Tag: Lord Kennedy of Southwark

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Kennedy of Southwark on 2015-11-10.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many people owned their own home in each year from 1997 until the last year for which records are available.

Baroness Williams of Trafford

The numbers of owner occupier households in England, estimated from DCLG’s English Housing Survey, are provided in the table below

Number (000s) of owner occupied households, 1997 to 2013-14: England

Source: English Housing Survey https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/469214/2013-14_Section_1_Households_tables_and_figures_FINAL.xlsx

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Kennedy of Southwark on 2015-11-25.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government on what date the Department of Justice in Northern Ireland was advised of the impact on the criminal offence of breach of official duty as a result of the changes relating to the correction of procedural error made by the Northern Ireland (Elections) (Amendment) (No. 2) Order 2015.

Lord Dunlop

Northern Ireland Office Ministers took the decision to lay the Northern Ireland (Elections) (Amendment) (No.2) Order 2015 on 30 October 2015, following discussions with Ministerial colleagues at the Cabinet Office. Northern Ireland Office officials began work on the Order in May 2015, although work was delayed by the department’s focus on the Northern Ireland Talks process. The Minister of Justice in Northern Ireland was advised of the impact of the proposed changes relating to procedural error by letter on 31 July 2015. The Chief Electoral Officer expressed support for the proposed content of the Order in meetings in June 2015. The Electoral Commission was consulted on the Order on 1 October 2015. As the Explanatory Memorandum to the Order sets out, there are significant differences in the systems operating in Northern Ireland and Great Britain and a one size fits all approach is not justified.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Kennedy of Southwark on 2015-12-03.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the effects of turning off street lights in the early hours of the morning by some local authorities.

Baroness Williams of Trafford

Decisions about street lighting are primarily for elected local councillors, reflecting local circumstances and views. The Government has not made an assessment of the effects of turning off street lights in the early hours of the morning by some local authorities.

However, a research study – The effect of reduced street lighting on road casualties and crime in England and Wales : controlled interrupted time series analysis – by R Steinbach et al, in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health published in July 2015 on the effects of street lighting on road safety and crime in England and Wales (attached) found little evidence of harmful effects of switch off, part-night lighting, dimming, or changes to white light/LEDs on road collisions or crime.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Kennedy of Southwark on 2015-12-15.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the UK’s current CPI and RPI inflation rates.

Lord O’Neill of Gatley

CPI inflation was 0.1 per cent in November 2015 and RPI inflation was 1.1 per cent. Low inflation is being driven by falling food and energy prices, and we continue to see a combination of low prices, rising pay packets and record high employment.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Kennedy of Southwark on 2016-01-21.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the timetable for the Transport for London and Department for Transport partnership to take control of the suburban rail routes in London.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

We are going to work with Transport for London (TfL), local authorities, Local Enterprise Partnership and others over the next few months to set up the Partnership announced on 21st January 2016 but the timetable for the formation of the partnership has yet to be agreed.

Depending on responses to the Prospectus and being able to agree satisfactory terms, transfers of the suburban services could take place when franchises end (the dates are as per the prospectus). We are exploring with TfL whether a separate business unit can be created for South West Trains.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Kennedy of Southwark on 2016-03-17.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to review the legislation governing credit unions.

Lord O’Neill of Gatley

On 31 December 2014, the government published a response to the Call for Evidence on Credit Unions.

In this response the government committed to considering the potential changes to credit union legislation highlighted by the Call for Evidence over the course of this parliament.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Kennedy of Southwark on 2016-05-19.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to require bus operators to collaborate to make bus journeys more integrated.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

Bus operators and local transport authorities can work together to improve bus services for passengers through voluntary arrangements and statutory partnerships. The Bus Services Bill will improve the range of partnership options available to authorities and operators.

The Bill will make the statutory partnership schemes more attractive by removing the requirement that the scheme must involve the provision of specific facilities. The Bill will also create a new enhanced partnership arrangement. This will enable local transport authorities to set the frequency and timing of specific services, introduce a zonal ticketing scheme, mandate types of payment that must be accepted, and require certain information to be given to passengers. Any proposals must receive sufficient support from the bus operators before they can be introduced.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Kennedy of Southwark on 2016-09-08.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the case for reviewing the legislation concerning the safe use of electrical products at home.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe

The Government takes consumer safety extremely seriously. This country has some of the most robust product safety legislation in the world. We cannot be complacent. We have the legislation in place to protect consumers, but we do sometimes see unsafe products on the market. That is why in November 2014 the Government announced an Independent Review of the Product Recall System.

Following this review we invited a team of industry experts to form a Steering Group to consider how the review’s recommendations might be implemented. The Steering Group has set itself a timeframe of 2 years in which to complete its work.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Kennedy of Southwark on 2016-10-10.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of support services for people with complex needs when entering the labour market; and what steps they are taking to make recruitment processes accessible for all.

Lord Freud

We have been engaging with a variety of stakeholders and partners, including those with an interest in people with complex needs, to understand their view of current employment support. We will soon publish a Green Paper to explore a range of options for long-term reform across different sectors enabling everyone to realise their aspirations, regardless of their health condition or disability.

The Government is committed to enabling all disabled people to fulfil their potential. Work is an important part of this, and the Government wants all disabled people and people with a long term health condition to go as far as their talents will take them.

We are supporting this through Access to Work, which has specialist teams to provide a dedicated service to particular groups of people including those with complex needs.

Our new Disability Confident employer scheme went live on 14 July 2016. When employers sign up as Disability Confident they are asked to make specific meaningful offers of opportunities for disabled people such as jobs, apprenticeships, internships, and work experience opportunities.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Kennedy of Southwark on 2016-10-21.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their latest assessment of the human rights situation in The Gambia.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

We are deeply concerned about the human rights situation in The Gambia. Although the Gambian Government has taken some steps to address human rights concerns, including a ban on female genital mutilation and child marriage, much more needs to be done. We are following closely the cases of opposition members who have received severe custodial sentences and the deaths in custody of two members. We have voiced these concerns directly with the Gambian Government and in UN and EU fora and continue to apply pressure alongside other countries.