Tag: Jim Shannon

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

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to facilitate a process of credit card transfers for people in debt.

Harriett Baldwin

The Government has fundamentally reformed regulation of the consumer credit market, which includes the credit card sector. Consumer credit regulation transferred from the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) to the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) on 1 April 2014.

The FCA is currently undertaking a thorough review of the credit card market through its ‘credit card market study’. The market study is investigating three areas, including the extent of unaffordable credit card debt and how consumers can drive effective competition through shopping around and switching.

On the 3rd November 2015 the FCA published its interim report which found that the market was working reasonably well for most customers. However, the FCA expressed concern about the scale of potentially problematic debt in this sector, and the incentives for firms to manage this.

The interim report also included the FCA’s early thinking on potential remedies which include measures to give consumers more control over their credit limits, measures to encourage customers to pay off debt quicker when they can afford to, and proposals that firms do more to identify earlier those consumers who may be struggling to repay and take action to help them manage their repayments.

The FCA also set out potential measures to allow consumers to open access to their credit card usage to other market participants, as well as clarifying standards for price comparison websites, in order to facilitate shopping around and switching. The FCA is currently asking for feedback on the findings and potential remedies.

The Government is looking forward to the full report in the spring, and would encourage interested parties to give their views to the FCA to assist it in addressing the issues it has identified.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his counterparts in the Egyptian government on Libya.

Mr Tobias Ellwood

Foreign and Commonwealth Office ministers regularly discuss Libya with their Egyptian counterparts, as part of the united international effort to assist the formation of a government in Libya that can deliver stability, security, and prosperity for the Libyan people. The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond) continues ongoing discussions of Libya with his Egyptian counterpart, Minister for Foreign Affairs Sameh Shoukhry. They previously discussed the subject in meetings in September and November.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-01-20.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what value of freight was imported by sea into the UK in each of the last five years.

Anna Soubry

Data on the value of freight that was imported by sea into the UK in each of the last five years is available from Eurostat’s Comext database (“EXTRA-EU Trade since 1999 by mode of transport”). This data covers only UK imports by sea from the Non-EU countries. Data by mode of transport for intra-EU trade is not available in value terms.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what discussions he has had with the Polish government on the allocation of UK or NATO forces to Poland to counter any threats to that country from Russia.

Mr Julian Brazier

My right hon. Friends the Defence Secretary and the Foreign Secretary met with their Polish counterparts in Edinburgh in January 2016 to discuss a range of options for countering threats in the region. We are working closely with Poland to ensure that the Warsaw Summit in July further strengthens NATO against current threats and adapts it to combat future ones. We also promote more effective defence cooperation in the region with our partners in the Northern Group: Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, and Sweden). The UK already makes a substantial contribution to Assurance Measures in Poland, and will provide 1,000 personnel to Exercise ANAKONDA in June 2016.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to increase public awareness of rare diseases.

George Freeman

The UK Strategy for Rare Diseases was published in 2013 and is currently being implemented across all four countries of the United Kingdom. The UK Rare Diseases Forum monitors the implementation of the Strategy and provides the Department with advice on rare disease policy development, including awareness raising. The 100,000 Genomes Project, a world-leading initiative launched by the Prime Minister in December 2012 has rare diseases as one of its key priority areas.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what discussions he has had with clinical bodies on the potential connection between the level of diabetes and eating pears to reduce sugar levels.

Jane Ellison

There have been no such recent discussions.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department is taking steps to encourage people to become pilots.

Mr Robert Goodwill

The Secretary of State for Transport appointed Terry Morgan CBE to develop a transport infrastructure skills strategy, which was published on the 28 January. The strategy, which covers aviation and specifically pilot training, contains recommendations for both government and industry to act on.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-02-08.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the Colombian government’s ability to guarantee safety for (a) social activists and (b) human rights defenders in the region of Catatumbo.

Mr Hugo Swire

Our Embassy in Bogota has received reports about the safety of social activists and human rights defenders in Catatumbo. This was raised at a meeting between Embassy officials and community leaders during a visit to the Catatumbo region in May 2015 and also in a meeting with the ‘Marcha Patriotica’ movement in January 2016. The Government of Colombia has put in place a National Protection Unit responsible for coordinating and implementing protective measures for those at risk due to their activities.

Peace Process negotiations are at a key stage, but there is still further to go. Catatumbo is an example of a region in conflict that will be positively impacted by a peace deal. This Government is committed to supporting Colombia as part of the ongoing negotiations to ensure the safety of its people and long term stability across the country.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-02-09.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what discussions he has had with the Royal College of Nursing on the connection between a low-fat diet and the reduction of migraine attacks.

Jane Ellison

There have been no such recent discussions.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-02-08.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the emergency response plans are in the event of Russia firing a nuclear bomb.

Mr Oliver Letwin

We live in an unpredictable world and if a threat to the UK were to arise from a nuclear-armed adversary, we would seek to ensure that they were deterred from using nuclear weapons by convincing them that the costs to them of doing so greatly outweighed any gains they could hope to make.

Other chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear threats are considered as part of the National Security Risk Assessment and this is reflected in the Strategic Defence and Security Review 2015. The Government’s approach to preparing for emergencies is to prepare for the common consequences of a range of civil emergencies. This is supplemented with proportionate planning and capability building for the highest impact and most concerning risks, of which a nuclear terrorist attack in the UK is one.