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.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Kennedy of Southwark on 2015-11-10.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the size of deposit needed to buy a starter home in London.
Baroness Williams of Trafford
Starter Homes will be sold at a minimum of 80% of the full market price and offered to first time buyers under the age of 40. The discounted Starter Homes price will be capped at £450,000 in London.
The cap is not an expectation of the going price for a Starter Home. Most first time buyers are not buying average-priced properties, but those at the lower quartile of values in an area. This is the first time buyers market that exists, and this is where we anticipate developers pricing starter homes
Starter homes will reduce deposit requirements for first time buyers. The average price paid by a first time buyer in London in Q2 2015 was £376,000 (Office for National Statistics data). The discount achieved through the Starter Home initiative would reduce the price of such a property to £301,000 and also reduce the deposit.
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 Minister 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 2015-12-02.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of political progress in Myanmar.
Baroness Anelay of St Johns
Burma has made remarkable progress since beginning the reform process in 2011. The elections on 8 November were an important milestone in Burma’s transition to democracy, and we welcome the conduct of the process, which observers have characterised as well-managed, orderly and peaceful. However, the transition is not yet complete and the incoming administration will face many serious challenges. Of particular importance will be to build a sustainable and comprehensive peace with all groups in Burma and address human rights violations, most urgently those committed against the Muslim Rohingya community in Rakhine State.
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 membership of the European Union in comparison to membership of the European Economic Area.
Baroness Anelay of St Johns
The EU Referendum Act 2015 sets out the Government’s commitment to publish information about rights and obligations that arise under EU law as a result of the UK’s membership of the EU, and examples of countries that are not members of the EU, but have other arrangements with the EU. This information will be published at least 10 weeks before the referendum.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Kennedy of Southwark on 2016-01-21.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they are taking to protect women and girls from sexual violence when fleeing conflict zones.
Baroness Anelay of St Johns
The UK is committed to protecting women and girls – as well as men and boys – from sexual violence in conflict. The Government’s Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict initiative (PSVI), launched in 2012, has raised awareness, rallied global action and increased the political will and capacity of states to do more to: (i) address the culture of impunity that exists for these crimes, (ii) increase the number of perpetrators held to account, and (iii) ensure better support for survivors. Since its launch we have carried out 60 deployments by the UK Team of PSVI Experts to support survivors and strengthen investigations and increase prosecutions; supported around 50 projects with non-governmental organisations working to end sexual violence and help survivors in a range of conflict-affected countries; launched and provided training on the International Protocol on the Documentation and Investigation of Sexual Violence in Conflict to improve evidence gathering and strengthen the prosecution of sexual violence; and provided training on sexual violence issues to African peacekeeping military and police personnel, to members of the Malian Army and Peshmerga troops in Iraq.