Tag: Lord Maginnis of Drumglass

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Maginnis of Drumglass on 2016-07-18.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the authority of Nottinghamshire Police to categorise wolf-whistling as a hate crime rather than a public nuisance; and whether they consider that such a decision may derogate from the seriousness of classification of hate crime.

Baroness Williams of Trafford

The five strands of monitored hate crime (race, religion, sexual orientation transgender identity and disability) are the minimum categories that police officers and staff are ex-pected to record. There are, however, many other groups in society who have been targeted with hostility and crime. Any specific incidents of Hate Crime are an operational matter for the police.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Maginnis of Drumglass on 2016-01-11.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the written answers by Lord Nash on 26 and 27 October 2015 (HL2579 and 2580), and the oral response by Baroness Evans of Bowes Park on 4 November (HL Deb, col 1635), what is the percentage turnover of (1) teachers who achieved Qualified Teacher Status through an undergraduate qualification, and (2) teachers who trained via the Postgraduate Certificate in Education, within (a) two years, (b) five years, and (c) 10 years, of beginning to teach.

Lord Nash

The latest statistics show that 81 percent of qualified teachers remain in service after 2 years, 72 percent of qualified teachers remain in service after 5 years, and 62 percent of qualified teachers remain in service after 10 years. This information is available in Table C2 of the statistical first release ‘School Workforce in England, November 2014’ published in July 2015.

The requested breakdown by under/postgraduate route is not available.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Maginnis of Drumglass on 2016-04-25.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether there is any precedent for an invitation to the leader of a foreign country to visit the UK in order to campaign on an internal national issue such as the forthcoming EU referendum.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

The views expressed by the US President during his recent visit to the UK were his own.

I refer the noble Lord to the Prime Minister, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Witney (Mr Cameron)’s oral response to the Rt Hon. Member for Exeter (Mr Bradshaw), on Wednesday 27 April, Official Report, Column 1427, which is copied below for ease of reference:

‘Obviously I think we should listen to our friends and our allies, and as I look around the world it’s hard to find the leader of a country that wishes us well that wants us to do anything other than stay inside a reformed European Union.’

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Maginnis of Drumglass on 2016-09-05.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Anelay of St Johns on 25 July (HL1110), whether they are at variance with the government of the Republic of Cyprus regarding its unilateral call for an end to current trade and economic sanctions imposed on Russia by the EU; and what assessment they have made of whether that call casts doubts on the Republic of Cyprus’ sincerity and dependability in other areas of common interest, including the Talks Process.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

On 1 July 2016, the European Council unanimously agreed to prolong economic sanctions targeting specific sectors of the Russian economy until 31 January 2017. The EU remains united in its strategy of resolving the Ukraine crisis through diplomacy underpinned by robust sanctions pressure. All EU Member States have agreed that the duration of the sanctions is linked to the complete implementation of the Minsk agreements.

The UK has a strong relationship with the Republic of Cyprus. With respect to the Cyprus settlement talks, we commend the courageous leadership of President Anastasiasdes and Mr Akıncı. As The Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Rutland and Melton (Sir Alan Duncan) made clear during his visit to Cyprus on 6-8 September, the UK will continue to support the efforts of both communities to reunite Cyprus.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Maginnis of Drumglass on 2016-01-21.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Anelay of St Johns on 30 December 2015 (HL4621), whether they consider the four prisoners, including Jason Rezaian, recently released by Iran to the US each had dual citizenship, and whether they will use those cases as precedents in their approach to the case of Kamal Foroughi.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

We welcome the release of US prisoners held in Iran. The agreement between the US and Iran was a bilateral one, and has not changed Iran’s policy of not recognising dual nationality. We continue to raise our own consular cases, including Mr Foroughi, with the Iranians at the highest levels and to urge for their release.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Maginnis of Drumglass on 2016-04-25.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to invite any leaders of foreign countries to come to the UK ostensibly on a courtesy visit but with the intention that they should canvass directly on any internal national issue.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

The views expressed by the US President during his recent visit to the UK were his own.

