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Tag: Justin Tomlinson

  • Justin Tomlinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Justin Tomlinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Justin Tomlinson on 2016-07-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how her Department plans to measure progress of the implementation of its sports strategy.

    Tracey Crouch

    Progress will be measured against the five outcomes set out in Sporting Future: A New Strategy for an Active Nation. Information will be collected about the key performance indicators the strategy sets out, drawing on data from a range of sources. We will submit an annual report to parliament on the progress.

  • Justin Tomlinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Justin Tomlinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Justin Tomlinson on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps he is taking to ensure that government departments and executive agencies return people’s personal identification documents by secure delivery.

    Ben Gummer

    Personal identification documents can be requested by departments to verify an individual’s identity for a service that they provide. It is for each department to determine the most appropriate method for returning these documents to the individual, taking into account the risk of loss and potential for fraud. Departments that regularly handle personal identification documents are expected to have clear procedures in place to return documentation to the owner.

    The government has also launched ‘Verify’ on the GOV.uk website. As more government services are provided online and using the Verify service, the need for personal identity documents to be sent in hard copy through the postal network will be reduced.

  • Justin Tomlinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Justin Tomlinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Justin Tomlinson on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress has been made on introducing automatic compensation for rail users whose trains arrive late.

    Paul Maynard

    The majority of train operators now operate the Delay Repay scheme and we are continuing to roll this out to all train operators through refranchising and / or as opportunities arise.

    It is important that claims can be made easily and that passengers are made aware of their rights. This can be supported by automated systems that notify passengers when they are eligible to claim and electronic claims forms.

    Some train operators have introduced fully automatic Delay Repay compensation: Virgin Trains West Coast for Advance tickets purchased through the operator’s website or app for registered passengers, and by c2c for all passengers with a registered c2c Smartcard. This is feasible when the passenger has a ticket for a specific train purchased from the operator or a smartcard.

    Northern, TransPennine Express and East Anglia are also planning to introduce fully automatic compensation for certain passengers who buy Advance or Season tickets.

  • Justin Tomlinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Justin Tomlinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Justin Tomlinson on 2016-09-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many university technical colleges are (a) open and (b) planned in England in the next five years.

    Robert Halfon

    There are currently 47 open University Technical Colleges (UTCs). A further seven UTCs are in development, which plan to open from September 2017.

  • Justin Tomlinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Justin Tomlinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Justin Tomlinson on 2016-10-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the diplomatic and trade opportunities presented for the UK by the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    Qatar has an ambitious infrastructure programme for the 2022 World Cup worth over £140billion, offering significant opportunities for UK companies. UK Government officials are in regular contact with the Qatari World Cup’s organising body, the Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy. As part of their discussions they highlight British companies’ expertise in fields such as security, hospitality, stadium management in staging global sports events.

    The UK wants Qatar’s 2022 World Cup to be a success and to be Qatar’s key delivery partner. As the UK showed during London 2012, international sporting events help to build stronger friendships between people of different countries. This is the first time that the Gulf has hosted this tournament and the UK has lots of experience it can share. This means opportunities for even stronger cooperation and engagement across all aspects of our bilateral relationship.

  • Justin Tomlinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Justin Tomlinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Justin Tomlinson on 2016-07-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate her Department has made of the effect on the number of children participating in sport of the increase in the school sport premium from September 2017.

    Edward Timpson

    Through the primary PE and sport premium, primary schools have already received over £450 million of ring-fenced funding to improve the quality of their PE and sport provision. Evidence from an independent evaluation into the premium indicates the funding is having a major impact and 84% of schools reported an increase in pupil engagement in PE during curricular time and in the levels of participation in extra-curricular activities. The majority of schools also reported that they have introduced new sports in both curricular PE (74%) and extra-curricular sport (77%) since the premium was introduced.

    However, we know that there is more to do and the doubling of the premium gives us a real opportunity to drive further progress in this area. We are keen that schools use the increased funding to continue making sustainable improvements to the quality and breadth of PE and sport provision, and help increase participation rates so that all pupils develop healthy active lifestyles.

    We are currently exploring options for the allocation and evaluation of the doubled premium. Further details will be announced in due course.

  • Justin Tomlinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Justin Tomlinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Justin Tomlinson on 2016-09-02.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many people in (a) North Swindon constituency and (b) the UK have (i) had a reduction in the income tax they pay and (ii) been taken out of paying income tax since 2010.

    Jane Ellison

    By 2015-16 increases in the personal allowance since 2010-11 are estimated to have reduced the income tax liability of 27.9 million individuals in the UK and taken 3.97 million out of tax. The corresponding figures for the South West, which includes the Parliamentary Constituency of North Swindon, are 2.4 million and 344,000 respectively.

