Tag: Mark Pritchard

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Pritchard on 2016-03-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to reduce medical experimentation on live animals in England.

Karen Bradley

The Home Office is responsible for regulating the use of live animals in scientific research under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 (ASPA). The principles of Replacement, Reduction and Refinement (the 3Rs) are at the core of project authorisation under this legislation. Furthermore, these principles also extend to breeding, accommodation and care of protected animals.

Animals can only be used where no scientifically satisfactory, non-animal alternative exists which has been suitably validated. The number of animals used must be reduced to the minimum needed to achieve the results sought. For those animals which are used, procedures must be refined as much as possible to cause the minimum pain, suffering, distress or lasting harm.

In addition the Home Office also works with the National Centre for the 3Rs (NC3Rs) who work towards replacing, reducing and refining the use of animals in research. This has included projects such as CRACK IT which to date has invested over £15million with the aims to accelerate the availability of technologies which will deliver i) measurable 3Rs impacts, ii) new marketable products and iii) more efficient business processes.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Pritchard on 2016-09-13.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to ensure more members of the Commonwealth abolish the death penalty.

Alok Sharma

The Government supports a global moratorium on use of the death penalty as a step towards eventual abolition. Since 2010 the Foreign and Commonwealth Office has funded a number of projects promoting reform of the death penalty in individual Commonwealth countries. We also continue to engage diplomatically and urge Commonwealth countries to support the United Nation’s resolution on a global moratorium on the death penalty later this year.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Pritchard on 2015-11-06.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment his Department has made of the safety and speed of evacuation from Virgin (a) Pendolino and (b) Voyager trains in the event of an emergency.

Claire Perry

The procedures for evacuation in an emergency are a matter for train operating companies. As the relevant safety duty holders they are best placed to identify any risks or hazards arising from the services they offer with oversight from the Office of Rail and Road as the independent railway safety regulator.

The UK already has one of the safest railways in Europe and the conditions which might necessitate a train evacuation are extremely rare. However, we must not be complacent and are working with the industry to further improve safety performance.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Pritchard on 2015-11-30.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, when his Department will publish its consultation on verification mechanisms to restrict under 18 access to pornographic websites.

Mr Edward Vaizey

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport is currently preparing a consultation on the Government’s manifesto commitment requiring age verification for access to all sites containing pornographic material. This will be published in due course.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Pritchard on 2016-01-12.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will introduce tele-teaching in prisons and young offending facilities to improve general education and reduce reoffending rates.

Andrew Selous

A review of the quality of education in adult prisons and young offender institutions for 18-20 year olds is currently being led by Dame Sally Coates and will report in due course. Options for improving education outcomes will be considered, including looking at the most effective use of Distance Learning and ICT. Dame Sally is due to report later this year.

The review of the youth justice system in England and Wales being led by Charlie Taylor will also consider education in the youth secure estate and will conclude later this year.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Pritchard on 2016-03-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will take steps to reduce the number of dogs used for medical experimentation.

Karen Bradley

Our annual statistics show that in 2014 less than 0.1% of animals used in research in Great Britain are dogs. Dogs are primarily used in procedures for regulatory testing. They are also used in other procedures such as nutritional studies and to better understand naturally occurring diseases and to develop treatments for dogs themselves.

The Home Office is responsible for regulating the use of dogs in research under the Ani-mals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986. Dogs are a specially protected species under the Act and the Home Office will grant a project licence for a programme of work using dogs only where the purpose of the programme of work specified in the licence can be achieved only by their use; or where it is not practicable to obtain other suitable animals.

Since 2010 the number of procedures performed on dogs has dropped nearly 30% from 5,782 in 2010 to 4,107 in 2014.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Pritchard on 2016-09-13.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will discuss with his counterpart at the (a) Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and (b) Iranian government to assist the government of Iran in helping to halt the decline in the number of Asiatic cheetahs.

Mr Tobias Ellwood

We are aware of the plight of Asiatic cheetahs in Iran and we welcome conservation efforts by Iran and the UN. My officials have held preliminary discussions with the Iranian Embassy in London on the issue.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Pritchard on 2015-11-06.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he will publish a timetable for the refurbishment of Wolverhampton train station.

Claire Perry

The refurbishment of Wolverhampton train station is part of the Wolverhampton Interchange Scheme, which is being driven forward by a partnership of Wolverhampton City Council, Centro, Neptune, Network Rail, Virgin Trains and the Canal and River Trust. The Department is not leading on this project.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Pritchard on 2015-12-08.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will meet (a) Surfers Against Sewage and (b) other charities and non-governmental organisations to discuss measures to keep the UK’s beaches clean for sport and recreational activities.

Rory Stewart

The vast majority of our beaches are high quality. We are determined to keep them that way and we are willing to work with all those who want to achieve this. Defra officials regularly meet Surfers Against Sewage and other environmental Non-Government Organisations to talk about the issues impacting our beaches. I would be pleased if they would contact my office to discuss a meeting.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Pritchard on 2016-01-12.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will discuss with the Highways Agency the time taken to (a) programme and (b) complete highway works on the M54 in Shropshire.

Andrew Jones

(a) With regard to current and future works on the M54 in Shropshire, there are currently no delays to the programme of works for the current financial year, 2015/16.

(b) For the forthcoming financial year, 2016/17, Highways England is in the process of finalising the programme of works. This will be completed by the middle of February. The proposed works are:

Scheme	Nature of work
M54 WB J3 Exit Slip Resurfacing	Pavement
M54 J7-6 Fence & Barrier	Fences and Barriers
M54 J2-M6 J10A WB	Pavement
M54 J10a-J1 Drainage	Drainage
M54-M6 J10a-J1 WB Drainage	Drainage
M54-M6 J10a-J1 EB Drainage	Drainage
M54 J4 Traffic Signals Refurbishment	Traffic Signals

There have recently been problems with the concrete carriageway on the eastbound side of the M54 between junctions 3 and 2. Highways England has carried out a significant number of temporary repairs and is likely to undertake some more substantial repairs by the end of April 2016, whilst we investigate a longer term solution.