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Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Jim Shannon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Jim Shannon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

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

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assistance the Government provides to internet service providers to ensure that images of child pornography online are identified and removed.

    Mike Penning

    The Internet Watch Foundation (IWF), an independent organisation funded primarily by the internet industry itself, acts as the UK reporting hotline for criminal content online, including child sexual abuse material hosted anywhere in the world. The IWF works closely with internet companies to remove or block indecent images of children where they appear. Since April 2014, the IWF has been able to search proactively for indecent images as well as acting on reports received from the public.

    The Government has been working closely with the IWF and the internet companies as part of the WePROTECT initiative. In December 2014, the Prime Minister hosted the WePROTECT Summit in London which secured globally significant commitments from 50 governments and international organisations, 20 leading technology companies and 10 civil society organisations. These included: that the UK would work with UNICEF to establish a new Global Fund to Prevent Violence Against Children; to put in place the resources needed to better identify victims, track down criminals and remove child sexual abuse material from the internet; and, to forge strong partnerships with industry to develop technological solutions to protect children online. The UK and UAE governments are now preparing for a second summit, in Abu Dhabi this November, which will take forward these commitments.

  • 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 2015-10-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of current legislation regulating the use of CCTV cameras with facial recognition and biometric tracking capabilities.

    Mike Penning

    I have received no representations about the use of CCTV cameras with facial recognition and biometric tracking capabilities.

    The use of any CCTV system operating in a public place in England and Wales (whether or not any facial recognition or biometric tracking technology is being used) is subject to the Surveillance Camera Code of Practice, issued as guidance under the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012. The police, as a relevant authority, are duty bound to have regard to the Code when performing their functions. Any use of such technology for covert investigative purposes by a public authority would be subject to the requirements of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 and its related Code of Practice. Further, the use and disclosure of personal data, such as CCTV images, is generally governed by the Data Protection Act 1998.

    Information on the fields of data which any CCTV system operator may use to identify individuals of interest is not held centrally. Further, any person (including those not suspected of an offence) may make a subject access request to a police force in respect of personal information which is held about them (including CCTV images). In broad terms, pursuant to the Code of Practice on the Management of Police Information (MOPI) and accompanying guidance published by the College of Policing, this should trigger a review of whether or not to delete such material based on an assessment of danger to the public and its value for policing purposes.

    It is the longstanding policy of successive Governments not to comment on intelligence matters.

  • Jenny Chapman – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Jenny Chapman – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jenny Chapman on 2015-10-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many under-18 year olds in prison have been starred up in each prison in each month during each of the last five years for which figures are available.

    Andrew Selous

    Starring up is the term used to define the process whereby young people under the age of 18 can be moved into the young adult estate prior to their eighteenth birthday. The starring up process can be used for a range of reasons, but past usage has mainly been in relating to the management of disruptive or violent behaviour or transfers to Mother and Baby Units.

    In practice, the starring up process is rarely used and then only in exceptional circumstances.

    No young person has been starred-up into the young adult estate since January 2014. Data in relation to the number of young people who were starred-up into the young adult estate in the three years prior to that, broken down by the establishment they were starred-up from and the month in which the decision was made is provided in the tables below.

    2011

    Jan

    Feb

    Mar

    Apr

    May

    Jun

    Jul

    Aug

    Sep

    Oct

    Nov

    Dec

    Ashfield

    1

    1

    Hindley

    1

    Wetherby

    1

    1

    2012

    Jan

    Feb

    Mar

    Apr

    May

    Jun

    Jul

    Aug

    Sep

    Oct

    Nov

    Dec

    Feltham

    1

    Eastwood Park

    1

    Warren Hill

    1

    2013

    Jan

    Feb

    Mar

    Apr

    May

    Jun

    Jul

    Aug

    Sep

    Oct

    Nov

    Dec

    Warren Hill

    1

  • Antoinette Sandbach – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Antoinette Sandbach – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Antoinette Sandbach on 2015-10-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to ensure that peak noise measurements are used by HS2 Ltd when developing proposals on the night use of High Speed 2.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    The Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) of Phase One of HS2 includes predictions of maximum sound levels from HS2 trains on residential properties. This has informed the noise mitigation provided as part of the scheme. The maximum acceptable sound levels at night are set out in Information Paper E20.

    Phase Two will undertake an EIA that will include predictions of maximum sound levels from HS2 trains.

  • Steve Rotheram – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Steve Rotheram – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve Rotheram on 2015-10-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many universal credit claimants have been sanctioned in (a) Liverpool, Walton constituency and (b) Liverpool since the implementation of that policy.

    Priti Patel

    I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to Question 11863 asked on 14 October 2015

  • Helen Jones – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Helen Jones – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Helen Jones on 2015-10-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what estimate he has made of the total amount lost by small firms in the construction sector because of bankruptcies among firms holding cash retentions in each of the last five years.

    Nick Boles

    The Government does not collect data on the different types of unsecured debts and the creditors to whom they are owed across the full range of formal insolvency procedures.

    The Government acknowledges that some people are unhappy with the system of retentions as it stands, but it is an embedded feature of the construction industry.

    Therefore, our general approach is towork with the industry through the Construction Leadership Council and its supply chain payment charter; endorsing its commitment to zero retentions by 2025. Achieving this commitment will involve far-reaching changes to the way the sector works.

    It is not clear that requiring money to be placed in trust funds is the best way to overcome any shortcomings in the system of retentions: it would impose a financial burden on construction clients, many of whom are themselves small businesses, and where there is financial weakness, may itself make insolvency more likely. The Government is commissioning research on the costs and benefits of the retention system and alternatives, including the use of trust funds. This will inform future action.

  • Frank Field – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Frank Field – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2015-10-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many children are entitled to receive free school meals but do not receive them.

    Mr Sam Gyimah

    The January 2015 census recorded that there were 2,755,021 children registered for free school meals (FSM). We do not hold information on the number of FSM entitled pupils who did not receive a school meal.

    Further information is available in the link below:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/schools-pupils-and-their-characteristics-january-2015

    “

  • Christopher Chope – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Christopher Chope – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Christopher Chope on 2015-10-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the work of the members of the UK delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe who were appointed on 10 November 2010; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr David Lidington

    Details of participation in sessions of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe by members of the UK Delegation are published on the Parliament website:

    http://www.parliament.uk/mps-lords-and-offices/offices/delegations/coe2/membership1/

    The work of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe is reflected in adopted recommendations, resolutions and opinions which are in the public domain. The UK Delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe is recognised within the Assembly as one of the more active and influential delegations, contributing effectively across a range of issues on the Assembly’s agenda, in plenary and within the supporting committee structure. The UK Delegation also engages beyond the Assembly in other Council of Europe bodies and as part of Assembly missions deploying to Member States including for election observation.

  • Liam Byrne – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Liam Byrne – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Liam Byrne on 2015-10-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the total number of referrals for alcohol treatment services was in each of the last five years for which data is available.

    Jane Ellison

    Data on the number of referrals to alcohol treatment is not available.

  • 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, what the value is of the freehold of Chichester Combined Court Centre.

    Andrew Selous

    There is no estimate of the market value of the freehold of Chichester Combined Court Centre. No decision has been taken to close the court.

    Disposal strategies will be developed once a decision is made on individual courts following the outcome of consultation.