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Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Phil Boswell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Phil Boswell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Phil Boswell on 2016-01-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the implications for his polices of the conclusion of the Joseph Rowntree Foundation report, entitled Monitoring Poverty and Social Exclusion 2015, that the number of people in low-income working households has risen from 5.2 million to 6.7 million in the last 10 years.

    Priti Patel

    The Department carefully considers all relevant publications.

    The number of people in in-work relative low income is 200,000 lower than at its peak in 2008/09. Moreover, Universal Credit, our investment in childcare, the National Living Wage, and our increase in the personal tax allowance will support individuals and working households by enabling them to earn more and keep more of what they earn.

  • Daniel Kawczynski – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Daniel Kawczynski – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Kawczynski on 2016-02-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of providing a registered intermediary when children are interviewed by police in sexual offence cases.

    Mike Penning

    The specific needs of vulnerable witnesses, including children, are assessed on a case by case basis. The guidance, “Achieving Best Evidence in Criminal Proceedings”, sets out best practice for the police when undertaking an initial assessment. This assessment may identify a specific need for the assistance of an intermediary during the course of the investigation, for example in an interview or latterly at court when giving evidence.

  • Charlotte Leslie – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Charlotte Leslie – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Charlotte Leslie on 2016-02-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that failed asylum claimants who have spoken out against the government of their country of origin are not deported in such a way as to draw the case to the attention of immigration officials in the destination country.

    James Brokenshire

    We carefully consider all asylum claims on their individual merits and provide protection for those who need it, in accordance with our international obligations under the Refugee Convention and the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). This includes an assessment about whether a person who has spoken out against their government is likely to be at risk of persecution or serious harm on return.

    We do not provide any information relating to an asylum claim to the government of a claimant’s country of origin. No one who is at risk of serious harm in their country is expected to return there, but we do expect those who do not need our protection to return home voluntarily.

  • Peter Kyle – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Peter Kyle – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Peter Kyle on 2016-03-22.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when she plans for the statutory guidance for local authorities, entitled Post-16 transport to education and training, next to be reviewed to take account of the raising of the education and training participation age to 18; and if she will make a statement.

    Mr Sam Gyimah

    The statutory guidance for local authorities on post-16 transport was updated in February 2014; it is reviewed annually and updated if necessary. The updated guidance includes information on the raising of the participation age, along with a link to local authority guidance on participation.

    The statutory responsibility for transport to education and training for 16- to 19-year-olds rests with local authorities who we expect to make reasonable decisions about the support they offer based on the needs of their young people, local transport infrastructure and the resources they have available.

    Most young people have access to some kind of discount or concession on bus or train travel, either from their local authority, local transport providers, or from their school or college. The 16 to 19 Bursary Fund is also available to support young people with the costs associated with attending education or training, and transport is the biggest single area of expenditure for which this fund is used.

  • Lisa Cameron – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lisa Cameron – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lisa Cameron on 2016-04-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assistance the Government has provided to the Nigerian government in the search for the Chibok schoolgirls who were kidnapped in April 2014.

    James Duddridge

    In response to the abduction of the Chibok girls the UK, together with the US and France, provided a range of military and intelligence support to help the Nigerian government in their search for the missing girls, and to address the long-term challenges of terrorism.

    Since 2014 the UK has significantly increased our military, intelligence and development support to Nigeria. This includes training and advice for Nigerian units deploying against Boko Haram. Last year almost 1000 Nigerian military personnel benefited from UK training to prepare them for counter-insurgency operations in the north east. We have also provided £5million to support the Multinational Joint Task Force set up by Nigeria and its neighbours to tackle the insurgents. Through our development assistance, the UK supports the Government of Nigeria’s Safe Schools Initiative which has helped over 90,000 displaced children to return to school and we have increased our humanitarian support to help deliver food, water and emergency healthcare to those affected by the conflict.

    We remain fully committed to supporting Nigeria in its fight against Boko Haram and to help find all those who are missing, including the Chibok girls.

  • 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 2016-06-06.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 6 June 2016 to Question 38441, what estimate he has made of the date by which all prisoners serving sentences of imprisonment for public protection whose tariffs have expired will be released.

    Andrew Selous

    The sentence of IPP was introduced in the Criminal Justice Act 2003 for offences committed after April 2005. They were abolished in 2012 by the Coalition Government.

    The National Offender Management Service (NOMS) does not disaggregate spending on IPP prisoners from spending on all prisoners.

    It is a priority for us to help remaining IPP prisoners progress towards release, when it is safe to do so, including by giving them opportunities to complete relevant interventions and work to reduce their risk of harm and risk of reoffending.

