Tag: Lord Taylor of Warwick

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Taylor of Warwick on 2016-06-29.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of whether the relationships between Norway and the EU, and Switzerland and the EU, could be used as models for the UK’s relationship with the EU after leaving that Union.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

The Government provided an assessment of alternative models that the UK could pursue in its paper "Alternatives to membership: possible models for the United Kingdom outside the European Union", which was presented to Parliament in March this year. It will be for the next Prime Minister to determine, along with their Cabinet, the right approach to take and the right outcome to negotiate.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Taylor of Warwick on 2016-09-12.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the disclosure by Equal Justice of details of six new discrimination claims involving race, sex and gender against the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS), what action they are taking to ensure that MPS black and ethnic minority groups are able to work in an environment that is safe and free from abuse.

Baroness Williams of Trafford

The Government takes allegations of unlawful discrimination in the police very seriously and is firmly committed to ensuring the highest possible standards in policing. Such allegations must be investigated thoroughly and, when and where required, perpetrators must be dealt with robustly.

We are reforming the police disciplinary system to ensure it delivers greater transparency and accountability. We are implementing the recommendations of the Chapman Review to make the police disciplinary system less adversarial with a greater focus on rehabilitation, development and improvement where possible, whilst ensuring the most serious matters are dealt with appropriately and robustly through the police conduct system.

It is essential that the actions and behaviour of racist police officers are not allowed to undermine public confidence in the police’s ability to respond to, investigate and fight crime, or to tarnish the reputation of the police and the majority of officers who work closely and effectively with people from all communities.

The public must also have trust that the police represent the communicates they serve, and the proportion of police officers who are from Black, Asian and ethnic minority backgrounds has now risen to its highest level ever with forces taking important steps to attract staff from a diverse range of backgrounds.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Taylor of Warwick on 2015-11-10.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the measures small businesses can take to protect themselves from cyber-attacks.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe

he Government is investing £860m in a comprehensive National Cyber Security Programme (NCSP) to protect the UK from cyber attacks, tackle cyber crime and make the UK one of the safest places in the world to do business online.

Through the NCSP the Government is providing protective advice and guidance, such as the “Ten Steps to Cyber Security”, the Cyber Streetwise campaign, and “Get Safe Online”, and promoting the Cyber Essentials scheme, which sets out the basic technical controls to protect against common cyber attacks. The Government is also building partnerships with industry and sharing cyber threat information, and building law enforcement capabilities to tackle cyber crime, including the National Cyber Crime Unit within the National Crime Agency, and the new network of cyber crime officers within the Metropolitan Police Service and Regional Organised Crime Units.

The Cyber Essentials scheme and Cyber Streetwise campaign are specifically designed to help protect small businesses. In addition, tailored guidance called “What you need to know about cyber security” is available for small businesses, as well as a free online training course for staff in small and medium-sized business.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Taylor of Warwick on 2015-11-30.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the World Economic Forum Global Gender Gap Report 2015, which found that women are being paid the average wage men earned in 2006.

Baroness Williams of Trafford

New figures released by the Office for National Statistics show that the gender pay gap in the UK remains the lowest on record.

There are now also more women on FTSE Boards and running businesses than ever before, and this year the UK was ranked as the best place in Europe for female entrepreneurs.

I am proud of our achievements, but recognise there is still more we must do. This is why the government is introducing new regulations that will require larger employers to publish their gender pay gap information. This will encourage companies to take action and drive change on this important issue.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Taylor of Warwick on 2016-01-18.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government how they respond to the chief executive of Shell, who claims that oil and gas companies would be negatively affected in the event that the UK leaves the EU.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth

The Government is fighting hard to fix the aspects of our EU membership that cause so much frustration in the United Kingdom – so we can get a better deal for our country and secure our future.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Taylor of Warwick on 2016-02-09.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they plan to take to clarify the tax rules relating to fines imposed on banks.

