Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Lord Quirk – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Lord Quirk – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Quirk on 2015-11-17.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answers by Lord O’Neill of Gatley on 9 July (HL896, HL897) and 30 July (HL1654), why according to recent press reports HMRC are still failing to answer telephoned inquiries and complaints from the public within an acceptable time frame.

    Lord O’Neill of Gatley

    HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) recognise that their customer service has not been good enough, and have taken major steps to improve, including recruiting 3,000 new staff into customer service roles, available outside normal office hours when many of their customers choose to call them. The process of recruiting and training the new staff is now complete. These improvements have started to make a difference. This month, HMRC have answered more than 80 per cent of calls, and average queue times are now around 10 minutes.

    HMRC also recognise that some customers have been waiting too long for a response to their complaint. HMRC have recovery plans in place and their performance is improving week on week.

  • Fabian Hamilton – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Fabian Hamilton – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Fabian Hamilton on 2015-12-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how much of the £1 billion over five years for use by the Ross Fund in conjunction with the Gates Foundation is UK Aid funded.

    Mr Nick Hurd

    All of the £1 billion Ross Fund, announced in November 2015, is UK Aid funded. Discussions are underway with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation about how their investments can contribute to the objectives of the Fund.

  • Lord Inglewood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Lord Inglewood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Inglewood on 2016-01-19.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government why the Forestry Commission refuses to allow the use of air rifles by experienced, trained, and insured volunteers as part of an integrated programme for grey squirrel control.

    Lord Gardiner of Kimble

    Landowners are free to choose any legal method to control grey squirrels on their own land and to choose the methods they believe to be most effective and appropriate in any location. However, Forestry Commission England currently considers that free shooting has limited effectiveness in controlling grey squirrel populations, with better, more effective methods often available. In addition, the majority of the public forest estate has unrestricted public access and public safety is of paramount importance. For these reasons the Commission does not allow the shooting of grey squirrels by volunteers on its land. Volunteers are, nevertheless, an essential part of controlling grey squirrels and control methodologies continue to be developed and evaluated against the criteria of efficacy, safety and animal welfare. The Commission is additionally encouraging improvements to other methods of control including trapping, as well as assessing the findings of a recent study from Ireland which suggested that an increased pine marten population may result in a reduced grey squirrel population.

    The Commission is seriously concerned about the negative impact of grey squirrel populations on woodland and specifically on native woodland. The Government is committed to pursuing co-ordinated action at a national level and in conjunction with partners through the Squirrel Accord, to which both Defra and Forestry Commission England are signatories. Work is continuing to improve the effectiveness of control methods; the structure of grants has been changed to support grey squirrel control and substantial work continues with partners to support our red squirrel populations, including through the control of grey squirrels. The Commission is open to further engagement with national and local organisations as well as landowners sharing our commitment to grey squirrel control for the protection of woodland and red squirrel populations.

  • Roger Godsiff – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Roger Godsiff – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2016-02-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will make an assessment for his policies of the findings of the National Federation of ALMOs Welfare reform survey relating to universal credit.

    Priti Patel

    DWP is currently considering the report from the National Federations of ALMOs and the Minister of State for Welfare Reform will be meeting to discuss their findings in due course.

  • Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2016-03-02.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the televised public confession of Kai Zhang prior to formal arrest, indictment or trial; what assessment they have made of what legal assistance he is receiving and what contact he has been permitted to have with his family; what contact the UK authorities have had with him; and what representations they have made to the government of China on his behalf.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    We remain concerned that a number of Chinese lawyers and human rights defenders, such as Zhang Kai, have been arrested, detained, or have simply disappeared since last July. We have raised the cases regularly with the Chinese authorities. In January, the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right Hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond), raised our concerns directly with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Beijing. We supported a public statement by the Delegation of the EU in Beijing on 29 January, expressing concerns about the human rights situation in China, which included the detention of lawyers.

