Tag: Ian Lavery

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Lavery on 2016-01-11.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether the Government plans to set a levy of at least three per cent of gross working premium on insurers to fund the Diffuse Mesothelioma Payments Scheme.

Justin Tomlinson

The levy will be set at a figure estimated to meet the cost of the Diffuse Mesothelioma Payment Scheme for 2015/16. This figure falls within industry expectations and below 3 per cent of employers’ liability gross written premium.

A Ministerial written statement (HCWS460) was tabled in the House of Commons on 12 January 2016 and provides details of the Diffuse Mesothelioma Payment Scheme levy for 2015/16.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Lavery on 2016-01-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, for what reasons a levy of at least three per cent of gross working premium on insurers to fund the Diffuse Mesothelioma Payments Scheme has not yet been introduced.

Justin Tomlinson

The Mesothelioma Act (2014) requires active insurers to pay a levy with a view to meeting the costs of the Diffuse Mesothelioma Payment Scheme (DMPS) each year.

The 3% figure was the maximum percentage of the active employers’ liability insurance market to be levied on the insurance industry to recoup the costs of the scheme in any one year. This figure is a cap rather than a set rate. Each year the levy rate is calculated using the costs of the DMPS so far in that financial year, extrapolated to cover the remainder of the period. As this is a demand led scheme, the calculations for the levy are done afresh each year. An upturn in applications to the Scheme would result in a higher levy rate in future years.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Lavery on 2016-03-14.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether the National Flood Resilience Review will assess the (a) maintenance requirements of flood assets and (b) capacity of the Environment Agency to maintain flood defences.

Rory Stewart

The National Flood Resilience Review is not assessing the maintenance requirements of flood assets or the capacity of the Environment Agency to maintain flood defences. The terms of reference for the Review were published on 26 January 2016. https://www.gov.uk/government/news/national-flood-resilience-review-government-action-to-tackle-floods.

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Lavery on 2015-11-03.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what support UKTI has provided to Rio Tinto in locations where Rio Tinto invests or plans to invest.

Anna Soubry

UK Trade and Investment’s (UKTI) mining sector team has regular and ongoing engagement with Rio Tinto both in market and in the UK as we seek to realise economic benefit for the UK through the involvement of the UK’s mining supply chain in Rio Tinto’s projects.

Rio Tinto closed its Lynemouth Aluminium facility in 2013. That same year UKTI was part of a Rapid Response taskforce (which included local Economic Development organisations and Rio Tinto), to explore redeployment and site re-marketing options.

UKTI support included:

– an audit of the unique characteristics and selling points of the site to determine the sectoral focus of Rio Tinto’s site marketing activity to potential investors.

– research to assess from where the strongest investor interest was likely to come from.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Lavery on 2016-03-14.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what progress the National Flood Resilience Review team has made on assessing the damage that extreme rainfall could cause across England.

Rory Stewart

The National Flood Resilience Review led by the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster is making good progress with gathering evidence and stress-testing our resilience to flood risk. Our call for evidence closed on 4 March and we are now reviewing the 66 responses received.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Lavery on 2015-11-03.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what diplomatic support British Embassies have provided to Rio Tinto in locations where Rio Tinto invests or plans to invest.

Anna Soubry

UK Trade and Investment’s (UKTI) mining sector team has regular and ongoing engagement with Rio Tinto both in market and in the UK as we seek to realise economic benefit for the UK through the involvement of the UK’s mining supply chain in Rio Tinto’s projects.

Rio Tinto closed its Lynemouth Aluminium facility in 2013. That same year UKTI was part of a Rapid Response taskforce (which included local Economic Development organisations and Rio Tinto), to explore redeployment and site re-marketing options.

UKTI support included:

– an audit of the unique characteristics and selling points of the site to determine the sectoral focus of Rio Tinto’s site marketing activity to potential investors.

– research to assess from where the strongest investor interest was likely to come from.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Lavery on 2016-03-16.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the Government’s policy is on contingency planning for potential major industrial accidents.

Mr Oliver Letwin

A robust statutory framework exists for contingency arrangements in the event of a major industrial accident. This focuses on both accident prevention and multi-agency contingency planning delivered through the Civil Contingencies Act (CCA) 2004 and legislation addressing specific industrial hazards, including the Control of Major Accident Hazards (COMAH) Regulations 2015, the Pipeline Safety Regulations (PSR) 1996, and the Radiation (Emergency Preparedness and Public Information) Regulations (PEPPIR) 2001. The CCA requires multi-agency partnerships to assess the risks associated with industrial accidents and to undertake suitable specific or generic contingency planning. COMAH, PSR and REPPIR require site operators, local authorities and others to ensure effective arrangements are in place to respond to the onsite and offsite consequences of major accidents and provide for warning and informing those who might be affected.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Lavery on 2015-10-14.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the total cost was of London International Shipping Week (LISW) 2013; how much of that cost was borne by his Department; and what those costs were for LISW 2015.

Mr Robert Goodwill

London International Shipping Week is an industry-led and organised week, comprising over 80 events arranged by many organisations. The total cost of the week is not, therefore, information which is held by the Government.

The Department hosted or jointly hosted a small number of key events in both years, costing just over £4,000 in 2013 and £5,500 in 2015.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Lavery on 2015-10-14.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many officials from the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (a) spoke at and (b) attended scheduled events during London International Shipping Week 2015.

Mr Robert Goodwill

Sir Alan Massey, Chief Executive of the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, spoke at a scheduled event to promote the UK Ship Register, and 39 officials attended scheduled events during London International Shipping Week 2015.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Lavery on 2015-10-14.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many officials in his Department worked at events scheduled as part of London International Shipping Week 2015.

Mr Robert Goodwill

Department for Transport (DfT) and Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) officials (excluding Ministerial Private Secretaries) worked at the following events scheduled as part of London International Shipping Week 2015:

• At the joint Government/Maritime UK Welcome Reception at Lancaster House, 28 officials worked in a voluntary capacity (as the event took place outside of normal working hours) to support the event.

• At the “Celebration of International Partnership” reception, jointly hosted with the Ministry of Defence, 13 officials worked in a voluntary capacity (as the event took place outside of normal working hours) to support the Royal Navy in delivering the event.

• Maritime security officials within DfT organised two security-related seminars which involved 5 and 3 officials respectively.

• The MCA organised a reception to promote the UK Ship Register, at which 4 officials worked.

In addition, 4 DfT and MCA officials delivered speeches/presentations at HMG events during the week and DfT Ministers attending government and industry organised events were accompanied by a Private Secretary.