Tag: Jim Shannon

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-01-05.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions he has had with organisations representing self-employed people on the potential effect on such people of implementing quarterly tax returns from 2020.

Mr David Gauke

The Government has no plans to introduce quarterly tax returns for business. The Government is introducing simple, secure and personalised digital tax accounts, removing the need for annual tax returns. Updating HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) through software or apps will deliver a light-touch process, much less burdensome and time-consuming than it is today.

The Government will consult on the details of these proposals throughout 2016 and will publish a Tax Information and Impact Note (TIIN) in the usual way. This will include an estimate of the impacts on business. The Government routinely publish TIINs for tax policy changes when the policy detail for those changes is finalised or near-finalised.

HMRC has discussed these reforms with a range of professional bodies and advisory groups representing small businesses and the self-employed. HMRC has also engaged extensively with a range of professional bodies and other stakeholders representing the accountancy profession.

On 14 December 2015, HMRC set out details of its plans at its annual stakeholder conference, which was attended by a large number of different organisations representing small businesses.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-01-05.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what discussions she has had with the British Association for Shooting and Conservation and the Countryside Alliance on the banning of hand-guns and pistols.

Mike Penning

Home Office Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide variety of international partners, as well as organisations and individuals in the public and private sectors, as part of the process of policy development and delivery. Details of these meetings are published on the Cabinet Office website on a quarterly basis at: www.gov.uk/government/organisations/cabinet-office.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-01-12.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many patients are receiving nivolumab for locally advanced or metastatic squamous non-small cell lung cancer in (a) England and (b) Strangford; and when NICE plans to complete its appraisal of that drug.

George Freeman

NHS England has advised that it understands that the manufacturer of nivolumab (Opdivo), Bristol-Myers Squibb, received 73 registrations for nivolumab for locally advanced or metastatic squamous non-small cell lung cancer through the Early Access to Medicines Scheme before the scientific opinion expired in July 2015. A geographical breakdown of this figure is not available.

NHS England does not currently fund nivolumab for metastatic squamous non-small cell lung cancer and has advised that its funding position will be determined by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence’s final technology appraisal guidance which is expected in May 2016. Further information is available at:

www.nice.org.uk/guidance/indevelopment/gid-tag506

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he has made an assessment of the potential safety implications of the mandatory introduction of dashboard cameras in (a) cars, (b) vans and (c) heavy goods vehicles.

Andrew Jones

No such assessment has been made. The provisions on forward vision for drivers are already regulated in the Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations 1986 (as amended).

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-01-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the importance of the (a) Merchant Navy and (b) Royal Fleet Auxiliary to the security of the UK.

Penny Mordaunt

The Ministry of Defence together with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, the Home Office and the Department for Transport, published the UK National Strategy for Maritime Security (NSMS) in May 2014. This cross-Government paper encompasses all aspects of the UK’s maritime domain, including the Merchant Navy whose cooperation, as part of the Red Ensign Group, is important to maintaining our national security and prosperity.

The Royal Fleet Auxiliary plays a key role in maritime security either by directly supporting Royal Navy ships on operations or, occasionally, conducting operations in their own right. Her Majesty’s Government places great importance on all maritime capabilities, with the NSMS setting out the whole-of-Government approach required to secure the seas and oceans that Britain depends on.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-01-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether the Government has reached an agreement with the US government on the placement of US border guards in UK airports.

James Brokenshire

The US operates border pre-clearance facilities at a number of international airports to allow passengers on flights to the US to clear US customs and immigration controls before they arrive in the US. The US Government seeks to negotiate such arrangements with the relevant UK airports, as any interested airport would need to adapt its operations accordingly. However the introduction of pre-clearance operations would also require approval by the UK Government. We continue to discuss pre-clearance with the US but no formal agreement has yet been reached.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-01-27.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent discussions the Government has had with NATO on reductions to the number of Russian nuclear strike missiles.

Mark Lancaster

My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence (Michael Fallon) has had no recent discussions with NATO regarding reductions to the number of Russian nuclear strike missiles. However, the US provides annual reports on progress made under the Treaty for the Further Reduction and Limitation of Strategic Offensive Arms, which is known as the New START Treaty.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-01-27.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with the government of Russia on human rights violations in that country.

Mr David Lidington

During my visit to Moscow on 21-22 December 2015, I raised the UK’s concerns about the human rights situation in Russia with my counterpart First Deputy Foreign Minister Vladimir Titov. I pressed for the immediate release of Ukrainian pilot Nadiya Savchenko, who has restarted her hunger strike having spent 18 months in illegal detention, and I called for the release of filmmaker Oleg Sentsov and activist Olexandr Kolchenko, whose trials have also raised serious concerns. I raised our concerns about restrictions on civil society, Russia’s labelling of NGOs as “foreign agents”, and the situation of the LGBT community. I also met a group of human rights defenders to hear their concerns first hand. The UK will continue to support Russian civil society and to raise human rights issues with the Russian Government.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-02-02.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what information her Department holds on the number of dogs put down because they could not be rehomed in each of the last five years.

George Eustice

Statistics of dogs put down because they could not be re-homed are not held by central Government. However, Dogs Trust carry out an annual survey of local authorities. The attached table is taken from information from the last five Dogs Trust surveys.

Apr 2014 – Mar 2015 – 5,142

Apr 2013 – Mar 2014 – 7,058

Apr 2012 – Mar 2013 – 7,319

Apr 2011 – Mar 2012 – 8,903

Apr 2010 – Mar 2011 – 7,121

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-02-02.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to tackle criminal gang activity in Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

Mr John Hayes

The Government’s plans for tackling organised crime groups, or ‘criminal gangs’, are set out in its Serious and Organised Crime Strategy and amplified in the 2015 National Security Strategy and Strategic Defence and Security Review.

Since the publication of the Serious and Organised Crime Strategy in 2013, we have introduced important new legislation through the Serious and Organised Crime Act 2015, and have strengthened collaboration locally, regionally and with the private sector. We have invested in better capabilities to tackle cyber crime and online child sexual exploitation. We have also invested in Regional Organised Crime Units and implemented major new programmes of work to prevent, protect against, and reduce the impact of serious and organised crime.

The Strategic Defence and Security Review outlines further measures to tackle organised crime, including our work to: choke off the supply and availability of illegal firearms; and introduce new measures to make the UK a more hostile place for those seeking to move, hide or use the proceeds of crime and corruption or to evade sanctions. It also explains that: we will develop a comprehensive action plan to better identify, disrupt and dismantle the criminal networks involved in modern slavery and immigration crime; and that we will continue to strengthen our approach to tackling online child sexual exploitation and abuse.