The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2015-12-11.
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what Henry VIII powers were (a) enacted in legislation passed in the 2010 to 2015 Parliament and (b) since May 2015.
Mr Oliver Letwin
Each time the Government proposes a new delegated power in a Bill, it submits a memorandum to the Delegated Powers and Regulatory Reform Committee setting out the case for the power. These memoranda are published on Parliament’s website.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Meg Hillier on 2016-01-21.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will make it his policy to enable special circumstances to be taken into account when making the decision to withhold housing benefit from people who are away from their homes for a period of more than four weeks.
Justin Tomlinson
The temporary absence rules allow Housing Benefit to continue where under the normal conditions of entitlement it would not do so. They are therefore extensions of entitlement rather than withdrawals of it.
It is the intention from April 2016, that Housing Benefit claimants who leave Great Britain for longer than 4 weeks will no longer be able to get Housing Benefit while they are away. This aligns the Housing Benefit rules with other benefits including Universal Credit.
We intend that the period of 4 weeks could be extended in exceptional circumstances (for example, if their reason for being abroad is due to the death of a family member).
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevan Jones on 2016-02-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment his Department has made of whether the Project Centurion configuration for the Typhoon will be completed by the end of 2018.
Mr Philip Dunne
Working closely with Industry and the NATO Eurofighter and Tornado Management Agency (NETMA), the Ministry of Defence conducts regular reviews as to the status of Project CENTURION as part of its Typhoon Programme delivery activity to ensure it delivers the planned capability upgrades by the end of 2018.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen McPartland on 2016-03-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 10 February 2016 to Question 26101, what the evidential basis is for the statement that even if all authorities increase by the maximum under the referendum principles, council tax will be lower in 2019-20 in real terms compared to 2010.
Mr Marcus Jones
The basis for this statement is calculating what the maximum that the England average council tax bills would be if all local authorities chose to increase by the maximum under the 2016-17 referendum principles. Plus what the increases would be if the same referendum principles applied for the years up to 2019-20. The maximum that the average bill could be is adjusted to 2010-11 prices using the Office for Budget Responsibility’s forecast of the Consumer Price Index.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Knight on 2016-04-12.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he expects the potholes on the northbound carriageway of the M1 motorway between junctions 10 and 11 to be repaired and the carriageway resurfaced; and if he will make a statement.
Andrew Jones
Highways England completed temporary surface repairs and filled nine potholes overnight on 30-31 March. They plan to carry out permanent surface repairs between junctions 10 and 11 in mid-May 2016. These will be hot patch repairs, which are just as effective as permanent resurfacing and are durable enough to last until the next resurfacing scheme.
Highways England inspects the M1 between junctions 10 and 11 twice weekly, with the latest safety inspection completed on Wednesday 13 April.
Highways England will continue to ensure that the M1 between junctions 10 and 11 remains safe and serviceable. This section is not due for resurfacing in the current Delivery Plan, due to the general condition being satisfactory.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Blencathra on 2016-05-05.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the potential for the reintroduction of pine martens into areas of the UK that are infested with grey squirrels.
Lord Gardiner of Kimble
The Forestry Commission is involved in the Vincent Wildlife Trust’s pine marten recovery project in mid and north Wales. The Forestry Commission in England is supporting a project in the Forest of Dean with the Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust, Natural England, Forest Research and others to pursue a pine marten restoration project. This project includes studies into impacts of pine martens including on trees and other wildlife. Natural England is also working with the Trust to restore viable populations of pine martens to northern England.
The Forestry Commission is also working closely with one of the authors of the paper that identified the decline in grey squirrel populations in the Irish midlands, which may be associated with the abundance of pine martens. The work with the author and others will further explore the relationship between red squirrels, grey squirrels and pine martens in the UK.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Maynard on 2016-06-27.
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if he will consider the proposal from contributors to the report entitled Ambition for Public Libraries in England 2016 to 2021 to redefine what constitutes a comprehensive and efficient service under the 1964 Public Libraries and Museums Act.
Mr Edward Vaizey
Responses to the Leadership for Libraries Taskforce’s Ambition consultation are being carefully considered and the Ambition document will be published in due course. There are no plans to amend the Public Libraries and Museums Act 1964.
The 1964 Act does not seek to be overly prescriptive in defining comprehensive and efficient, and it is a matter for local authorities to determine how to provide a public library service to their local community, within available resources.
The ‘Libraries as a Statutory Service’ was published in December 2015 and contains information on the legislative framework for library services under the Act. This sets out the factors to which the Secretary of State gives consideration in response to complaints about whether a local authority is providing a comprehensive and efficient library service.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nicholas Soames on 2016-09-14.
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what proportion of UK trade was with (a) Germany, (b) France, (c) Italy, (d) Spain, (e) Australia, (f) China, (g) Singapore, (h) US, (i) Canada and (j) other EU member states in each of the last five years.
Mark Garnier
The proportion of UK trade (exports and imports) with Australia, Canada, China, Singapore, the US and all EU member states in each of the last five years is given in the attached table. The estimates are based on data sourced from the latest Office for National Statistics’ Pink Book 2016 release.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kate Green on 2015-11-13.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what training has been given to Jobcentre Plus staff on the application of benefit sanctions in circumstances where a parent is unable to comply with conditions for benefit because of lack of suitable childcare.
Priti Patel
The Government sees sanctions as playing an important part in the labour market system, encouraging people to comply with conditions which will help them move into work. We want the sanctions system to be clear, fair and effective in promoting positive behaviours and we will continue to keep it under review so that it meets those aims.
Benefit sanction decisions within Jobcentre Plus are made by Decision Makers and Work Coaches. It is made clear that claimants’ caring responsibilities must always be taken into consideration, as well as emphasising the importance of a personalised and individual approach in every case.
This Government spent £5bn on childcare in 2014-2015– more than any previous administration and an increase of £1bn since 2010. We are now going further still, with a new package of support designed to improve the affordability and accessibility of childcare for working families. We are extending the free entitlement for 3 and 4 years from 15 hours to 30 hours per week for working parents, from September 2017, worth £5,000 per child per year. We are also introducing Tax-Free Childcare for working parents from early 2017, with a Government contribution of up to £2,000 per child.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jonathan Reynolds on 2015-12-11.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to support farmers to invest in new capital equipment.
George Eustice
Investment in the agriculture sector is an important driver to improving its productivity and growth. To support this, the Government has a range of tax and subsidy measures in place.
The Annual Investment Allowance is at its highest ever permanent level of £200,000, with effect from 1 January 2016. This is of particular benefit to firms investing heavily in plant and machinery, such as those in the agricultural sector. From April 2016, self-employed farmers will be able to average their profits for Income Tax purposes for two years or five years. This will enable farmers to spread volatile profits further and better plan their investments.
The Government also supports the agricultural sector through direct recognition of any actual depreciation in the capital gains tax computation at the point of sale. Agricultural land and buildings remain subject to a number of tax reliefs and exemptions including exemptions from business rates, agricultural property relief from inheritance tax and capital gains rollover relief on developed agricultural land.
The Government also supports investment in the agricultural sector through capital grants under the Rural Development Programme. This is primarily through the Countryside Productivity scheme, focusing on innovative investment that will lead to a step change in productivity.