Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Gareth Thomas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Gareth Thomas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gareth Thomas on 2016-10-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the potential level of volatility of local authority income once business rates income is fully retained by local authorities; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr Marcus Jones

    We recently conducted a consultation on our approach to the implementation of 100% Business Rates Retention. This consultation included questions on how to take account of changes in need over time, how to manage volatility in business rates income and how to distribute funding between different tiers of government. My officials are currently considering the 454 responses we have received to this consultation and we will publish a summary of the responses and our proposed way forward in due course. In the meantime, we will continue close collaboration with the Local Government Association, other groups representative of local government, and individual local authorities, in taking this work forward.

  • Baroness Walmsley – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Baroness Walmsley – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Walmsley on 2015-11-05.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have introduced arrangements for sharing gains on the sale of PFI equity shares in new PFI projects, as recommended by the Public Accounts Committee in its report of 2011 Lessons from PFI and other projects.

    Lord O’Neill of Gatley

    In its response to the Public Accounts Committee’s report, the Government has made clear that it does not agree that it would be desirable to seek a share of gains arising from the sale of shares in existing contracts. There would be a significant negative impact on the confidence of investors, particularly foreign investors, in the UK market and new investment in UK infrastructure would be discouraged.

    The Treasury’s full response can be found at on the gov.uk website.

  • Paul Flynn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Paul Flynn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Flynn on 2015-12-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will publish on his Department’s website (a) corroborated information on deaths of (i) ISIS fighters and (ii) civilians as a result of airstrikes on Syrian locations and (b) other information in a daily battle assessment for each day from 2 December 2015.

    Penny Mordaunt

    Information on RAF airstrikes in Iraq and Syria, and their outcome, is already published on the gov.uk website and is regularly updated. We know of no civilian casualties caused by RAF airstrikes against Daesh in Iraq or Syria.

  • Douglas Chapman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Douglas Chapman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Chapman on 2016-01-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the purpose was of the visit of his officials to the USS Ronald Reagan on 8 January 2016; and what the rank of the visiting officials was.

    Michael Fallon

    The purpose of my visit to the USS Ronald Reagan was to share US thinking about security challenges in North and Southeast Asia. I was accompanied by the Vice Chief of the Defence Staff, the Director General for Security Policy, the UK Ambassador and the Defence Attache.

  • Karl Turner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Karl Turner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Karl Turner on 2016-02-03.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 29 January 2016 to Question 24371, how many Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) staff carried out complete checks on vessels working in all sulphur dioxide emission control areas contiguous with the UK coastline in 2015; and how many MCA staff will carry out this work in 2016.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) Marine Surveyors carry out a full range of Port State Control (PSC) and inspection tasks including assessment of compliance with environmental requirements such as the use of low sulphur fuel forming part of their normal duties.

    Surveyor resources are not dedicated to specific tasks and inspections will consider a range of safety and environmental issues so it is not possible to disaggregate staff numbers on this specific issue.

    In 2015, there were 74 qualified and accredited MCA Marine Surveyors carrying out PSC inspection activity, including that related to sulphur compliance across the UK.

    In 2016, there are 64 qualified and accredited MCA Marine Surveyors who have been supplemented by a further 30 trained sulphur inspectors.

  • Ian Murray – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Scotland Office

    Ian Murray – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Scotland Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Murray on 2016-03-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what recent discussions he has had with Ministers in the Scottish Government on the recent report from the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, Uneven Growth: Tackling City Decline and its ranking of Dundee as seventh highest on its index of relative decline.

    David Mundell

    I am aware of the Joseph Rowntree Foundation report and the issues it raises. The Government is committed to growing the economy across the UK and empowering Cities to realise their potential.

    Last week my Parliamentary Under Secretary of State, Lord Dunlop, participated in a Jobs Summit in Dundee along with the Scottish Government, Dundee City Council and others aimed at boosting employment in the area and regenerating one of our finest Scottish cities. Following the summit we have committed to work with interested parties to drive forward investment in Dundee.

  • Peter Grant – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Wales Office

    Peter Grant – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Wales Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Peter Grant on 2016-03-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what representations he has received from the Welsh Government on the fuel duty rebate scheme.

    Guto Bebb

    I have received no recent representations.

    All areas that met the strict criteria around pump price, population density and the cost of fuel transportation were included in the extension to the rural fuel rebate scheme introduced in April 2015.

    There are currently no plans to extend the scheme beyond the qualifying areas.

  • Peter Kyle – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Peter Kyle – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Peter Kyle on 2016-04-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what assessment he has made of the effect of the apprenticeship levy on employer sponsored degrees.

    Nick Boles

    We are committed to reforming higher and further education so that people are able to choose the next step that is right for them and employers get the skills they need.

    Employer-sponsored degrees have benefits for students, employers, institutions and the taxpayer. There are many excellent examples in our universities, which employers and universities may continue to develop alongside degree apprenticeships. Only apprenticeships training will be funded by the levy and it will be for employers to determine exactly how they use their levy funds.

  • Lord Hylton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Lord Hylton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2016-06-13.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they and other EU member states are taking to increase the number of competent interpreters available for interviewing and assessing refugees on (1) the islands and mainland of Greece, and (2) in south-east Europe.

    Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

    The UK continues to assist Member States facing particular migratory pressures and has responded to the request by the European Asylum Support Office (EASO) for Member States to provide interpreters to support the function of the Greek asylum system.

    The UK has offered up to 20 interpreters to help with the processing of migrants on the Greek Islands, a number of whom have already been deployed. We are working with EASO, the Greeks and the European Commission to plan further deployments. We also continue to work with Greece and the European Commission on how the UK can most effectively bolster their operational and deployment plan(s) and are very clear that we stand ready to do more.

  • Margaret Hodge – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Margaret Hodge – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Margaret Hodge on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many times his Department has used the services of (a) PwC, (b) Deloitte, (c) Ernst and Young, (d) KPMG and (e) other consulting firms in the last three financial years; and what (i) work was undertaken and (ii) the cost to the public purse was on each such occasion.

    Mr Marcus Jones

    Consultancy spend for the Department over the past three years is listed in the attached spreadsheet.