Tag: Lord Lester of Herne Hill

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Lester of Herne Hill on 2015-11-04.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the research on maternity discrimination, Pregnancy and Maternity – Related Discrimination and Disadvantage: First Findings, estimating that up to 54,000 mothers leave their jobs each year because of maternity discrimination, what plans they have to exempt maternity discrimination cases from employment tribunal fees.

Lord Faulks

For those who bring discrimination cases, we have made sure fee waivers are available for those who cannot afford to pay. The Government is currently carrying out a post-implementation review of the introduction of fees in the Employment Tribunals. The review will report in due course and we will consult on any proposals for change in the usual way.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Lester of Herne Hill on 2015-12-14.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether opposition to the death penalty remains a key human rights priority for them, in the light of the UK’s candidacy for the UN Human Rights Council.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

Our UN pledges renew our enduring commitment to promoting universal human rights. This includes work to abolish the death penalty. As I have said repeatedly in this House, this Government opposes the death penalty in all circumstances and we continue to call on all states to abolish it.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Lester of Herne Hill on 2016-01-27.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 25 January (HL5200), whether they have had regard to the preaching and teaching of Wahhabism in mosques and Muslim education bodies in Britain as part of their work on their Counter-Extremism Strategy.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

We published our Counter Extremism Strategy in October 2015 which sets out a range of measures to deal with the broad challenge of extremism. We have placed a duty on specified authorities to have due regard to the need to prevent people from being radicalised.

We consider vocal or active opposition to our fundamental values as extremist, whatever guise these are expressed under. This includes when religions are hijacked by those wishing to promote extremism. As my Rt. Hon. Friend the Prime Minister said in July last year “extremist ideology is not true Islam”.

HM Government’s Counter Extremism Strategy and counter-terrorism strategy, CONTEST, set out our approach to tackling the full range of factors that allow extremist and terrorist groups to grow and flourish. These include directly challenging ideologies, including those which have a theological basis.

The Prime Minister recently commissioned a review into the funding of extremism in the UK. This will include an assessment funding that comes from overseas. The review is due to report in spring 2016.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Lester of Herne Hill on 2016-03-21.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in considering the future of the Human Rights Act 1998, what regard they will have to the findings of the Scottish Parliament’s European and External Relations Committee as outlined in the letter of 17 March from the Convener of that Committee to the Lord Chancellor in respect of the relevance of the specific position of Scotland in the devolution settlement and the role of the Sewel Convention.

Lord Faulks

This Government was elected with a mandate to reform and modernise the UK human rights framework. We will consider the devolution implications of our reforms and will continue to engage fully with stakeholders in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, and with the devolved administrations, as we develop our proposals.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Lester of Herne Hill on 2015-11-04.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the research on maternity discrimination, Pregnancy and Maternity – Related Discrimination and Disadvantage: First Findings, whether they will consider extending the time limit for bringing maternity discrimination claims before an employment tribunal from three to six months.

Baroness Williams of Trafford

The government will await the final report on pregnancy and maternity discrimination and carefully consider any recommendations from the Equality and Human Rights Commission before deciding on next steps.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Lester of Herne Hill on 2015-12-22.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will implement the recommendations of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child and the Joint Committee on Human Rights to raise the minimum age of armed forces’ recruitment to 18; and if not, why not.

Earl Howe

All recruitment into the UK military is voluntary and no young person under the age of 18 years may join our Armed Forces unless their application is accompanied by the formal written consent of their parent or guardian. We take the duty of care towards all recruits seriously, in particular those under 18 years of age. We have robust, effective and independently verified safeguards in place to ensure that under-18s are cared for properly.

The Armed Forces do not intend to phase out the recruitment of personnel under the age of 18. Our policies on under-18s in Service are robust and comply with national and international law. In addition to the comprehensive welfare system that is in place for all Service personnel we remain fully committed to meeting our obligations under the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, Optional Protocol on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict, and have taken steps to bestow special safeguards on young people under the age of 18.

The provision of education and training for 16-year-old school leavers provides a route into the Armed Forces that complies with Government education policy and offers a significant foundation for emotional, physical and educational development throughout an individual’s career.

All recruits aged under 18 receive key skills education in literacy and numeracy, should they need it, and all are enrolled onto apprenticeships. The Armed Forces remain the UK’s largest apprenticeship provider, equipping young people with valuable and transferable skills for life. Over 95% of all recruits, no matter what their age or prior qualifications, enrol in an apprenticeship each year. The Armed Forces offer courses in a wide range of skills, such as engineering, information and communications technology, construction, driving, and animal care. Ofsted regularly inspects our care of newly joined young recruits, and we are very proud of the standards we achieve.

Our policy on under-18s is published in Part 2 of Joint Service Publication 898, "Defence Direction and Guidance on Training, Education and Skills", available at the following website: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/433762/20141126-JSP_898_Part2_Guidance_v1_1.pdf

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Lester of Herne Hill on 2016-02-04.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Bridges of Headley on 3 February (HL4852), whether they aim to release the official records from 1987 relating to the ban on the publication of Spycatcher that year; and if not, when they expect those records will be released to the National Archives under the 20-year rule.

Lord Bridges of Headley

As set out in my answer to the noble Lord on 3 February, the Cabinet Office is actively reviewing its remaining 1987 and 1988 files and is seeking to complete this work as quickly as possible. It would be premature to comment about what will be released until this work is complete.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Lester of Herne Hill on 2016-04-19.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government when they will publish the report by Ian Acheson into the role of Muslim clerics in prisons in England and Wales.

Lord Faulks

My Rt hon Friend the Secretary of State for Justice is currently considering the recommendations of the review of Extremism. As the Secretary of State told the House on 26 April, a summary document will be published in due course. The full report cannot be published due to sensitive security issues.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Lester of Herne Hill on 2015-11-10.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions they have had with negotiating parties in the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement to ensure that the provisions relating to copyright, trade secrets and intellectual property do not harm freedom of expression.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

The UK is not a party to the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) Agreement and as such we have not had discussions with negotiating parties on provisions relating
to copyright, trade secrets and intellectual property and their impact on freedom of expression.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Lester of Herne Hill on 2015-12-21.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Williams of Trafford on 17 December (HL4279), whether they plan to collect information about overseas funding of the preaching and teaching of Wahhabism in mosques and Muslim education bodies.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

HM Government’s Counter Extremism Strategy and counter-terrorism strategy, CONTEST, set out our approach to tackling the full range of factors that allow extremist and terrorist groups to grow and flourish. These include directly challenging ideologies, including those which have a theological basis. The review into funding of extremism in the UK will include funding that comes from overseas.