The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emma Reynolds on 2016-03-03.
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits for the UK economy of the completion of a EU internal energy market.
Amber Rudd
My Department assesses that the completion of the EU internal energy market would put downward pressure on energy bills; encourage efficient investment in the UK energy sector; and enhance energy security.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stuart C. McDonald on 2016-04-14.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, for what reasons take charge requests under the Dublin regulations have been refused since April 2015.
James Brokenshire
Whilst all asylum claims, including those accepted under Dublin III, are registered on the main immigration database the specifics of each case are not currently available in the form requested as the data is not held in a way that allows it to be reported on automatically.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Maria Eagle on 2016-05-23.
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what the cost to his Department was of commissioning and publishing the report, entitled Research to explore public views about the BBC, published in May 2016.
Mr Edward Vaizey
The cost for this piece of independent research was £108,085 excluding VAT.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-07-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 13 June 2016 to Question 39897, how many full-time equivalent officials of her Department are responsible for identifying, verifying and processing all asylum cases.
Mr Robert Goodwill
Asylum Operations in UK Visas and Immigration currently have 73 full time equivalent (FTE) staff who are responsible for screening asylum claims. Staff in Border Force and Immigration Enforcement will also encounter new asylum claimants in the course of their duties.
Asylum Operations have 271 (FTE) decision makers responsible for interviewing and deciding asylum
claims. Over 100 additional decision makers are currently being recruited and trained, and we continually review our staffing levels to ensure that we can deal with levels of intake. The figures quoted have been derived from management information and are therefore provisional and subject to change. This information has not been quality assured under National Statistics protocols
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nicholas Brown on 2016-10-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has any plans to extend her Department’s policy of free school transport for children between eight and 16 years old living over three miles from their school to match the compulsory school leaving age of 18 years old.
Caroline Dinenage
The government has no current plans to extend the home to school statutory entitlement beyond the age of 16.
It is helpful to be clear initially that young people do not need to be in school beyond the age of 16. There are a range of ways that young people can fulfil their duty to participate in education and training until they are 18, as well as staying at school. Options include apprenticeships or part-time paid work together with study.
The statutory responsibility for transport to education and training for 16 to 19 year olds remains with local authorities, enabling them to make decisions and arrangements which best match local needs and circumstances. Arrangements do not have to include free or subsidised travel; however, local authorities are expected to make reasonable decisions based on the needs of their population, the local transport infrastructure and the resources they have available.
Most 16 to 19 year olds have access to a discount or concession on local travel, from their local transport provider, their local authority, or from their education or training provider. Providers can also use the 16-19 Bursary Fund to support young people with the costs associated with attending education or training. This is often used to support transport for disadvantaged young people.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Imran Hussain on 2015-11-10.
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what projects her Department (a) has and (b) is planning to facilitate transition in Burma from dictatorship to democracy.
Mr Desmond Swayne
DFID’s bilateral commitment to Burma between 2011/12 and 2015/16 is around £285 million. DFID has allocated £25 million over five years to strengthen democratic governance in Burma, including support to the elections, through our Programme for Democratic Change. DFID is currently reviewing our approach for all country programmes for the next five years as part of the government’s overall spending review and any decisions about future support will be made in due course.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Madeleine Moon on 2015-12-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many support jobs were lost when the Nimrod MRA4 was decommissioned; and if he will make a statement.
Mr Philip Dunne
The Ministry of Defence (MOD) does not hold any records relating to the number of support jobs which may have been lost as a result of the cancellation of the Nimrod MRA4 in the 2010 Strategic Defence and Security Review.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Storey on 2016-01-20.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to review the legal requirements that apply to daily acts of collective worship in school assemblies.
Lord Nash
The Government does not plan to change the requirements for a daily act of collective worship. It is for schools to tailor their provision to suit the needs of their pupils, and parents can choose to withdraw their children from all or any part of collective worship.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Ellman on 2016-02-11.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the extent of funding from Iran for (a) Hezbollah and (b) Hamas; and if he will make a statement.
Mr Tobias Ellwood
We continue to have serious concerns about Iran’s support for Hamas and the military wing of Hezbollah, which reportedly includes the provision of financial resources and training as well as the supply of military equipment. We call on Iran to end such support, which directly undermines the prospects for lasting peace in the region, and to abide by all relevant UN obligations.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Yasmin Qureshi on 2016-03-03.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether soldiers from Burma Army military operations command 2 (MOC-2) light infantry battalion (LIB) 9 or Burma Army Battalion 330 have received any form of training funded by the UK Government.
Penny Mordaunt
I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 11 January 2016 to Question 21564, which stated that we do not provide combat training to the Burmese Army. We do however provide educational training, as well as English Language Training. We have no information to indicate that participants on these educational courses were Burmese Army soldiers from Burma Army military operations command 2 (MOC-2) light infantry battalion (LIB) 9 or Burma Army Battalion 330.