Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Phil Boswell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Phil Boswell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Phil Boswell on 2015-12-10.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how his Department and the Bank of England assess the performance of small and medium-sized enterprises which have received a loan through the Funding for Lending scheme.

    Harriett Baldwin

    The Bank of England does not lend directly to small and medium sized enterprises as part of the Funding for Lending Scheme (FLS). Under the FLS, the Bank of England provides funding to UK banks and building societies participating in the scheme. The amount of funding participant banks and building societies are eligible to borrow from the Bank of England is determined by their net lending to certain sectors of the economy.

  • Kevin Brennan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Kevin Brennan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevin Brennan on 2016-01-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what the proportion of (a) public and (b) private investment was in each project in which the Green Investment Bank has invested.

    Anna Soubry

    The information requested can be found in the Transaction Table on the Green Investment Bank website.

  • Diane Abbott – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Diane Abbott – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Diane Abbott on 2016-02-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the contributions of the Minister of State for International Development at the International Development Committee, 27 January 2016, Question 28, and on 3 February 2016, Official Report, column 908, what the evidential basis is for the statements that export of arms by the UK to Saudi Arabia is not undermining her Department’s humanitarian work in Yemen.

    Justine Greening

    The UK is the fourth largest donor to the crisis in Yemen, committing £85million this year. Funding those agencies and NGOs who have the best access and ability to deliver humanitarian assistance in Yemen means we have been able to provide support to over 1.3m Yemenis. In recent weeks, UK food aid has also been delivered to some of the hardest to reach areas of Taiz.

    Nevertheless, the conflict in Yemen does make it difficult for agencies to operate and deliver humanitarian aid to all those who need it. That is why a lasting ceasefire is so important. We are doing all we can to support the UN to convene a further round of peace talks over the coming weeks and to renew the ceasefire.

  • Tom Watson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Prime Minister

    Tom Watson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Prime Minister

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Watson on 2016-03-14.

    To ask the Prime Minister, whether he plans to issue guidance on adherence to Privy Council rules in the period preceding the EU referendum.

    Mr David Cameron

    I refer the hon. Member to the statement made to the House by the Lord President of the Council on 14 March 2016, Official Report, columns 653-654.

  • Andy Slaughter – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Andy Slaughter – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2016-04-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many incidents involving the use of drone technology have been recorded at each type of prison facility in each of the last three years.

    Andrew Selous

    I refer the Hon Member to my answer to PQ 20357.

    Incidents involving drones are rare, but we remain constantly vigilant to all new threats to prison security. This Government has made it a criminal offence to throw, or otherwise project, any article of substance into prison without authorisation. Anyone using drones in an attempt to get contraband into prisons can be punished with a sentence of up to two years. We take a zero tolerance approach to illicit material in prisons and work closely with the police and CPS to ensure those responsible for a drone incident are caught and, if appropriate, prosecuted.

    There were no reported drone incidents in 2013; 2 reported incidents in 2014; and 33 reported incidents in 2015.

    These figures include drone finds and sightings of drones by prison staff in and around all types of public and private prisons in England and Wales.

    These figures have been drawn from live administrative data systems. Care is taken when processing and analysing the returns, but the detail collected is subject to the inaccuracies inherent in any large scale recording system.

  • Eilidh Whiteford – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Eilidh Whiteford – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Eilidh Whiteford on 2016-05-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people (a) successfully made an application for Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA) and (b) were unsuccessful in an application for JSA following a Genuine Prospect of Work assessment in the last two years.

    Priti Patel

    The Department does not record statistics on applications for Jobseeker’s Allowance following a genuine prospect of work assessment.

    To collate the information requested would take the costs of responding to the question over the disproportionate cost threshold.

  • Lord Mawhinney – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Lord Mawhinney – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Mawhinney on 2016-07-06.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government by how much they estimate the deficit of NHS providers will have been reduced by the end of the 2016–17.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    NHS Improvement continues to work with those providers who have not been able to agree control totals by the end of July. At present, 213 of 238 providers (89.5%) have an agreed a control total. Those providers who have been unable to agree a control total will not be able to access the sustainability and transformation fund.

    NHS Improvement is currently consulting on a new oversight regime, which details proposals on how providers will be monitored in future and this will set out how variance from financial plan or control total will be managed.

    NHS Improvement does not intend to replace the boards of those providers who do not achieve financial balance by the end of 2016/17. The organisation’s new oversight regime also sets out in detail how it proposes to monitor and support providers.

    The Government’s Mandate to the NHS 2016-17, a copy of which is attached, confirms that the National Health Service must ensure that it balances its budget, including commissioners and providers living within their budgets. To support this, £1.8 billion of NHS England’s budget for 2016-17 will be allocated through the Sustainability and Transformation Fund to support providers, in particular emergency services, payable through commissioning or as other support.

  • Keith Vaz – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Keith Vaz – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Keith Vaz on 2016-09-15.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many meetings have taken place between Ministers of his Department and Ministers of governments which support the current government of Yemen since January 2016; and in how many such meetings was the civil war in Yemen discussed.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    As set out in UN Security Council Resolution 2216, President Hadi and his government are the legitimate authority in Yemen, and the UK regularly discusses the situation in Yemen with international partners including at Ministerial level. Most recently during the UN General Assembly week in New York, I hosted two meetings on Yemen which involved Gulf Foreign Ministers, the US and the UN Special Envoy for Yemen. The UK remains committed to finding a political resolution to the current conflict and to foster peace and stability for all Yemenis.

  • Lord Black of Brentwood – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Black of Brentwood – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Black of Brentwood on 2015-11-18.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have made any assessment of the impact of the criminalisation of homosexuality by Commonwealth countries on economic development and business investment in those countries.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    We have not carried out a specific assessment of the impact of the criminalisation of homosexuality on economic development and business investment in Commonwealth countries. However, we welcomed the reports of the Williams Institute of November 2014 and the recent report from the Human Dignity Trust of November 2015 which clearly set out the economic case for the decriminalisation of homosexuality.

    We are committed to combating discrimination and violence against Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transgender (LGB&T) throughout the Commonwealth. We utilised every opportunity at the recent Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting to highlight our belief that the Commonwealth must stand up for human rights, including LGB&T rights, around the world. The Prime Minister, my right hon. Friend the Member for Witney (Mr Cameron), made this clear during an intervention at the retreat and subsequently in his press statement. Additionally, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Department for International Development, the noble Baroness Verma, also spoke in favour of addressing LGB&T issues while chairing a session at the People’s Forum. We look forward to working with the new Commonwealth Secretary-General on this issue when she takes up her position in April 2016.

  • Damian Green – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Damian Green – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Damian Green on 2015-12-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the responses to her letter of 24 November 2015 to all local council leaders on the Dispersal of Unaccompanied Asylum Seeking Children; and if she will make a statement.

    James Brokenshire

    There have been a number of positive responses to the letter of 24 November, including concrete offers of support for Kent through the disperal of Unaccompanied Asylum Seeking Children. We are clear that local authorities with the capacity to support Kent should do so. The Immigration Minister and the Children’s Minister chaired a round table meeting on 15 December with council leaders and directors of children’s services to consider what more can be done , and longer-term options for the dispersal of unaccompanied asylum seeking children. We hope the arrangements will remain voluntary and more local authorities will come forward. However, we have taken a reserve power in the Immigration Bill to underpin the voluntary power and act as a backstop power to mandate dispersal if the voluntary arrangements do not work.