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Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Nicholas Brown – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Nicholas Brown – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nicholas Brown on 2014-05-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what criteria he will use to assess requests for extra powers from local enterprise partnerships and combined authorities.

    Kris Hopkins

    The Government is currently negotiating a ‘Growth Deal’ with every Local Enterprise Partnership, based on the Strategic Economic Plans they submitted in March 2014. The criteria being used to assess the plans are set out in the guidance published in July 2013. These are: ambition and rationale for intervention; value for money; and deliverability and risk. Combined authorities, where they exist, are represented in Local Enterprise Partnerships and will have been involved in the development of the Strategic Economic Plans.

    Notwithstanding, as I indicated to the rt. hon. Member in my answers to him of 3 April 2014, Official Report, Column 778W and 6 May 2014, Official Report, Column 24W, we should be cautious about any measure which had the effect of transferring power upwards away from elected local councils. Decentralisation should devolve power to the lowest appropriate level.

    Combined authorities are relatively new bodies. They now should focus on using the functions and powers that they currently have and prove themselves on delivering local growth; we do not intend to repeat the “function creep” mistakes of the Regional Development Agencies which just became unwieldy and unfocused, taking on too much and failing to deliver.

  • Julian Brazier – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Julian Brazier – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julian Brazier on 2014-05-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Answer of 10 April 2014, Official Report, column 380W, on developing countries: family planning, how much of her Department’s budget has been allocated to achieving the outcomes in her Department’s policy paper Safe and Unsafe Abortion in each of the last two years; and if she will make a statement.

    Lynne Featherstone

    DFID adheres to Development Co-Operation Directorate (OACD-DAC) expenditure coding requirements to allow comparison across donor spending towards attainment of the Millennium Development Goal targets. This measures against coding titles as have been internationally agreed. Only coding titles as have been internationally agreed can be individually disaggregated by DFID systems.

  • Sadiq Khan – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Sadiq Khan – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sadiq Khan on 2014-05-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, from which countries UK citizens returned to complete their sentences in prisons in England and Wales in each of the last four years.

    Jeremy Wright

    It has not been possible to obtain this information. I will write to the Right Honourable member in due course.

  • Chris Ruane – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Deputy Prime Minister

    Chris Ruane – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Deputy Prime Minister

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Ruane on 2014-05-01.

    To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what steps his Department has taken to improve registration rates and voter turnout of (a) visually impaired voters and (b) voters with learning difficulties.

    Greg Clark

    Electoral law requires returning officers to take account of the needs of people with disabilities by making polling stations and voting accessible.

    In June 2014, the government will be introducing an online facility for registration which will support further accessibility options for those with particular needs. User testing of paper forms has allowed their design to take into account the requirements of those with disabilities.

    The Cabinet Office has also funded the Royal Mencap Society to create educational resources for people with a learning disability and to develop a model for one-to-one support for families, carers and others to encourage and enable registering to vote.

  • Philip Davies – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Philip Davies – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Philip Davies on 2014-05-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 28 April 2014, Official Report, column 471W, on Standardised Packaging for Tobacco Independent Review, what fees were paid to King’s College for hosting the Review team.

    Jane Ellison

    A final breakdown of expenditure will be made public when complete on the Review’s webpage:

    www.kcl.ac.uk/health/packaging-review.aspx

    There was no agreed budget in advance of the Review but an estimate of £177,000 was made for planning purposes. Sir Cyril had control of his own budget, as outlined in the Terms of Reference, and expenditure was passed to the Department and approved in the normal way.

    Sir Cyril travelled to Australia in March 2014, and attended meetings in Canberra, Sydney and Melbourne. Further details of those meetings are available on the Review’s webpage.

  • Simon Danczuk – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Deputy Prime Minister

    Simon Danczuk – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Deputy Prime Minister

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Simon Danczuk on 2014-05-01.

    To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, whether the Government plans to increase the 15 year out-of-country voting limit for British expatriates.

    Greg Clark

    The Government will keep the 15 year time limit under consideration, but is not minded to change the law at the present time.

  • Anne Main – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Anne Main – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Anne Main on 2014-05-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of changes in levels of fly-grazing in England following changes to relevant legislation in Wales.

    George Eustice

    The Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Natural Environment and Science has met a number of interested bodies to discuss what action can be taken to address fly grazing in England. There is a range of legislation that can be used depending on the individual circumstances of each case. Most of the problems associated with fly grazing are linked to difficulties in tracing owners of unidentified horses. In such cases we would encourage a joined-up approach by enforcers and interested parties at a local level to help tackle the problem. It is already an offence under the Horse Passport Regulations for horses not to be identified. These regulations are enforced by local authorities. Fly grazing in Wales is a matter for the Welsh Government.

  • Simon Kirby – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Simon Kirby – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Simon Kirby on 2014-05-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will bring forward proposals to relocate (a) staff and (b) offices of his Department to Brighton; and if he will make a statement.

    Jenny Willott

    We do not have any plans at this time to relocate staff or offices to Brighton.

    BIS currently has one active property in Brighton, Crown House, which houses the Insolvency Service.

    Any future decisions to move staff and offices to Brighton would be led by the business needs of BIS which would be supported by the Property and Asset Management Team.

  • Jamie Reed – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Jamie Reed – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jamie Reed on 2014-05-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he is taking to ensure that fathers have appropriate access to or custody of their children following separation or divorce in cases where there is no risk to the child.

    Mr Edward Timpson

    The Government recognises that a father’s role in his child’s life is a very important one and legislation in the Children and Families Act 2014 reflects the importance of children having a continuing relationship with both of their parents following family separation, as long as it is safe and in the child’s best interests.

    We are also strengthening the way in which breaches of child arrangement orders are handled. Cases which are breached within the first 12 months of an order being made will in future return to court quickly and, wherever possible, to the judge who made the original order. Courts will also be able to make full use of powers to direct a parent who is in breach of an order to participate in an activity, for example a parenting programme, to address their behaviour.

  • Justin Tomlinson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Justin Tomlinson – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Justin Tomlinson on 2014-05-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the foreword to the Draft Modern Slavery Bill, when she plans to start the review of the operation and effectiveness of the National Referral Mechanism; how long that review will take; who will undertake it; and when it will be published.

    Karen Bradley

    The review into the operation and effectiveness of the National Referral
    Mechanism was announced on 9 April 2014. I have placed a copy of the Terms of
    Reference in the Libraries of both Houses.