that test was.

Anna Soubry

The Government plans to publish the Impact Assessment, including results of the family test, shortly.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Fiona Bruce on 2016-02-22.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether UK-owned tour companies that operate in North Korea contribute financially to that country’s nuclear and missile programmes or to elements of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea government responsible for human rights violations.

Mr Hugo Swire

We are aware of UK tour companies who operate in the North Korea. Given the closed nature of the regime there is very limited financial information from the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea’s (DPRK) government on how their nuclear and ballistic missile programme or elements of the regime responsible for human rights violations are funded.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Fiona Bruce on 2016-05-23.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, with reference to the Answer of 11 March 2016 to Question 29747, whether any of the correspondence cited in the oral contribution of the Lord Patel on 24 February 2015 had been given unredacted to concurrently serving members of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority executive.

Jane Ellison

The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) has advised that wider disclosure of the content of the personal email exchange between Professor Grifo and a member of the expert panel convened by the Authority would not breach patient confidentiality. The HFEA has previously advised that the relevant expert panel member contacted Professor Grifo in a personal capacity following the third Scientific Review of the safety and efficacy of methods to avoid mitochondrial disease in 2014.

The HFEA has also advised that the information in question was provided in confidence to the expert panel convened by the Authority. Members of the HFEA Executive who provided administrative support to the work of the panel have seen this information.