Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Tim Farron – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Tim Farron – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Farron on 2016-03-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to paragraph 4.49 of the National Security Strategy and Strategic Defence and Security Review 2015, what progress the Government has made on the proposal to adapt a Voyager aircraft for the secure transport of senior ministers and the Royal Family; what adaptations will be made to the aircraft for that purpose; what estimate the Government has made of costs of those adaptations; who is responsible for making those adaptations; and when those adaptations are planned to be completed.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    We are making good progress on the proposal to adapt one of our existing Voyager aircraft so that, as well as its primary air tanking role, it can transport senior Ministers securely. The aircraft will also be available for the Royal Family. There will be a number of modifications to ensure that the Voyager aircraft can transport senior Ministers whilst still maintaining the ability to conduct its operational role, therefore delivering better value for money than the current use of charter aircraft. The aircraft will be reconfigured to have 158 seats.

    I am witholding further information at this time as its release would prejudice on going commercial negotiations.

  • Jess Phillips – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Jess Phillips – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jess Phillips on 2016-04-26.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what support will be provided to parents should they have difficulties accessing support through the tax-free childcare scheme; and if he will make a statement.

    Damian Hinds

    Tax-Free Childcare is being designed to be as straightforward as possible for parents. It will be quick and easy to apply online for the vast majority who are able to do so. However, Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs will ensure that assistance is provided to families who cannot access the internet so that they do not miss out on the support available via Tax-Free Childcare.

    Once the scheme is fully open, we estimate that up to 1 million families may take up the scheme in ‘steady state’.

    The Tax-Free Childcare system will be extensively tested before the scheme is launched.

  • – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

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

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to require Ofsted inspectors to judge whether the work of mainstream Christian churches with young people, either directly or through approved Christian organisations which specialise in working with young people, in activities such as holiday Bible clubs, church weekends, and summer camps, is in accordance with a British Values” test; and if so

    Lord Nash

    The Government is committed to safeguarding all children and protecting them from the risk of harm and extremism, including in out-of-school settings.

    The Prime Minister announced plans to introduce a new system of oversight for out-of-school education settings – such as supplementary schools and tuition centres – which teach children intensively, on 7 October 2015. These were confirmed in the Government’s Counter-Extremism Strategy which was published on 19 October. These plans to regulate out-of-school settings which teach children intensively were set out in the call for evidence which ran for 6 and a half weeks between 26 November and 11 January.

    We are not proposing to regulate settings teaching children for a short period every week, such as Sunday schools or the Scouts, or one-off residential activities, such as a week-long summer camp. We are looking specifically at settings providing intensive education outside school where children could be spending more than six hours a week.

    The call for evidence sought views on the appropriateness of seeking to prohibit teaching which undermines or is incompatible with fundamental British values. Now that the call for evidence has closed, we are considering carefully the responses received as we develop the proposals further.

    We will be publishing our response to the call for evidence and setting out the next steps on the proposals in due course.

  • Cheryl Gillan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Cheryl Gillan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Cheryl Gillan on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of the use of mechanical thrombectomy in treatment of stroke on length of stay in hospital and bed occupancy rates.

    David Mowat

    As yet, there are insufficient patients being treated with mechanical thrombectomy to assess its impact on processes, such as length of hospital stay and bed occupancy rates, outcomes of care and the effect on post stroke rehabilitation.

    However, the Sentinel Stroke National Audit Programme is now collecting data on patients treated with mechanical thrombectomy and the results will be reported as soon as it is feasible. Sufficient cases will need to be undertaken before conducting the necessary statistical analyses and reporting the data.

    NHS England is considering whether mechanical thrombectomy should be an area covered by its specialised commissioning portfolio and work is underway on this.

  • Liz Saville Roberts – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Liz Saville Roberts – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Liz Saville Roberts on 2016-10-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the re-conviction rate is of offenders supervised by Working Links in Wales during the first 12 months following such supervision.

    Mr Sam Gyimah

    One year reoffending rates for the first cohort managed under our probation reforms will be published in the quarterly proven reoffending statistics bulletin in autumn 2017, available on gov.uk. This will include those for Wales.

  • Anna Turley – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Anna Turley – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Anna Turley on 2015-11-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, whether monitoring activity was put in place by his Department to oversee the financial viability of SSI in Redcar.

    Anna Soubry

    It is up to companies to run their own financial affairs and to submit annual returns and accounts. My Department was aware of the serious financial difficulties facing SSI UK prior to its closure and made every effort within the bounds of the law to provide assistance where we could, including ensuring workers could be paid their monthly salaries.

  • Lord Fearn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Lord Fearn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Fearn on 2015-12-01.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the annual spending by inbound tourists to the UK and which countries are the 10 largest source markets from which those tourists come.

    Baroness Neville-Rolfe

    According to the Office for National Statistics International Passenger Survey, inbound visitors to the UK spent £21.85 billion in 2014. The top ten inbound markets by spend last year are set out in the following table.

    Top 10 inbound markets by value 2014

    From

    Spend (£m)

    1

    USA

    £2,944

    2

    Germany

    £1,478

    3

    France

    £1,434

    4

    Australia

    £1,224

    5

    Spain

    £1,082

    6

    Italy

    £922

    7

    Irish Republic

    £870

    8

    Netherlands

    £701

    9

    Norway

    £548

    10

    Sweden

    £503

    More information can be found on the VisitBritain website –https://www.visitbritain.org/inbound-tourism-trends

  • Stephen Gethins – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Stephen Gethins – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Gethins on 2016-01-06.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps he is taking to prepare for the outcome of the EU referendum.

    Anna Soubry

    The Government is fighting hard to fix the aspects of our EU membership that cause so much frustration in the United Kingdom – so we get a better deal for our country and secure our future. We are confident that the right agreement can be reached.

  • Lord Hylton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Hylton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

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

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they are making to the government of Turkey about attacks on the freedom of the media in the light of the number of journalists imprisoned, awaiting trial, and refused accreditation, and the number of TV channels that have been closed.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    I refer the noble Lord to my answer of 30 December 2016 (HL4542). The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond), discussed the importance of Turkey’s reform agenda including media freedoms, with President Erdoğan when they met in Turkey on 14 January.

  • Baroness Suttie – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Baroness Suttie – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Suttie on 2016-02-25.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what meetings they have had recently with the government of Tunisia to discuss the current travel advice for UK citizens intending to travel to Tunisia; and whether they have any plans to amend that advice.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    Ministers and officials are in regular contact with the Tunisian authorities, including on the matter of Travel Advice. The most recent discussions were in February 2016 when the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my hon. Friend the Member for Bournemouth East (Mr Ellwood), met the Tunisian Ambassador in London, and the Chargé d’ Affairs in Tunis met the Ministers for Foreign Affairs, Tourism and Interior.

    We keep our travel advice for Tunisia under constant review, taking into account the current terrorist threat and the Tunisian capacity to deter and respond to that threat. The safety of British nationals abroad remains our priority.