Tag: Parliamentary Question

Matthew Offord – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Matthew Offord on 2016-01-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, with reference to Appendix Four of the HMG Strategy for Abolition of the Death Penalty 2010-15, as revised in October 2011, how his Department ensures that the EU minimum standards referred to are met in countries which maintain use of the death penalty as part of their judicial process.

Mr David Lidington

We urge all states to introduce a moratorium on use of the death penalty. We urge those which continue to impose the death penalty to respect EU and UN standards; to reserve the death penalty for the most serious crimes, that is, for nothing less serious than murder; to ensure that proper process is followed including opportunities for appeal and clemency and not to execute those who committed crimes when under 18, pregnant women or people with learning difficulties. The Government makes representations when these standards are not respected and urges reform. We fund projects which aim to increase compliance with these standards and actively support the abolitionist work of the UN and the EU, including through adoption of moratoria.

January 1, 2023
David T. C. Davies – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by David T. C. Davies on 2016-02-02.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what estimate his Department has made of the number of men in the UK who are in polygamous marriages.

Mr Rob Wilson

The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.

January 1, 2023
Daniel Zeichner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Zeichner on 2016-02-26.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 8 February 2016 to Question 25199, what steps his Department is taking to consult on proposed legislative changes on HGV sideguards; and what the timeframe is for that consultation.

Andrew Jones

The Department is currently preparing the regulatory impact assessment in preparation for the consultation on amendments to the Construction and Use Regulations in the second half of 2016.

January 1, 2023
Dan Jarvis – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dan Jarvis on 2016-03-21.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, which non-UK EU armed forces procure materiel from British companies.

Mr Julian Brazier

In 2014, Europe accounted for 10% of UK defence exports, with a value of approximately £800 million. Additionally, details of all export licences granted in 2014 can be found at;

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/491986/16-54-strategic-export-controls-country-pivot-report-2014.pdf,

However this cannot be treated as an exhaustive list of defence exports.

January 1, 2023
Lord Jones of Cheltenham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Jones of Cheltenham on 2016-03-23.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the review from Keele University, published in the Journal of Ecology, warning that almost all ash trees in Europe will be wiped out due to the fungal disease ash dieback and the emerald ash borer beetle, and what plans they have to tackle these twin problems.

Lord Gardiner of Kimble

We are committed to protecting our country from tree pests and diseases and we want to ensure that the ash tree continues to have a place in our environment. To support this we have invested over £21 million in tree health research.

Natural tolerance to ash dieback does exist and the UK is leading research to identify resistant strains. Ash trees have a wide genetic diversity and potential for greater levels of resistance compared to other tree species affected by diseases.

There have been no findings of emerald ash borer anywhere in the EU. We have identified this pest as a threat, have introduced restrictions to protect against its introduction and are screening native populations of ash trees grown abroad for resistance.

January 1, 2023
Lilian Greenwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lilian Greenwood on 2016-04-28.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether the Cabinet’s Economic Affairs (Airports) sub-committee has met in 2016.

Mr Oliver Letwin

In line with previous answers on this topic, information relating to the proceedings of Cabinet Committees, including when and how often they meet, and which Ministers have attended, is generally not disclosed as to do so could harm the frankness and candour of internal discussion.

January 1, 2023
Thangam Debbonaire – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Thangam Debbonaire on 2016-06-13.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to (a) attract, recruit and retain high-quality police officers and (b) offer such officers career development.

Mike Penning

The Government?s reforms to policing are designed to create a more capable, flexible and professional workforce. Central to these reforms was the establishment of the College of Policing as the professional body for policing, charged with setting standards and further professionalising the police.

Recruitment to the police is managed within a national application, assessment and selection framework maintained by the College. Within this remit the College is delivering a number of major pieces of work including a review of initial police recruitment, proposals for a new police educational qualification framework and implementing the recommendations of its 2014 Leadership Review.

These reforms, along with innovative schemes such as Direct Entry and Police Now, focus on recognising and developing the skills of existing officers, as well as ensuring that policing can continue to attract the brightest and best new recruits.

January 1, 2023
Margaret Hodge – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Margaret Hodge on 2016-09-02.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many times her Department has used the services of (a) PwC, (b) Deloitte, (c) Ernst and Young, (d) KPMG and (e) other consulting firms in the last three financial years; and what (i) work was undertaken and (ii) the cost to the public purse was on each such occasion.

Matt Hancock

DCMS has not used the services of (a) PwC, (b) Deloitte, (c) Ernst and Young, (d) KPMG and (e) other consulting firms in the last three financial years

January 1, 2023

Royston Smith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Royston Smith on 2016-10-18.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what proportion of pupils from white working class backgrounds in (a) selective, (b) non-selective and (c) state boarding schools achieved the highest value added scores in the most recent academic year.

Nick Gibb

Information is provided for white pupils who are known to be eligible for free school meals. This is an indicator of economic deprivation which is available for 2014/15 and has frequently been used to approximate the ‘white working class’.

Pupils at the end of key stage 4 in fully selective schools and in boarding schools in 2014/15 are compared with those at the end of key stage 4 in all other state-funded mainstream schools. Pupils in Further Education Sector Institutions are excluded from this analysis. It should be noted that a small number of comprehensive schools use an element of selection in their admissions at the secondary phase.

The proportion of such pupils with a Best 8 Value Added score greater than the national average from each school type is given. The table below shows figures for 2014/15, the latest year for which information is available, for a) selective schools, b) non-selective schools and c) boarding schools.

White pupils known to be eligible for free school meals	Selective schools	Non-selective schools	Boarding schools
Proportion with a Best 8 Value Added score greater than the national average	61.6%	36.5%	35.6%

January 1, 2023

Tim Loughton – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Loughton on 2015-11-04.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 7 September 2015 to Question 8120, what the range is of the RAF Sea King helicopter resource in its coverage of Atlantic waters.

Mr Philip Dunne

The operational range of RAF Sea King helicopters is some 210-240 nautical miles.

January 1, 2023