Tag: Parliamentary Question

Ann Coffey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Attorney General

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ann Coffey on 2016-07-12.

To ask the Attorney General, how many people were charged in 2015 under (a) section 57 and (b) section 58 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003.

Jeremy Wright

I am answering on behalf of the Secretary of State for Justice, as I am the minister that superintends the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), who is responsible for bringing charges.

The CPS does not maintain a central record of the number of people who have been charged with offences brought by way of Section 1 or Section 2 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015; or Section 4 of the Asylum and Immigration (Treatment of Claimants etc.) Act 2004; or Sections 57 and 58 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003. (Sections 57, 58 and 59 were repealed and replaced by section 59A Sexual Offences Act 2003 on 13 April 2013) This information could only be obtained by examining CPS case files, which would incur disproportionate cost.

However, although it is not possible to identify the number of people charged with a particular offence, records are held showing the overall number of offences in which a prosecution commenced in the magistrates’ courts. The table below shows the number of offences, rather than defendants, charged by way of the human trafficking offences during each of the last three calendar years. A single defendant may be charged with more than one offence.

2013	2014	2015
Asylum and Immigration (Treatment of Claimants, etc.) Act 2004 { 4 }	20	73	48
Coroners and Justice Act 2009 { 71 }	36	26	34
Modern Slavery Act 2015 { 1 }	0	0	5
Sexual Offences Act 2003 { 57 }	22	35	69
Sexual Offences Act 2003 { 58 }	84	35	75
Sexual Offences Act 2003 { 59 }	4	4	9
Sexual Offences Act 2003 { 59A }	1	17	94
Total Human Trafficking Offences Charged	167	190	334
Data Source: CPS Management Information System

No offences have yet been recorded under section 2 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015, which came into force on 31st July 2015.

January 1, 2023

John Mann – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Mann on 2016-10-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many complaints his Department received in relation to vaccination against human papilloma virus in each month of 2016.

Nicola Blackwood

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) collects reports of suspected side effects to vaccines and medicines via the Yellow Card Scheme. It is important to note that a report of a suspected side effect does not necessarily mean the vaccine or medicine was the cause of the reported event, and coincidental illness can also be a factor. Such reports remain under continual review by the MHRA in order to detect possible new risks.

The MHRA has received 198 United Kingdom spontaneous suspected adverse reaction reports temporally-associated with human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine between 1 January 2016 and 9 October 2016. Table 1 below provides a breakdown of these reports by month.

Month	Number of reports
January	16
February	22
March	24
April	23
May	33
June	26
July	15
August	7
September	32
October to date (9 October 2016)	0

More than 9 million doses of HPV vaccine have been given in the UK, with close to 90% of eligible teenagers vaccinated. As with all vaccines, safety remains under continual review, and HPV vaccine has a very good safety record.

January 1, 2023

Mark Pritchard – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Pritchard on 2015-11-23.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential effect on gunmakers of a ban on the use of lead in shotgun ammunition; and what plans she has to introduce such a ban.

Rory Stewart

The Government is considering the independent Lead Ammunition Group’s report on the effect of lead shot on human and wildlife health and will respond as soon as possible.

A representative from the Gun Trade Association contributed to the group and the formation of its report.

January 1, 2023
Emily Thornberry – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emily Thornberry on 2015-12-15.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to his Department’s publication, Mandatory Programmes official statistics: May 2011 to August 2015, published on 25 November 2015, how many people who joined the Mandatory Work Activity scheme during this period subsequently completed a work placement in full.

Priti Patel

Mandatory Work Activity is a supportive programme designed to help claimants who need extra support from a short work placement to re-focus their job search activity and gain further experience of work. Unemployed Jobseekers Allowance or Universal Credit claimants are referred for up to 4 weeks work experience and will participate on the placement for up to 30 hours a week.

The number of referrals and starts is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/pre-work-programme-and-get-britain-working.

An impact assessment of Mandatory Work Activity was published in 2012 (https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/mandatory-work-activity–2) which considered referrals to the programme in the period May to July 2012. An evaluation of Mandatory Work Activity also published in 2012 (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/evaluation-of-mandatory-work-activity-rr823) which included a telephone survey of participants who had been referred to and started an Mandatory Work Allowance placement.