Lord O’Neill of Gatley

Fines imposed as a punishment by regulators are non-deductible for UK Corporation Tax purposes, while compensation expenditure arising from trading activity is in principle deductible.

However, the government took steps in Finance Act (No2) 2015 to make compensation associated with bank misconduct and mis-selling non-deductible and offset the deductibility of administrative costs associated with this compensation through a taxable receipt. This action is forecast by the OBR to increase banks’ tax payments by around £1bn over the next 5 years.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Taylor of Warwick on 2016-04-18.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the claim by the FSB and Administrative Burdens Advisory Board that the proposed HM Revenue and Customs plans for quarterly tax returns would create a significant administrative and financial burden for small businesses.

Lord O’Neill of Gatley

HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has consulted informally to understand how the Making Tax Digital changes will affect businesses. This initial assessment shows a reduction in on-going administrative burdens over the longer-term, contributing to HMRC’s overall target to reduce tax administration by £400m by 2020.

HMRC will publish its initial assessment as part of the formal consultation process, working with stakeholders throughout 2016 to develop understanding, ensuring the final design is focused on reducing burdens.

As with any other tax measure, a detailed assessment of the impact on administrative burdens will be published alongside draft legislation, expected to be in December 2016.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Taylor of Warwick on 2016-06-29.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the risks that companies may delay investment and hiring new staff in the UK in the light of the result of the referendum on the UK’s membership of the EU.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe

My Rt hon Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer, my Rt hon Friend the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills and the Governor of the Bank of England have been clear that although there is uncertainty ahead, the UK is very much open for business and investment.

Since the referendum, the Government has been actively engaged with businesses of all types and in all sectors to understand their concerns. In the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, my Rt hon Friend the Secretary of State and other ministers are holding a series of roundtables with business organisations and with CEOs and senior representatives from many of our biggest employers. The Secretary of State also chairs the new business engagement inter-ministerial group, which brings ministers across Government together to discuss issues and challenges facing business, including creating opportunities for investment and trade.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Taylor of Warwick on 2016-09-13.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the figures released by the Office for National Statistics showing that 29 per cent of graduates earn less per hour than an average non-graduate who has completed an apprenticeship.

Lord Nash

The evidence consistently points to good returns both for graduates and for those who have completed an apprenticeship. According to the same statistical release from the Office for National Statistics, median gross hourly pay for graduate employees is £15.38, compared to £11.02 for non-graduates who have completed an apprenticeship.

The Government recognises, however, that the benefits of further and higher education will differ between individuals, and between subjects and institutions chosen. It is important for young people to consider the available information and select a route through education that is right for them; whether that be an apprenticeship, higher education study or further education. They may also consider factors other than salary, when selecting their courses of study.

That is why the Government is introducing policies such as a Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) that will provide clear information to students on where the best outcomes from higher education provision can be found. The Department for Education will also continue to release information through websites such as Unistats and other channels to help young people make the right choices when considering whether to enter further or higher education. This includes taking advantage of the Longitudinal Education Outcomes dataset to provide better information on the potential returns from different education routes.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Taylor of Warwick on 2015-11-10.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to promote the role of women researchers in the global agriculture sector.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe

Government is committed to developing a strong, diverse research community. The Research Councils and National Academies share this commitment.

Government is working with its partner organisations to promote equality across all research disciplines and has established a Diversity Steering Group to guide this work.

To improve the diversity of research fellowship awards, the National Academies are working to encourage more applications from under-represented groups and to guard against discrimination in the selection process. Government has also commissioned the Research Councils to develop an action plan to improve the diversity of grant applications and peer-review rates.

As an international example, Government and the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council have jointly funded four research programmes involving collaborative projects between UK researchers and partners in sub-Saharan Africa or South Asia.

All programmes have included research capacity building in developing countries and have had an increasing focus on integrating gender into agricultural research.

The most recent programme, Zoonoses and Emerging Livestock Systems (ZELS) includes a studentship programme and of the twelve PhD students who have been appointed, eight are women.