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Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb on 2016-02-08.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of how much revenue would be raised if all air fares for aircraft departing from UK airports were subject to a tax at 20 per cent.

    Lord O’Neill of Gatley

    Such a form of taxation would be in breach of the UK’s obligations under its bilateral Air Service Agreements, the 1944 Chicago Convention and EU law. Consequently, no such assessment has been made.

  • 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 2016-03-03.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if his Department plans to accept the recommendations of the Commission on Freedom of Information that the Freedom of Information Act should be extended to private companies which hold public contracts.

    Matthew Hancock

    I refer the hon Member to my Written Ministerial Statement of 1 March 2016 [Hansard reference HCWS566]

  • Imran Hussain – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Imran Hussain – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Imran Hussain on 2016-04-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment she has made of the potential effect of public country-by-country reporting of corporation tax details by multinational companies on the economies of developing countries.

    Mr Desmond Swayne

    The UK supports efforts to improve tax transparency. We initiated international work on country-by-country (CbC) reporting during our G8 Presidency in 2013, calling on the OECD to develop a framework for CbC reporting to tax authorities as part of the Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) project. This important initiative will enhance transparency between business and tax authorities, including those of developing countries.

    DFID funds the Global Forum and the World Bank to provide technical assistance to improve exchange of tax information in developing countries which will allow tax authorities to gain access to information such as country-by-country reports. We also support the OECD in helping developing countries tackle multinational practices such as transfer pricing and have provided HMRC tax auditors to Tax Inspectors Without Borders, which puts expert tax auditors in the field working on complex multinational audit cases.

  • Jim Fitzpatrick – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Jim Fitzpatrick – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Fitzpatrick on 2016-05-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answers of 5 and 12 January 2016 to Questions 20499 and 20722, what assessment his Department has made of the relationship between trends in the levels of motor accident rates and claims payments since 2006.

    Dominic Raab

    Government data indicates that claims volumes remain at historically high levels. Over a similar period data from the Department for Transport shows accident rates have fallen by around 25%. This is clear evidence that the system is in need of further reform, which is why on 25 November 2015, in his Autumn Statement, the Chancellor announced new measures to reduce the cost and number of whiplash claims. The Government will consult on the detail of these reforms in due course and the consultation document will be accompanied by an impact assessment.

  • Jamie Reed – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Jamie Reed – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jamie Reed on 2016-06-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many times he has visited Copeland constituency in an official capacity in each of the last four years.

    Ben Gummer

    The Secretary of State for Health and his Ministerial team have not undertaken any visits in an official capacity to the Copeland constituency in the last four years.

  • Jim Fitzpatrick – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Jim Fitzpatrick – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Fitzpatrick on 2016-09-14.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what type of support his Department plans to provide for initiatives mentioned as best practice in the Childhood Obesity Plan in its roll-out in England.

    Nicola Blackwood

    We will measure progress annually through the National Child Measurement Programme and Health Survey for England. We are confident that the measures we have announced will make a real difference and estimate could reduce childhood obesity rates by about a fifth (330,000) over the next 10 years and the assessment of reformulation progress by food manufacturers will be undertaken independently by Public Health England. Moreover, if we do not see the desired progress then the Government does not rule out taking further measures.

    We will continue to work with the National Health Service, local authorities and other partners to deliver the proposals in our plan. For example, we are doubling the Primary PE and Sport Premium to £320 million from September 2017 and we will continue to fund a number of areas to support the plan’s ambitions including healthy start vouchers which gives healthy food support to the families that need it most. Alongside this, local authorities will receive over £16 billion to spend on public health over the next five years. We are confident they will want to prioritise action to tackle obesity according to local need.

  • Alex Cunningham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Alex Cunningham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alex Cunningham on 2015-11-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the number of (a) healthy adults, (b) pregnant women and (c) children who regularly consume game meat shot with lead.

    Jane Ellison

    Government set up the independent Lead Ammunition Group in 2010 to provide advice on risks to wildlife and human health from lead shot game. The Government is considering the independent Lead Ammunition Group’s report on the effect of lead shot on human and wildlife health and will respond as soon as possible The Food Standards Agency (FSA) accepts the expert advice of the UK Committee on Toxicity and the European Food Safety Authority that it is not possible to set a safe level for exposure to lead from food. However, to better understand the potential risk to UK consumers the FSA produced a risk assessment in 2012 based on its survey data from 2007 of game meat samples; Veterinary Medicines Directorate data from the national surveillance scheme was also considered. The FSA risk assessment considered the potential levels of exposure to lead from lead shot game for adults, children and toddlers based on different levels of game meat consumption.

    This risk assessment led to FSA issuing targeted advice to frequent consumers of lead shot game in 2012, warning of the potential risks. The advice was promoted as especially important for vulnerable groups such as toddlers and children, pregnant women and women trying for a baby, as exposure to lead can harm the developing brain and nervous system. The FSA risk assessment was published along with this advice. The Government has not estimated the number of people who regularly consume game meat shot with lead.

    More generally, the FSA, works on behalf of the UK within the European Union to agree harmonised controls to reduce public exposure to lead in the food chain. EU maximum limits apply for lead in a range of foods and these are regularly reviewed by the EU Commission and member states. These maximum limits apply to all food produced in the EU or imported to the EU.

  • Lord Hylton – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Hylton – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2015-12-09.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have discussed, or have any plans to discuss, with the government of Israel, the impact of exit permit restrictions on inhabitants of Gaza and the West Bank who seek medical treatment elsewhere.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    While we have not discussed this issue with the Israeli authorities, we remain deeply concerned about restrictions on freedom of movement in the Occupied Palestinian Territories. Our Ambassador in Tel Aviv raised the issue of freedom of movement with Israeli National Security Advisor Cohen on 2 November. Our Consul-General to Jerusalem also raised this issue with the Mayor of Jerusalem on 28 October.

  • Richard Burden – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Richard Burden – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-01-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what schemes are available to commercial drivers under the plug-in van grant scheme to purchase a home charge and charge point at work.

    Andrew Jones

    The Government offers grant funding to offset some of the upfront cost of the purchase and installation of dedicated domestic chargepoints to drivers of plug-in vehicles under the Electric Vehicle Homecharge Scheme (EVHS). This is available for any van or car eligible for the Plug-in Van and Car Grants. The scheme is available to motorists who are the registered keeper, lessee or have primary use of an eligible electric vehicle and provides up to 75% off the total capital costs of the chargepoint and associated installation costs. The grant is currently capped at £700 including VAT and this is reducing to £500 from 1 March 2016.

    The Government does not presently have any similar schemes to assist with the cost of chargepoints in the workplace. This is because our focus so far has been on supporting the installation of chargepoints at motorists’ homes and in public places. However, at the last Spending Review in November last year, we announced that we will spend more than £600 million between 2015 and 2020 to support the uptake and manufacturing of ultra low emission vehicles in the UK. Further details of how this funding will be used – including for provision of charging infrastructure – will be announced in due course.

  • Sadiq Khan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Sadiq Khan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sadiq Khan on 2016-02-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how much funding from the (a) European Regional Development Fund and (b) European Social Fund he forecasts will be spent in (i) London and (ii) each London borough in each year from 2016 and 2020.

    Anna Soubry

    The European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and European Social Fund (ESF) are administered in London by the Greater London Authority and will respond to priorities set out in the European Structural and Investment Strategy prepared by the London Enterprise Panel and other local partners. The Strategy updated in February 2016 sets out the amounts to be spent in London from ERDF and ESF and can be found on the London Enterprise Panel website.