Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Ian C. Lucas – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Ian C. Lucas – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian C. Lucas on 2015-11-26.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what proportion of payments of (a) income tax and (b) National Insurance by employees (i) within and (ii) outside the UK were made correctly in each of the last three years.

    Mr David Gauke

    Estimates of the proportion of payments of (a) income tax and (b) National Insurance by employees (i) within and (ii) outside the UK that were correctly made are not available.

    Estimates of the value of under-declared income tax and national insurance liabilities resulting from incorrect returns are published in chapter 6 of ‘Measuring Tax Gaps 2015.’ These are produced for both small and medium enterprise (SME) employers (table 6.7) and large employers (table 6.9).

    https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/measuring-tax-gaps

    “

  • Patrick Grady – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Patrick Grady – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Patrick Grady on 2016-01-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what progress has been made on HM Government Strategy for Abolition of the Death Penalty, published October 2011.

    Mr David Lidington

    Progress has been strong. In December 2014, a biennial UN resolution calling for a moratorium on the use of the death penalty was passed with a record majority. Fewer than 30 countries now carry out executions and the number of people executed is at an all-time low. There have been set-backs and disappointments, but the long-term trend in the use of the death penalty is undoubtedly downwards. Nonetheless, the British Government’s view remains that the death penalty is an unjustified tool in all circumstances and we continue to campaign for total abolition.

  • Barry Sheerman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Barry Sheerman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Barry Sheerman on 2016-01-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he is taking to address increasing numbers of ISIS fighters in Kosovo; and what support the UK is offering to authorities in Kosovo to tackle this issue.

    Mr David Lidington

    We are concerned about the rise of Daesh foreign fighters across Europe, including in Kosovo and are engaging in a range of ways to reduce the risk to the UK. We have encouraged Kosovo to put in place the necessary measures, including legislation and counter-extremism strategies. Last year, Kosovo adopted legislation making it illegal to join in armed conflicts outside its territory and approved a 2015-2020 Counter Extremism Strategy. We, along with other international donors, are identifying areas in the action plan where we can offer support. In addition, our wider assistance to Kosovo targets social exclusion and seeks to promote jobs and growth, which are key to mitigating the risks of marginalisation and radicalisation of Kosovo’s youth. Kosovo is a member of the Global Coalition Against Daesh and, at the UK’s invitation, has joined the Strategic Communications Working Group, which the UK co-chairs.

  • Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Louise Haigh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Haigh on 2016-02-23.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what checks his Department has in place to ensure that credit reference firms do not sell-on electoral roll data.

    John Penrose

    Under the Regulation 115 of the Representation of the People (England and Wales)(Amendment) Regulations 2002, anyone who is supplied with the full register is not permitted to sell a copy to any person, disclose any information contained in it, or use it for anything apart from the specified purpose for which the full register has been supplied. In contravening this provision, a person would be guilty of an offence and liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 5 on the standard scale, which currently stands at £5000.

  • Sue Hayman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Sue Hayman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sue Hayman on 2016-03-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to paragraph 4.10 of his Department’s response to its consultation on aids and appliances and the daily living component of personal independence payment, published in March 2016, if he will publish the raw data referred to in that paragraph; and whether that data was subject to peer review.

    Justin Tomlinson

    As confirmed by my right honourable friend the Secretary of State in his statement to the House on 21 March, the proposed changes to PIP will not be going ahead.

    We spend around £50bn every year on benefits alone to support people with disabilities or health conditions, with spending on Personal Independence Payment (PIP) and Disability Living Allowance (DLA) having increased by more than £3 billion since 2010. The government is committed to talking to disabled people, their representatives, healthcare professionals and employers to ensure the welfare system works better with the health and social care systems and provides help and support to those who need it most.

  • Kirsten Oswald – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Kirsten Oswald – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kirsten Oswald on 2016-04-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the findings of the Annual Report 2015 of the Service Complaints Ombudsmen for the Armed Forces, what steps he is taking to raise awareness of the Service Complaints Commissioner among junior members of the armed forces.

    Mark Lancaster

    The Service Complaints Ombudsman’s annual report for 2015 was published on 25 April 2016. Whilst there are no recommendations in this year’s report, given the introduction of a reformed complaints system and a fundamentally new Ombudsman role, the Ministry of Defence (MOD) is curently considering the report in detail to see what lessons there are for the complaints process or wider policies.

