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Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Andrew Gwynne – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Attorney General

    Andrew Gwynne – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Attorney General

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Gwynne on 2015-11-02.

    To ask the Attorney General, what estimate he has made of the value of stationery that has been (a) lost and (b) stolen from The Law Officers’ Departments in each of the last five fiscal years; and what the cost was of replacing such stationery.

    Robert Buckland

    All of the Law Officers’ Departments exercise appropriate controls over the purchasing and issue of stationery to mitigate against any potential for material loss or theft. However no central records are held of stationery items that may have been lost or stolen and it is therefore not possible to make any estimates without incurring a disproportionate cost.

  • Steve McCabe – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Steve McCabe – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2015-11-23.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much HM Revenue and Customs spent on discretionary payments in respect of administrative errors in each financial year since 2010-11.

    Mr David Gauke

    Information relating to complaints handling can be obtained from the HMRC Annual Report and Accounts.

  • Tulip Siddiq – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Tulip Siddiq – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tulip Siddiq on 2016-01-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what proportion of applications for Disclosure and Barring Service checks (a) nationally, (b) in London and (c) in Hampstead and Kilburn constituency met each of the service’s published service standards for waiting times in each year since 2012.

    Karen Bradley

    The following tables shows the proportion of applications for DBS checks that met the Published Service Standards for waiting times nationally and for applications received from people residing in London postcodes in each year since December 2012:

    Table 1: All applications nationally

    Period

    Total Apps Despatched

    21 Calendar Day Target

    21 Day Achievement

    56 Calendar Day Target

    56 Day Achievement

    Dec-12 to Mar-13

    1,223,773

    85%

    89.4%

    95%

    99.1%

    Apr-13 to Mar-14

    3,948,733

    85%

    85.2%

    95%

    97.4%

    Apr-14 to Mar-15

    4,111,856

    85%

    85.3%

    95%

    95.1%

    Apr-15 to Nov-15

    2,911,934

    85%

    86.5%

    95%

    94.9%

    Table 2: Applications from London postcodes

    Period

    Total Apps Despatched

    21 Calendar Day Target

    21 Day Achievement

    56 Calendar Day Target

    56 Day Achievement

    Dec-12 to Mar-13

    124,908

    85%

    83.4%

    95%

    98.7%

    Apr-13 to Mar-14

    398,168

    85%

    80.2%

    95%

    95.9%

    Apr-14 to Mar-15

    420,783

    85%

    81.8%

    95%

    89.0%

    Apr-15 to Nov-15

    293,549

    85%

    84.1%

    95%

    86.8%

    It is not possible to provide the figure for applications from Hampstead and Kilburn constituency as this information is not collected.

  • Chris Stephens – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Chris Stephens – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Stephens on 2016-01-29.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, when HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) will publish (a) a risk analysis, (b) an assessment of the planned transfer of staff, (c) the timetable for TUPE transfers and (d) the date of commencement of consultation with relevant trade unions in relation to the replacement of the HMRC IT Aspire contract.

    Mr David Gauke

    Through the Aspire Replacement Programme, HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has considered a wide range of risks that could impact the successful replacement of this contract. The Programme is part of the Government Major Projects Portfolio. The governance bodies for the Programme include senior representatives from across HMRC, Cabinet Office and HM Treasury, in addition to key external expertise from industry.

    Due to commercial confidentiality, HMRC is not in a position to give more details of its plans at this stage.

    HMRC has an ongoing two-way dialogue with relevant trades unions about all matters that affect the Department.

  • Sadiq Khan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Sadiq Khan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sadiq Khan on 2016-02-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, on how many occasions a Mental Health Act 1983 assessment requested on someone in custody in London took longer than 24 hours in each of the last five years.

    Alistair Burt

    The information requested is not held centrally.

    The Policing and Crime Bill, currently before Parliament, will seek to reduce the maximum length of time a person can be detained under section 135 or 136 of the Mental Health Act 1983 from 72 to 24 hours, to make clear that people should be assessed as quickly as possible.

  • Diana Johnson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Diana Johnson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Diana Johnson on 2016-03-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many women referred to the National Referral Mechanism for trafficking victims were subsequently removed from the UK in each year since 2012.

    James Brokenshire

    Year Referred

    Total

    Subsequently
    Removed

    2012

    626

    45

    2013

    839

    48

    2014

    1,095

    44

    2015

    1,338

    14

    Data refreshed 09March 2016

    • Data shows number of women referrals recorded on the Case Immigration Database since Jan 2012, broken down by year of referral at the reasonable grounds stage.
    • Removed subsequently shows the people removed after their referral, the removal might have occurred in subsequent years.
    • Voluntary returns consist of Assited Voluntary Returns, Notified Voluntary Departures, and Confirmed Voluntary Departures.
    • The figures quoted have been derived from management information and are therefore provisional and subject to change.
    • This information has not been quality assured under National Statistics protocols.
  • Greg Mulholland – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Greg Mulholland – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2016-04-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Answer of 21 April 2016 to Question 34222, on the humanitarian situation in Madaya, for what reasons approval was not given for aid convoys to access five of the eleven besieged locations.

