Tag: Imran Hussain

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Imran Hussain on 2015-11-16.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what recent representations he has received on the Action for ESOL Manifestos.

Nick Boles

The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills has not received any representations on the Action for ESOL Manifesto.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Imran Hussain on 2016-02-11.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the implications for her Department’s policies on training teachers of the findings of the National Audit Office report, Training new teachers, published in February 2016.

Nick Gibb

We are considering the findings of the National Audit Office report on training new teachers. The Permanent Secretary and Sinead O’Sullivan, Director of Programme Delivery in the National College for Teaching and Leadership, will be appearing as witnesses before a Public Accounts Committee hearing on the report on Monday 7 March 2016. This will be an opportunity to discuss the content of the report.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Imran Hussain on 2016-04-08.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what discussions she has had with her foreign counterparts on efforts to tackle dengue fever.

Mr Nick Hurd

Ministers and officials meet regularly with the Word Health Organisation to discuss a range of health issues including on the management of disease outbreaks. Dengue was discussed during last year’s World Health Assembly (WHA), which brings together the member states to discuss important issues. Senior officials from DFID and the Department of Health participate at the WHA.

DFID’s health focus is to improve the provision of basic health services for the poorest by supporting health systems strengthening, health worker capacity and access to essential medicines and equipment. Increasing coverage, access and quality will strengthen health services to address all health problems including communicable diseases.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Imran Hussain on 2016-04-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if her Department will take steps to ensure that protection and empowerment of girls is given equal priority to that of women at the World Humanitarian Summit in May 2016.

Mr Desmond Swayne

It is a priority of the UK to secure Summit outcomes that promote the protection and empowerment of both women and girls, strengthening their voices, choice and control in crisis settings. Women and girls share equal status within that priority.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Imran Hussain on 2016-06-24.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his (a) foreign counterparts and (b) cabinet colleagues on recent reports of border clashes between Ethiopia and Eritrea.

James Duddridge

We are concerned over recent reports of fighting between Ethiopian and Eritrean forces along the border near Tsorena. I made a statement on 16 June calling on both countries to exercise restraint and to adhere to the terms of the Algiers Agreement. We have also made clear to Ethiopia and Eritrea that they should engage in meaningful political discourse to seek a resolution to the ongoing border issues. Officials have discussed the clashes with our partners in Europe and at the UN, many of whom share our concerns and have made similar calls for restraint.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Imran Hussain on 2016-10-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the total budget is for dental care in England in each of the next five years; and how much of that budget is allocated to dental care education in (a) schools and (b) the community.

David Mowat

NHS England has a legal duty to commission primary care dental services to meet local need and therefore does not have a specified dental budget. Local teams commission dentistry based on the local oral health needs assessment undertaken in partnership with local authorities, which identifies the level of dental need for a particular community.

Health Education England is responsible for funding dental education. Information on funding for dental education is only available for 2016/17 and can be found in the table below.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Imran Hussain on 2015-11-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of steps taken by (a) his Department and (b) the Burmese government to stop the use of child soldiers in that country.

Mr Hugo Swire

We welcomed the commitment the Burmese government made to ending the recruitment of child soldiers in signing the UN’s Action Plan in 2012. Since then Burma has made some progress, including the release of over 600 child soldiers and, in September, signing the Optional Protocol to the Convention on Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict. However, we are clear that more still needs to be done. Access to military units and non-state armed groups continues to be restricted, release of child soldiers has been limited, and while recruitment of children has slowed, it has not ceased entirely. We are also aware of reports that children continue to be arrested for “desertion”. I raised this issue with Minister of the President’s Office, U Aung Min, when I visited Burma in July and we will continue to do so with the Burmese authorities, including to press for swift implementation of the Optional Protocol.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Imran Hussain on 2015-11-16.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what assistance his Department is providing to help businesses to employ migrants with in-demand skills but poor English language skills.

Nick Boles

In our approach to skills, we aim to create a fair balance between the investment made by Government, the employer and the individual. We believe that non-native speakers of English, who choose to live in the UK, should be expected to invest in the improvement of their English, with some exceptions. Similarly, where employers seek to rely on non-English speaking labour, it is their responsibility to cover the cost of training employees.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Imran Hussain on 2016-02-19.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether his Department plans to renegotiate tax treaties with developing countries.

Mr David Gauke

Tax treaties are negotiated by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) officials, reporting to Treasury Ministers.

The UK has a large number of tax treaties which includes treaties with developing countries. Some of those treaties require updating and HMRC officials actively seek engagement with developing countries to that end. For example, there are ongoing negotiations with Ghana, prospective negotiations with Nepal and negotiations with Lesotho and Malawi are close to conclusion.

HMRC publishes the programme of tax treaty negotiations and news of signed treaties at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/double-taxation-agreements-developments-and-planned-negotiations.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Imran Hussain on 2016-04-08.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment her Department has made of the effect of dengue fever on the development of developing countries.

Mr Nick Hurd

Dengue is estimated to place a heavy socio-economic burden on households, health care systems and governments, particularly during outbreaks; however, country-specific reliable estimates of burden of disease and cost data are limited.