I refer the noble Lord to the Prime Minister, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Witney (Mr Cameron)’s oral response to the Rt Hon. Member for Exeter (Mr Bradshaw), on Wednesday 27 April, Official Report, Column 1427, which is copied below for ease of reference:

‘Obviously I think we should listen to our friends and our allies, and as I look around the world it’s hard to find the leader of a country that wishes us well that wants us to do anything other than stay inside a reformed European Union.’

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Maginnis of Drumglass on 2016-10-10.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the average waiting time (1) from GP referral to initial specialist surgeon appointment, and (2) from initial specialist surgeon appointment to operation, for a hip replacement in the English regions of (a) London, (b) the South, (c) the Midlands and East, and (d) the North.

Lord Prior of Brampton

The information is not available in the format requested. The information which is available is from hospital episode statistics (HES), which give a detailed breakdown of individual episodes of care by procedure, including hip replacements. Within HES, it is not possible to link the outpatient and admitted patient datasets to determine if an outpatient appointment is linked to a subsequent hip replacement. It is therefore only possible to show time waited between decision to admit and admission to hospital. A table of this data is attached.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Maginnis of Drumglass on 2015-10-13.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Nash on 17 July (HL558), what assessment they have made of the impact of the declining number of professionally trained teachers in primary schools on the reading, writing and numerical attainment of children at 11 years of age; and whether they intend to take steps to reverse the decline in teachers who are professionally trained.

Lord Nash

Between 2010 and 2014, the full-time equivalent (FTE) number of teachers in primary schools in England has increased by 19,100 (from 196,400 FTEs to 215,500 FTEs). This represents an increase of 9.7% compared with 2010.

The full-time equivalent number of qualified teachers in primary schools in England has increased over the same period by 17,100 FTEs – from 192,500 FTEs in 2010 to 209,600 FTEs in 2014.

The proportion of children in England achieving level 4 or above in reading, writing and mathematics has continued to rise over recent years; from 75% in 2013 to 80% in 2015.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Maginnis of Drumglass on 2015-10-13.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Nash on 17 July (HL558), what assessment they have made of the impact of the declining number of professionally trained teachers in primary schools on classroom discipline and pupil behaviour at secondary level; and whether they intend to undertake any research on that issue.

Lord Nash

Between 2010 and 2014 the full-time equivalent (FTE) number of teachers in primary schools in England has increased by 19,100 (from 196,400 FTEs to 215,500 FTEs). This represents an increase of 9.7% since 2010.

The full-time equivalent number of qualified teachers in primary schools in England has increased over the same period by 17,100 FTEs – from 192,500 FTEs in 2010 to 209,600 FTEs in 2014.

We are determined that every child is able to work and study hard without disruption. We have given head teachers more powers to tackle poor behaviour, including strengthening their powers to search pupils and the removal of the requirement to give parents 24 hours’ written notice of after-school detention. We have revised and simplified advice to schools on promoting good behaviour and maintaining discipline, ensuring they have the confidence to exclude pupils when it is necessary.

Now we are going further by appointing behaviour expert Tom Bennett to lead a review to ensure new teachers are fully trained in dealing with disruptive children and also consider all of the challenges of managing behaviour in schools.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Maginnis of Drumglass on 2015-10-05.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what guidance, if any, they give to hospitals about whether patients may wear military uniforms in waiting and emergency rooms; what assessment they have made of the recent removal of a uniformed Royal Air Force sergeant from the waiting room of Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother Hospital in Margate reportedly so as not to upset other patients from different cultures; and whether they plan to issue further guidance to hospitals about whether, in the light of that incident, patients who are members of the armed forces have the right to wear military uniforms in waiting and emergency rooms.

Lord Prior of Brampton

NHS England has reviewed the action taken at East Kent University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. Due to an altercation between a member of the public and a member of the armed forces in uniform that had taken place the previous day, the employee concerned was acting in good faith, but handled the situation wrongly.

The Trust is absolutely clear that members of Her Majesty’s armed forces, whether in uniform or not, should not be treated differently to others. They have reinforced this policy to all members of staff and offered an apology to the patient involved for any embarrassment caused.

Additionally, NHS England is currently reviewing the East Kent University Hospitals Trust’s Equality and Diversity and Access Policies and will agree amendments if necessary. There are no plans to issue further guidance.