The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Storey on 2015-10-21.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many schools were placed in special measures in (1) 2013–14, and (2) 2014–15.
Lord Nash
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 of Commons.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Lord Bishop of St Albans on 2015-10-21.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government when they expect to have fulfilled the agri-environment scheme payments to farmers, and how they will ensure that delays in making such payments do not happen next year.
Lord Gardiner of Kimble
We recognise the importance of early payments to the rural community. As at 22 October, Environmental Stewardship advance payments had been made to 25,200 agreement holders with a total value of £62.5 million. Natural England and the Rural Payments Agency continue to work to get payments out as soon as possible with the aim of making the remaining advance payments in November and December.
This year, 2015, has been a transitional year as new Common Agricultural Policy rules have taken effect. Whilst we would expect these payments to start earlier next year, from 2018 new EU rules will prevent any payments being made before 16 October.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Martin John Docherty on 2015-10-21.
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assessment his Department has made of the effects of the Transparency of Lobbying, Non-Party Campaigning and Trade Union Administration Act 2014 on the activities of trades unions during the 2015 general election period.
John Penrose
Section 39 of the Transparency of Lobbying, Non-Party Campaigning and Trade Union Administration Act 2014 provides for a post-election review of the operation of the regulatory regime governing third parties at the 2015 General Election.
Lord Hodgson of Astley Abbotts CBE is currently conducting this independent review.
Ministers must lay a copy of his report before Parliament and publish it by November 2016.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Elliott on 2015-10-21.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to ensure that every region and constituent part of the UK benefits from money raised from Libor fines.
Greg Hands
In the last two financial years HM Treasury has received £1.3bn in LIBOR and FX banks fines. All LIBOR penalties received in this time period have been allocated to military or other uniformed charities. All foreign exchange penalties received in this time period have been allocated to create a fund for advanced care in GP practices and community healthcare facilities.
Each bid for charitable funding from Libor fines is considered on its individual merits and with a clear intention that awards should benefit the widest range of military charities and good causes across the whole of the United Kingdom.
Awards of Libor funds are usually made at the Autumn Statement or the Budget.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nicholas Brown on 2015-10-21.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what estimate he has made of the cost of administering the proposed safety net mechanism for local authorities which lose more than 7.5 per cent of their business rate revenue in a year; and to what budget this will fall.
Mr Marcus Jones
The Government intends to move to 100% business rates retention in England by the end of this Parliament. We have confirmed that as part of the new system there will continue to be redistribution of local tax revenue between authorities and protections in place for authorities that see their business rates income fall significantly. Over the coming months we will be working with local government on the details of the scheme.
Ahead of final decisions, it is too early to assess what the impact will be on individual areas or authorities, but before the start of the financial year, local authorities in the North-East estimated that the total business rates income for 2015-16 would be £854.58 million.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gregory Campbell on 2015-10-21.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an assessment of the potential effect on employment in the hospitality sector of reducing the VAT rate in that sector to 10 per cent.
Mr David Gauke
The Government has reviewed the economic case for a reduction in VAT for the hospitality sector.
The Government position was set out in the Westminster Hall debate on 17 March 2015.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2015-10-27.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what commitments on human rights in China he secured during the recent state visit to the UK by President Xi Jinping.
Mr Hugo Swire
In talks with President Xi, the Prime Minister, my rt hon. Friend the Member for Witney (Mr Cameron) reaffirmed the importance we attach to the UK-China Human Rights Dialogue. President Xi acknowledged the importance of improving human rights protection, and that China was ready for increased exchanges and co-operation on this issue with the United Kingdom. In the UK-China Joint Statement, Britain and China agreed to continue exchanges on human rights and rule of law. We will continue to pursue our human rights concerns both privately and in public fora.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2015-10-27.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to reduce the prevalence of trans fats in food.
Jane Ellison
There have been no discussions with the royal colleges on measures to reduce the prevalence of trans fats in food.
Population average trans fats intakes account for 0.6-0.7% of food energy, which is well within the public health recommendation of 2% of food energy, and within the World Health Organisation’s recommendation of 1%.
Voluntary action by industry has been successful in removing artificial trans fats from a range of processed products. Over 70% of the retail and manufacturing market has committed to remove or not use artificial trans fats.
The European Commission’s report on trans fats intakes across the European Union, which is due to be published in December 2015, will inform our future thinking on trans fats.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Maria Caulfield on 2015-10-27.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent representations his Department has received on stem cell donation and transplantation.
Jane Ellison
A search of the Department’s central correspondence database has identified 99 items of correspondence received between 8 May and 27 October 2015 about stem cell donation and/or transplantation. Around two-thirds of this correspondence related to the Anthony Nolan report ‘Destination Care’.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Zeichner on 2015-10-27.
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment she has made of the potential role of agroecology in African rural development.
Grant Shapps
Agro ecological approaches have an important role to play in specific contexts, including in Africa, but DFID does not prescribe technical approaches centrally. The best approaches for interventions are identified in consideration of the specific context of implementation. DFID is supporting a wide range of programmes with agro-ecological components, from soil and water conservation and land use management to climate resilience and conservation agriculture. On the research front, DFID supports the Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security research programme as well as the Sustainable Agricultural Intensification Research and Learning in Africa. The Adaptation for Smallholder Agriculture Programme supports farmers to adapt agricultural systems to be climate resilient. The full range of our programmes can be found on our Development Tracker: http://devtracker.dfid.gov.uk/
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