Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Lord Greaves – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Lord Greaves – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Greaves on 2015-11-26.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the phasing out of Revenue Support Grant to local authorities includes, or otherwise affects, the New Homes Bonus.

    Baroness Williams of Trafford

    The Government is considering the detailed impacts of the changes to local government funding announced as part of the recent Spending Review. A full consultation exercise on reforms to the New Homes Bonus, reflecting the changes that have been announced and including reforms to improve its impact in incentivising housing growth, will be issued later this month.

  • Gareth Thomas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Gareth Thomas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gareth Thomas on 2016-01-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to support the recruitment of examiners for Gujarati GCSE and A level examinations; and if she will make a statement.

    Nick Gibb

    This is a matter for the Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation (Ofqual) and I have asked its Chief Regulator, Glenys Stacey, to write to you. A copy of the letter will be placed in the House Library.

  • Kate Hollern – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Kate Hollern – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kate Hollern on 2016-01-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the (a) range and (b) maximum flying time of the Boeing P-8A Maritime Patrol Aircraft is.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    Range and endurance will vary significantly depending upon the profile of the mission being flown, however the P-8A Poseidon’s range and endurance may be characterised as 4,000 plus nautical miles and over eight hours of endurance.

  • Neil Coyle – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Neil Coyle – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Neil Coyle on 2016-02-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of how many disabled people will move into work as a result of changes to the employment and allowance work-related activity group; and what research he has conducted into the effects of those changes.

    Priti Patel

    The Government set out its assessment of the impacts of the welfare policies in the Bill on 20th July last year.

    Whilst the policy is intended to provide the right incentives to help individuals back into work, it is not possible to quantify based on behavioral changes which are difficult to assess.

  • Alison Thewliss – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Alison Thewliss – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alison Thewliss on 2016-03-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential effect of reductions in international student numbers on employment.

    Mike Penning

    Such an assessment has not been made because the Government is delivering a strong labour market which has seen the employment rate for UK nationals grow to 74.6% in Q4 2015 – an increase of 0.8 percentage points compared to the previous year and the highest since records began.

    The student migration system we inherited was too weak, and open to widespread abuse, damaging the UK’s reputation as a provider of world-class education. The National Audit Office reported that in 2009/10 up to 50,000 students may have come to work, not study.

    We have clamped down on immigration abuse from poor quality institutions selling immigration rather than education, and since 2010 we have struck off more than 920 bogus colleges. Visa applications for the further education sector, where abuse has been most prevalent over recent years, are down 75 per cent compared with 2010.

    At the same time, we have maintained a highly competitive offer for international students who would like to study at our world-class institutions. This is borne out by the figures: visa applications from international students to study at British universities are up by 16 per cent since 2010, whilst visa applications to our world-leading Russell Group institutions are up by 39 per cent since 2010. There remains no limit on the number of genuine international students who can study in the UK.

    We will continue to reform the student visa system to tackle abuse and deliver an effective immigration system that works in the national interest.

  • Baroness Rawlings – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Baroness Rawlings – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Rawlings on 2016-04-25.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Neville-Rolfe on 21 April (HL7637), whether the new settlement for the UK in the EU negotiated by the Prime Minister included a provision for the British Art Collection in the European Parliament to be repatriated in the event that the UK votes to leave the EU.

    Baroness Neville-Rolfe

    It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.

  • Baroness Hooper – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Baroness Hooper – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Hooper on 2016-06-06.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assistance they have given to the government of Colombia to help it develop its national business and human rights action plan, and whether further assistance will be given to aid its implementation.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    We supported Colombia in the development of their National Action Plan (NAP) to implement the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. The NAP, which is the first of its kind outside of Europe, was launched in December. It allows Colombia to meet its existing human rights obligations and increase business awareness.

    The Minister of State for Trade and Investment, my noble Friend, the Lord Price of Sturminster Newton, launched a campaign for British businesses to support peace, primarily through the respect for human rights, during his visit to Colombia last month. Twenty of the largest British companies operating in Colombia subsequently agreed to align themselves to the Colombian National Action Plan for business and human rights.

  • Jonathan Ashworth – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union

    Jonathan Ashworth – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jonathan Ashworth on 2016-07-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, how many officials from (a) the Foreign Office and (b) HM Treasury have (i) moved and (ii) are planning to move to work in his Department.

    Mr David Jones

    The new Department for Exiting the European Union will be made up of staff from various departments across Government, including from the UK’s Permanent Representation to the EU. The department has already started drawing together expertise from a wide range of departments where there is specific relevant knowledge. The overall size and scope of the new department, including staffing and budget, are now being considered – the department now has over 180 staff.

  • Christopher Chope – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Christopher Chope – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Christopher Chope on 2016-10-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 21 July 2016 to Question 42843, whether all necessary checks were completed on the departure of the ferry Barfleur from Cherbourg to Poole.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    Any checks on the Barfleur when it departs from Cherbourg is the responsibility of the French authorities. We reaffirm that 100% of necessary checks were completed on the Barfleur on arrival into Poole on the 23rd June.

  • Alistair Carmichael – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Alistair Carmichael – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alistair Carmichael on 2015-11-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what discussions she has had with the Scottish Qualifications Authority on accreditation of its English for Speakers of other Languages qualifications.

    James Brokenshire

    Home Office officials held discussions with the Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) in 2013 when the former English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) option for settlement and nationality was replaced with a general requirement for intermediate level English.

    On 27th June 2014, the Home Office wrote to the SQA detailing of the tender exercise for Secure English Language Testing (SELT) which included details of an open industry day on 18th July 2014 which any interested party was welcome to attend. SQA did not attend. On 23rd July 2014, the Home Office emailed SQA to invite a representative to a further stakeholder forum on 6th August 2014 but, despite several further attempts to make contact, SQA did not respond and did not attend the forum.