The below Parliamentary question was asked by Cathy Jamieson on 2014-06-18.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, when he expects to publish the results of the consultations on bail-in order for building societies; and if he will make a statement.
Andrea Leadsom
The Government is currently analysing the responses to the consultation on bail-in secondary legislation. Once this review is completed, the Government will publish a summary of the responses and indicate how it plans to proceed.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Miss Anne McIntosh on 2014-04-10.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of trends in the level of rural crime; and if she will make a statement.
Norman Baker
Across the country, crime has fallen by more than ten per cent since June
2010.The latest published data from the Crime Survey for England and Wales
shows that the proportion of adults who were victims of crime was substantially
lower in rural than urban areas, and has been falling since 2009/10. According
to the 2012/13 Crime Survey for England and Wales, 13.4 per cent of people in
rural areas were victims of crime, compared with 20.1 per cent in urban areas.
However, the latest findings from the Commercial Victimisation Survey of crimes
against businesses, which looked at crime affecting the agriculture, forestry and
fishing industry, showed that there were 130,000 incidents of crime against the
agriculture, forestry and fishing sector in 2013, affecting just under a third
(30 per cent) of premises. Of the six business sectors surveyed in 2012 and
2013, the agriculture, forestry and fishing sector experienced the lowest rate
of overall crime (1,475 incidents per 1,000 premises).
The Government recognises that rural communities are vulnerable to
certain crimes. The election of Police and Crime Commissioners has given
communities, including rural communities, a stronger voice in determining how
police resources are allocated to tackle the crimes that matter most to them.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Michael Fabricant on 2014-06-18.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what works are currently being undertaken in King Charles Street, Westminster; and when the scaffolding and road and pavement equipment related to the works will be removed.
Andrea Leadsom
The scaffolding and pavement equipment on King Charles Street are in support of works being undertaken by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Murphy on 2014-04-10.
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what support her Department gives to the World Economic Forum’s New Vision for Agriculture.
Justine Greening
DFID does not provide financial support to the World Economic Forum’s New Vision for Agriculture initiative.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Angus Robertson on 2014-06-18.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the technical fault was with Typhoon aircraft T3 ZJ815 which forced it to land in Lajes Field; whether this fault has been rectified; and whether this aircraft has since returned to the UK.
Mr Mark Francois
Typhoon ZJ815 was on a pre-planned stop at Lajes Field on its return journey to the UK from exercise in the USA. A fault with the Inertial Measuring Unit on Typhoon ZJ815 was identified during routine pre departure checks at Lajes Field. The fault was repaired in situ and the aircraft returned to the UK.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Angela Smith on 2014-04-10.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prosecutions under the Hunting Act 2004 there were in 2013; how many of those prosecutions were successful; and what offences these prosecutions involved.
Damian Green
Court proceedings data for 2013 are planned for publication in May 2014.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emma Lewell-Buck on 2014-06-18.
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he plans to take to ensure that third party providers taking on children’s social care functions under his Department’s proposals adhere to quality standards set out in regulations.
Mr Edward Timpson
Delegation of children’s social care functions does not remove a local authority’s duties to meet statutory obligations. It remains a local authority’s responsibility to ensure the quality of services regardless of what arrangements it makes for the discharge of its functions.
Delegated social care functions are inspected by Ofsted, in the same way as directly delivered local authority social care functions, as part of its local authority inspection framework. In addition, regulations currently govern the fitness of third party providers and require their registration with Ofsted.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Diana Johnson on 2014-04-10.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people have been convicted of an offence contrary to section 54 of the Criminal Law Act 1977 in each of the last four years.
Jeremy Wright
The number of offenders found guilty at all courts of the offences specified in the Sexual Offences Act 2003, the Sexual Offences (Amendment) Act 2000, the Indecency with Children Act 1960, the Sexual Offences Act 1967 and the Criminal Law Act 1977, in England and Wales, from 2008 to 2012 is provided in the attached tables.
Please note that offences under the Sexual Offences Act 2003 sections 9 to 12, 14 to 19, 25 to 26, 47 to 50 provide data where the victim can be specifically identified as a child, whereas offences under sections 3, 4, 52 to 53, 57 to 59, 61 and 66 to 67, are not specific to the age of the victim.
The tables do not include data for offences under section 5 of the Sexual Offences Act 1967, or under section 3 of the Sexual Offences (Amendment) Act 2000. These offences, along with section 54 of the Criminal Law Act 1977, were repealed by the Sexual Offences Act 2003 and there have been no convictions in the last four years.
The number of offenders found guilty of offences under section 2 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 was provided in answer to PQ 193582 and can be found at Official Report c638W, 1 April 2014. It is not possible to separate out the age of the victims of offences under section 2.
Similarly, it is not possible to separate out the age of the victim of offences committed under sections 30 – 41 Sexual Offences Act 2003 from centrally held data. For data on offences under this legislation as a whole, I refer the honourable lady to the answer provided to PQ 193810, which can be found at Official Report column 136W, 7 April 2014.
Section 20 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 deals with offences in Scotland and Northern Ireland. Statistics for these offences in Scotland are a matter for the Scottish Government, with those in Northern Ireland being a matter for the Department of Justice Northern Ireland
Court proceedings data for England and Wales for 2013 are planned for publication in May 2014.
The Government takes very seriously all matters relating to the sexual abuse of children and adults. Our laws in these areas are rightly robust and clear. The 2003 Act, which came into effect in May 2004, significantly modernised and strengthened the laws on sexual offences in England and Wales.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Christopher Chope on 2014-06-18.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether garages, boiler rooms and other non-habitable areas affected by flooding are eligible for the Repair and Renew Grant.
Dan Rogerson
The “Repair and Renew” grant is available to establish resilience and resistance measures in properties to minimise the risk of damage caused by flooding. As it stands, the grant only applies to homes and businesses affected by flooding and excludes non-habitable areas.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bob Ainsworth on 2014-04-10.
To ask the Prime Minister, what role the National Security Council plays in the long-term strategic planning and development of security policy.
Mr David Cameron
The National Security Council is a sub-committee of the full Cabinet. It addresses all elements of national security strategy. It seeks to understand the context, risks and opportunities facing the country; debates policy options; decides courses of action; and monitors and evaluates their implementation. It brings together Ministers and experts on a weekly basis, fostering genuine discussion and collective decision-making on both strategic and operational issues. Regularity of meetings enables Ministers to build up knowledge of particularly complex matters over time and to take well-informed decisions. Specialised sub-committees ensure that appropriate attention is paid to the most complex and technical issues.