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Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Fiona Mactaggart – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Fiona Mactaggart – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Fiona Mactaggart on 2015-12-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, for what reasons she selected St Mary’s University, Twickenham, to host a specialist international centre for research into modern slavery and human trafficking; and whether any other institution was considered for this role.

    Karen Bradley

    The Government welcomes research into modern slavery, including the work that St Mary’s University is undertaking on behalf of the Santa Marta Group. The Home Office has no record that either Ministers or its officials played any part in the selection process.

  • Anne McLaughlin – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Anne McLaughlin – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Anne McLaughlin on 2016-01-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the UK’s ratification of the European Charter for Minority or Regional Languages, what steps the Government is taking to facilitate and promote use of the Gaelic language in reserved agencies and policy areas.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    Whilst there is currently no UK legislative requirement for Gaelic language broadcasting to be funded by the Exchequer, some of the UK Government’s commitments under Article 11 of the European Charter for Regional or Minority languages are fulfilled by BBC Alba’s content, in tandem with the Gaelic radio service provided by the BBC, Radio nan Gaidheal. MG ALBA is a public body, set up by UK legislation and funded predominantly by the Scottish Government. In addition, two one-off funding allocations of £1 million were provided for MG ABLA for the period 2014-16.

    MG ALBA’s principal functions relate to the provision of Gaelic programmes. It works in partnership with the BBC to operate the channel, BBC ALBA. Scotland continues to enjoy the live stream from BBC ALBA and programmes are available on the BBC website via iPlayer for the rest of the UK.

  • Lord Hylton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Lord Hylton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2016-02-09.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many persons for whom the British armed forces had a duty of care have been admitted to the UK for settlement in each year since 2001; and what sums of compensation have been paid for resettlement in other countries in that same period.

    Earl Howe

    I am responding with figures relating to Iraqi and Afghan civilian personnel employed by HM Armed Forces and admitted for settlement to the UK. Admissions date from 2008 and have taken place under ex gratia arrangements rather than on the basis of a duty of care.

    A total of 1,323 Iraqi civilians have been relocated to the UK since the locally engaged staff (LES) assistance scheme was announced in 2007. This total comprises 367 former locally engaged staff and 956 dependants.

    Total

    2008

    171

    2009

    627

    2010

    130

    2011

    7

    2012

    125

    2013

    139

    2014

    69

    2015

    37

    2016

    18

    TOTAL

    1,323

    Nearly 500 Afghan former LES are eligible to apply for relocation to the UK with their immediate families under the Afghan LES Ex Gratia Redundancy scheme, which was announced on 4 June 2013. 573 people, comprising 249 locally engaged staff and 324 dependants, have relocated to the UK up to the end of January 2016.

    Total

    2014

    55

    2015

    482

    2016

    36*

    Total

    573

    *as at 31 January 2016

    A number of Iraqi and Afghan former LES will have claimed asylum after entering the UK outside of the ex gratia arrangements; however, the relevant data is not held centrally.

    We are not aware that any payments have been made for the resettlement of Iraqi or Afghan civilians to other countries.

  • Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-03-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 15 July 2015 to Question 6494, whether he has made any representations to the government of China on accusations of the harvesting of organs in that country; and if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of legislation to prevent UK nationals from going to China for transplants.

    Mr Hugo Swire

    As I said in my reply to Question 6494, I remain concerned by reports of organ harvesting. We continue to raise this issue, and the full range of our human rights concerns, with the Chinese authorities at the annual UK-China Human Rights Dialogue. The next round of the Dialogue is scheduled to be held in the UK in April.

    The Department of Health is making constant efforts to ensure that any British citizen requiring replacement organs is able to benefit from organ transplants in the UK. It is however very difficult to prevent UK citizens travelling to less well-regulated countries to seek an organ transplant, although physicians always advise patients against this. Although numbers are not known, it is thought that very few patients in the UK choose to do so.

  • Gavin Robinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Gavin Robinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gavin Robinson on 2016-04-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will bring forward legislative proposals to amend the Infant Formula and Follow-on Formula Regulations 2007 to ensure that customers can use discount vouchers to purchase formula in supermarkets.

    Jane Ellison

    The restrictions on promotional sales of infant formula are an important aspect of the Infant Formula and Follow-on Formula Regulations 2007 which implement the World Health Organization International Code on the Marketing of Breast Milk Substitutes. There are no plans to amend this part of the Regulations. While the Department encourages exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of life because of the significant health benefits to both mothers and babies, we recognise that infant feeding choices are complex and based on individual and family circumstances, and therefore, low income households have access to the Healthy Start Scheme and may use the vouchers to purchase infant formula.

  • Andrea Jenkyns – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Andrea Jenkyns – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrea Jenkyns on 2016-05-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate she has made of the average cost to the public purse of an additional (a) school place and (b) classroom in each of the next three years.

    Edward Timpson

    It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

  • Lord Hylton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Hylton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2016-06-28.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what evidence they have of rocket and mortar attacks on civilians in the Sheikh Maqsoud area of Aleppo by the Fatah Halat coalition of Islamist militants or other groups; and whether they have received any reports that chemical weapons were used in that area in early April or since then.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    We are aware of reports of rocket and mortar attacks in civilian areas in the Sheikh Maqsood area of Aleppo in early April. These attacks were a result of clashes between the Kurdish People’s Protection Units and a range of armed opposition groups. There have also been allegations of chemical weapons use by armed groups in the area. We have been unable to verify these reports. The ongoing violence in Syria continues to put civilians at risk. Only a political settlement, with transition away from Asad, can bring an end to their suffering.

  • Lord Polak – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Lord Polak – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Polak on 2016-09-08.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the reports of a senior World Vision official in Gaza diverting funds to Hamas, what steps they are taking to ensure that UK aid given to projects in Gaza and the West Bank is not misappropriated.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    The recent allegations against the senior World Vision official in Gaza are deeply concerning. DFID does not fund World Vision operations in Gaza or the Occupied Palestinian Territories more widely. DFID’s programmes are subject to stringent safeguards.

  • Ian Murray – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Ian Murray – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Murray on 2015-11-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what provisions she plans to make for onshore wind projects that have achieved everything technically, been granted planning permission, and have grid connection contract but are outside the grace period and are contracts for difference (CFD); and whether she plans a CFD for those projects.

    Andrea Leadsom

    The Government was elected with a commitment to end new subsidies for onshore wind and to change the law so that local people have the final say on onshore windfarm applications. Government support is designed to help technologies stand on their own two feet, not encourage reliance on subsidies. Officials are considering how we use the tools available under the CFD to implement this commitment and will set out our plans in due course.

  • Fiona Bruce – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Fiona Bruce – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Fiona Bruce on 2015-12-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many victims of human trafficking have been identified and their identities subsequently forwarded to the police as a result of people calling the NSPCC human trafficking and slavery helpline between July 2014 and June 2015.

    Karen Bradley

    I refer my Hon. Friend to my response of 11 November 2015 [14823]. Between 31 July 2014 and 31 July 2015 849 contacts were made to the NSPCC-run modern slavery helpline and of these 272 referrals were made to the police. The Home Office does not maintain a record of how many victims were identified as a result of these referrals.