Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Chris Law – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Chris Law – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Law on 2015-12-01.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what proportion of HM Revenue and Customs staff are employed to collect tax on small and medium-sized enterprises.

    Mr David Gauke

    HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) allocates resources in a flexible manner to ensure that it meets individual business needs.

    Information on the structure and organisation of HMRC is available at

    https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/hmrcs-annual-report-and-accounts

    “

  • John Healey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    John Healey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Healey on 2016-01-06.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what steps he plans to take to ensure that the new town of Northstowe will be developed to schedule.

    Brandon Lewis

    We are committed to the first housing starts on the land owned by the Homes and Communities Agency at Northstowe by the end of 2018, following the necessary infrastructure and other preparatory works. We envisage around 400 homes being started by March 2020 and the cumulative total rising to around 3,000 by March 2025. The detail of the tenure mix will be confirmed following the conclusion of negotiations with the local authority but there will be a very strong focus on the delivery of starter homes.

  • Lord Warner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Lord Warner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Warner on 2016-02-01.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they have taken better to enforce compliance with the Schools Admissions Code among religiously selective schools, in the light of the findings of the report by the Fair Admissions Campaign and British Humanist Association, An Unholy Mess.

    Lord Nash

    Admission authorities for all state-funded schools, including schools with a religious designation, are required to comply with the mandatory provisions of the School Admissions Code and other admissions law.

    Where an objection is made to the Schools Adjudicator, if the arrangements are found to be unfair or fail to comply with the Code, the admission authority must make changes to ensure their arrangements are compliant without undue delay. Where an admission authority fails to implement decisions of the adjudicator, the Secretary of State may direct the admission authority to do so.

    We continue to keep the Code under review, and, where we consider any changes are necessary to make the admissions system work more effectively for parents, these will be subject to a full public consultation.

  • Steve Rotheram – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Steve Rotheram – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve Rotheram on 2016-02-25.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent assessment he has made of the potential effect on the economy of the UK leaving the EU.

    Mr David Gauke

    As the Chancellor has said, a UK exit from the EU would be a long, costly and messy divorce. The finance Ministers and central bank governors of the G20 concluded at the weekend that a British exit would cause an economic shock not just to the UK but to Europe and the world. What people are asking for in this referendum campaign is a serious, sober and principled assessment from the Government setting out the facts. The Treasury will publish a comprehensive analysis of our membership of a reformed EU and the alternatives, including the long-term economic costs and benefits of EU membership and the risks associated with an exit before 23 June.

  • Christian Matheson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Christian Matheson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Christian Matheson on 2016-04-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the average cost per mile to upgrade a motorway to a smart motorway.

    Andrew Jones

    Highways England has an improvement programme to create additional network capacity by utilising the motorway hard shoulder as an additional lane. This is known as the Smart Motorway Programme.

    The cost depends on the scope and nature of each scheme and is heavily influenced by factors such as the number of junctions and the extent of work needed to existing structures.

    Based on the actual or forecast actual cost of relevant schemes started over the past five years, the total cost ranges from £7.5-£8.8m per mile of additional network capacity (using a common price base of March 2015).

  • Kerry McCarthy – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Kerry McCarthy – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kerry McCarthy on 2016-04-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many organisations in receipt of grant funding awarded by her Department were found to have engaged in activity that (a) influenced or attempted to influence Parliament, Government or the European Commission and (b) attempted to influence legislative or regulatory action in each of the last five years.

    George Eustice

    Defra does provide grants to help fund certain bodies which are trying to achieve objectives that are aligned to those of the department. However, these primarily have a global focus in relation to protecting eco-systems, the environment and protecting wildlife and whilst their activities may include lobbying international bodies and governments, we do not have specific details on this.

  • Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2016-06-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the cost of rough sleeping to the NHS.

    Jane Ellison

    According to the last Departmental estimate, homeless people – primarily rough sleepers and those living in hostels – cost National Health Service hospitals at least £85 million a year, based on around 40,500 people living in hostels (Healthcare for Single Homeless People (2010).

    Homeless people consume around four times more acute hospital services than the general population. These extra costs arise from the severity of their health conditions and because they are more likely to be admitted as emergency admissions.

    We have made £40 million available through the Homelessness Change/Platform for Life programme to provide tailored hostel accommodation to improve the physical and mental health outcomes of rough sleepers and provide stable, transitional, shared accommodation for young people who are homeless or in insecure housing. We have also encouraged local areas to develop and improve hospital discharge arrangements for people who are homeless through the £10 million Homeless Hospital Discharge Fund, including by more effective multi-agency working.

  • Justin Tomlinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Justin Tomlinson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Justin Tomlinson on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what progress has been made on the rehabilitation of offenders with Imprisonment for Public Protection sentences since 2012.

    Mr Sam Gyimah

    Offenders serving sentences of Imprisonment for Public Protection (IPP) continue to be detained beyond their tariff where the independent Parole Board determines that the level of risk of harm and re-offending which they pose is too great to be safely managed in the community.

    The National Offender Management Service (NOMS) continues to prioritise IPP offenders for courses and provides other interventions to help them reduce their risk.

  • Rob Marris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Rob Marris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rob Marris on 2016-10-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what plans her Department has made to publicise Government support for the (a) African Risk Capacity, (b) Catastrophe Risk Insurance Facility and (c) Pacific Catastrophe Risk Assessment and Financing Initiative at the Marrakesh Climate Conference, to be held in November 2016.

    Rory Stewart

    The UK’s support to African Risk Capacity (ARC), the Caribbean Catastrophe Risk Insurance Facility (CCRIF) and the Pacific Catastrophe Risk Assessment and Financing Initiative (PCRAFI) is managed by the Department for International Development (DFID).

    In December 2015, every G7 nation set out how they will meet a collective target to reach an additional 400 million people with risk insurance by 2020. The UK has led the way, making excellent progress in delivering on its pledges of support for Climate Risk Insurance in the past year including funding for ARC and PCRAFI. UK Ministers have been invited to participate in side events at the Marrakesh Conference of Parties (COP) meeting to highlight progress with the G7’s InsuResilience climate risk insurance initiative and on ARC.

    Currently, just 5% of losses from natural disasters in low-income countries are covered by insurance (against around 40% in developed countries), leaving millions with nothing to rebuild their lives after disaster strikes. UK initiatives give countries and people the tools they need to get themselves back on their feet, which is firmly in our national interest.

  • Richard Fuller – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Richard Fuller – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Fuller on 2015-11-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what discussions she has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on introducing a facility for rolling over funding in her Department’s budget in order to avoid expenditure being concentrated at the end of financial years and to ensure that annual targets for development expenditure are met.

    Mr Desmond Swayne

    The Department for International Development Secretary of State has not had any discussions with the Chancellor on the introduction of a facility to roll-over funding.