The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gregory Campbell on 2015-10-28.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans she has to control the number of badgers in the next 12 months.
George Eustice
We are committed to our strategy to make England free of bovine TB, of which culling badgers in areas where the disease is rife is a key element.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gregory Campbell on 2015-11-24.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many times Minsters in his Department visited defence establishments in Northern Ireland in 2014.
Penny Mordaunt
There were five Ministerial visits during 2014.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gregory Campbell on 2015-12-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he is taking to promote international support for and defence of religious minority communities in the Middle East.
Mr Tobias Ellwood
We remain deeply concerned about the plight of Christians and other religious minorities across the Middle East and North Africa. In March this year at a United Nations Security Council debate on the persecution of minorities in the Middle East, I called for bold leadership in the region to continue working for tolerance and reconciliation.
In September the UK participated in an international conference in Paris on the subject, and called on the international community to do more to assist vulnerable populations. On 19 November Baroness Anelay and I convened a workshop with non governmental organisations and experts in the field to examine what more Her Majesty’s Government might do to practically support Christians and other minorities in the Middle East and protect Freedom of Religion or Belief. Officials are now examining how to put these ideas into practice.
On a practical level, we assisted Kurdish and Yezidi fighters to liberate vulnerable minority groups in Sinjar in Iraq in November. The Royal Air Force provide vital air support for local, legitimate ground forces, focused on defeating ISIL and minimising civilian casualties.
We raise violations with individual countries, and work with them to ensure that discriminatory legislation and practices are tackled. We also ensure that the international consensus in the UN on tackling religious intolerance is maintained.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gregory Campbell on 2016-01-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the outcome was of the recruitment campaign organised by the Reserve Forces and Cadet Association of Northern Ireland in Summer 2015.
Mr Julian Brazier
The Reserve Forces’ and Cadets’ Association for Northern Ireland (RFCA NI) is responsible for an ongoing campaign to recruit adult instructors for the Air Training Corps and Army Cadet Force in Northern Ireland. This is a highly effective campaign which has resulted in full staffing. Further details of the activities of RFCA NI can be found at the following address: http://www.reservesandcadetsni.org.uk/
The Ministry of Defence is responsible for recruitment into the Reserve Forces. For information on the numbers of Reserve personnel stationed in Northern Ireland I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 20 October 2015 to Question 11478 to the hon. Member for East Antrim (Mr Wilson).
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gregory Campbell on 2016-01-11.
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many people aged 50 and over were recruited by her Department in the last two years.
Mrs Theresa Villiers
My Department has recruited four people over the age of 50 in the last two years.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gregory Campbell on 2016-01-12.
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what was the number of households with black and white television licences per thousand households in (a) the UK as a whole and (b) in Northern Ireland in (i) 2012 and (ii) 2015.
Mr Edward Vaizey
According to TV Licensing, the number of households with black and white television licences per thousand households in the UK was 0.64 in 2012 and 0.38 in 2015; and in Northern Ireland was 1.57 in 2012, and 0.98 in 2015.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gregory Campbell on 2016-01-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment (a) his Department and (b) Ofcom have made of the effectiveness of the gaining provider-led notification of transfer process for broadband since its introduction.
Mr Edward Vaizey
A Government call to evidence on switching principles has recently closed. We have committed to legislating for easier switching in the Communications markets, and we are now working with Ofcom to progress this.
Ofcom’s assessment of the costs and benefits of implementing the enhanced process are set out in Chapter 9 athttp://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/consultations/consumer-switching-review/.
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gregory Campbell on 2016-01-27.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions he has had with the Maritime and Coastguard Agency on staffing levels at coastguard stations in the Irish Sea.
Mr Robert Goodwill
The new National Network for Her Majesty’s Coastguard became fully operational in December 2015.
Coastguard centres within this network do not have fixed geographic boundaries; the network enables workload and incidents to be managed on a national rather than centre-by-centre basis. Workload is moved around the network to balance local demand against a national workforce.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gregory Campbell on 2016-02-03.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he plans to take to support unemployed young people under 25 whose income will be affected by the planned changes to universal credit from April 2017.
Priti Patel
Universal Credit gives greater incentives for people to move into, and then progress in work. Within legacy benefits single young people under 25 without children are not generally eligible for in-work support from Working Tax Credit and can face a severe withdrawal of benefits when they go into work. The introduction of Universal Credit represents a marked improvement in support.
Furthermore, DWP is introducing a new Youth Obligation from April 2017 which will ensure that young people aged 18–21 who are claiming Universal Credit, are given the support, skills and experience they need to move into work, to sustain work and to fulfil their potential.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gregory Campbell on 2016-02-22.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what representations he has received in the last 12 months on low turnouts in certain previous elections for Mayors.
Mr Marcus Jones
We have had a number of representations on a range of issues regarding mayoral elections.