Tag: Ian C. Lucas

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian C. Lucas on 2015-11-25.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what her policy is on the European Food Safety Authority’s review on the evidence on the impact of neonicotinoids; and what representations she has made to that Authority on that review.

George Eustice

The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) review on the evidence on the impact of neonicotinoids is an important opportunity to produce an up-to-date assessment of this issue. EFSA has just completed the data collection phase and the UK will contribute fully to the review as it progresses.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian C. Lucas on 2015-12-11.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what information his Department holds on when Lady Justice Macur’s Review of Sir Ronald Waterhouse’s inquiry into the abuse of children in care in the former Gwynedd and Clwyd Council areas of North Wales between 1974 and 1996 is likely to be published.

Caroline Dinenage

On 10 December Lady Justice Macur delivered her report to the Secretary of State for Justice and the Secretary of State for Wales.

It is being considered as a matter of urgency with a view to publication as soon as possible.

The Secretary of State for Justice and the Secretary of State for Wales are very grateful to Lady Justice Macur for her work on this important matter over the last three years.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian C. Lucas on 2016-01-20.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many motability vehicles were held by people in (a) Wrexham, (b) Wales and (c) the UK in receipt of the enhanced mobility component of personal independence payments in each of the last six months for which records are available.

Justin Tomlinson

The Department does not hold this information. Motability is an independent charitable organisation that is wholly responsible for the administration of the Motability scheme. Whilst the Department meets regularly with Motability to discuss scheme performance, questions relating to the details of the scheme’s operation should be directed to Motability itself.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian C. Lucas on 2016-02-29.

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 16 February 2016 to Question 26311, if he will make additional funding available to local authorities to enable them to fully disregard military compensation payments from financial assessments for social care.

Mr Marcus Jones

As I said in my earlier answer, the Government is considering how these payments to veterans should be treated in the financial assessment for social care charging in future. That consideration is still ongoing and an announcement will be made in due course.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian C. Lucas on 2016-10-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if his Department will exempt teachers on UK Ministry of Defence bases in Germany from the exit payment cap.

Mark Lancaster

There are no current plans to seek an exemption to the £95,000 cap on exit payments.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian C. Lucas on 2015-11-26.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what change there has been in the incidence of failure by employees to pay appropriate tax and National Insurance.

Mr David Gauke

The estimated proportion of small- and medium-sized enterprise employers failing to fully meet their obligations in respect of operating Pay As You Earn (PAYE) is published in ‘Measuring Tax Gaps; 2015 edition’ (table 6.8, p.53).

Comparable figures for large employers are not available, but an estimate of the tax gap for large employers can be found on table 6.9, also on p.53.

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/measuring-tax-gaps

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian C. Lucas on 2015-12-15.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 28 October 2015 to Question 12762, on broadband, whether the sum to be paid to local authorities and devolved administrations from the funding returned by BT will be linked to the take-up of broadband within that authority or administration’s area.

Mr Edward Vaizey

The £129m funding returned by BT to each project is based on an assumption by BT that take-up will reach 30% of premises passed to date in each respective project area.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian C. Lucas on 2016-01-22.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, for what reasons his Department’s strategy on the abolition of the death penalty has not yet been renewed.

Mr David Lidington

I refer the Hon. Member to the answer I gave on 20 January to Question 22083 to the Hon. Member for Hornsey and Wood Green. https://wqa.parliament.uk/Questions/Details/28353

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian C. Lucas on 2016-02-29.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department plans to maintain funding for a Driving Test Centre in Wrexham.

Andrew Jones

The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) plans to maintain its funding obligations in relation to Wrexham Driving Test Centre.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian C. Lucas on 2016-10-11.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to speed up family reunification in the UK for unaccompanied refugee children currently in Europe.

Mr Robert Goodwill

Under the Immigration Act 2016, we made a commitment to transfer unaccompanied refugee children from Europe to the UK, where it is in their best interests. Between 12 May and 1 October 2016 over 50 children who meet the criteria in the Immigration Act have been accepted for transfer, over 35 have already been transferred.

We are fully committed to the implementation of Section 67 of the Immigration Act 2016. We are in active discussions with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), UNICEF, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and the French, Italian and Greek Governments to strengthen and speed up mechanisms to identify, assess and transfer children to the UK. We have secondees in Greece and Italy and we have recently seconded another UK expert to France.

On 10 October, the Home Secretary met with French Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve to discuss a range of issues, including the proposed clearance of the camp in Calais. The Home Secretary made clear that we will transfer as many minors as possible who have family links that would qualify under the Dublin Regulation before the camp clearance starts. The Home Secretary further emphasised that the remaining children, who may be eligible to come to the UK under the Dubs amendment must be moved to safe facilities where their best interests can be properly considered. Home Office teams are being deployed to France over the coming weeks to work with the French authorities to speed up the identification and transfer of eligible cases.

More broadly, the family reunion provisions under the Immigration Rules allow children to be reunited with a parent who has been granted refugee status or humanitarian protection in the UK; unless the applicant and/or the family member should be excluded from protection or criminality thresholds apply.