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Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Lord West of Spithead – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Lord West of Spithead – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord West of Spithead on 2015-11-17.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how the work conducted in 2009 on counter-terrorism protective security in crowded places has been carried forward, and whether there is an established doctrine or policy for ensuring the safety of such places.

    Lord Bates

    The Government put in place a programme under CONTEST, the UK’s counter-terrorism strategy, to improve protective security and preparedness at a range of sites by ensuring businesses have access to high quality protective security advice, including through police specialist Counter Terrorism Security Advisors (CTSAs) who operate across the whole of the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland. In 2014 the programme was refreshed with an enhanced site assessment process and an improved partnership approach with business.

    CTSAs are engaged at sites across the country to give protective security advice, to train staff in Counter Terrorism awareness, and to encourage managers to develop response plans to a range of threats. CTSA advice is based on a range of protective security improvement and preparedness measures, and is designed to be appropriate and proportionate and wherever possible cost-effective. The National Counter Terrorism Security Office (NaCTSO) has also published on its website protective security advice and guidance for owners and operators of different types of businesses to identify key risks and consider what steps they should take.

  • Anne Main – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Anne Main – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Anne Main on 2015-12-15.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to her oral contribution of 16 November 2015, Official Report, column 365, if she will bring forward proposals on a national database of communication for refugees.

    James Brokenshire

    On 7 September the Prime Minister announced that 20,000 Syrian refugees would be resettled during this Parliament, and that he wanted 1,000 to arrive before Christmas. We have now achieved this, and are working closely with a range of partners to put in place the plans and structures to further expand the Syrian Vulnerable Persons scheme.

    It is currently up to individuals to determine how to maintain contact with other refugees in the UK; however, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) does link family groups so we can seek to allocate them to the same local authority. We also try and place them close to any family members already residing in the UK.

  • Lord Roberts of Llandudno – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Lord Roberts of Llandudno – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Roberts of Llandudno on 2016-01-26.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they have taken to fulfil their agreement in the August 2015 Joint Ministerial Declaration (Managing Migratory Flows in Calais) properly to protect children in refugee camps in Calais.

    Lord Bates

    The management of the camp – both in terms of humanitarian aspects and maintaining law and order – is the responsibility of the French Government and operational needs may require for them to restrict access under certain circumstances. Aid is not restricted as a matter of course, and we work with the French to ensure those who need help are able to receive it.

    To help protect vulnerable people (including children and other potential victims of trafficking) the Home Secretary and French Interior Minister agreed in the UK-France Joint Declaration in August 2015 to set up a project to identify and direct vulnerable individuals to existing protection, support and advice within France. The UK has contributed €750,000 (£530,000) to fund the project which formally launched in December 2015.

  • Baroness McIntosh of Pickering – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Baroness McIntosh of Pickering – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness McIntosh of Pickering on 2016-02-23.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to introduce country of origin labels for dairy products in (1) the UK, and (2) across the EU; and if so, when.

    Lord Gardiner of Kimble

    The Government supports the industry voluntary agreement for labelling origin of food, which has resulted in clear and honest origin labelling in the vast majority of dairy products sold in UK shops.

    We have also been pushing for improved origin labelling for dairy products in Europe, including a proper consideration of mandatory origin labelling for lightly processed dairy products such as butter, cheese and cream. Many producers and retailers in the UK provide this information voluntarily, reflecting consumer demand and the acceptable cost of such schemes, but consumers can feel misled where this information is not available.

    New Implementing Acts on origin labelling of the main ingredients of food where these are different from the place of production of the food itself have recently been proposed by the Commission and the UK will engage with the Commission to ensure that these measures are effective.

  • Nick Thomas-Symonds – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Nick Thomas-Symonds – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nick Thomas-Symonds on 2016-03-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the total cost was of transferring the services previously provided by the General Social Care Council (GSCC) to the Health and Care Professions Council after the GSCC was abolished in 2012.

    Alistair Burt

    The function for the regulation of social workers in England was transferred from the General Social Care Council (GSCC) to the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC) on 1 August 2012.

    The final set of accounts from the GSCC show that the total cost to the public purse of closing down the Council was £16.5 million. The HCPC also received £1.4 million to support it take on the functions for the regulation of social workers in England. Therefore, the total cost was £17.9 million.

    On the assumption that the costs of the GSCC remained broadly similar, the Department estimated that the closure of the GSCC saves £13.5 million each year.