    Mr Desmond Swayne

    We are relieved that, as a result of the work of the International Syria Support Group, humanitarian convoys have reached over 220,000 – 45% – of the 487,000 people living in besieged areas since February 2016. However, progress is too slow. In particular, the Syrian Regime has still not granted approval for convoys to the besieged areas of Duma, East Harasta and Darayya, all of which are in dire need and mere minutes’ drive away from UN warehouses in Damascus.

    Reasons cited by the regime for not authorising access include the lack of civilians in these areas as well as their inability to guarantee security for humanitarian actors. However, reports from humanitarian actors, including the UN, demonstrate the significant presence of civilians in areas to which access has been denied. For example, on a recent mission to besieged Darayya on 16 April, the UN reported the presence of thousands of civilians including women and children. In addition, whilst we recognise the importance of security concerns, experience in other besieged areas demonstrates that these populations can be reached safely.

  • Lord Judd – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Lord Judd – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Judd on 2016-05-24.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many people, and of what nationalities, the UK is training as international peacekeepers; what is the form of such training; and by which UK personnel it is provided.

    Earl Howe

    Her Majesty’s Government makes a significant contribution to improving the effectiveness of peacekeeping forces through its training activities.

    The Ministry of Defence delivers training to overseas militaries through the deployment of Short Term Training Teams (STTTs) and deployable experts, and via our overseas training establishments:

    – British Peace Support Team (East Africa) (BPST(EA)), focused on delivering training to African Mission in Somalia contributing countries.

    – British Peace Support Training (South Africa) (BPST(SA)), focused on training troops deployed to West Africa (Cote D’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), and Mali).

    – British Military Advisory Training Team (Czech Republic) (BMATT Czech), providing Peace Support Operations (PSOs) training to partner nations including Slovenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Morocco, and Romania.

    – Peace Support Operations Training Centre (PSOTC) (Sarajevo), delivering training to personnel from Bosnia & Herzegovina (BiH) and other countries including Austria, Croatia, Turkey, Tunisia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia.

    These establishments provide training on a range of themes including theatre specific pre-deployment training, as well as courses on gender, Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict Initiative (PSVI), and Human Trafficking. The training is carried out by a wide variety of UK Armed Forces personnel, most of whom are dedicated trainers in their fields. They also draw on the expertise of other specialists within the Forces.

    In the last 12 months, BPST(EA) and deployed UK-based Short Term Training Teams have trained more than 7,000 soldiers and police from nine countries through 68 different training tasks. Training is adapted depending on the needs of the country. BPSTs adjust courses to include high-end technological intelligence training, logistics, counter-IED, and leadership and operational planning.

    In the same period, BPST(SA) has trained 1,700 Malawian military personnel in preparation for their deployment to the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUSCO). In the coming year, 600-800 Zambian troops are due to be trained by BPST(SA) before their deployment to the UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilisation Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA).

    BMATT Czech has provided training in Peace Support Operations to 424 personnel from partner countries, a number of whom are now capable of delivering Peace Support Operation training in-country themselves.

    PSOTC, now under command of BiH forces, supported by UK trainers, has trained 46 military personnel from a number of countries in preventing sexual violence in conflict.

  • Alan Brown – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Alan Brown – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alan Brown on 2016-07-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the area of new woodland planting was in 2015-16; and what assessment she has made of progress towards meeting her Department’s target for such planting.

    Dr Thérèse Coffey

    Forestry is a devolved matter and the answer refers to England only.

    Figures published by the Forestry Commission show that between April 2015-June 2016, 1,292,000 trees were planted on 968 hectares, supported by the Rural Development Programme for England (RDPE).

    In addition, the Forestry Commission estimates that a further 165 hectares of woodland was created without RDPE support during 2015-16.

    The Government remains committed to planting 11 million trees during this Parliament.

  • Steve Rotheram – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Steve Rotheram – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve Rotheram on 2016-10-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, who has responsibility for delivering the Northern Powerhouse.

    Andrew Percy

    The Northern Powerhouse is a partnership between local civic and business leaders and the whole of government; all departments, therefore, have a responsibility to support its delivery. The Prime Minister appointed me as Minister for the Northern Powerhouse to help ensure the whole machinery of government gets behind the Northern Powerhouse as part of our efforts to build an economy that works for everyone, not just the privileged few.