    The ongoing work to improve progression opportunities is continuing to achieve results, with 512 IPP releases approved by the Parole Board in 2015, the highest number of annual releases since the sentence became available in 2005.

    The release dates of prisoners serving IPP sentences, once they have completed their tariff, is entirely a matter for the independent Parole Board. The Board will direct release only if prisoners’ risks have been reduced to a level that may be safely managed in the community.

  • Neil Gray – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Neil Gray – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Neil Gray on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will estimate how many parents and carers in receipt of universal credit will require childcare after transition to in-work conditionality.

    Damian Hinds

    The information requested could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

  • Roger Godsiff – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Roger Godsiff – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2016-10-10.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the Gulf Strategy Unit’s remit is; and which Government Minister set that remit.

    Ben Gummer

    The Gulf Strategy Integrated Delivery Team was established in 2015.

    Its remit is to coordinate the Government’s strategic approach to UK engagement with the Gulf States as set out in the Strategic Defence and Security Review 2015.

    It employs three full-time and one part-time Government employees. One is military and three are civilian.

    Administration costs were £70,004 in the 2015-16 financial year and the budget for administration costs in the 2016-17 financial year is £423,000. The 2015-16 figure reflects the fact the unit was established later in the financial year.

  • Louise Haigh – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Louise Haigh – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Haigh on 2015-10-29.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will ensure that save-as-you-earn and share incentive plan savings limits are increased in line with inflation on an annual basis.

    Mr David Gauke

    The tax-advantaged Save As You Earn (SAYE) and Share Incentive Plan (SIP) limits were significantly increased from April 2014. The increases the Government have made are reasonable, given the average monthly SAYE savings and the value of awards currently made to employees under SIP, and they represent the best use of resources. The Government will continue to keep the SAYE and SIP limits under review.

    In addition to increasing the SAYE and SIP limits, the rules of the schemes were substantially reviewed and simplified following the recommendations made by the Office of Tax Simplification in March 2012. Last year, the requirement that these schemes must be approved by HM Revenue and Customs to qualify for favourable tax treatment was replaced by self-certification. Coupled with other changes to simplify some technical aspects of the rules, this will make these schemes more attractive to businesses and employees.

    No data is collected and no estimates are made of the income levels of the participants in SAYE schemes.

    Permitting private equity backed companies to offer all-employee tax advantaged schemes would be likely to involve significant changes to the rules of the schemes, and there would be a number of other factors to consider carefully, including the increased cost and complexity of any extension.

  • Luciana Berger – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Luciana Berger – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Luciana Berger on 2015-11-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how much the Information Commissioner’s Office has spent on processing assessments pursuant to section 42 of the Data Protection Act 1998 in each of the last five financial years; how many such requests that Office has received in each of the those years; and what the recorded outcomes were of those requests.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    Under section 42 of the Data Protection Act 1998 (DPA), any person who is, or believes that he is, directly affected by the processing of personal data, can ask the Information Commissioner to consider whether the processing is likely to comply with the law. On receiving such a request, the Commissioner is obliged to consider the concern and make an assessment. Any such request, and cases taken forward are dealt with by the ICO’s customer contact and performance improvement business areas. The ICO does not cost up S42 assessments separately from other data protection casework, but the total staffing costs for these two business areas for the last five financial years are set out below:

    2015/16 (April-Nov)

    £2,883,256.14

    2014/15

    £3,879,782.83

    2013/14

    £3,969,104.17

    2012/13

    £3,581,161.82

    2011/12

    £3,389,336.87

    Numbers of assessments received and concluded for each of the past 5 years are set out below:

    Financial years

    2010-11

    2011-12

    2012-13

    2013-14

    2014-15

    Number of assessments received under s42 DPA

    13034

    12980

    13760

    14738

    14268

    Number of assessments completed under s42 DPA

    14276

    12725

    14280

    15492

    15052

    The recorded outcomes of those assessments are set out below:

    Financial years

    Outcome of s42 assessment

    2010-11

    2011-12

    2012-13

    2013-14

    2014-15

    Not progressed

    14%

    11%

    13%

    14%

    Compliance likely

    22%

    21%

    22%

    19%

    Compliance unlikely

    33%

    31%

    35%

    34%

    Ineligible/Made too early

    27%

    36%

    30%

    33%

    Reopened – pending final outcome

    4%

    1%

    No Action for Data Controller

    35%

    Data Controller Action required

    22%

    Concern to be raised with Data Controller

    17%

    compliance advice given to Data Controller

    10%

    Response needed from Data Controller

    7%

    Complaint not applicable under DPA

    4%

    General advice given to Data Controller

    4%

    Data Controller outside UK

    1%

    Improvement action plan agreed with Data Controller

    1%

    “