Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Gregory Campbell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Gregory Campbell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gregory Campbell on 2016-07-06.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what recent discussions she has had with her counterparts in the Middle East on steps to tackle the refugee crisis in that region.

    Sir Desmond Swayne

    The UK is at the forefront of international efforts to support over 4.8 million Syrian refugees to remain in host countries in the region until it is safe to return to Syria, and to support host countries to accommodate them.

    As part of this, we are working in partnership with host countries to help them to expand job and education opportunities for refugees in a way that will enable them to better support themselves and give them skills for the future, and we are helping host countries to cope with the impact of refugees on local services.

    The UK co-hosted the “Supporting Syria and the Region” conference in London in February, at which neighbouring governments made bold commitments to open up their labour markets to refugees, to improve regulation and the investment climate in their countries, and to ensure all children in their countries have access to quality education.

    The Secretary of State for International Development continues to lead engagement with regional partners on tackling the refugee crisis, including by delivering on the commitments made at the London Conference, which will help to create 1.1 million jobs and provide quality education to 1.7 million children by the end of the 2016/17 school year. At the IMF and World Bank Spring Meetings in April she convened meetings between regional governments, the UN and World Bank and held bilateral discussions with key Ministers. And at the World Humanitarian Summit in May, she and other London Conference co-chairs convened a meeting of all interested parties to discuss and review progress.

    Looking forward, we will be using UN General Assembly in September as an important moment to review progress with key leaders on the Syria Conference implementation, including how all parties are all delivering on their commitments to support refugees in the region.

  • Andrew Gwynne – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Andrew Gwynne – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Gwynne on 2016-09-15.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what advice his Department offer local authorities on issuing Hackney carriage or private hire driver licences to people based outside their local authority area.

    Andrew Jones

    Local authorities can issue licences to prospective Hackney Carriage and Private Hire Vehicle drivers irrespective of where the driver lives. The Department provides Best Practice Guidance for local authorities to help them develop their own standards for taxi and PHV operators, drivers and vehicles.

  • Chi Onwurah – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Chi Onwurah – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chi Onwurah on 2015-11-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the requirements are for the funding and delivery of wifi on existing rail franchises.

    Claire Perry

    On all Department for Transport-controlled rail franchises, in England and Wales, free Wi-Fi is being introduced. All train operators bidding for new franchises and direct award agreements will have to include this specification in their bid.

    Where there was no new franchise agreement due by December 2016, almost £50 million of funding is being released from the Department for Transport to ensure Wi-Fi is available on selected services. The operators in this group are:

    • Thameslink, Southern and Great Northern (TSGN);
    • Southeastern;
    • Chiltern; and
    • Arriva Trains Wales.
  • Diana Johnson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Diana Johnson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Diana Johnson on 2015-12-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many press and public relations staff are employed by (a) his Department, (b) the Defence Electronics and Components Agency, (c) the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory, (d) the UK Hydrographic Office, (e) the National Army Museum, (f) the National Museum of the Royal Navy, (g) the Royal Air Force Museum, (h) the Single Source Regulations Office and (i) the Oil and Pipelines Agency; how many of these employees earn more than (i) £50,000 and (ii) £100,000; and what the total expenditure was on press and public relations by each of those organisations in the most recent year for which figures are available.

    Mark Lancaster

    The following table outlines the number of civilian and military press and public relations staff posts in Defence (including vacant posts) and press and public relations expenditure in the financial year 2014-15. This expenditure includes £30 million for Armed Forces advertising and marketing – the vast majority of which is advertising and marketing in direct support of Armed Forces recruitment campaigns. It also includes £12 million for staff costs.

    Annual salaries are dependent upon grade/rank. Of those in press and public relations staff posts, there are:

    No civil servants or military personnel with salaries of more than £100,000.

    10 civil servants with salaries of more than £50,000.

    24 military personnel with salaries of more than £50,000.

    Department/Agency

    Press and Public Relations Staff Posts

    Salary £50,000 and above

    Salary £100,000 and above

    Press and Public Relations Expenditure Financial Year (FY)2014-15 (£000)[1]

    Ministry of Defence[2]

    49

    9 Civilian 3 Military

    0

    5,772

    Armed Forces (Royal Navy, Army, RAF and Joint Forces Command)

    122

    0 Civilian 21 Military

    0

    41,437 (Including advertising and marketing for Armed Forces recruitment campaigns)

    Defence Electronics and Components Agency (DECA)

    0

    0

    0

    N/A[3]

    Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (DSTL)

    2

    1 Civilian

    0

    76

    United Kingdom Hydrographic Office (UKHO)

    3

    0

    0

    1,436

    National Army Museum

    4

    0

    0

    550

    National Museum of the Royal Navy (NMRN)

    1

    0

    0

    339

    Royal Air Force Museum (RAF Museum)

    2

    0

    0

    429

    Single Source Regulations Office (SSRO)

    0

    0

    0

    0

    The Oil and Pipelines Agency (OPA)

    0

    0

    0

    0

    Total

    183

    34

    0

    50,038[4]

    [1] All figures are rounded to the nearest £1,000, therefore the total may not be equal to the sum of rounded values.

