The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Taylor of Warwick on 2015-11-10.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions they had with Facebook about their recent updates to make it easier for businesses to interact with customers on that platform.
Baroness Neville-Rolfe
Government regularly meets Facebook, who are part of our Strategic Relationship Management programme, to discuss a range of issues across a number of government departments.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Norman Lamb on 2015-12-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of changes to public health funding on mental health and wellbeing.
Jane Ellison
Decisions on local public health spending are a matter for local authorities. The Chancellor of the Exchequer’s autumn statement confirmed that the local authority public health grant will remain in place, and will remain ring-fenced for use exclusively on public health interventions, during the financial years 2016/17 and 2017/18. Public Health England will continue to monitor and publish data on a wide range of indicators of outcomes from public health services, including a number relating to mental health and wellbeing.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Winnick on 2016-01-18.
To ask the Prime Minister, if he will take steps to ensure that the private office telephone numbers of all Government Ministers are made available to hon. Members.
Mr David Cameron
The Cabinet Office publication, the List of Ministerial Responsibilities, includes contact details for all Ministers. Copies are provided to all Members upon publication and are available in the Vote Office and the Libraries of both Houses. It is also available on gov.uk.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2016-02-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will ensure that mechanisms are in place under the proposed draft deal with Europe to prevent the gradual transfer of powers to Brussels through EU directives and parliamentary resolutions.
Mr David Lidington
The draft European Council texts presented to Parliament on 1 February are part of the ongoing renegotiation of the UK’s EU membership. The draft text provided for a mechanism to ensure the EU’s commitment to subsidiarity is fully implemented, but as the Prime Minister, my right hon. Friend the Member for Witney (Mr Cameron), said in the House on 3 February, there are details that are still to be pinned down and intense negotiations to try and agree a deal with 27 other countries.
More widely, the European Union Act 2011 ensures that if a change to the EU Treaties is proposed that would transfer a power from the UK to the EU, the consent of the British people in a referendum would be required before such a transfer could be agreed.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emily Thornberry on 2016-03-01.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many (a) regular RAF personnel and (b) RAF volunteer reserves have been deployed to (i) Iraq since September 2014 and (ii) Syria since December 2015.
Penny Mordaunt
The number of individual Regular RAF personnel who have been deployed to Iraq for a period greater than 24 hours at any point between 1 September 2014 and 31 January 2016 was 470.
There were fewer than 5 RAF Volunteer Reserve personnel who have been deployed to Iraq for a period greater than 24 hours at any point between 1 September 2014 and 31 January 2016.
There were no RAF personnel deployed to Syria between 1 December 2015 and 31 January 2016.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julie Cooper on 2016-04-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many graduate teachers in each subject area were recruited in each year since 2010.
Nick Gibb
The information requested is available in Table 1c of the Main tables: SFR46/2015 spreadsheet available on GOV.UK at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/initial-teacher-training-trainee-number-census-2015-to-2016
This table includes the number of postgraduates recruited to Initial Teacher Training in each subject from the academic years 2011/12 to 2015/16. The Department does not hold data for the academic year 2010/11.
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Flynn on 2016-05-10.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the comparative particulate pollution created by (a) diesel and (b) electric cars.
Rory Stewart
The UK’s main air quality concerns relate to ambient concentrations of nitrogen dioxide, in particular close to busy roads, with diesel vehicles being the major source. Electric vehicles have zero exhaust emissions and offer a clear benefit in tackling this ongoing air quality challenge.
On pollution from particulate matter, evidence is limited. Recent research suggests that battery electric vehicles have similar total emissions of particulate matter to petrol and diesel vehicles, due to their higher mass causing increased non-exhaust particulate matter. The UK Automotive Council has identified vehicle lightweighting as a strategic technology priority, and recent Government research and development funding of £38 million will support a number of projects in this area.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mhairi Black on 2016-06-15.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how much the Post Office has spent on refurbishing the Crown Post Office premises in Paisley since January 2010.
George Freeman
The hon Member recently tabled a Named Day question on this matter.
In my answer of 13 June I advised that this was the operational responsibility of the Post Office and I would ask its Chief Executive, Paula Vennells, to write to the hon Member.
I understand Paula Vennells wrote to the hon Member on 21 June. This letter has been placed in the Libraries of the House.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by David T. C. Davies on 2016-09-12.
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, how many companies have signed memoranda of understanding with the Regeneration Investment Organisation.
Greg Hands
A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) is a high-level arrangement, which is not legally binding, and enables the participants to work together toward a desired outcome. Between the period April 2014 to October 2015, the Regeneration Investment Organisation (RIO) negotiated MoUs with seven companies. Only one of those MoUs remains in place.
Aventa is a regeneration investor and comprises a regulated asset management company and a vehicle for managing early stage development and construction risk. The Regeneration Investment Organisation and Aventa Capital MoU was developed in October 2014 to support Aventa’s work in seeking to develop a regeneration fund and thereby encourage institutional investment into UK regeneration projects. The Department felt the proposal covered by the MoU was viable given Aventa’s sector and management experience.
There was no commitment on the part of RIO to provide any capital or resource in connection with the agreement. In addition, any recommendation from Aventa would have been reviewed and subjected to due diligence by the developer as a commercial partner. The MoU was concluded, by mutual agreement, following meetings with officials during December 2014.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2015-11-10.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have made about the health and wellbeing of, and the prison conditions being experienced by, former President of the Maldives Mohammed Nasheed.
Baroness Anelay of St Johns
The Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for East Devon (Mr Swire), has spoken directly with the Maldives Foreign Minister on a number of occasions regarding former President Nasheed and in August wrote to her expressing our concern about Mr Nasheed’s return to prison. On 10 November Mr Swire met for a second time Mrs Laila Ali, wife of former President Nasheed as well as Amal Clooney and Ben Emmerson QC from Mr Nasheed’s legal team. The meeting was an opportunity to discuss the situation in the Maldives as well as Mr Nasheed’s case, his health and wellbeing.