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Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Baroness Bakewell of Hardington Mandeville – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Baroness Bakewell of Hardington Mandeville – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Bakewell of Hardington Mandeville on 2016-10-10.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to ensure that commercial short-term lettings of accommodation, such as those offered by the AirBnB website, are safe and comply with fire regulations.

    Baroness Williams of Trafford

    The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 applies to houses or flats where the premises are not occupied as a private dwelling, including properties offering short term accommodation to paying guests.

  • Chris Evans – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Chris Evans – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Evans on 2015-10-30.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the effect of the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 on the number of pitbull terriers in the UK.

    George Eustice

    No estimate has been made of the number of dogs humanely destroyed under section 1 of the 1991 Act. There are 3,222 dogs on the list of exempted section 1 dogs in Great Britain. These are dogs assessed by the courts not to be a danger to public safety including, since 13 May 2014 in relation to England and Wales, assessed as being in the charge of a fit and proper person. Guidance for enforcers of the law on dangerous dogs was issued in March 2009 and is available on line via the link below.

    https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/69263/dogs-guide-enforcers.pdf

    “

  • Maria Eagle – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Maria Eagle – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Maria Eagle on 2015-11-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when he plans to retire the Sentinel aircraft from service.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    Under plans announced in the Strategic Defence and Security Review 2015 (Cm9161), Sentinel will be extended in service into the next decade.

  • Grahame Morris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Grahame Morris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Grahame Morris on 2016-01-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many patients were treated by gamma knife radiosurgery machines (a) in England and (b) at each hospital in the last three years.

    Jane Ellison

    NHS England does not routinely collect, or hold, information on the numbers of gamma knife treatment platforms in use in England. However, NHS England can confirm that, as at summer 2015, there were at least seven providers equipped with gamma knife machines in England:

    – BUPA Cromwell*

    – London Gamma Knife Centre*

    – Queens Square Radiosurgery Centre*

    – Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

    – Leeds Gamma Knife Centre*

    – Thornbury Radiosurgery Centre Ltd*

    – University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust

    NHS England took over responsibility for commissioning intracranial stereotactic radiosurgery/stereotactic radiotherapy services in April 2013. This is supported by a national service specification, together with a number of clinical commissioning policies. The service specification sets out that there are three acceptable treatment platforms to deliver the service, of which Gamma Knife is only one. National Health Service providers, that are commissioned to deliver the service, are responsible for determining which platform(s) to use.

    Notes:

    1. *Denotes independent sector providers.
    2. As the information is not routinely collected by NHS England, the above may not be fully reflective of the current position.
  • Neil Gray – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Neil Gray – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Neil Gray on 2016-01-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether (a) new or existing Housing Benefit claimants and (b) those in supported accommodation will have their allowance cut to Local Housing Allowance rates from 1 April 2016.

    Justin Tomlinson

    This measure does not apply until April 2018. We value the work of the supported housing sector extremely highly and are working closely with them to ensure they are supported as effectively as possible in advance of the police taking effect.

    The Department alongside the Department for Communities and Local Government has jointly commissioned an evidence review of supported housing.

    The results of this research will determine our future policy development and any appropriate exemptions.

  • Emily Thornberry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Emily Thornberry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emily Thornberry on 2016-02-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the amount spent was from the public purse was on decommissioning and disposal of (a) HMS Ark Royal and (b) HMS Illustrious.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    Much of the work to decommission Royal Navy ships is undertaken using contracts that provide support services for all ships conducting Fleet activities at HM Naval Base, Portsmouth. Costs are not attributed to individual vessels.

    Defence Equipment & Support (DE&S) was responsible for the removal of classified equipment and known hazardous materials from the former HMS ARK ROYAL. This work cost £0.7 million. Similar work is being carried out on the former HMS ILLUSTRIOUS which has yet to be sold. Expenditure incurred to date is £0.5 million.

    The Disposal Services Authority (DSA), part of DE&S, disposes of defence equipment that is surplus to requirement. DSA costs are not attributed to individual platforms and information on these ships is not held in the format requested.

  • Kevin Hollinrake – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Kevin Hollinrake – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevin Hollinrake on 2016-03-22.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps the Government is taking to ensure that examination marking is consistent and objective.

    Nick Gibb

    This is a matter for Ofqual, the Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation. I have therefore asked the Interim Chief Regulator, Amanda Spielman, to write directly to the Honourable Member. A copy of her reply will be placed in the House of Commons Library.

  • Baroness Smith of Basildon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Baroness Smith of Basildon – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Smith of Basildon on 2016-04-22.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many dedicated road traffic officers there were in each of the past five years in (1) Essex, (2) Kent, (3) Sussex, and (4) London.

    Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

    The number of full time equivalent police officers employed in traffic policing roles as at 31 March in each of the last 5 years is provided in the tables. Officers with multiple responsibilities are recorded under their primary function or role. Data for 31 March 2015 (the latest period for which figures are available) can also be found in the supplementary tables of the July 2015 police workforce statistics publication:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/444537/police-workforce-supptabs-mar15.ods

    As HM Inspectorate of Constabulary has made clear, there is no simple link between police numbers and crime levels, between numbers and the visibility of police in the community, or between numbers and the quality of service provided.

    Decisions on the size and composition of the police workforce are operational matters for Chief Officers working with their Police and Crime Commissioners and taking into account local priorities. What matters is how officers are deployed, not how many of them there are.

  • Kate Hollern – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Kate Hollern – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kate Hollern on 2016-06-06.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what proportion of the defence procurement budget was spent on foreign military sales in (a) 2012-13, (b) 2013-14 and (c) 2014-15.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    The proportion of the defence procurement budget, and the defence budget spent on foreign military sales in each financial year cannot be provided. Under the Foreign Military Sales Agreement (FMS), Her Majesty’s Government commits to FMS cases with the US Government which then places contracts with industry to deliver our requirements. Additionally, FMS cases typically cover differing periods of performance, thereby making estimation of the commitment that would fall within each financial year unreliable.

    The number of new cases, together with their values, committed to under FMS for each financial year is given in the table below. They do not equate to actual expenditure, accruals or contractual commitments and include contingency provisions.

    Financial Year

    No. of new cases

    Value of new cases ($millions)

    2009-10

    22

    995

    2010-11

    30

    111

    2011-12

    33

    284

    2012-13

    23

    137

    2013-14

    25

    301

    2014-15

    26

    328

    2015-16

    32

    245

    2016-17 to date

    6

    13

    Totals

    197

    2,414

  • Kate Osamor – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Kate Osamor – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kate Osamor on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what the Government’s policy is on maintaining its commitment to spending 0.7 per cent of gross national income on overseas aid.

    Priti Patel

    This Government remains committed to continuing the UK’s leading role on international development, including through spending 0.7% of gross national income (GNI) on overseas aid.

    As an outward-looking, globally engaged nation, we believe that the UK should work to tackle international problems at their source – not wait for them to arrive on our doorstep.