Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • John Pugh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Attorney General

    John Pugh – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Attorney General

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Pugh on 2016-10-07.

    To ask the Attorney General, what proportion of staff on the payroll of the Law Officers’ Departments who work in Westminster are (a) British nationals and (b) nationals of another country.

    Robert Buckland

    All Government Departments are bound by legal requirements concerning the right to work in the UK and, in addition, the Civil Service Nationality Rules.

    Evidence of nationality is checked at the point of recruitment into the Civil Service as part of wider pre-employment checks, but there is no requirement on departments to retain this information beyond the point at which it has served its purpose.

    More broadly, the Government will be consulting in due course on how we work with business to ensure that workers in this country have the skills that they need to get a job. There are no proposals to publish lists of the number or proportion of foreign workers.

  • Nigel Dodds – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Nigel Dodds – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nigel Dodds on 2015-10-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent representations he has made to the Russian government on full implementation of its obligations under the Minsk agreements.

    Mr David Lidington

    In all ministerial and senior official contacts with Russia, the UK Government continues to emphasise the importance of full implementation of the Minsk Agreements. The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge ( Mr Hammond) raised the issue of Ukraine when he met Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in the margins of the Iran nuclear negotiations in Vienna in July 2015, and again in the margins of the Syria talks in Vienna in October 2015. I raised it when I met the Russian Ambassador to the UK, Alexander Yakovenko in June 2015.

  • Lord Robertson of Port Ellen – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Lord Robertson of Port Ellen – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Robertson of Port Ellen on 2015-11-25.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what actions are planned in the UK to fulfil the objectives of reducing deaths and injuries on the roads included in the global Sustainable Development Goals.

    Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

    The Conservative Manifesto 2015 had a commitment to reduce the number of cyclists and other road users killed or injured on our roads every year. This commitment aligns with the Sustainable Development Goal of halving the number of road traffic deaths and injuries globally by 2020. We are working closely with road safety groups to consider what more can be done in the UK and we believe that every death is a tragedy and is one too many.

  • Ann Clwyd – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Ann Clwyd – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ann Clwyd on 2015-12-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what his policy is on the creation of the Syrian Democratic Assembly in Northern Syria.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    The creation of the Syrian Democratic Assembly to act as the political branch of the Syrian Democratic Forces was agreed at the Democratic Syria Conference for Opposition Forces held between 8-9 December. This conference brought together Syrian Kurdish and Arab parties that reside in Northern Syria. They discussed the future of the country after four years of war and agreed that the Syrian crisis must be solved through negotiation, the fight against terrorism and political change through a transition followed by free and fair elections and a new constitution.

    It is important that all parties, including the Syrian Democratic Assembly, work towards the shared goal of a political settlement to the conflict based on the Geneva Communiqué. The UK will continue to work through the International Syrian Support Group towards that goal.

  • Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-01-27.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people took part in the Access to Work programme in each year from 2010 to 2013.

    Justin Tomlinson

    The number of people helped by Access to Work in each year from 2010 to 2013 is published in the Access to Work Official Statistics which can be found at the following link:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/access-to-work-statistics-on-recipients–2

  • Paul Flynn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Paul Flynn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Flynn on 2016-02-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for projects supported by State Aid agreements of the UK leaving the EU.

    Anna Soubry

    The Government’s view is that the UK will be stronger, safer and better off in a reformed European Union.

    As required by the EU Referendum Act 2015, the Government is committed to producing clear information, ahead of the Referendum, on: the outcome of the renegotiation, rights and obligations in European Union law, an assessment of alternatives to membership, and the process for leaving.

  • Stephen Doughty – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Stephen Doughty – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Doughty on 2016-03-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions he has had with (a) Network Rail and (b) train operating companies on minimising disruption from the planned closure of the Severn Tunnel for electrification.

    Claire Perry

    Ministers regularly meet with Network Rail and the train operating companies to discuss a range of issues, including the need to ensure that the investment programme to enhance the network results in the minimum necessary disruption to passengers.

  • Jenny Chapman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Jenny Chapman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jenny Chapman on 2016-04-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the effect of Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services on the health, wellbeing and performance of young people in schools and colleges.

    Mr Sam Gyimah

    We want children to do well academically. Attainment is supported if students have good health and mental wellbeing and when they have access to specialist mental health services where they need it.

    The Government is investing an additional £1.4bn in children’s mental health this Parliament. Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs) across the country have worked with partners, including schools and colleges, to produce local transformation plans for children and young people’s mental health services. These should set out what will be done locally to make the best use of the resources available – changing how child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) are delivered in response to the challenges set out in the Future in Mind report and increasing the focus on preventative activity. NHS England has put the plans through an assurance process before releasing funds and is carrying out an analysis of plans to identify practice that can be shared to inform future planning.

    In addition we have contributed to a £3m joint pilot with NHS England which is testing how single points of contact in CAMHS and schools can secure effective mental health support to pupils. The pilots are involving over 250 schools in 27 CCG areas through joint training, which supports schools and CAMHS leads to identify specific activity to improve support in their area.

    The Department of Health has commissioned a new survey into the prevalence of mental health conditions in children and young people in England, the first since 2004. They expect this to be published in 2018.

  • Jeremy Lefroy – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Jeremy Lefroy – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jeremy Lefroy on 2016-05-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he plans to take to improve the rail network and services between London and Stafford.

    Claire Perry

    As part of the Rail Investment Strategy, Network Rail has delivered a package of major infrastructure improvements in the Stafford area. This includes the grade separation of Norton Bridge junction – which was been brought into use almost 12 months early this May – and has created additional capacity for services on the West Coast Main Line.

    Rail services between Stafford and London are currently provided by the West Midlands and InterCity West Coast franchises. These franchises are due be replaced when they expire in October 2017 and April 2018 respectively. The Department has completed a consultation in respect of the replacement West Midlands franchise, and commenced another in respect of InterCity West Coast earlier this month. The outcomes of those consultations will be published in due course.

    Looking to the future, HS2 will deliver high-speed services between London and Stafford from 2026.

  • Alistair Carmichael – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Alistair Carmichael – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alistair Carmichael on 2016-07-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she intends to allow children with refugee status to sponsor their parents for the purposes of refugee family renunion.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    The current family reunion policy meets our international obligations and strikes the right balance. There are no plans to extend the criteria. Allowing children to sponsor parents would create perverse incentives for them to be encouraged, or even forced, to leave their family and risk hazardous journeys to the UK to sponsor relatives. This plays into the hands of criminal gangs who exploit vulnerable people and goes against our safe guarding responsibilities.

    Where a family reunion application fails under the Immigration Rules we consider whether there are exceptional circumstances or compassionate reasons to justify granting a visa outside the Rules.