    These estimates are based on the 2013-14 Survey of Personal Incomes, projected to 2015-16 using economic assumptions consistent with the Office for Budget Responsibility’s March 2016 economic and fiscal outlook.

    HM Treasury does not publish this information at constituency level.

  • Justin Tomlinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    Justin Tomlinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Justin Tomlinson on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps he is taking to reward local authorities that invest in renewable energy creation.

    Jesse Norman

    The Government provides support for renewable electricity generation through the Feed-in Tariff scheme – which is available to individuals, businesses, communities, schools and local authorities.

    The Government provides support for renewable heating through the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI). The RHI is open to all buildings – including local authorities, commercial, industrial, public sector, not for profit and domestic properties and also supports injection of biomethane into the gas grid.

  • Justin Tomlinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Justin Tomlinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Justin Tomlinson on 2016-09-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will commission the Behavioural Insights Team to conduct research on efficiency and passenger journeys in the rail sector.

    Paul Maynard

    The Department has recently commissioned the Behavioural Insights Team to deliver a programme of workshops on the use of behavioural insights research in policy making, including rail passenger experience. In addition, the Department is currently exploring a range of behavioural insight approaches as part of its wider programme of rail research.

  • Justin Tomlinson – 2022 Speech on Voter ID at Elections

    Justin Tomlinson – 2022 Speech on Voter ID at Elections

    The speech made by Justin Tomlinson, the Conservative MP for North Swindon, in the House of Commons on 12 December 2022.

    I will make just a few quick comments. My seat of North Swindon, as part of the Swindon Borough Council area, was part of one of the initial pilots in 2017 or 2018, so I want to make a few observations. First, turnout was up, not down. Secondly, when the pilot came to an end and we were not made part of the bigger pilot, we were inundated with complaints, because people thought that the new system was far better. That is why I am very pleased to advocate this welcome change.

    I have a bit of a soft spot for the deputy leader of the Labour party, the right hon. Member for Ashton-under-Lyne (Angela Rayner), perhaps because we have similar music tastes. She talked about trusting people. I have now had not one, not two, not three, not four, but five Labour opponents. I can assure her that every single time one of them has been selected, the adverts for the selection meetings—in which, of course, we take a mild interest—very clearly say, “You must bring voter ID.”

    The whole thrust of the argument against the draft regulations is that the number of people looking to cheat the system is so small. That seems to indicate that the right hon. Lady believes that North Swindon Labour party members must all be truly terrible people—that the terrible people must all be consolidated there. I want to reassure her that that is not the case. They are actually very nice people.

    Lloyd Russell-Moyle (Brighton, Kemptown) (Lab/Co-op)

    The hon. Gentleman is misinterpreting the Labour rules, is he not? They do not require photo ID; they require any ID. They allow student ID, student bus cards and student railcards, all of which the Government have excluded in their gerrymandering efforts. Does he acknowledge that this Government have gerrymandered voter ID?

    Justin Tomlinson

    The hon. Gentleman, bless him, has got absolutely muddled. As he would have seen from the pilots if he had taken the time to look, anybody can access IDs. They are commissioned by the local authorities. It is straightforward.

    The proof of the pudding was that turnout in Swindon was up during the pilot. Sadly, that pilot came to an end and we were not part of the second pilot, so we were inundated with complaints. People want to have trust in our democracy. The regulations are a brilliant thing to have brought forward.

    Jamie Stone (Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross) (LD)

    The hon. Member talks about increased turnout. One of the highest turnouts in British history was for the 2014 Scottish independence referendum, which had a very clear result: Scotland voted to remain part of the United Kingdom. A conspiracy theory was circulated at the time that votes would be altered if people put their cross in the box with a pencil instead of a biro or a pen. That was rubbished by the general public and put in the dustbin where it belonged. Should we not trust the great British public to get these things right, as they have in the past?

    Justin Tomlinson

    Yes, it is about trust: trust in our world-leading democracy and trust in making sure that we can safeguard what matters. I will not stray into conspiracy theories about Scottish elections, but trust is the proof of the pudding. When there was a pilot in my constituency, voter turnout went up and people complained when the pilot came to an end. It is quite straightforward.

    Sarah Owen (Luton North) (Lab)

    The hon. Member talks about trust. Trust is incredibly important, so can he tell me why anybody should trust the Conservative party when it comes to voter fraud, given that its last leadership election—not the coronation that we have just had, but the leadership election—was delayed because of security fears and possible breaches of ballot paper processes?

    Justin Tomlinson

    If there is ever any question of any threat in any form, it should always be investigated. The sun comes up in the morning—it is that obvious.

    I say to the Minister: hold firm. This is what the public want. It has worked in the pilots, and proceeding with it is an absolute must.