Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Toby Perkins – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Toby Perkins – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Toby Perkins on 2016-01-05.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking at EU level to make sanitary products exempt from VAT.

    Mr David Gauke

    I have, following the recent Parliamentary debate on this issue, written to the European Commission and other Member States setting out our strong view that Member States should have full discretion over what rate of VAT they can apply to these products, and that this should be considered in the context of the Commission’s Action Plan on VAT initiatives. That Action Plan is now expected to emerge in March 2016.

  • Kirsty Blackman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Kirsty Blackman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kirsty Blackman on 2016-01-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many data protection breaches there have been by HM Courts and Tribunals Service when dealing with non-devolved tribunals in Scotland since April 2013.

    Mr Shailesh Vara

    Below are the reported data incidents figures of non-devolved tribunals in Scotland since April 2013:

    April 2013 – March 2014 64 reported incidents

    April 2014 – March 2015 65 reported incidents

    HMCTS staff are mandated to complete annual information assurance training, which includes actions to take in respect of a data protection breach or data incident.

  • Nicholas Soames – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Nicholas Soames – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nicholas Soames on 2016-02-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent steps she has taken to support and develop the export potential of UK dairy through the Dairy Exports Strategy.

    George Eustice

    There is great global demand for quality British dairy products and we are working to maximise this opportunity by opening up new markets around the world. Eight dairy companies accompanied the Secretary of State on a trade mission to China in November, and next month a Chinese dairy delegation is visiting to discuss opportunities for investment in our domestic industry.

    Further trade missions are planned over the coming months to the US, Japan and China. Together with UKTI we will continue to promote our fantastic British dairy brand.

  • Charlotte Leslie – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Charlotte Leslie – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Charlotte Leslie on 2016-03-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, pursuant to the Answer of 3 March 2016 to Question 27866, what powers EEA states which are not EU members have to (a) terminate and (b) change the terms of the membership of the EEA of another EEA state which is not a member of the EU.

    Anna Soubry

    As set out by the Agreement on the European Economic Area (EEA), the contracting parties of the Agreement are the EU, the EU Member States and Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway. The Agreement does not set out what powers Contracting Parties have over the termination or change of others’ engagement with the Agreement. The only mention in the Agreement of termination is that each Contracting Party may withdraw from this Agreement provided it gives at least twelve months’ notice in writing to the other Contracting Parties. Meanwhile, the Agreement states that any European State becoming a member of the EU or of the European Free Trade Association may apply to become a party to the Agreement on the European Economic Area and that the terms and conditions for such participation shall be the subject of an agreement between the Contracting Parties and the applicant State.

  • Kelly Tolhurst – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Kelly Tolhurst – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kelly Tolhurst on 2016-04-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department plans to take to improve the performance of schools in parts of the country where there has been persistent underperformance.

    Nick Gibb

    Our reforms are delivering much needed improvement to our education system. Ofsted inspection data shows that sponsored academies are transforming the life chances ‎of over 350,000 pupils by raising standards in their schools. But there are too many areas of the country where, for too long, children have not had the Education they deserve.

    Our strategy for Achieving Excellence Areas will tackle entrenched underperformance in areas where low school standards have been allowed for too long. We look forward to working with the first areas from this autumn.

  • Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2016-05-25.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have made to the government of Poland to discuss the issue of North Korean forced labourers in that country and the latest findings on forced labour in the report of the United Nations Special Rapporteur on North Korea.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    Officials have discussed the UN Special Rapporteur’s findings on North Korean overseas workers with Poland. The Government is clear that it is important that any country hosting North Korean workers, particularly the EU, respects their rights.

  • Peter Bottomley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Peter Bottomley – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Peter Bottomley on 2016-07-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether East Lancashire Hospitals Trust has insurance cover for legal costs and awards in the event of the Trust or one of its employees being subject to legal action for defaming someone by a statement that is untrue, damaging and not privileged.

    Mr Jeremy Hunt

    This is an employer and employee matter between the East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust and Mr Aditya Agrawal respectively. The Department cannot comment on individual employment matters that are the responsibility of independent organisations, and that are subject to ongoing legal proceedings or on matters relating to individual clinical cases or other personal information. We understand that the cost to East Lancashire Trust of legal proceedings concerning Mr Agrawal is £296,848.42 to date, and that the Trust does not have insurance costs for legal awards in the event of the Trust or one of its employees being subject to legal action for defamation.

  • Kirsten Oswald – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Kirsten Oswald – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kirsten Oswald on 2016-10-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, (a) how many and (b) what proportion of (i) all service leavers and (ii) early service leavers from each of the armed forces who left the service voluntarily received transitional support through the Future Horizons Programme in each year since that programme’s inception.

    Mark Lancaster

    The Future Horizons Programme (FHP) is the resettlement programme for Early Service Leavers (ESL), meaning those members of the UK Armed Forces who leave with less than four years’ service. It is delivered through the Ministry of Defence’s (MOD) Career Transition Partnership (CTP) with Right Management Limited (part of the ManpowerGroup). The uptake rates and employment outcomes of ESL are monitored routinely through the CTP governance structure to ensure the programme continues to be effective in supporting ESL.

    ESL have been entitled to the FHP since it was introduced on 1 October 2013. Between 1 October 2013 and 31 March 2014 approximately 33% of eligible personnel participated in the FHP. During financial year 2014-15 some 62% of eligible personnel participated in the Future Horizons Programme. Prior to the establishment of the FHP all ESL were entitled to unit level support as part of standard MOD policy.

    From 1 October 2015, the resettlement provision for ESL is termed CTP Future Horizons. Official statistics for ESL who used CTP Future Horizons from 1 October 2015 will be published in January 2017 as part of the CTP Official Statistic.

    All personnel made redundant in the Armed Forces redundancy programme 2011-2015 (Tranches 1-4), received the highest level of resettlement provision delivered through what was then termed the CTP Full Resettlement Programme, regardless of their overall length of service.

  • Lord Roberts of Llandudno – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Lord Roberts of Llandudno – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Roberts of Llandudno on 2015-10-28.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government why the Right to Rent provision was included in the Immigration Bill before the report from the trial in the West Midlands had been completed.

    Lord Bates

    The Government has always been clear that the Right to Rent scheme would be rolled out across the country after phase one in Birmingham, Walsall, Sandwell, Dudley and Wolverhampton. The Prime Minister committed to do so in May this year. Home Office Science has carried out an evaluation of phase one. The findings of the evaluation have now been published and are informing implementation of the roll out of the scheme.

    The evaluation was overseen by an expert panel consisting of representatives from landlords and letting agents associations, housing charities, local authorities and the Equality and Human Rights Commission, to enable concerns about the operation of the scheme to be taken into account.

    The Home Office evaluation reported on mystery shopping research, conducted by independent contractors. This found that there were no major differences in prospective tenants’ access to accommodation between the Right to Rent phase one area and comparator areas, where the scheme was not running.

  • Ian Austin – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Ian Austin – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Austin on 2015-11-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of reductions in funding made between 2010 and 2015 on police forces that have been rated as outstanding for efficiency by HM Inspectorate of Constabulary.

    Mike Penning

    Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) have found that there is no simple link between funding and efficiency. As the Home Secretary has previously set out, it is often the need to make savings that drives innovation and change for the better.

    In future, we believe that the allocation of core Government funding to the police should be on the basis of relative need, and that is why the Government has committed to replacing the current, outdated arrangements.

    HMIC set out in their latest PEEL inspection report (October 2015), that there remain significant efficiencies to be delivered from ICT, collaboration and improving workforce capability.