Tag: Greg Knight

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Knight on 2016-03-23.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what representations he has received on British service personnel being served food which contains mould and maggots; and what monitoring his Department undertakes to ensure that all food served to such service personnel is of a satisfactory standard.

Mark Lancaster

The Department is aware of concerns that have been expressed in the media about the standard of food.

The Department has in place a number of safeguards to ensure a good quality of food. These include; contract monitoring, site visits, reviews, customer engagement and assurance by Single Service catering subject matter experts to improve on the service provided.

Any complaint over food can be raised through the chain of command or directly with the contractor by way of a complaints book.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Knight on 2016-06-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to encourage more cyclists to use cycle lanes rather than cycling on the main highway; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Robert Goodwill

Cycle tracks, where provided, offer cyclists an alternative to cycling in the carriageway. However, the decision to use a lane or not will depend on the individual. We have no plans to make to make the use of lanes mandatory.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Knight on 2016-01-20.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what the implications are for the Government’s policy of bringing into force provisions of the Easter Act 1928 to fix a date for Easter of recent comments by the Archbishop of Canterbury; and if he will make a statement.

Nick Boles

I understand that the Archbishop of Canterbury has recently indicated that he is working with other Christian churches to agree on a fixed date for Easter. At present, Easter occurs on the first Sunday after the first ecclesiastical full moon following the spring equinox. The suggestion is that Easter be fixed in the second or third Sunday in April. The Easter Act 1928, which remains on the Statute Book, would set the date for Easter to fall on the Sunday that follows the second Saturday in April (i.e. between 9 and 15 April). The Act has not been brought into force. To so would require an Order in Council, with the approval of both Houses of Parliament. The Act also requires that, before the Order is made, “regard shall be had to any opinion officially expressed by any Church or other Christian Body." If the Christian churches were to agree on moving to a fixed date for Easter then the Government would consider, depending on what date is agreed, whether to bring into force the Easter Act 1928 or to make such other legislative provision as may be needed. However, there is no indication yet whether or when a date will be agreed or what that date would be.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Knight on 2016-04-12.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he expects the potholes on the northbound carriageway of the M1 motorway between junctions 10 and 11 to be repaired and the carriageway resurfaced; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Jones

Highways England completed temporary surface repairs and filled nine potholes overnight on 30-31 March. They plan to carry out permanent surface repairs between junctions 10 and 11 in mid-May 2016. These will be hot patch repairs, which are just as effective as permanent resurfacing and are durable enough to last until the next resurfacing scheme.

Highways England inspects the M1 between junctions 10 and 11 twice weekly, with the latest safety inspection completed on Wednesday 13 April.

Highways England will continue to ensure that the M1 between junctions 10 and 11 remains safe and serviceable. This section is not due for resurfacing in the current Delivery Plan, due to the general condition being satisfactory.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Knight on 2016-06-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans he has to reduce congestion on the M25 motorway; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Jones

Highways England is developing road schemes at several locations to help reduce congestion on the M25 including:

• Upgrade of the M25 between junction 10 (A3) and junction 16 (M40) to a smart motorway, with start of construction before the end of 2019/20.
• A far reaching study to look into the south-west quadrant of the M25 to address the increasing demand on this section.
• An upgrade of junctions 10, 25 and 28 to have started construction by the end of 2019/20.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Knight on 2016-02-01.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policies on managing risks to public health from bisphenol A in food and drinks sold in plastic containers of the decision of the Canadian government to ban such containers.

Jane Ellison

We are advised by the Food Standards Agency, which has responsibility for food safety, that the United Kingdom’s view remains that exposure to Bisphenol A (BPA) from food contact materials does not represent a risk to consumers.

In January 2015, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) published its latest re-evaluation of BPA exposure and toxicity. EFSA’s experts concluded that BPA poses no health risk to consumers of any age group (including unborn children, infants and adolescents) at current exposure levels from food contact materials.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Knight on 2016-04-12.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he plans to widen the M42; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Jones

The current Road Investment Strategy includes two major schemes on the M42: improvements to Junction 6, and the M40/M42 interchange smart motorway scheme. In addition, further improvements are being prepared for the next roads period through the Birmingham Box Phase 4 scheme which will upgrade the remainder of the Birmingham box to smart motorway, providing an additional lane of capacity.

The Department for Transport and Highways England recently launched the process to determine the content of the second Roads Investment Strategy, which will detail further planned investment on the Strategic Road Network from 2020 to 2025. As part of these preparations, the entire network, including the M42, will be reviewed through Highways England’s route strategy process. Details on this can be found at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/highways-england-route-strategies

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Knight on 2016-06-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, for what reasons the imposition of 50mph average speed limits on three stretches of M1 motorway, one in Northamptonshire and two in Leicestershire, were carried out consecutively rather than concurrently to avoid delays for motorists; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Jones

Highways England has carefully planned the roadworks on the M1 to ensure that works are carried out as concurrently as possible. This is to reduce the impact on motorists wherever possible, whilst delivering increasing levels of investment to improve the motorway network and enable economic growth.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Knight on 2016-02-01.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what research his Department has undertaken or commissioned into the effect on humans of high levels of bisphenol A caused by consuming food and drinks sold in some plastic containers; and if he will make a statement.

Jane Ellison

We are advised by the Food Standards Agency, which has responsibility for food safety, that the United Kingdom’s view remains that exposure to Bisphenol A (BPA) from food contact materials does not represent a risk to consumers.

In January 2015, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) published its latest re-evaluation of BPA exposure and toxicity. EFSA’s experts concluded that BPA poses no health risk to consumers of any age group (including unborn children, infants and adolescents) at current exposure levels from food contact materials.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Knight on 2016-04-13.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when a British frigate or destroyer was last assigned to protect the Falkland Islands; whether there has been any change in his Department’s policy on the provision of such protection: and if he will make a statement.

Penny Mordaunt

The Atlantic Patrol Tasking (South) duty provides a tangible presence in the South Atlantic, maintaining a commitment to provide support and reassurance to British Overseas Territories in the region, including the Falkland Islands.

The last frigate or destroyer in the vicinity of the Falkland Islands was the Type 23 frigate HMS LANCASTER; she completed this task in early December 2015.

There has been no change to our policy. We continually review our security posture in the Falkland Islands, which remain defended by a range of military assets including the patrol vessel HMS CLYDE, a Royal Fleet Auxiliary support ship and around 1,200 UK personnel operating Royal Air Force Typhoon jets, ground defences and supporting infrastructure. In addition, other Royal Navy ships would be retasked to the Falkland Islands if required.