    The aim of the reforms introduced on 1 January 2016 is to address long-standing concerns raised by the Service Complaints Commissioner that confidence in the system has been affected by complexity which has led to delay and by a lack of strong independent and effective oversight. Such a lack of confidence can in turn leave our personnel reluctant to raise issues and so have them resolved. The new process is streamlined, and Service personnel will now be able to approach the new Service Complaints Ombudsman if they are dissatisfied, which will make a real difference for individuals. The Ombudsman has significant new powers to hold the MOD to account for fair, effective and efficient complaints handllng. The Ombudsman comments in her report that she is hopeful that the new system will make a real impact on confidence levels. The MOD shares that view, and looks forward to the Ombudsman’s 2016 report for her assessment of whether the aims are being achieved.

    It is important that all Service personnel know where to get information about how to make a service complaint, as well as about the role of the new Service Complaints Ombudsman and how to contact her. We will take further steps to communicate as widely as possible through appropriate channels the role of the new Ombudsman, particularly to junior personnel, which will supplement and support the visits undertaken and communication material produced by the Ombudsman.

    Bullying, harassment and discrimination are not tolerated in the Armed Forces. Tackling such behaviour depends on our Service personnel having confidence that the complaints system will deal with their concerns appropriately and will treat them fairly. The Service Complaints Ombudsman will hold the MOD to account for how it handles complaints and how it treats its Service personnel under the complaints process. It is by raising complaints and approaching the Ombudsman if they are dissatisfied that complainants can ensure that the MOD is openly held to account. It is also through the Ombudsman’s recommendations that the MOD can identify where action needs to be taken to improve.

    The finding by the Service Complaints Ombudsman that proportionately more women feel moved to make a Service complaint than their male colleagues is a concern. The Ombudsman goes on to commend the work that is being done by the Army in particular, where the issue is the most acute, to tackle this. The initiatives that she sets out in the report are continuing.

    It is the responsibility of all those involved in the service complaints process to ensure complaints are handled effectively and efficiently. All complaints are to be dealt with promptly but fairly, regardless of the complainant’s rank or whether they are still serving. There have been no discussions with the Chief of the Defence Staff on the issues raised.

  • William Wragg – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    William Wragg – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by William Wragg on 2016-06-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much notice her Department gave schools of the changes to primary school SATs tests in 2016.

    Nick Gibb

    The new primary national curriculum was published in final form in July 2013. It came into force in September 2014. The new national curriculum tests at Key Stages 1 and 2 were first announced in March 2014. Since then schools have been provided with further information to help them adapt to the assessment arrangements. In addition to sample questions published in summer 2014, complete sample tests were published in summer 2015.

  • Clive Efford – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Clive Efford – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Clive Efford on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of whether the award to Circle Holdings plc of the contract to provide musculoskeletal services in Greenwich will affect the Sustainability Transformation Plan for two elective orthopaedic centres in London; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    The procurement of local health services by means of competitive tendering is a matter for the local National Health Service.

    We are advised that NHS Greenwich Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) undertook a review of the provision of musculoskeletal (MSK) services in the area in 2014, involving local general practitioners (GPs), secondary care clinicians, other MSK clinicians and patient groups. The CCG took account of this exercise in confirming its commissioning intentions for an integrated MSK service pathway. The CCG subsequently held a GP clinical commissioner-led provider engagement event on 2 March 2016 to seek feedback on the clinical service specification and the proposed contractual model.

    We understand that, as part of the procurement process, the MSK Programme Board was fully apprised of the Our Healthier South East London initiative, the predecessor to the Sustainability and Transformation Plan (STP) in respect of elective orthopaedic centres.

    We are advised that the Invitation to Tender (ITT) developed as part of the procurement exercise explicitly stated the aspirations of these two initiatives, in addition to the proposed implementation timeline. When submitting their bids, all prospective providers were required to confirm their understanding and acceptance of the planned new model of in-patient care. Patient choice continues to apply with regard to both this local procurement and the South East London STP proposals on elective care centres.

    We understand that the ITT issued to potential service providers, was divided into sections, with each section allocated a weighting. The financial weighting was designed to ensure that the selection of the preferred provider was driven by clinical quality scores whilst remaining within the CCG’s published financial envelope. The detailed clinical service specification will be used to hold the provider to account within the format of the NHS national standard contract.

    Health Ministers have not received any representations from local health practitioners in Greenwich with regard to the provision of MSK services in the area.

  • David T. C. Davies – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    David T. C. Davies – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David T. C. Davies on 2016-10-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he has used the Tempro 7 system to make revised calculations of traffic flows on the proposed M4 relief road.

    Mr John Hayes

    The assessment of the M4 relief road around Newport is being considered by the Welsh Government.

  • Richard Graham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Richard Graham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Graham on 2015-11-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many delays to benefit payments there were in (a) Gloucester, (b) the South West and (c) England in each of the last five years.

    Priti Patel

    The information requested is not available.