The below Parliamentary question was asked by Philip Davies on 2016-03-24.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 14 March 2016 to Question 27517, how many foreign nationals living in the UK have been prosecuted for a fraudulent child benefit claim for a child living in the EU.
Justin Tomlinson
The Information requested is not available. As DWP does not administer child benefit, we do not legally have any powers to investigate alleged fraudulent claims.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Field on 2016-04-29.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the National Crime Agency’s National Referral Mechanism Statistics – End of year summary 2015, for what reasons only 89 of the 1104 potential victims of trafficking who presented in the Metropolitan Police Force area in 2015 were referred by that force to the National Referral Mechanism; and what process was followed for the remaining 1015 potential victims.
Karen Bradley
Of the 1,104 potential victims referred to the National Referral Mechanism (NRM) in 2015 that presented in the Metropolitan Police Force area, 68 were EU nationals. The countries of origin of these EU nationals were: Bulgaria, Czech Republic, France, Latvia, Lithuania, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia and the UK. Information on the region of origin and location of recruitment of potential victims is not available.
All 1,104 potential victims who presented in the Metropolitan Police Force Area in 2015 were referred to the NRM by a first responder organisation. A breakdown of referrals is available from published NRM statistics on the National Crime Agency website and can be found here: www.nationalcrimeagency.gov.uk/publications/national-referral-mechanism-statistics. Breakdowns of data about the London boroughs where potential victims presented are not available.
The Salvation Army and its subcontractors provide support in different locations within England and Wales for adult potential victims given a positive reasonable grounds decision. Following a reflection and recovery period, victims are assisted to move on within the UK or voluntarily return to their home country. The Home Office does not hold data on what happens to individuals once they leave the service.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Law on 2016-06-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, how many times he has visited Scotland in an official capacity since the 2015 General Election; and what meetings were held on each such visit.
David Mundell
I am frequently in Scotland for a range of meetings, events and official engagements. Details of meetings with external organisations are published in quarterly returns which are available at gov.uk.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jo Stevens on 2016-09-02.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many prison healthcare appointments were scheduled in each prison in the last 12 months.
Nicola Blackwood
The information is not held in the format requested.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Laird on 2016-10-19.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Dunlop on 17 October (HL2170), which body or individual ensures that the Northern Ireland Parades Commission is compliant with international treaty obligations concerning human rights.
Lord Dunlop
There is no one body or individual that is specifically responsible for ensuring the Parades Commission complies with international treaty obligations, including on human rights. Further to my written answer of 17 October, the Commission operates independently of the Government, in line with the provisions contained in the Public Processions (NI) Act 1998. That Act is compliant with international treaty obligations on human rights, and the Commission is accountable to the courts for its operational decisions.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2015-11-06.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what (a) the amount of any underspend expected against departmental expenditure limits in the current fiscal year and (b) his Department’s latest forecast of total AME spend for this year are; and what the forecasts were for those two sums at the time of the Summer Budget 2015 and March Budget 2015.
Mike Penning
The Department is not forecasting an underspend against departmental expenditure limits. At the time of the Summer Budget and the March Budget 2015, the Department was also not forecasting an underspend.
Totals for Annually Managed Expenditure are published twice a year at Main and Supplementary Estimates. The latest figures for 2015-16 were published in the Main Estimates, presented to the House of Commons on 2 July 2015. A link is provided below. Updated totals will be published in the Supplementary Estimates later in the financial year.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/main-supply-estimates-2015-to-2016
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2015-11-30.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she plans to publish the report on overseas domestic worker visas by James Ewins before 17 December 2015.
James Brokenshire
Mr Ewins’s report has been submitted to the Home Office and will be published shortly.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emma Reynolds on 2016-01-11.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what evaluation he (a) has made or (b) plans to make of the effect of local authority commissioning of long acting reversible contraceptives (LARC) in primary care on the number of GP surgeries offering LARC fitting and removal.
