The below Parliamentary question was asked by Matthew Offord on 2015-11-30.
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, when he plans for the UK to ratify the 1945 Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict.
Mr Edward Vaizey
The Government remains committed to bringing forward legislation to ratify the Hague Convention and accede to its two Protocols at the first opportunity.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Rennard on 2016-01-11.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they have taken to ascertain how many people shown as having voted on the marked register for the General Election on 7 May 2015 were on the electoral register at that time solely by virtue of the household based electoral registration system; whether they will make any such data available, broken down by (1) country, (2) constituency, and (3) local authority; how many of those voters were removed from the electoral registers on 1 December 2015; and what plans they have to help ensure that those voters are included on electoral registers based on Individual Electoral Registration.
Lord Bridges of Headley
While data is not available on the number of non-IER registered electors who voted at the 2015 General Election, the Electoral Commission found 96% of the entries on the electoral register in May 2015 were already registered under IER. The remaining non-IER registered electors will have been contacted as part of the annual canvass, and specifically targeted by Electoral Registration Officers, to encourage them to submit an application under IER ahead of the end of the transition to IER.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Oliver Dowden on 2016-02-03.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, pursuant to the Answer of 25 January 2016 to Question 23018, on lasers: regulation, what steps he is taking to restrict direct sale into the UK to individual customers.
Anna Soubry
I refer to my answer of 25 January.
Under the Consumer Protection Act 1987 and the General Product Safety Regulations, a business importing into the EU/EEA must have a representative within the EU/EEA who is responsible and liable for the safety of imported goods. This enables Customs and Trading Standards to check that imported laser products comply with safety standards. It is harder for them to carry out these checks where customers order goods from a company outside the EU and receive them directly through the post.
We therefore advise customers who want to buy laser products to go to a reputable dealer with authorised representation in the European Union. If consumers are concerned about the safety of laser products on sale they should report the website or retailer to their local Trading Standards department.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2016-02-24.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what discussions he has had with (a) members of the public and (b) law professionals on proposed changes to the system of probate fees charged to activate a will.
Mr Shailesh Vara
The Government published a consultation on proposals to reform fees for applications for a grant of probate on 18 February. The consultation will run for six weeks, closing on 1 April. It is open to all members of the public, law professionals or other persons to respond.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Percy on 2016-03-24.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what reports he has received of Hamas fighters joining ISIS in Syria.
Mr Tobias Ellwood
We have not received any reports of Hamas fighters joining Daesh in Syria.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Chalk on 2016-05-03.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps the Government is taking to increase participation in cycling by women.
Mr Robert Goodwill
The Government remains committed to its manifesto target to double the number of journeys made by bicycle. In order to achieve this, all potential cyclists’ needs must be considered.
The Government recently reaffirmed its commitment to cycling and walking, with SR2015 announcing funding support of over £300m. In addition, Highways England has committed to provide a safer, integrated and more accessible strategic road network for cyclists and other vulnerable road users.
The draft Cycling and Walking Investment Strategy, which is currently being consulted on and is due to be published in summer 2016, fully explains the Government’s ambitions for increasing cycling activity and sets out the funding resources available.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Luciana Berger on 2016-06-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, with reference to the NHS England Five Year Forward View on Mental Health, published in February 2016, what progress has been made on Recommendation 34 on incentive payments.
Alistair Burt
The Government is working with delivery partners to carefully consider the independent Mental Health Taskforce’s recommendations and aims to publish a strategic implementation plan in the autumn that will set out how Government and partners will deliver the recommendations.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Blomfield on 2016-09-02.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had at the UN on implementation of Security Council Resolution 47 on Kashmir.
Alok Sharma
The United Kingdom does not intend to support an international conference or a plebiscite on Kashmir in line with UN Security Council Resolution 47. I have not had any discussions at the UN on this issue. The longstanding position of the UK is that it is for India and Pakistan to find a lasting resolution to the situation in Kashmir, taking into account the wishes of the Kashmiri people. It is not for the UK to prescribe a solution or to act as a mediator.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-10-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what his Department’s proposed deadline is for closing the 1993 and 2003 Child Support Agency IT system.
Caroline Nokes
The closure of existing child maintenance cases on the 1993 and 2003 schemes is proceeding as planned. The timetable for the closure of the underlying 1993 and 2003 child support IT systems is currently under consideration.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2015-11-02.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will support calls for the establishment of a full, international, independent investigation by the UN into claims of genocide against the Rohingya in Burma.
Baroness Anelay of St Johns
These and other disturbing reports from Rakhine State make clear that the Rohingya are being persecuted and denied the most basic rights. We welcome the work of a highly effective UN Special Rapporteur on Burma, who has shone a spotlight on violations against the Rohingya in Rakhine. She has not characterised the treatment of the Rohingya as genocide, and neither did the UN Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide in his 4 November Statement on Burma’s elections.
However, any judgement on whether genocide has occurred is a matter for international judicial decision, rather than for governments or non-judicial bodies. A UN investigation would require high level international support for which we assess there is little prospect of agreement at this stage. Our approach is to seek an end to all violations, irrespective of whether or not they fit the definition of specific international crimes. British Government Ministers take every appropriate opportunity, both publicly and in private, to press the Burmese authorities to take urgent steps to address the situation of the Rohingya. Most recently, the Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for East Devon (Mr Swire), did so with the Burmese Foreign Minister Wunna Maung Lwin in September in New York.