The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nigel Adams on 2015-11-03.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment his Department has made of the effect on competition between different sectors in the gaming industry of different forms of gambling taxation; and if he will make a statement.
Damian Hinds
The Treasury keeps all aspects of tax policy under review, and routinely looks at the impact of gambling tax policy on the industry.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nigel Adams on 2016-06-06.
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what reports he has received on the costs, time taken and other difficulties related to the visa process for UK musicians performing in the US; and whether his Department has made representations on those costs and difficulties to the US government.
Mr Edward Vaizey
My Department is working closely with the FCO, BIS, the US Government, UKTI and the UK music industry to maximise opportunities for emerging and established musicians to perform to audiences in the United States and around the world. I recognise the US government’s desire to strike the right balance between cultural exchange, creative exports and security. I hope together we can pursue practical improvements to the visa system which enable British talent to flourish in the US and around the world
Between 2012 and 2016, the Government invested £460 million in a range of music and cultural education programmes. We introduced tax relief for orchestras and started a successful music export scheme which has helped many musicians to go abroad. Discussions are ongoing about a revamp of the Music Export Growth Scheme and we hope to make an announcement shortly.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nigel Adams on 2016-10-20.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what discussions he has had with commercial banks and other providers of Radio Frequency Identification-enabled cards on (a) incidents of contactless card fraud and (b) prevention of such fraud.
Margot James
Since his appointment, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy has had no discussions with commercial banks and other providers of RFID-enabled cards about incidents of contactless card fraud or their prevention.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nigel Adams on 2015-12-02.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what assessment he has made of the potential overlap between contributors to the construction industry training levy and the proposed employer apprenticeship levy; and what assessment he has made of the potential effect on the construction industry of that proposed levy in drawing up those proposals.
Nick Boles
All employers with a pay bill greater than £3,000,000 will be in scope of the apprenticeships levy, including those in the construction and engineering construction sectors. We are working with the Industry Training Boards to understand how their existing arrangements will be affected. They will be consulting with their members in advance of the introduction of the apprenticeships levy on whether they should continue to pay the industry levy and if so, how it should be combined with the national apprenticeship levy. We are also working with other sectors, where there are existing collective training arrangements about what the apprenticeships levy means to them.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nigel Adams on 2016-06-20.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department takes to ensure that (a) her Department and (b) agencies and other bodies of her Department follow statutory policy, guidance and legislation relating to the safeguarding of young people from child sexual exploitation.
Karen Bradley
Child sexual exploitation (CSE) is a horrendous crime and safeguarding young people from it must be a shared effort. The Home Office leads on the cross-Government response to this crime. This is a top priority for the Department.
The Home Secretary’s guidance to officials carrying out immigration, asylum and nationality functions is that they must always make a referral to a statutory agency responsible for child protection or child welfare such as the police, the Health Service, or the Children’s Department of a Local Authority, in circumstances that dictate such action is required, such as when there is a potential indicator of harm or when a child is a potential victim of trafficking.
Section 55 of the Borders, Citizenship and Immigration Act 2009 places a duty on UK Visas and Immigration and Border Force to take account of the need to safeguard and promote the welfare of children in discharging its functions.
The Home Office expects all of its Arm’s Length Bodies and agencies to follow statutory, and non-statutory, requirements for safeguarding young people.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nigel Adams on 2016-10-20.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many recorded incidents of fraud on contactless cards have been recorded since that technology became available.
Simon Kirby
The Government does not hold any data on the recorded incidents of fraud on contactless cards. Industry statistics received from Financial Fraud Action UK indicate that in the first half of 2016 there were £2.9 million losses attributed to fraud on contactless cards compared to a spend of £9.27 billion. According to the industry, fraud on contactless cards accounts for less than 1% of card fraud losses.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nigel Adams on 2015-12-17.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what discussions he has had with the Home Secretary on the frequency of use of police detention facilities for mental health patients who pose a risk to themselves or others when mental health facilities are full or unavailable.
Alistair Burt
Our departments have worked closely to achieve a reduction of 54% in the use of police custody as a place of safety in the last three years. We intend to amend primary legislation to further reduce its use and are investing up to £15 million in 2016-17 to help achieve this.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nigel Adams on 2016-06-15.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, when he plans to respond to the Waterson Report on Secondary Ticketing, published on 22 May 2016.
Nick Boles
The Government will publish its response to Professor Waterson’s independent review in due course.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nigel Adams on 2016-02-02.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps his Department plans to take in preparation for the European Commission’s review of the Artist’s Resale Right.
Mr Edward Vaizey
The European Commission has not yet set a date for a periodic review of ARR. When this happens, the Intellectual Property Office will draw on existing material and consult afresh with its stakeholders for the latest evidence to inform the review.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nigel Adams on 2016-06-14.
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what consideration she has given to extending the support of biomass after 2027 to treat it equally with other low-carbon technologies.
Andrea Leadsom
We see the use of conversions of coal to biomass as a transitional technology. It has played a useful role in decarbonising the grid while other, lower carbon forms of energy generation, such as offshore wind continue to develop and lower their costs. Government support for biomass conversions are restricted to 2027 under the Renewables Obligation and Contract for Difference, however all other biomass technologies are eligible for the full 15 year life of the contract. We have no current plans to change those dates.