The evaluation and impact assessment were conducted in 2012 and does not cover the period of the Official Statistics from May 2011 to August 2015.

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January 1, 2023
Margaret Ferrier – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Margaret Ferrier on 2016-01-25.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent estimate his Department has made of the number of jobs which will be created at Barrow shipyards by the Successor submarine project; and what estimate it has made of the anticipated duration of employment of those jobs.

Mr Philip Dunne

We expect the Successor submarine programme will sustain thousands of jobs at Barrow into the 2030s. These jobs will ensure that the UK retains and develops its world leading skills at Barrow and a wide range of companies across the nation, making a significant contribution to the UK economy.

January 1, 2023
Lord Berkeley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Berkeley on 2016-02-22.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the minimum number of bids for rail franchises they require to create the necessary competitive tension to ensure value for money for the travelling public, and in particular whether they consider that three bids is sufficient for that purpose.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

Whilst the Department for Transport prefer to have three bids for each franchise competition, as was the established practice under the previous government, we are prepared to accept that on occasion, we may only have two genuine bidders.

January 1, 2023
Paula Sherriff – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paula Sherriff on 2016-03-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether there is any provision in the agreement between NXET Trains Limited and his Department of 15 July 2014 on the Essex Thameside franchise relating to the closure of ticket offices.

Claire Perry

The agreement between NXET Trains Limited and the Department for Transport is in the public domain and can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/486697/essex-thameside.pdf

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January 1, 2023
Richard Burden – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-04-18.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of regulations relating to drones and public safety.

Mr Robert Goodwill

The Government’s primary responsibility is the safety and security of our citizens. That is why we apply one of the highest regulatory safety standards for commercial aviation in the world.

There are existing regulations in place that require users of drones to maintain direct, unaided visual contact with their vehicle and to not recklessly or negligently cause or permit an aircraft to endanger any person or property. Guidance on tackling the risks of criminal drone use has been provided to constabularies across the UK.

The Department and the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) work with a wide range of industry partners across the aviation sector, (including manufacturers, airports, and airlines), to ensure our understanding of potential hazards to aircraft remains up-to-date and mitigations effective. Further work is underway to better understand the risk posed by flying drones close to commercial planes to ensure that regulations remain fit for purpose.

The Cross Government Working Group on RPAS has undertaken analysis of the use of drones for criminal purposes, including the potential use of drones for terrorist purposes, and the impacts of their negligent use near sensitive locations, such as airports. This work is kept under review and is being used to inform research and testing to improve mitigation techniques and strategies.

Awareness and education on current restrictions are vitally important. The Civil Aviation Authority is undertaking activities to raise awareness of the basic safety requirements, including an ongoing ‘Dronecode’ safety awareness campaign, issuing safety leaflets at the point of sale, publishing an animated video on their website, and running ‘small UAS’ Risk and Hazard workshops with industry as part of the Mid Air Collision Programme.

January 1, 2023
Robert Flello – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Robert Flello on 2016-05-24.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the (a) security situation and (b) incidence of terrorism in Kashmir.

Mr Hugo Swire

We assess that there is a high threat of terrorism throughout India and Pakistan.

Officials in our High Commissions in Delhi and Islamabad continuously monitor the security situation in Kashmir. I discussed this issue with the Indian Foreign Secretary and the Deputy Foreign Minister in Delhi on 30.05.16. Our Deputy High Commissioner to India visited Indian administered Kashmir from 23 to 29 May.

We advise against all travel to Indian administered Kashmir with the exception of (i) travel within the cities of Jammu and Srinagar (ii) travel by air to the cities of Jammu and Srinagar, (iii) travel between these two cities on the Jammu-Srinagar national highway, and (iv) travel within the region of Ladakh.

We advise against travel on the Karakoram Highway in Pakistan administered Kashmir as far as Gilgit.

January 1, 2023
Ronnie Cowan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ronnie Cowan on 2016-07-12.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will make it his policy to ensure that his Department undertakes research into the potential merits of a universal basic income.

Damian Hinds

We have no current plans to conduct research on this topic.

January 1, 2023