Tag: John Mann

The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Mann on 2015-12-14.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, when a Government Minister last visited (a) Burundi, (b) Democratic Republic of Congo and (c) Central African Republic.

Mr Nick Hurd

The then Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) (Mark Simmonds) visited Burundi in April 2014. My honourable friend the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (James Duddridge) visited Burundi in December 2015.

Ministers from both DFID and the FCO have visited the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), including the then Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at DFID (Lynne Featherstone) in April 2013, the then Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the FCO (Mark Simmonds) in April 2014, and the Minister of State at the FCO (Baroness Anelay) in October 2015.

Ministers have not visited the Central African Republic (CAR) in recent years.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Mann on 2016-02-03.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the effect of changes in funding for community pharmacies on the provision of pharmacy services; and what steps he is taking to ensure that busy community pharmacists are not forced to reduce their services.

Alistair Burt

Community pharmacy is a vital part of the National Health Service and can play an even greater role. In the Spending Review the Government re-affirmed the need for the NHS to deliver £22 billion in efficiency savings by 2020/21 as set out in the NHS’s own plan, the Five Year Forward View. Community pharmacy is a core part of NHS primary care and has an important contribution to make as the NHS rises to these challenges. The Government believes efficiencies can be made without compromising the quality of services or public access to them. Our aim is to ensure that those community pharmacies upon which people depend continue to thrive and so we are consulting on the introduction of a Pharmacy Access Scheme, which will provide more NHS funds to certain pharmacies compared to others, considering factors such as location and the health needs of the local population.

The Government’s vision is for a more efficient, modern system that will free up pharmacists to spend more time delivering clinical and public health services to the benefit of patients and the public.

We are consulting the Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee, other pharmacy bodies and patient and public representatives on our proposals.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Mann on 2016-03-03.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if her Department will consider developing an atrocity prevention lens similar to the framework used by the UN Office for the Prevention of Genocide to assist in decision-making on bilateral aid and other aid assistance programmes.

Mr Nick Hurd

The UK continues to be strongly committed to early and effective international action to prevent mass atrocities, which are of grave concern to the Government. The National Security Strategy and Strategic Defence and Security Review 2015 (SDSR) underlined the importance the Government attaches to upholding international humanitarian law and to the prevention of mass atrocities through effective implementation of the UN agreed principle of the Responsibility to Protect.

The Government’s overseas network, strong international partnerships, and early warning mechanisms give the UK significant insight into emerging risks. HMG also produces an internal risk report on countries at risk of instability, which highlights regions in which there are increasing risks of instability, conflict and mass atrocities. The report draws on a wide range of sources and includes indicators that highlight the risk of mass atrocities occurring. The data assessment reflects best practice from NGOs and partner governments’ and is kept under regular review. Policy-makers also take into account atrocity risk analysis from partner governments, the UN and NGOs.

As set out in the SDSR and the UK Aid Strategy, the response to conflict, atrocity and other risks uses diplomatic, development, defence and law enforcement capabilities in an integrated manner. As such, addressing and preventing conflict, instability and state failure is a key priority running through UK aid policies and programmes. This includes the prevention of identity-based mass violence, alongside other forms of violence and instability.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Mann on 2016-10-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent representations he has made to the government of Burundi on political violence in that country.

Mr Tobias Ellwood

The UK Government remains deeply concerned about the political situation in Burundi and the allegations of horrific human rights abuses against its people.

Our Special Envoy to the Great Lakes, Danae Dholakia, met with several Burundian government Ministers alongside her French counterpart in Bujumbura in June; and met with the Burundian Foreign Minister in Arusha in mid-July. In July we deployed a permanent UK Diplomat to Bujumbura to increase our engagement.

We support the East African Community (EAC) led dialogue process mediated by former Tanzanian President Benjamin Mkapa and have been present through our Special Envoy at each round of the dialogue so far, engaging directly with all parties.

We have also been working with partners to ensure that the international response is robust. We supported the suspension of EU aid direct to the government last March. We imposed EU sanctions on individuals accused of human rights abuses. We agreed UN Security Council Resolutions, including UNSCR 2303 which mandates a UN police force. We pushed for a strong Burundi resolution in the Human Rights Council on 27 September and welcome its establishment of a Commission of Enquiry. Burundi is a UK priority country for human rights work in 2016.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Mann on 2014-06-25.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, who is responsible for paying defendant costs orders; and which organisation receives payment if costs are awarded for a successful prosecution of a breach.

Mr Shailesh Vara

Defendant Costs Orders are awarded to a defendant when a prosecution is unsuccessful and the defendant is acquitted. The expenditure is called ‘Central Funds’ and are payable at legal aid rates. Central Funds fall under the financial responsibility of the Legal Aid Agency but are operationally administered by HM Courts and Tribunals Service.

If costs are awarded in a successful prosecution of a breach of a Defendant Costs Order, then whoever the prosecutor is will be entitled to receive the costs.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Mann on 2014-06-25.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what representation he has received from magistrates and the judiciary since 1 June 2014 on service delivery; and if he will seek feedback as part of Test Gate 4 on whether the sale of Community Rehabilitation Companies contracts is having a detrimental impact on sentencing and court processes.

Jeremy Wright

On 1 June, as part of our ongoing Transforming Rehabilitation Programme of reform, the new National Probation Service (NPS) and Community Rehabilitation Companies (CRCs) formally commenced operation. My officials have been in regular contact with the judiciary and magistracy throughout the transition process, but we have had no specific representations from them concerning service delivery.

We have made it clear throughout this process that we will manage the reforms in a controlled way and we will not proceed to share sale until thorough testing is complete and we are satisfied that it is safe to do so.