    We urge the Chinese authorities to release the detained lawyers, including Zhang Kai, and ensure all detainees have access to legal counsel of their choice.

  • Tom Brake – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Tom Brake – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Brake on 2016-04-11.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what plans the Government has to make its leaflet on continuing membership of the EU accessible to people with (a) learning, (b) visual and (c) other disabilities.

    John Penrose

    The leaflet has been made available on Gov.uk and is compatible with assistive technology, and in hard copy in English and Welsh. An audio version and large print version are also available on Gov.uk. CDs of the audio version are being sent to those that are not able to access the website. A braille version will be available on request.

  • Caroline Lucas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Caroline Lucas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Caroline Lucas on 2016-05-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will make it his policy to oppose the provisional implementation of the EU-Canada trade agreement when it is discussed at the EU Foreign Affairs Council in June 2016.

    Anna Soubry

    The EU–Canada Comprehensive and Economic Trade Agreement (CETA) will deliver jobs and growth for the UK, with independent analysis suggesting the deal could be worth up to £1.3 billion per year to the UK economy.

    We expect CETA to be a “mixed” agreement, covering areas of both EU and Member State competence. In this case, the EU Council could decide to provisionally apply the parts of CETA which fall within EU competence. The Government supports this approach as it will allow the UK to benefit from provisions such as reduced duties on imports and exports as soon as possible. This has been discussed with the European Commission on a number of occasions, most at the Trade Foreign Affairs Council that took place in Brussels this month. The Council will negotiate which provisions of CETA should be applied provisionally by the EU once the final text has been received.

  • Jason McCartney – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Jason McCartney – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jason McCartney on 2016-06-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that local authorities provide sufficient short breaks to children with life-shortening conditions in England.

    Edward Timpson

    Since 2011, local authorities have been under a duty to provide a range of short breaks services and to publish a local Short Breaks Duty Statement showing what services are available, how they are responding to the needs of local parent carers, and how short breaks can be accessed, including any eligibility criteria. Local authorities are responsible for funding this short breaks provision.

    Between April 2011 and March 2015, the government made available £800 million to local authorities for short break provision, along with an additional £80 million of capital funding for equipment and infrastructure.

    Between April 2015 and March 2016, we awarded £250,555 to the Short Breaks Partnership (a consortium made up of Contact a Family, the Council for Disabled Children, Action for Children, and KIDS) to provide information and advice to those involved in designing, commissioning, providing, and taking up short breaks for disabled children. The Department for Education has allocated £200m funding over the next 4 years to support innovation and improvement to children’s social work practice. We are currently considering how we can use some of this funding to support local innovative approaches to short breaks for disabled children and their families and for making services more accessible.

    The Department’s Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) Advisory Team is continuing to offer support and challenge to local authorities to help make sure they meet all of their statutory requirements and that quality continues to improve. From this summer, there will be opportunities through the new Ofsted/Care Quality Commission SEND inspections framework for local areas to consider how well they are providing for the education, health and care needs of those with SEND, including their need for short breaks services. In addition, Together for Short lives, the UK charity for children and young people with life limiting conditions, received £551,029 from the Department for Education over a 3 year period – between April 2013 and March 2016, to help ensure children and young people with life limiting conditions benefited from the SEND reforms.

  • Ronnie Cowan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Ronnie Cowan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ronnie Cowan on 2016-09-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, when she expects the Dormant Assets Commission to report.

    Mr Rob Wilson

    The Commission on Dormant Assets is expected to report its findings and recommendations to Government in December 2016.

  • Cat Smith – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    Cat Smith – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Cat Smith on 2015-11-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what representations she has received on support for charities which provide sexual health advice and services in Northern Ireland.

    Mr Ben Wallace

    Support for charities which provide sexual health advice and services in Northern Ireland is a matter for the Northern Ireland Assembly. Ministers in the Northern Ireland Office have received no representations.