  • Shabana Mahmood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Shabana Mahmood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Shabana Mahmood on 2016-04-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many cases are (a) awaiting a decision and (b) dormant at the Complex Casework Directorate in Liverpool.

    James Brokenshire

    Complex Casework Directorate was set up to be responsible for the remaining un-concluded asylum cases where the initial asylum application was lodged before March 2007. The work to review and communicate decisions to the cohort of older asylum cases was completed by the end of December 2014, other than for a small number of cases that were on hold, although work continues to progress the removal of applicants who received a negative decision from the Home Office and who otherwise have no lawful basis to remain in the United Kingdom.

    As of 31 December 2015 there were 524 older asylum records requiring review, and a further 742 were on hold. These cases were on hold for legitimate process reasons. There are no dormant records.

    The older asylum records relate to asylum applications made prior to 5 March 2007, and there are therefore no new cases, although cases that are reopened following contact with an individual whose record was previously closed are added to the cohort of older live asylum records. It is not possible to say how many reopened cases were subsequently granted leave without incurring disproportionate cost.

    Information relating to older asylum records is published as part of the Asylum Transparency Data. This data includes the work in progress, on take of people who enter the cohort and the number of individuals granted leave.

  • Lord Judd – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Lord Judd – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Judd on 2016-05-18.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to ensure that unaccompanied children in Northern France have information about the process for reuniting with their families in the UK under the Dublin III Regulations, that this is presented in a form and language that the children can understand, and that it includes information about the process for asylum transfers, the likely timeframes involved, and the criteria on which decisions are based.

    Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

    Under the UK-France Joint Declaration of 20 August 2015, the UK and France have committed to ensuring that the provisions of the Dublin III Regulation are used efficiently and effectively. To assist the handling of such cases the two governments have established a permanent official contact group, agreed single points of contact within respective Dublin Units and the UK seconded an asylum expert to the French administration to facilitate the improvement of all stages of the process of identifying, protecting and transferring relevant cases to the UK. The Home Office will review the existing arrangements as part of the work to implement the relevant provisions of the Immigration Act 2016.

    To assist with the identification of potential victims of trafficking and exploitation (including unaccompanied children) in Calais the UK has funded a project run by a French non-governmental organisation which aims to identify and direct these vulnerable people to the appropriate support services in France.

    The UK and France are running regular joint communication campaigns in northern France which informs individuals (including unaccompanied children) of their rights to claim asylum in France and gives them information on family reunification. The frequency of these campaigns has been increased in line with the Joint Declaration signed in August 2015.

  • Calum Kerr – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Calum Kerr – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Calum Kerr on 2016-07-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has made to the government of Venezuela on the ongoing economic situation and food shortages in that country.

    Sir Alan Duncan

    The Government shares the concern of the international community regarding the deteriorating economic and humanitarian situation in Venezuela. We have urged all sides to work constructively together in the best interests of the country and the people of Venezuela. We support the planned dialogue between the Venezuelan Government and Opposition, facilitated by the Union of South American Nations regional body. Foreign and Commonwealth Office officials are in contact with their counterparts in the Department for International Development and the EU to discuss what future assistance might be offered, if requested by the Venezuelan Government.

  • Bridget Phillipson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Bridget Phillipson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bridget Phillipson on 2016-10-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether he has had discussions with representatives of Japanese businesses operating in the UK on the memorandum presented by the Japanese government to the Prime Minister at the recent G20 Summit.

    Alok Sharma

    Ministers and senior Government officials have held regular discussions with Japanese investors operating in the UK since the referendum in June. This continued after the Japanese Government published their memorandum on 2 September. I met representatives of Japanese business on 8 September at Asia House and I spoke to individual investors in Tokyo and Osaka during my visit to Japan from 26 to 29 September. Japanese investment in the UK has been a huge success story and as we plan our exit from the European Union we will continue to listen to the voices of Japanese business.

  • Lord Hylton – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Hylton – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

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

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of reports of the use of white phosphorus weapons in civilian areas by Russian forces in Syria and of the level of harm done to persons and the environment; and what action they plan, if any, as a result of that assessment.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    We are concerned at reports that White Phosphorus was used in Idlib Province on 12th November. We have seen reports that this was Russian in origin but this has not been confirmed.

    Protection of civilians in Syria is a priority for the UK. Attacks on civilians are prohibited by International Humanitarian Law. The UK condemns the indiscriminate use of weapons in civilian areas and calls on all parties to respect International Humanitarian Law. The UK will continue to provide support to civil defence organisations in Syria to protect civilians and save lives.