Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Lord Hylton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Hylton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2016-03-11.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Anelay of St Johns on 23 February (HL6333), whether they have had specific discussions with the government of Bahrain on past and pending deprivations of citizenship, and on potential discrimination against the Shia Scholars Council and the Al Wefaq Party; and if so, with what results.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    The Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my Hon. Friend the Member for Bournemouth East (Mr Ellwood), discussed human rights and political reform with the Bahraini Ambassador on 8 March. We use the strength of our relationship and engagement to encourage reform. We continue to encourage the Government of Bahrain to meets its human rights obligations and honour all conventions to which it is a party – including on citizenship rights. We also urge all sides to engage in constructive political dialogue.

  • Tim Farron – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Tim Farron – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Farron on 2016-04-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to her Department’s news story, £700 million boost for flood defences brings £150 million more for Yorkshire and Cumbria, published on 17 March 2016, how much funding the Government plans to allocate to flood defences in (a) Westmorland and Lonsdale constituency and (b) Kendal in each of the next five years.

    Rory Stewart

    In the Budget, the Government recently announced that it will invest up to £24 million in flood defences in the Kendal area in the Westmorland and Lonsdale constituency, subject to the Environment Agency concluding a review of its need. This is in addition to other schemes within the Westmorland and Lonsdale constituency, such as £450,000 being spent on the Arnside embankment.

    The Environment Agency will shortly publish their initial assessments.

  • Lord Myners – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Lord Myners – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Myners on 2016-05-10.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether British banks or the public purse could be compelled to participate in a scheme to rescue a failing bank based in the Eurozone to make a new contribution of equity, accept haircuts on assets or be forced into debt for equity conversions.

    Lord O’Neill of Gatley

    The Government has ensured that the UK will never be required to pay for any future Eurozone bail outs.

    The Bank Recovery and Resolution Directive (BRRD) requires Member States to put in place a bail-in tool, which will allow resolution authorities to write down liabilities in a failing bank and convert their debt instruments into equity. The BRRD represents an important step forward in ensuring that the EU effectively addresses the risks posed by the banking system.

  • Lisa Nandy – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Lisa Nandy – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lisa Nandy on 2016-06-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, whether she plans to make a statement to the House on the publication of the final report into the energy market from the Competition and Markets Authority.

    Andrea Leadsom

    The Department will be providing a Government response to the Competition and Market Authority’s final publication on the energy market in due course.

  • Rushanara Ali – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Rushanara Ali – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rushanara Ali on 2016-09-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if the Government will take steps to work with local authorities to install air pollution monitoring facilities outside primary and secondary schools in (a) London and (b) England.

    Dr Thérèse Coffey

    Defra monitors, models and reports air quality at a national level in accordance with the requirements of EU and international legislation. There are 272 monitoring stations in the UK national monitoring network, of which 21 are in Greater London and 83 in England.

    Local authorities are responsible for reviewing and assessing local air quality, including decisions on local air quality monitoring. Their local knowledge and interaction with the communities that they serve mean that they know the issues on the ground in detail and the solutions that are best suited to local circumstances.

    Defra provides guidance, including helpdesk advice to local authorities on the appropriate type of monitoring to install. Where local authorities conduct air quality monitoring, they are expected to site monitors in accordance with local and national priorities, which may include schools and other locations where there is high risk of public exposure.

  • Sheryll Murray – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Sheryll Murray – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sheryll Murray on 2015-11-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what changes she proposes to introduce to the regulation of recreational sea anglers who capture sea bass for the period from 1 January to 30 June 2016.

    George Eustice

    The European Commission has issued proposals[1] on fishing opportunities to be agreed for 2016, which includes EU bass management measures for the commercial fishing and recreational sea angling sectors consisting of a moratorium on fishing for bass in the first six months, and reduced catch limits for the latter half of the year. The UK response to these proposals is being considered in advance of negotiations at the December Fisheries Council.

    The latest available assessment of the bass stock, from the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea, was published in June this year before the full set of EU bass management measures for 2015 was finalised in September. Its next assessment is due in June 2016.

    [1] http://eur-lex.europa.eu/resource.html?uri=cellar:f4d9701d-87b1-11e5-b8b7-01aa75ed71a1.0011.02/DOC_1&format=PDF

    “

  • Lord Moonie – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Lord Moonie – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Moonie on 2015-12-16.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government which intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance air vehicles from the RAF’s inventory have been deployed over Iraq and Syria in the last three months.

    Earl Howe

    In the last three months the RAF has deployed Sentinel and Airseeker aircraft and the REAPER MQ-9 Remotely Piloted Air System over both Iraq and Syria. In addition, Tornado GR4s have deployed over Iraq and Syria fitted with the Raptor tactical reconnaissance pod.

  • Daniel Zeichner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Daniel Zeichner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Zeichner on 2016-01-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will make it her policy that there will be no further emergency authorisations of the use of neonicotinoid pesticides.

    George Eustice

    EU legislation provides for Member States to authorise limited and controlled use of a pesticide on an exceptional basis in emergency situations to “control a danger which cannot be contained by any other reasonable means”. Emergency authorisations are not granted automatically and applications must be based on evidence relating to the need for the pesticide and possible harmful effects.

    Emergency authorisations are granted for a maximum of 120 days and those issued for neonicotinoids in 2015 have now expired. Any future applications will be considered by the Chemicals Regulation Directorate of the Health and Safety Executive, against strict criteria.

  • Lord Greaves – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Lord Greaves – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Greaves on 2016-02-11.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government for each government-approved tenancy deposit scheme for assured shorthold tenancies, what is the average time taken to (1) return deposits, and (2) resolve disputes regarding deposits; what proportion of cases of dispute remain unresolved after (1) three months, (2) six months, and (3) 12 months; what proportion of deposits are (1) returned in full, and (2) not returned at all, and of those what proportion are not disputed; and what is their estimate of the proportion of tenancies in which a deposit is not protected.

    Baroness Williams of Trafford

    The Tenancy Deposit Schemes in England currently protect over 3 million deposits on behalf of tenants, helping to raise standards in the private rented sector and ensuring that tenants are treated fairly at the end of the tenancy.

    At the end of September 2015, over 11.5 million deposits had been protected by the tenancy deposit schemes and less than 1.5 per cent of these had gone to adjudication. Tenancy deposit schemes are required to deal with disputed cases within 28 days. An adjudicator’s decision is final and can only be challenged through the courts. Information is not collected on such court cases. A breakdown by scheme of the average time taken to return deposits, resolve disputes and the award of decisions are set out in the attached table.

    My Department has not made an assessment of the proportion of tenancies in which a deposit is not protected.

  • Lord West of Spithead – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Lord West of Spithead – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord West of Spithead on 2016-03-11.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government when the new body to deliver procurement of the successor submarines will be stood up; whether it has been decided what form the new delivery body will take, and whether the government of the US has been consulted; and whether they will establish that body via primary legislation.

    Earl Howe

    Options for the new organisations continue to be developed and assessed. We expect to announce further details later this year, once the relevant decisions have been made.