Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Ranil Jayawardena – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Ranil Jayawardena – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ranil Jayawardena on 2016-03-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps the Government is taking to ensure that more classic literature is taught in schools.

    Nick Gibb

    All pupils in secondary schools should be encouraged to enjoy challenging titles and develop a confidence and ability to read the great classics of English and world literature.

    The Government is delighted that, following our call for action, Penguin is offering classroom sets of 100 classic books for the equivalent of £1 a copy. This will allow pupils to read a wide range of literature with the support of their teacher. I hope other publishers will follow, to make classic literature a feature of every classroom.

  • Lord Moynihan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Lord Moynihan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Moynihan on 2016-03-23.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what was the budget for UK Anti-Doping for each of the last five years; how many specialists it employs; what contractual relationship it has with the International Olympic Committee and the World Anti-Doping Agency to act as a secretariat for the International Olympic Committee Pre-Rio Anti-Doping Taskforce; and what assessment they have made of whether UK Anti-Doping has the resources necessary to fulfil its role effectively.

    Baroness Neville-Rolfe

    The UKAD budget (income and DCMS funding) was £7.2 million in 2011/12; £7.7 million in 2012/13; £7.5 million on 2013/14; and £7.5 million in 2014/15. The 2015/16 total budget is subject to finalised accounts. Its workforce is recruited based on each individual’s particular set of skills to help deliver the anti-doping programme effectively. UKAD’s role as secretariat to the Pre-Rio Anti-Doping Taskforce is through an agreement with the World Anti-Doping Agency. An additional full-time member of staff has been secured to carry out the task-force work so resources will not be diverted from UK Anti-Doping’s core programmes. As the honourable member will know, shocking allegations of doping in British sport emerged over the weekend, and UKAD’s role in investigating the matter. The Secretary of State for DCMS has ordered an urgent independent investigation into what action was taken when these allegations were first received and what more needs to be done to ensure that British sport remains clean. We intend to keep both houses fully informed of developments.

  • Andrea Jenkyns – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Andrea Jenkyns – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrea Jenkyns on 2016-04-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what research his Department has commissioned on the effect of immigration on the demand for (a) housing and (b) social housing.

    Brandon Lewis

    The Department published statistics on average household growth in December 2015, including the proportion attributable to net migration. The department has not commissioned research on how immigration affects the demand for social housing.

  • Baroness Manzoor – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Baroness Manzoor – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Manzoor on 2016-06-13.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to undertake a review of the impact of the policy by which Universal Credit is paid monthly in arrears.

    Lord Freud

    The payment arrangements for Universal Credit are designed to help reduce welfare dependency by mirroring the world of work, in which 75 per cent of employees are paid monthly. Appropriate budgeting support is available to ensure recipients are supported effectively.

  • Hugo Swire – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Hugo Swire – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hugo Swire on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, whether he plans to change the proportion of the cost of retrospective planning applications currently paid by developers.

    Gavin Barwell

    A nationally set fee is payable where a retrospective planning application is submitted to regularise a breach of planning control, to support the council with the costs of determining the application. We are clear that unauthorised development is unacceptable and unfair to the majority who abide by the rules. However, the retrospective planning application process is there to give those who have made a genuine mistake the opportunity to rectify the situation. We have no plans to review the way fees are calculated for retrospective applications at this point.

  • Steven Paterson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Steven Paterson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steven Paterson on 2016-10-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what discussions his Department has had with the government of Russia on Russian military drills in the North Sea in October 2016.

    Mike Penning

    The Department has held no formal discussions with the Government of the Russian Federation with regard to Russian military drills in the North Sea in October. All NATO Allies have a collective responsibility to monitor the path and activity of non-NATO ships and aircraft passing through NATO areas of responsibility. The UK fully upholds its commitments in this regard and will act accordingly. Russia is aware of these arrangements. We expect Russian activity to occur in international waters and airspace, and in accordance with international rules.

  • Louise Haigh – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Louise Haigh – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Louise Haigh on 2015-11-05.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, when he plans to publish details of his Department’s expenditure over £25,000 from September 2014 to date.

    Matthew Hancock

    The Cabinet Office fully committed to transparency, and I am taking steps to publish the Department’s outstanding spend data, including details of any spend of £25,000 and above, as soon as possible.

  • Liam Fox – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Liam Fox – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Liam Fox on 2015-12-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether food security is part of the Government’s agricultural planning; and what assessment her Department has made of the amount of farmland required to guarantee food supplies in a time of crisis.

    George Eustice

    The Government sees the contribution of UK agriculture as vital to our food security. A detailed analysis of the global and domestic factors affecting UK food security, the UK Food Security Assessment, was published in 2010 and refreshed in 2012. Its main conclusion was that UK food security depends on a combination of a strong domestic food production base and access to a wide variety of world markets. The assessment also analysed the impact of extreme scenarios and concluded that if necessary the UK could feed itself from domestic resources.

    The Government is working on a 25 Year Plan for Food and Farming which will set out ways our domestic food production base can be further strengthened, building on the Great British brand.

  • David Hanson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    David Hanson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Hanson on 2016-01-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many recorded attacks there were against prison officers in each of the last five years.

    Andrew Selous

    We do not tolerate violence of any kind in prison and any assault is treated extremely seriously. Any prisoner who commits an act of violence can expect to have action taken against them.

    Statistics for assaults on staff are published in the Safety in Custody statistics bulletin.

    The information requested may be found in the ‘Summary tables June 2006 to June 2015’ at:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/safety-in-custody-quarterly-bulletin-june-2015

    “

  • The Lord Bishop of Durham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The Lord Bishop of Durham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Lord Bishop of Durham on 2016-02-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to engage the African Union and the East African Community in efforts to stabilise the situation in Burundi.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    In the margins of the African Union (AU) Summit, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my hon. Friend the Member for Rochford and Southend East (James Duddridge), met with the Chair of the AU Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, the AU’s Peace and Security Commissioner Smail Chergui and a number of African Foreign Ministers. We are exploring what more we can do to support the AU’s leadership, and have intensified our efforts at the UN and with our EU partners to halt the violence.

    The UK strongly supports the East African Community-led dialogue and sees it as crucial in finding a solution to stabilising the situation. The parties met for the first time on 28 December and the second round of talks is scheduled for 16 February. Alongside our international partners we continue to press them to engage.