Tag: Lord Blencathra

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Blencathra on 2016-02-22.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the written answer by Baroness Verma on 18 February (HL5913), which 17 countries their Flagship female genital mutilation (FGM) programme supports, how much aid each of those countries receives annually from the UK, and how much aid from the UK is spent annually on programmes to end female genital mutilation in those countries.

Baroness Verma

DFID’s regional FGM programme is providing up to £35 million in funding to end FGM in 17 high prevalence countries: Burkina Faso, Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Mauritania, Mali, Nigeria, Senegal, Somalia, Sudan, Uganda and Yemen.

This funding is apportioned over a five year period from 2013-2018 and the breakdown by country is not readily available. Six of these countries (Kenya, Nigeria, Somalia, Sudan, Yemen and Uganda) have DFID country programmes. Information on the budget allocated to each of these countries is published on our Development Tracker online.

In Sudan, DFID’s regional programme to end FGM is complemented by a country programme providing £12m over five years to support the scale up of initiatives to end FGM across the country.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Blencathra on 2016-05-18.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what warnings and advice they intend to give to the public, in the light of research on the severity of community-onset boils and abscesses in the UK, published in Epidemiology and Infection in December 2014 by Laura Shallcross et al.

Lord Prior of Brampton

Public Health England (PHE) is not planning to launch any new guidance or introduce warnings in light of the study referred to in the question and any public advice now falls within the remit of NHS Choices.

PHE published national guidance for the diagnosis, treatment and management of PVL-positive strains of S Aureus (PVL-SA) infections, an element of this includes the management of skin boils and abscesses caused by PVL-SA. PVL-SA are strains of a bacterium called Staphylococcus aureus that can produce a particular toxin (Panton-Valentine Luekocidin or PVL). Such strains are strongly associated with skin boils and abscesses which can be aggressive and recurrent in nature. A copy of the Guidance on the diagnosis and management of PVL-associated Staphylococcus aureus infections (PVL-SA) in England is attached.

PHE produced two leaflets called Patient Information Sheet – Staphylococcus aureus and Boils and Skin Infections: Information for the Public advising individuals on boils and abscesses caused by PVL-SA in response to particular “at risk” local environments and scenarios including schools, sporting groups and military recruits. The main advice in these leaflets is information as to where PVL-SA bacteria can be found, the infections it can cause and practical advice on how patients can minimise the risk of transferring the bacteria to others and experiencing repeated infections. Copies of both leaflets are attached.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Blencathra on 2016-09-06.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government why the costs of Larry the 10 Downing Street cat’s veterinary treatment in July were met by donations from staff, and whether they plan to refund those staff.

Baroness Chisholm of Owlpen

The costs were met by staff through voluntary staff donations due to their affection for Larry. There was no compulsion to donate and no refunds have been requested. The remaining funds will contribute towards the future upkeep of the Chief Mouser.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Blencathra on 2016-09-12.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they are putting in place any additional positive vetting and security measures to ensure that the Government’s Brexit strategy and tactics are not leaked by FCO civil servants to the EU or other European governments; and if so, what those measures are.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

Under the HMG Security Policy Framework all government departments are required to ensure that their staff have the appropriate level of security clearance for the work they are doing. The FCO is working closely with the Department for Exiting the European Union, which leads on our withdrawal negotiations with the EU. Both departments have ensured that all relevant staff are properly security-vetted. Both departments have reminded their staff of the need to deal with all sensitive information on restricted channels of distribution, and at the appropriate levels of security.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Blencathra on 2015-10-20.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to introduce a British fuel efficiency test for all motor vehicles sold in the United Kingdom which exactly simulates real driving conditions and which does not use a rolling road nor overinflated tyres.

