UKPOL.CO.UK

Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Gareth Thomas – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Gareth Thomas – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gareth Thomas on 2014-06-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he is taking to ensure that the European Commission provides support to the victims of recent flooding in the Balkans; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr David Lidington

    The UK has worked closely with the EU European Community Humanitarian Office (ECHO), and offered advice and assistance during all phases of the flood response effort.

    In Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), between 18 and 23 May a thirty-three person water rescue team from the British Fire Service was deployed to work alongside EU Force (EUFOR) Operation Althea and local rescue efforts. They rescued nearly 200 people, delivered large amounts of humanitarian aid, and helped restore power in villages North of Bijeljina.

    In Serbia, the UK provided 64 radios for the Serbian Ministry of the Interior, to assist with the coordination of their response teams; and donated £280,000 worth of heavy lift and transport vehicles to the Serbian Red Cross to aid their relief distribution effort.

    A team from the UK flew out to Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina in the week commencing 20 May to assess likely humanitarian and recovery needs. Subsequently the UK provided £250,000 to support a World Vision flood response project in the region focussing on sanitation and health and providing support for 140,000 people made homeless by the floods. ECHO have released €3.2m in humanitarian aid to support the most vulnerable population in BiH and in Serbia and the Commission has reallocated a further €62m to support short to medium term recovery and reconstruction needs in the affected areas. To both the UK will have contributed 15 per cent and we will continue to work with the European Commission to try to identify any further assistance which could be made available from existing budgets.

    In BiH, EUFOR Operation Althea, to which the UK contributes troops in-theatre and in reserve, assisted the BiH Armed Forces in their response to the flooding. The First Battalion, The Royal Regiment of Scotland, who provide part of EUFOR’s intermediate reserve, and are in BiH for a routine operational rehearsal, are assisting the BiH Armed Forces in this regard.

    The government will continue to work closely with the EU, the UN and other international organisations to assess what further help might be given to help both Serbia and Bosnia Herzegovina recover from the impact of the floods.

  • Jim Murphy – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Jim Murphy – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Murphy on 2014-06-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if she will make it her policy to support the adoption of a target to ensure all girls and boys complete free, equitable and quality primary and secondary education leading to relevant and effective learning outcomes by 2030 in the Open Working Group negotiations on the Sustainable Development Goals.

    Justine Greening

    The UK supports a target to ensure all girls and boys complete primary and secondary education with relevant learning outcomes in the post-2015 sustainable development framework. This language is included in the most recent draft goals and targets list released by the co-chairs of the Open Working Group (OWG) on 2 June.

    The final targets in the post-2015 development framework will however be subject to international negotiations in the United Nations, in which the UK will play an active role.

  • Jim Sheridan – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Jim Sheridan – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Sheridan on 2014-06-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what assessment he has made of the effect of his policy on binding votes for remuneration committees.

    Jenny Willott

    The Government’s reforms to increase the transparency of executive pay include a requirement that quoted companies put their remuneration policy to a binding vote of the company’s shareholders, at minimum, every three years.

    Shareholders also have an annual advisory vote on the annual remuneration report, covering what has been paid. Where this is rejected, the company will be required to re-submit their remuneration policy to a binding vote at the AGM the following year.

    It is too soon to form firm conclusions about the impact of the Government reforms, which only came into force in October last year.

    The Government is monitoring the impact of the reforms and will be taking stock of their impact after the voting season is over.

    The Government is keeping this policy area under review.

  • Luciana Berger – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Luciana Berger – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Luciana Berger on 2014-06-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what incentives are in place to improve the uptake of hepatitis C treatment nationally.

    Jane Ellison

    Clinical commissioning groups have considerable local flexibility to introduce incentives where they wish to prioritise a particular issue, based on their population needs. There are no national incentives in place to support improved uptake of hepatitis C treatment in England.

  • Douglas Alexander – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Douglas Alexander – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Alexander on 2014-06-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the effect of the recent Presidential elections in Syria on the prospects for future political reconciliation between the government and Opposition forces.

    Mr William Hague

    The recent Syrian Presidential elections were a parody of democracy designed to sustain the Assad dictatorship, held in the midst of a civil war and extreme regime violence with millions displaced from their homes unable to vote. They did not meet even the most basic requirements for free and fair elections.

    We judge that holding these elections was damaging to the political process. This is a view shared by the UN who warned that holding elections “will damage the political process and hamper the prospects for political solution that the country so urgently needs.”

    We will continue to support the moderate opposition who have a pluralistic, democratic vision of a future Syria and to create conditions for a future political settlement. A negotiated political transition in Syria, following the principles set out in the Geneva communiqué, is the only way to end the conflict and alleviate Syria’s humanitarian crisis.

  • Angus Robertson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Angus Robertson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Angus Robertson on 2014-06-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what event or risk involving a Tornado aircraft led to the approval of the Collision Warning Technology Demonstrator Programme for that aircraft; when that event or risk was identified; and where it is recorded.

    Mr Philip Dunne

    The Collision Warning System (CWS) Technical Demonstrator Programme (TDP) Final Report dated October 1996 details that the CWS TDP resulted from a series of airborne collisions involving various types of fast jets in the years prior to 1991. Although the TDP was evaluated using a Tornado GR1 test aircraft, the objective was to evaluate the CWS concept across all of the fast jet operational training environment.

  • Andrew Stephenson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Andrew Stephenson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Stephenson on 2014-06-09.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many and what proportion of women in Pendle constituency were diagnosed with ovarian cancer in each of the last five years.

    Mr Nick Hurd

    The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.

  • Peter Luff – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Peter Luff – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Peter Luff on 2014-06-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the (a) objectives, (b) governance, (c) intended duration and (d) funding of the Your Life campaign are; and if he will make a statement.

    Elizabeth Truss

    The main objective of the Your Life campaign is to increase the number of young people choosing A levels in maths or physics.

    The campaign will be led by an independent organisation chaired by Edwina Dunn, and it will run for three years.

    It will seek support and resources from leading employers and organisations. The Government has provided limited funds to establish a website and other set-up work.

  • Dan Jarvis – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Dan Jarvis – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dan Jarvis on 2014-06-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, when the construction contract for a Secure College was formally awarded to Wates.

    Jeremy Wright

    The construction contract for the Secure College pathfinder has not been awarded. The Ministry of Justice has selected Wates as the preferred bidder to design and build the pathfinder. The Project Partnering Agreement, which commits the Ministry of Justice to working with Wates to develop the design for the Secure College pathfinder, will be signed later this month. A further contract, a Commencement Agreement, is required for construction.

  • Sheila Gilmore – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Sheila Gilmore – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sheila Gilmore on 2014-06-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what visits each of the Ministers in his Department have made since January 2013; and what the purpose of each such visit was.

    Elizabeth Truss

    The Department does not hold a list of ministerial visits and to compile a list would exceed the cost threshold.