Tag: Jim Cunningham

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2015-10-27.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assistance her Department is providing to the agronomic sector in the UK to reduce (a) carbon emissions and (b) water use; and if she will make a statement.

George Eustice

Agriculture produces relatively small amounts of carbon dioxide emissions with this gas accounting for around 10% of emissions from the industry sector. The major greenhouse gasses (GHG) produced by agriculture are methane and nitrous oxide. Defra has engaged with the agriculture industry in England to help develop an industry led approach, the Green House Gas Action Plan, which includes farming sector roadmaps for reducing GHG emissions. We will be reviewing progress on the action plan with the industry next year.

The Government is investing £160 million in the UK Agri-Tech Strategy to help take our world class agricultural research to the farm. £60 million of Government and industry funding has already been committed to projects which aim to make farming more productive, resilient and sustainable.

Rural Development Programme (RDPE) funded capital grants are available for reservoirs to improve security of water supplies for agriculture (including horticulture) and reduce pressure on summer water flows in the environment Capital grants to improve efficiency of water application to reduce water use are also available.

Applications are also being processed for Countryside Productivity scheme capital funding for precision farming equipment to improve the accuracy of field operations and application of fertilisers and sprays, which can achieve savings of (typically) 5% plus in fuel, fertilisers and sprays with consequent reduction in CO₂ emissions.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2015-11-03.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what estimate she has made of the proportion of total UK energy production likely to be sourced from fracking in each of the next five years.

Andrea Leadsom

The Government is of the view that there is a national need to explore and test our shale resources in a safe, sustainable and timely way.

It is too early to make an assessment of the future extent of shale gas and oil production. We do not yet know the full scale of the UK’s shale resources nor how much can be extracted technically or economically.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2015-11-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 10 November 2015 to Question 14616, what estimate her Department has made of the number of signatories to the (a) Cortauld Commitment 3, (b) Electrical and Electronic Equipment Sustainability Action Plan, (c) Hospitality and Food Service Agreement and (d) Sustainable Clothing Action Plan in each of the last five years.

Rory Stewart

The number of signatories to the voluntary agreements in the last five years is as follows:

Courtauld Commitment 2/3 (signatories):

• 53 from Aug 2011

ESAP Electrical and Electronic Equipment Sustainability Action Plan (signatories):

• 50 at launch, Nov 2014;
• 70 at Nov 2015.

Hospitality and Food Service Agreement (signatories plus supporters*):

• 73 at launch in Jun 2012;
• 171 in Nov 13;
• over 200 in Dec 14
• 226 in Nov 2015.

SCAP 2020 Commitment (signatories plus supporters*):

• 22, at launch in Jun 2013;
• 68 at Dec 2014;
• 82 at Nov 2015.

*Supporters also take an active role in promoting activities which support the Commitments

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2015-11-17.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will review the number of counter-terrorism officials in the West Midlands; and if she will make a statement.

Mr John Hayes

The level and distribution of counter-terrorism resources across the country is informed by advice from the police and security and intelligence agencies on assessments of what is needed to counter the threat. This is regularly kept under review. For security reasons we do not publish a breakdown of counter-terrorism resources by region.

In the Spending Round 2013, specific funding for counter-terrorism policing was protected at £564.3 million for each of the years 2014-15 and 2015-16. We are also providing an additional £14.9 million in 2015-16 to the police to strengthen capabilities in response to the increased threat from terrorism.

In the Summer Budget on 8 July, we committed to protecting overall counter-terrorism spending across the course of the next Spending Review Period. On 16 November we said we would go further. Through the Strategic Defence and Security Review, we will make new funding available for the security and intelligence agencies to provide for an additional 1,900 officers – an increase of 15% – to better respond to the threat we face from international terrorism, cyber-attacks and other global risks.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2015-11-24.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his Iraqi counterpart on the autonomy of the Kurdistan region in northern Iraq; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Tobias Ellwood

The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Philip Hammond) last met Iraqi Foreign Minister Ibrahim Ja’afari in London on 22 January. The autonomy of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq was not discussed at that meeting. However, the Foreign Secretary, the British Ambassador to Baghdad, the Consul General in Erbil and I regularly discuss with both the Government of Iraq and Kurdistan Regional Government, the importance of working together to defeat ISIL and deliver the stable, secure, prosperous and unified Iraq all Iraq’s people want.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2015-12-02.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, pursuant to the Answer of 30 November 2015 to Question 17311, what financial support his Department is providing for the Government’s Productivity Plan; and if he will make a statement.

Joseph Johnson

All Government Departments have a role in helping to raise productivity and foster a dynamic economy. The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) holds many of the key productivity levers, including skills, innovation, competition and regulation. The bulk of BIS spending therefore supports the Productivity Plan. The table displays total BIS Departmental Expenditure Limits up to 2019/20, as set out in the Spending Review. Specifically with regard to research, the Government has committed to protect the science resource and capital budget in real terms during this Parliament.

	2015-16	2016-17	2017-18	2018-19	2019-20
Total DEL (£bn)	16.6	16.5	14.5	13.4	13.2

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/479749/52229_Blue_Book_PU1865_Web_Accessible.pdf

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2015-12-09.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what support his Department is providing to fund mental health services for military personnel on active military duty; and if he will make a statement.

Mark Lancaster

The Ministry of Defence is absolutely committed to looking after the mental health of our Armed Forces personnel, and through the Defence budget we fund a range of military medical staff and facilities to provide community-based healthcare in line with national best practice. This includes the ability to deploy medical staff on major operations such as those in Iraq and Afghanistan. In the UK, we have 16 permanent military Departments of Community Mental Health, which are located to be convenient for major centres of military population, and which support the provision of healthcare that is available through GPs in Service primary care facilities. In-patient care, when necessary, is provided in dedicated psychiatric units through a central contract with an external provider.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2015-12-16.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent representations he has made to his Israeli counterpart on the building of Israeli settlements on Palestinian land; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Tobias Ellwood

The British Government has repeatedly condemned settlement announcements. In meetings with our Israeli counterparts we continue to call on the Israeli authorities to cease all settlement building as required under international law. On 24 November, I reiterated our opposition to Israeli settlements in my meeting with Israel’s Head of Military Intelligence. On 10 September, the Prime Minister, my right hon. Friend the Member for Witney (David Cameron), and the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond) raised our concerns about settlement building with Israel’s Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-01-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what estimate his Department has made of the cost of Royal Navy search and rescue operations in the Mediterranean Sea in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

Penny Mordaunt

The Royal Navy has supported one dedicated Search and Rescue operation in the Mediterranean Sea over the past five years, which was Op WEALD in 2015. This constituted the UK’s contribution to the international efforts in response to the migrant crisis. The additional cost of the Royal Navy support to this operation was £2.58 million, which was funded through the UK Aid Budget.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-01-13.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when she expects the two emergency authorisations covering the use of two neonicotinoid pesticides on a small proportion of the UK oilseed rape crop to expire; and if she will make a statement.

George Eustice

Both emergency authorisations expired on 20 November 2015.