Viscount Younger of Leckie

We will continue to work with the EU to produce testing that more accurately reflects real world driving conditions. The current laboratory test – the New European Test Procedure – is expected to be replaced in 2017 with a new test – the World Light duty Test Procedure – that will more closely replicate the design of modern vehicles and the way they are driven.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Blencathra on 2015-10-21.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions they have had with the Church of England following the letter sent to the Prime Minister by 86 bishops on 10 September about the Church providing funds to meet all additional costs of increasing the number of refugees taken into the United Kingdom; and what assessment they have made of the further support the Church of England can provide to meet the needs of refugees in the United Kingdom.

Lord Bates

On 10 September 2015 a letter signed by 37 Bishops was sent to the Prime Minister. This letter set out how the Church stands ready to play their part but also how they believe the country could resettle more than 20,000 Syrian refugees over the next five years.

The Home Office wants to involve the Church in the design and implementation of the longer term programme of work. We are happy to have meetings with representatives from the Church to discuss the issues raised in the Bishops letter. Some of these meetings have already taken place with more planned over the next few weeks.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Blencathra on 2015-10-21.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the cost, in the first year, of accepting Syrian refugees.

Lord Bates

The first 12 months of each refugee’s resettlement costs will be funded using ODA (Official Development Assistance). After year one we will also provide additional funding to assist with costs incurred in future years.

The anticipated cost for the first year is still being worked out between relevant Government departments and local authorities. We expect to agree indicative costings in the near future.

There are a range of factors that have to be included when it comes to bringing people to the UK and helping them to settle. Each person coming from Syria will have different needs so it is not possible to say how much the support for any individual will cost.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Blencathra on 2015-10-20.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what range of sanctions is available to use against British Jihadists returning to the United Kingdom after fighting in Syria and Iraq; and whether they will encourage the police to use them.

Lord Bates

People seeking to travel to engage in terrorist activity in Syria or Iraq should be in no doubt we will take the strongest possible action to protect our national security. If they return to the UK they should expect to be subject to a police investigation. Whether a prosecution for an offence can be pursued in individual cases is a matter for the Crown Prosecution Service.

The Counter-Terrorism and Security Act, which received Royal Assent on 12 February 2015, has added to existing powers by disrupting the ability of people to travel abroad to engage in terrorism-related activity and controlling their return to the UK; enhancing our ability to monitor and control the actions of those in the UK who pose a threat; and combating the underlying ideology that feeds, supports and sanctions terrorism.

In addition, the Government has powers under the Immigration Act 2014 to deprive persons of their British citizenship if such a deprivation is deemed ‘conducive to the public good’, for instance if a person has been involved in threats to national security, war crimes, serious and organised crime or unacceptable behaviours such as glorification of terrorism. Deprivation of British citizenship results in simultaneous loss of the right of abode in the United Kingdom. Once deprived, an individual becomes subject to immigration powers and can be deported or removed from the UK

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Blencathra on 2015-10-20.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what consideration they have given to the removal of the passports of British Jihadists who have gone to fight in Syria and Iraq, in order to prevent their return to the United Kingdom.

Lord Bates

The Government has long-standing powers under the Immigration Act 2014 to deprive persons of their British citizenship if such deprivation is deemed ‘conducive to the public good’, for instance if a person has been involved in threats to national security, war crimes, serious and organised crime or unacceptable behaviours such as glorification of terrorism.

Deprivation of British citizenship results in simultaneous loss of the right of abode in the United Kingdom. Once deprived, an individual becomes subject to immigration powers and can be deported or removed from the UK or prevented from returning to the UK if deprivation action occurs whilst they are abroad.

In addition under the Counter-Terrorism and Security Act 2015, the Home Secretary may impose a temporary exclusion order on a British citizen suspected of involvement in terrorism-related activity outside the UK. The individual’s passport would be cancelled, but the individual may return to the UK in accordance with a permit to return.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Blencathra on 2015-10-20.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have received from Friends of the Earth and Greenpeace since 1995 in relation to the promotion of diesel engine cars.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

There have been numerous contacts between government departments and both Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth since 1995. The information on representations made is not readily available and it would be disproportionate to fully retrieve it.

I can however confirm that in the last month representations to more than one government department have been made by the organisations raising concerns regarding the possible promotion of diesel engine cars.