Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Vernon Coaker – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    Vernon Coaker – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Vernon Coaker on 2016-02-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, if the Government will provide additional funding for the Police Service of Northern Ireland to deal with legacy issues.

    Mrs Theresa Villiers

    Matters relating to policing and justice are devolved to the Northern Ireland Executive. As a consequence, responsibility for funding policing and justice in Northern Ireland (including for Troubles-related issues) rests with the Northern Ireland Executive.

    The budget for the Northern Ireland Executive includes funding from Her Majesty’s Treasury in accordance with its funding policy. The funding the Executive receives per capita from the UK Government is more than any other region or country in the UK – 25% above the UK average. All devolved allocation and spending decisions are a matter for the Executive.

    Through the Stormont House and Fresh Start Agreements, the UK Government has undertaken to provide financial packages giving the Executive up to £2.5 billion of additional spending power. This includes an additional £150 million to support the proposed new institutions to deal with the past.

  • Chi Onwurah – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Chi Onwurah – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chi Onwurah on 2016-02-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate her Department has made of the number of state (a) primary and (b) secondary students who are learning a musical instrument; and how many such students are learning that musical instrument for free.

    Nick Gibb

    Music is compulsory for all children in key stages 1-3 in maintained schools. One of the requirements of the National Curriculum is that pupils are taught to play musical instruments. Schools are not permitted to charge for teaching that is required by the National Curriculum.

    The Government is investing £75m in 2015-16 in a network of music education hubs. Music education hubs have four core roles, one of which is to ensure that every child aged 5-18 learns to play a musical instrument through whole class ensemble teaching. Data published by Arts Council England in March 2015 showed that 596,820 pupils in the academic year 2013/14 learned to play an instrument through whole class ensemble teaching. This teaching is provided free for pupils.

    The data is available here: http://www.artscouncil.org.uk/media/uploads/Music_Education_Hubs_2014_Report_final_March_2015.pdf.

    Arts Council England will publish data for the 2014-15 academic year in due course. This will include more extensive data on the number of pupils who have singing or instrumental lessons.

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  • Hilary Benn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Hilary Benn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2016-03-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what reports he has received of injured children trying to leave Syria being turned away at the Jordanian border.

    Mr Philip Hammond

    We are aware that there are large numbers of refugees being denied access to Jordan at the Jordan/Syria border. Whilst recognising their legitimate security concerns and the need for proper vetting, we have discussed with the Government of Jordan the necessity of prioritising admittance for the sick and injured, including children. Jordan has shown remarkable generosity as host to over 630,000 registered refugees from the Syria conflict. The UK is firmly committed to supporting Jordan. We have contributed over £330 million to help Jordan since the start of the Syria crisis. As co-hosts of the Supporting Syria and the Region Conference held in London this year we helped secure over $12 billion of commitments of further support for those inside Syria and Syria’s neighbours Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey which are bearing the humanitarian weight of the crisis.

  • Tulip Siddiq – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Tulip Siddiq – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tulip Siddiq on 2016-05-04.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the oral contribution by the Financial Secretary to the Treasury on 13 April 2016, Official Report, column 374, on tax avoidance and evasion, whether (a) the Guardian, (b) the BBC, (c) the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists and (d) the Süddeutsche Zeitung have agreed to provide the data they received.

    Greg Hands

    HM Revenue & Customs has asked the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), the BBC and The Guardian to share their data. The BBC and The Guardian have confirmed that they do not hold the data. The ICIJ have refused to share their data with us, stating that their policy is not to hand over such material. While we welcome the steps they have taken in exposing this issue, their decision not to release the full set of information to us is disappointing.

  • Crispin Blunt – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Crispin Blunt – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Crispin Blunt on 2016-06-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what plans NICE has to consult on its methodology for carrying out evidence reviews and impact analyses to support NHS England’s specialised commissioning process.

    George Freeman

    As yet, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) does not have any plans to consult on changes to its methods and processes to support NHS England’s specialised commissioning process, but will carry out a full consultation if any such changes are considered necessary.

    Following NHS England’s review of its specialised commissioning processes and the publication in the summer of the final report from the Accelerated Access Review, we anticipate NICE will want to look at its processes and methods for the assessment of drugs and treatments used in specialised commissioning.

  • Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Trade

    Jim Shannon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Trade

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-09-06.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what discussions he has had with the government of Japan on increasing trade links with that country.

    Mark Garnier

    My Rt Hon. Friend the Secretary of State for International Trade met with the Japanese Ambassador to the United Kingdom on 6 September. A range of topics were discussed including the opportunities presented by the United Kingdom exiting the European Union to strengthen its role as a global leader for free trade, including its trade links with Japan.

  • Steven Paterson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Steven Paterson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steven Paterson on 2016-10-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what contingency plans his Department has for the decommissioning of nuclear-powered submarines if a suitable geological disposal facility is not identified.

    Harriett Baldwin

    Intermediate Level Waste (ILW) is the only type of waste from submarines that will require the use of a Geological Disposal Facility (GDF). A facility for the interim storage of ILW has been arranged at Capenhurst in Cheshire until the proposed GDF is available from 2040. In line with Government guidance, the interim ILW store will have a design life of at least 100 years – considerably longer than it is anticipated will be required.

  • Lord Scriven – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Lord Scriven – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Scriven on 2015-11-09.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have carried out to determine whether the police facial recognition database complies with the Data Protection Act 1998; and what were the findings of that review.

    Lord Bates

    There is no facial recognition database as such. The Police National Database (PND) includes photographs of persons taken on their arrest. These images can be uploaded onto the PND by police forces. Full face images of a suitable size and quality are then enrolled in the facial image recognition gallery within the PND, which can be searched using automated facial recognition software. As set out by the Code of Practice on the Operation and Use of the PND, chief police officers are responsible for the development and implementation of appropriate procedures and systems so that personal data is processed in accordance with the provisions of the Data Protection Act 1998 and other relevant legislation and guidance.

  • Rebecca Long Bailey – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Rebecca Long Bailey – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rebecca Long Bailey on 2015-12-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, with reference to paragraph 1.242 of the Spending Review and Autumn Statement 2015, whether the Government carried out an equality impact assessment on the policy to allow local authorities to raise council tax by two per cent to fund adult social care.

    Mr Marcus Jones

    The Spending Review set out that, if fully used, the additional council tax flexibility could raise nearly £2 billion a year by 2019-20. We will set out further details alongside the provisional local government finance settlement later this month, including an equality impact assesment in the New Year.

  • Geoffrey Cox – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Geoffrey Cox – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Geoffrey Cox on 2016-01-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to increase quota levels for the under-10 metres fishing fleet.

    George Eustice

    Defra is in the final stages of a permanent quota realignment exercise which will represent a14% uplift in the amount of quota the inshore fleet currently receives.

    For species subject to the discard ban from January 2016, we have announced that the non-sector pools, which includes fishing vessels under 10 metres, will receive the first 100 tonnes of any quota uplift received and 10% of any remaining uplift. For 2016 this represents more than 1,000 tonnes of uplift to support the non-sector in their adaptation to the landing obligation.

    The Marine Management Organisation (MMO) is currently determining the 2016 monthly catch limits for the inshore fleet in light of the December 2015 Fisheries Council agreement. This quota will be used to maximise the income that can be achieved, while minimising discards for the non-sector fleet. The MMO welcomes views on quota management and utilisation of quota uplift for the non–sector via the MMO coastal quota advisory meetings and monthly quota consultations.