Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • David Hanson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Attorney General

    David Hanson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Attorney General

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Hanson on 2016-10-24.

    To ask the Attorney General, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the use of the European Arrest Warrant.

    Robert Buckland

    The European Arrest Warrant (EAW) provides a basis for a swift and cost-efficient extradition process between EU Member States implementing the principle of ‘mutual recognition’ of judicial decisions. The UK continues to work closely with Member States to execute EAW following the referendum.

  • Peter Bone – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Wales Office

    Peter Bone – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Wales Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Peter Bone on 2015-11-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits for his Department of merging the Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland Offices to make a Department for the regions.

    Stephen Crabb

    I would start by reminding my honourable Friend that Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland are nations, not regions.

    Since my appointment as Secretary of State for Wales, I have taken action to drive down costs within the Wales Office by collaborating with other Government Departments and sharing services.

    At the present time I believe the nations are best served by strong Secretaries of State representing their interests around the Cabinet table.

  • Nigel Adams – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Nigel Adams – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nigel Adams on 2015-12-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what assessment he has made of the potential overlap between contributors to the construction industry training levy and the proposed employer apprenticeship levy; and what assessment he has made of the potential effect on the construction industry of that proposed levy in drawing up those proposals.

    Nick Boles

    All employers with a pay bill greater than £3,000,000 will be in scope of the apprenticeships levy, including those in the construction and engineering construction sectors. We are working with the Industry Training Boards to understand how their existing arrangements will be affected. They will be consulting with their members in advance of the introduction of the apprenticeships levy on whether they should continue to pay the industry levy and if so, how it should be combined with the national apprenticeship levy. We are also working with other sectors, where there are existing collective training arrangements about what the apprenticeships levy means to them.

  • Frank Field – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Frank Field – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2016-01-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if her Department will commission research on the (a) reasons for and (b) effects of the different thresholds for investigations to be initiated under section 17 and section 47 of the Children Act 1989.

    Edward Timpson

    Sections 17 and 47 of the Children Act 1989 have different purposes. Section 17 defines a child as being “in need” if they are unlikely to achieve or maintain a reasonable standard of health or development without the provision of services by the local authority, or their health and development are likely to be impaired (or further impaired), without the provision of such services, or they are disabled. Under this section, local authorities are required to provide a range and level of services appropriate to those children’s needs.

    Section 47 places a duty on local authorities to make enquiries to decide whether and what action should be taken to safeguard the child from “significant harm”. This is the point at which compulsory intervention in a child’s life is justified.

    Each local authority will interpret the definitions at Section 17 and Section 47 and set local thresholds, agreed by Local Safeguarding Children Boards, through their statutory function under the Children Act 2004, in discussion with all partners. This function is set out in Regulation 5 of the Local Safeguarding Children Boards Regulations 2006, as follows:

    1(a) developing policies and procedures for safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children in the area of the authority, including policies and procedures in relation to:

    (i) the action to be taken where there are concerns about a child’s safety or welfare, including thresholds for intervention;

    This is also set out in the Working Together to Safeguard Children, 2015 statutory guidance. Ofsted looks at thresholds as part of its inspection process and considers whether the levels set locally are appropriate. It expects good Local Safeguarding Children Boards to monitor and understand the application of thresholds locally.

  • Gavin Shuker – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Attorney General

    Gavin Shuker – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Attorney General

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gavin Shuker on 2016-02-08.

    To ask the Attorney General, how many people have been charged with paying for sexual services of a child under section 47 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 where (a) the victim was under 18, and those charged did not reasonably believe that the victim was 18 or over and (b) the victim was under 13 in each of the last three years.

    Robert Buckland

    The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) does not maintain a central record of the number of defendants prosecuted for offences brought under section 47 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 or the ages of victims. This information could only be obtained by examining CPS case files, which would incur disproportionate cost. However, records are held showing the overall number of offences, rather than defendants, in which a prosecution commenced at magistrates’ courts. These are detailed below.

    2012-2013

    2013-2014

    2014-2015

    Sexual Offences Act 2003 S.47

    26

    36

    49

    Note: A single defendant may be prosecuted for multiple offences.

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

    Douglas Carswell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Carswell on 2016-02-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the Prime Minister’s Oral Statement of 22 February 2016, Official Report, column 35, on the European Council, whether his Department is undertaking planning in the eventuality of a majority leave vote in the EU referendum.

    Michael Fallon

    At the February European Council the Government negotiated a new settlement, giving the United Kingdom a special status in a reformed European Union. The Government’s position, as set out by the Prime Minister to the House on 22 February 2016, is that the UK will be stronger, safer and better off remaining in a reformed EU.

  • Hilary Benn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Hilary Benn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2016-03-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the human rights situation in Liberia.

    Mr Philip Hammond

    Liberia has made significant progress since the end of its civil war in 2003. However, Liberia’s second Universal Periodic Review at the UN Human Rights Council in 2015, highlighted continuing concerns over gender-based violence and victims’ access to justice; the length of pre-trial detention; investigative capacity of the police and judiciary; and the death penalty. The government of Liberia accepted 147 of the 186 recommendations made. The UK Government regularly presses for concrete action in these areas through our Ambassador in Monrovia and in multilateral fora.

    The UK is concerned about inflammatory statements by the Liberian opposition in the run-up to the country’s elections in 2017. In March, our Ambassador urged the Government of Liberia to show restraint by ensuring that their responses to such statements are proportionate.

  • Jonathan Ashworth – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Jonathan Ashworth – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jonathan Ashworth on 2016-05-04.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether it is his policy is on forcing overseas territories to publish public registers of beneficial ownership.

    Matthew Hancock

    It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

  • Bob Blackman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Bob Blackman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bob Blackman on 2016-06-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, with reference to the Answers of 27 April 2016 to Questions 34797 and 34798, what assessment he has made of the implications for the UK’s role in Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations of UK funding being used by UN-funded non-governmental organisations to commemorate Palestinian terrorists.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    We have made no such assessment.

  • Peter Kyle – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Trade

    Peter Kyle – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Trade

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Peter Kyle on 2016-09-06.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, how many staff at what civil service grades his Department employs.

    Greg Hands

    Following her appointment on 13 July 2016 the Prime Minister established the Department for International Trade (DIT). The DIT aggregates UK Trade and Investment (UKTI), UK Export and Finance (UKEF), Trade Policy Units from the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS), as well as some new hires.

    Until such time as a transfer of functions order establishes the Secretary of State as a corporation sole, DIT remains a unified Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) and Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) department for accounting purposes.

    As DIT is currently being formed, the number staff the Department employs is being finalised while employee transfers and recruitment are taking place.