Jane Ellison
The Department’s Framework for Sexual Health Promotion in England (2013) sets out our ambitions and objectives to improve sexual health for all people. It takes account of the commissioning arrangements from 2013 including the new role for local authorities (LAs) as commissioners of most sexual health services. Later this month Public Health England (PHE) will undertake a survey of local commissioning arrangements for sexual health. It has also produced sexual health and reproductive health profiles to help LAs and others monitor the sexual and reproductive health of their populations and the performance of local public health related systems.
It is for LAs to decide on what research and evidence they need to inform their tenders for sexual health and reproductive health services in line with procurement requirements and good practice. In 2014 PHE published Making it Work, a guide to commissioning for sexual health across the whole system, to improve the sexual health of both individuals and the wider public.
We have made no formal assessment of the effect on sexual health services of reductions in the Public Health Grant to LAs for 2015/16, although PHE continues to monitor relevant outcomes data for every LA in England. Decisions on local public health spending are a matter for LAs. They are mandated by legislation to commission open access sexual health services that meet the needs of their local population. Officials meet regularly with sexual health organisations who would raise any concerns if LAs were not meeting their mandatory requirements for sexual health services.
The Framework for Sexual Health Improvement includes as a priority reducing unwanted pregnancies and highlights the need to increase access to long acting reversible contraception (LARC) methods and emergency contraception for women of all ages. We have no plans to evaluate the effect on general practitioner surgeries of LA commissioning of LARCs.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Brendan O’Hara on 2016-02-03.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of whether there have been any unintentional violations of international humanitarian law carried out by Saudi coalition forces in Yemen.
Mr Tobias Ellwood
We are aware of reports of alleged violations of International Humanitarian Law (IHL) by all sides to the conflict and take these very seriously. It is important that all sides conduct thorough and conclusive investigations into all incidents where it is alleged that IHL has been breached. As the Saudi Arabian authorities announced on 31 January, they have mechanisms in place to investigate alleged incidents and to learn lessons if things go wrong. The Ministry of Defence also monitors incidents of alleged IHL violations using a range of available information, which in turn informs our overall assessment of IHL compliance in Yemen. At this stage, looking at all the information available to us, we have not assessed that there has been a breach of IHL by the coalition, but we continue to monitor the situation closely, seeking further information where appropriate.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Fiona Mactaggart on 2016-03-01.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the (a) age and (b) gender was of each potential victim recorded on the NSPCC-run modern slavery helpline between July 2014 and July 2015; how many such cases were referred to the police and for what reasons; and how many such callers agreed to a reference to the National Referral Mechanism.
Karen Bradley
Between 31 July 2014 and 31 July 2015, 849 contacts were made to the NSPCC-run modern slavery helpline including 57 contacts made by potential victims themselves. 403 referrals were made to the police during the same period. Many calls to the helpline are made by concerned members of the public rather than victims themselves and so the number of potential victims is based on the information provided by a third party. The helpline refers information to the police or social services if the operator believes someone to be in danger or at risk of modern slavery.
From the 849 contacts the NSPCC was notified of a potential 1,163 victims. Of those potential victims, 340 were reported as female, 530 were male and 293 were recorded as both or unknown. The table below shows the breakdown of those potential victims by age group.
|
Age group |
Total |
|
0-17 |
83 |
|
18-25 |
152 |
|
26-35 |
114 |
|
36-45 |
46 |
|
46-50 |
17 |
|
51-60 |
37 |
|
61-70 |
10 |
|
Unknown |
704 |
|
Grand Total |
1163 |
The Home Office does not maintain a record of how many potential victims were subsequently found or referred to the NRM as a result of these contacts. However, all potential adult victims who contact the helpline are signposted to The Salvation Army for support and referral into the National Referral Mechanism, if they consent. Potential child victims are referred to the NSPCC’s Child Trafficking Advice Centre for further action.
No funding has been allocated for the NSPCC helpline for the financial year 2016-17. Polaris, a US-based Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO), is establishing an enhanced UK helpline in collaboration with a UK-based NGO, which will supersede the current NSPCC helpline. The NSPCC helpline will remain in operation until the enhanced helpline is up and running. Start up funding of up to £1 million has been provided by Google.org. The new helpline is expected to be in operation later this year.