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Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Jim Cunningham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Jim Cunningham – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2015-10-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department has taken to review the adequacy of public transport options in the West Midlands; and if he will make a statement.

    Andrew Jones

    Local transport authorities across England are responsible for public transport in their local areas, as has been the case under previous Administrations. This includes the development of policies relating to local transport, including public transport, and the preparation and publication of a local transport plan. In the Metropolitan area of the West Midlands, this responsibility sits with the West Midlands Integrated Transport Authority.

    In the 2015 Summer Budget, the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced £5million for Midlands Connect, a partnership of Local Authorities and Local Enterprise Partnerships from across the Midlands, to develop its transport vision and strategy for transforming transport connectivity across the region in order to drive economic growth. Officials from the Department for Transport continue to work with Midlands Connect and the partnership launched their approach to this task today.

  • Roger Godsiff – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Roger Godsiff – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2015-10-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 16 October 2015 to Question 11269, whether a personal independence payment assessment provider would be breaking the terms of its contract with his Department if it were to provide audio equipment for use in assessments which complied with the required specifications.

    Justin Tomlinson

    There is no contractual agreement between DWP and assessment providers around the provision of audio equipment. If claimants wish for their assessments to be recorded they may do so using their own equipment, provided they comply with the conditions put in place which were outlined in the response provided to your previous question on this subject on 9 September 2015 and 16th of October 2015.

  • Stephen Timms – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Stephen Timms – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2015-10-16.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps he is taking to increase voter registration among students.

    John Penrose

    The move to Individual Electoral Registration has made registration more convenient for students, who can now register online in as little as three minutes on a tablet, smart-phone or PC. Ahead of the elections on 7 May, £530,000 was allocated to organisations that work to encourage student electoral registration, including £380,000 to the National Union of Students. In 2013, the Cabinet Office established the Student Forum, bringing together key organisations representing students and universities, as well as Electoral Registration Officers with significant student populations to foster closer working relationships. We have also worked with Sheffield University and the local Electoral Registration Officer to pilot digital integration of student enrolment with electoral registration and I am keen that we learn from this work.

    I am engaged in detailed discussions with a range of Electoral Registration Officers on how to increase registration rates for hard-to-reach groups, including students, and look forward to announcing further details on this soon.

  • Hilary Benn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Hilary Benn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2015-10-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with the Israeli government on the use of force by Israeli security personnel in response to protests.

    Mr Philip Hammond

    On 15 October, the Charge d’Affaires at our Embassy in Israel raised our concerns with Israel’s Deputy National Security Adviser, including specific discussions around punitive demolitions and the security at the Temple Mount/Haram al Sharif. On 16 October the National Security Adviser, Mark Lyall Grant, spoke with Israel’s National Security Adviser, Yossi Cohen, about the violence in Jerusalem and called for de-escalation and the need to do everything possible to keep the situation calm. Our officials at our Embassy in Tel Aviv continue to urge both sides to de-escalate the current tensions.

  • Tom Blenkinsop – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Tom Blenkinsop – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Blenkinsop on 2015-10-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to improve tests for Lyme disease to ensure early diagnosis.

    Jane Ellison

    Public Health England regularly review new tests for Lyme disease and participate in a Europe wide Quality Assurance programme to ensure that the most suitable tests available are used.

  • Andy Slaughter – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Andy Slaughter – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andy Slaughter on 2015-10-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will set out the matters that have been discussed under the Memorandum of Understanding her Department entered into with the Saudi Arabia Ministry of the Interior in March 2014.

    Mr John Hayes

    The Home Office does not publish nor detail discussions relating to security co-operation agreements with international partners as to do so would undermine bilateral relations and prejudice our ability to conduct work under these agreements.

  • Andrew Tyrie – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Andrew Tyrie – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Tyrie on 2015-10-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether fast track trials in Chichester County Court (a) have been or (b) are planned to be moved to Eastbourne County Court.

    Andrew Selous

    To reduce the waiting times for fast track hearings in Sussex, all fast track cases have been centralised to be heard at Eastbourne County Court on two days each month. The first hearings begin on 26 October 2015 which will include cases from Chichester.

  • Tania Mathias – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Tania Mathias – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tania Mathias on 2015-10-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment his Department made of Sir Howard Davies’s potential business links to Heathrow Airport; and what other due diligence it conducted before appointing him as chair of the Airports Commission.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    Sir Howard Davies was required to complete and sign a register of interest disclosure form stating any potential conflict with his work in leading the independent Airports Commission. Registers of all the Commissioners’ interests are available on the Airports Commission’s website at the following link:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/airports-commissioners-conflicts-of-interest-disclosure.

    “

  • Greg Mulholland – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Greg Mulholland – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2015-10-15.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to ensure whistleblowers and hon. Members can communicate with each other without their communications being intercepted.

    Mr John Hayes

    The Government’s position on the Wilson Doctrine was set out by the Prime Minister in a written ministerial statement made on 4 November 2015.

    As the Prime Minister made clear, the Wilson Doctrine has never been an absolute bar to the targeted interception of the communications of Members of Parliament or an exemption from the legal regime governing interception. The Doctrine recognised that there could be instances where interception might be necessary.

    The Prime Minister announced that as matter of policy the PM will be consulted should there ever be a proposal to target any UK Parliamentarian’s communications under a warrant issued by a Secretary of State. This applies to Members of Parliament, members of the House of Lords, the Scottish Parliament, the Northern Ireland Assembly, the Welsh Assembly and UK members of the European Parliament. It applies to all activity authorised by a warrant issued by a Secretary of State: any instance of targeted interception and, electronic surveillance and equipment interference, when undertaken by the Security and Intelligence Agencies. This is in addition to the rigorous safeguards already in the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 (RIPA) and the Code of Practice issued under it which set out a series of robust safeguards for any instance of interception.

    It is long standing policy of successive Governments neither to confirm nor deny any specific activity by the Security and Intelligence Agencies. Under the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 it is an offence for anyone to identify an individual interception warrant or an individual interception that takes place.

  • Matthew Pennycook – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Matthew Pennycook – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Matthew Pennycook on 2015-10-15.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of Government funding for science on the provision of infrastructure for cancer research.

    Joseph Johnson

    The Department has not made a specific assessment of the effectiveness of Government funding for science on the provision of infrastructure for cancer research. The Government has committed to invest £6.9bn in science infrastructure to 2021 including £150m for clinical research infrastructure, elements of which can benefit cancer research. Wider information about funding for cancer research is available from the National Cancer Research Institute (NCRI). The NCRI is a UK-wide partnership between government, charities and industry which provides co-ordination and co-operation in UK cancer research and works to ensure that the c£500m pa funding from NCRI partners for cancer research is spent efficiently.