The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2016-03-01.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many new claims for universal credit have been made by people whose temporary employment contract has expired since the introduction of that credit.
Priti Patel
Universal Credit is paid on the basis of earnings. Information on types of contracts that claimants are on is not routinely collected.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Yvette Cooper on 2016-04-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will estimate the number of (a) jobs and (b) businesses that have been created in Scotland through European Regional Development Fund projects since 2010.
Anna Soubry
The number of jobs estimated to have been created in Scotland through European Regional Development Fund projects from the start of the 2007-2013 programmes to the end of February 2016 is 44,311. The number of businesses created in the same period is 17,543.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lady Hermon on 2016-05-03.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much has accrued to the public purse from use of fixed-odds betting terminals in (a) Northern Ireland, (b) Wales, (c) Scotland and (d) England in each of the last six years.
Damian Hinds
This information is not available. This is because HMRC do not ask for a country-by-country breakdown on the taxpayer’s return.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2016-06-15.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 15 June 2016 to Question 40258, what the minimum number of responses is for results for a school to be published on Parent View.
Nick Gibb
This is a matter for Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector, Sir Michael Wilshaw. I have asked him to write to you and a copy of his reply will be placed in the libraries of the House.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Madeleine Moon on 2016-09-12.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he is taking to ensure that apprenticeships and training programmes are adequately supported through current and future defence procurement (a) guidance and (b) programmes; and if he will make a statement.
Mark Lancaster
The Ministry of Defence is proud to be the single largest provider of quality apprenticeships in the UK, having delivered more than 150,000. We therefore play an important role in helping the Government meet its commitment to reaching three million apprenticeship starts in England by 2020.
We work closely with colleagues across Government and industry to help maintain and develop the essential skills needed to deliver defence outputs. That includes working with industry partners to develop new world-class apprenticeship standards. Where we know that specific skills are needed for the effective delivery of defence capability, our procurement policies allow for consideration of these skills in our tendering activity, and their continued development through the life of relevant contracts.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Brendan O’Hara on 2016-10-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the oral contribution by the Secretary of State for Defence, of 18 January 2016, Official Report, column 1118 on how many occasions the Government has considered evidence from (a) non-governmental organisations, (b) Airwars, (c) White Helmets and (d) other organisations working in Syria on the collection of data on civilian (i) casualties and (ii) injuries in Syria from 2016 to date; and on how many occasions the Government has considered such evidence as credible.
Mike Penning
The Ministry of Defence (MOD) has reviewed four batches of information collated by Airwars in relation to possible civilian casualties in Syria and Iraq, where they wished to establish whether RAF aircraft might have been involved. There was no credible evidence that RAF aircraft were responsible in any of these incidents. MOD officials have also met Airwars to outline the process used by the UK to assess the outcome of RAF airstrikes.
All RAF airstrikes are subject to an assessment of their outcome. Whilst there can be no guarantees in a complex air campaign like this one, our airstrikes are planned meticulously with the objective of minimising the risk of causing civilian casualties.The MOD continues to be prepared to consider credible evidence on this issue from any source.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Leslie on 2015-11-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the reasons for increased benefit fraud in the last financial year.
Justin Tomlinson
The 2014-2015 national statistics for fraud and error were published on 5 November 2015. We are committed to tackling fraud and error, and these figures show a reduction in total benefit fraud and error to the lowest ever level of 1.8%. There was a slight increase of 0.1% in the benefit fraud figure (from 0.7% in 2013-2014 to 0.8%).
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hunt of Chesterton on 2015-12-07.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how they plan to ensure that UK scientific institutions have the funds to collaborate with those in Arctic countries to monitor and predict the melting of permafrost and the release of methane; and what practical steps are being considered to minimise the environmental impact of the melting of permafrost and the release of methane in the Arctic.
Baroness Neville-Rolfe
The UK is funding and participating in a number of projects that will improve our knowledge of the Arctic, for example the current NERC Arctic Research Programme, the European JPI (Joint Programming Initiative) Climate collaboration between 16 European countries to coordinate jointly their climate research, and NERC’s Discovery Science grant programme. The UK also continues to invest in infrastructure to support polar science such as the new £200m polar research vessel.
The best practical way to limit the melting of permafrost and the subsequent release of methane is to keep the rise in global temperatures as low as possible. At the recent United Nations conference on climate change in Paris, the world took an important step forward with an unprecedented number of countries agreeing to a deal to limit global temperature rises.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2016-01-18.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the work of the Asian Restaurant Skills Board.
Mr Marcus Jones
The Asian Restaurant Skills Board is an independent industry-led initiative set up to promote the opportunities that the Asian cuisine industry offers for exciting and rewarding careers, increasing social mobility and celebrating the importance of Asian cuisine in modern Britain. DCLG has worked closely with the Board, helping it to promote the industry through a publicity campaign and raise funding for four degree-level scholarships in Asian Cuisine at the University of West London.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Angela Eagle on 2016-02-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what assessment he has made of the performance against its aims of the Government’s productivity plan, entitled Fixing the foundations: Creating a more prosperous nation, published in July 2015.
Joseph Johnson
Productivity growth is a key economic challenge for this Parliament. Productivity, measured as output per hour worked, grew by 1.3% in the third quarter of 2015 compared to a year earlier.
We are now in the process of implementing the Productivity Plan, with Ministers and officials overseeing delivery through cross-Whitehall boards and Cabinet Committees. We are making good progress, specifically: