The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Murray on 2016-06-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what information his Department holds on the number of starts in Scotland on the Work Choice programme in each of the last three financial years for which such information is available.
Priti Patel
For all Work Choice providers excluding Remploy, there have been 2,070 starts in Scotland in the financial year 2013/14, 1,780 in 2014/15, and 1,210 in 2015/16.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Murray on 2016-09-06.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate the Government has made of the potential cost to Scottish businesses of leaving the EU.
Mr David Gauke
The United Kingdom will leave the European Union and we are going to make a success of it. While it is clear that we do now face some economic challenges as a result of the referendum decision, the UK economy does so from a position of strength.
HM Government is monitoring economic developments closely and the independent Office for Budget Responsibility will produce an updated economic forecast alongside Autumn Statement 2016.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Murray on 2015-11-10.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, when he expects to make a decision on City Deals for (a) Edinburgh, (b) Aberdeen and (c) Inverness.
Greg Hands
Since announcing the intention at the March Budget to work towards City Deals for Aberdeen and Inverness, the government has received initial proposals for City Deals from partners in Aberdeen, Inverness and also Edinburgh. The Department for Communities and Local Government are working with the Scotland Office to study the proposals in depth, as well as discussing with the Scottish Government to achieve outcomes that benefit both Scotland and the whole of the UK.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Murray on 2016-01-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, when he plans for the consultation on the repeal of the Human Rights Act and replacement with a British Bill of Rights to (a) begin and (b) end.
Dominic Raab
This Government was elected with a mandate to reform and modernise the UK human rights framework. We will fully consult on our proposals before introducing legislation for a Bill of Rights and we will set out our proposals in due course.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Murray on 2016-04-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the (a) average and (b) maximum time taken for contractors to return assessments to his Department was for Scottish claimants of (i) employment and support allowance and (ii) personal independence payments in each of the last four quarters for which information is available.
Justin Tomlinson
The information you have requested on the average and maximum time taken for the contractor in Scotland to return ESA assessments to the Department is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.
PIP average actual clearance times for Scotland, measured from the point of referral to the assessment providers to a decision being made on the claim by the DWP, is available in published data at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/personal-independence-payment-april-2013-to-january-2016. Information on maximum time is not available in the published statistics and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Murray on 2016-04-08.
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the share of income of the top one per cent of earners in Scotland was in each year since 1990.
Mr Rob Wilson
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Murray on 2016-06-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what information his Department holds on the number of referrals for individuals in Scotland to the Work Choice programme in each of the last three financial years for which such information is available.
Priti Patel
For all Work Choice providers excluding Remploy, there have been 2,780 referrals in Scotland in the financial year 2013/14, 2,270 in 2014/15, and 1,510 in 2015/16.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Murray on 2016-09-14.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions he has had with HM Revenue and Customs and Ministers of the Scottish Government on changes to the rates and bands of income tax in Scotland.
Jane Ellison
The UK Government has regular conversations with the Scottish Government about a wide range of economic policies, both at a ministerial and official level.
The Chief Secretary to the Treasury met with the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and the Constitution, Derek Mackay MSP, on 19 September and will continue to work with the Scottish Government to implement the Scotland Act and the Scottish Government’s fiscal framework.
From April 2017, it will be for the Scottish Parliament to set the income tax rates and thresholds that will apply to Scottish taxpayers’ non-savings, non-dividend income, such as that from employment and pensions.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Murray on 2015-11-10.
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what provisions she plans to make for onshore wind projects that have achieved everything technically, been granted planning permission, and have grid connection contract but are outside the grace period and are contracts for difference (CFD); and whether she plans a CFD for those projects.
Andrea Leadsom
The Government was elected with a commitment to end new subsidies for onshore wind and to change the law so that local people have the final say on onshore windfarm applications. Government support is designed to help technologies stand on their own two feet, not encourage reliance on subsidies. Officials are considering how we use the tools available under the CFD to implement this commitment and will set out our plans in due course.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Murray on 2016-02-02.
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what (a) modelling or (b) other assumptions her Department used to determine the export fractions for hydropower feed-in tariffs.
Andrea Leadsom
The export fractions used to model tariffs were determined using evidence submitted during the feed-in tariffs (FITs) review consultation as well as data gathered by Parsons Brinckerhoff in advance of the consultation. More detailed information on how export fractions were determined is included in the impact assessment published alongside the response to the FITs review.
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