    [2] Including Directorate of Defence Communications, Defence Business Services, Ministry of Defence Police, Defence Infrastructure Organisation, and Defence Equipment and Support.

    [3] DECA was formed on 1 April 2015 as a Trading Agency following the Sale of the Defence Support Group therefore separate communications outturn for FY2014-15 is not available.

    [4] This figure includes £30million for Armed Forces advertising and marketing – the vast majority of which is advertising and marketing in direct support of Armed Forces recruitment campaigns. It also includes £12million for staff costs.

  • Lord Taylor of Warwick – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Lord Taylor of Warwick – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Taylor of Warwick on 2016-01-27.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to support the UN Secretary-General’s first high-level panel on women’s economic empowerment.

    Baroness Verma

    The High Level Panel on women’s economic empowerment, convened by the UN Secretary General, will bring together leading politicians, expert economists, leaders from business and civil society to lead a step change in improving economic opportunities and choices for women and girls globally.

    The Secretary of State for International Development, Justine Greening, is a founding member of the Panel. In addition to our policy and technical inputs, DFID will also provide support for the Panel’s independent Secretariat to conduct a global consultation process, produce a research synthesis, and build momentum around tangible actions to unleash the full global potential of women’s economic power.

  • Richard Burden – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Richard Burden – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-02-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what recent representations he has received on faulty tumble dryers causing fires; and when his Department was first made aware of safety concerns related to such tumble dryers.

    Anna Soubry

    Manufacturers, distributors and retailers are legally required to inform their Local Authority Trading Standards Department if they have placed unsafe products on the market under the General Product Safety Regulations 1995. Trading Standards work with the businesses concerned to manage any corrective actions accordingly.

    In December 2015, Trading Standards made my Department aware of the safety concerns relating to particular brands of tumble dryer, as part of the formal notification procedure of the EU Rapid Alert system for unsafe products. In addition, my Department has received correspondence from consumers of these products, who have been directed to Trading Standards.

  • The Marquess of Lothian – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The Marquess of Lothian – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Marquess of Lothian on 2016-03-16.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what recent representations they have made to the government of Saudi Arabia in the case of the death sentence by crucifixion of Ali al-Numr.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    The British Government is very concerned about the case of Ali al-Nimr, and has raised this case with the Saudi Arabian authorities, most recently on 12 March, at a very senior level. Our expectation remains that he will not be executed.

  • Cat Smith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Cat Smith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Cat Smith on 2016-04-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether he has received any representations from NHS staff who feel they are being harassed outside NHS buildings by protesters.

    Ben Gummer

    There have been no representations from National Health Service staff who feel they are being harassed outside NHS buildings by protesters.

    Although protesters are democratically entitled to make their views known on abortion and other issues and can do so outside NHS hospitals and other NHS buildings, we would condemn any harassment of NHS staff, patients and others. We would expect NHS trusts, as responsible for providing a safe environment for all using their facilities, to work with the Police and other agencies as appropriate to ensure they have adequate arrangements in place to prevent harassment of staff and patients. If staff are subject to criminal activity such as physical assaults, these should be reported so that employers can take appropriate action.

    Currently, NHS trusts have access to Security Incident Reporting Systems which helps NHS Protect measure the nature and scale of security incidents across the NHS, not just those involving physical assaults on staff but also those involving non-physical abuse and theft of/damage to NHS assets.

  • Ben Bradshaw – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Ben Bradshaw – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ben Bradshaw on 2016-05-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of whether UK citizens would retain the automatic right to hold the European Health Insurance Card during the period prior to the completion of Article 50 negotiations relating to the Lisbon Treaty in the event of the UK voting to leave the EU.

    Alistair Burt

    The procedure governing a country’s departure from the European Union is set out in Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union. This provides for a period of two years for the negotiation of exit terms. EU law would continue to apply to the departing Member State until the Article 50 agreement had entered into force, or for two years if no agreement had been reached and no extension to the two year period had been granted. A request for an extension could only be granted with the unanimous agreement of the remaining Member States. The Government’s position is that the United Kingdom will be stronger, safer and better off remaining in a reformed EU.

  • Kelvin Hopkins – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Kelvin Hopkins – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kelvin Hopkins on 2016-07-06.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many (a) planned and (b) unplanned cancellations of train services operated by Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) under the emergency timetable introduced from 11 July 2016 would place GTR in breach of the level of cancellations set out in the Remedial Plan agreed between GTR and his Department in February 2016.

    Claire Perry

    Under the Franchise Agreement, where GTR can provide the evidence that cancellations are due to official or unofficial industrial action, they can claim Force Majeure, which they have done. The Govia Thameslink Railway Franchise Agreement in Schedule 7.1 sets out the performance benchmarks and financial regime that is in place in relation to cancellations. A copy of the Franchise Agreement can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/govia-thameslink .

    The department is monitoring the position on a regular basis.

    “