The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Kennedy of Southwark on 2015-12-03.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the activities of ticket resale websites.
Baroness Neville-Rolfe
An independent Review has been established to consider consumer protection measures in relation to online ticket resales and will report by 26 May 2016.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Teresa Pearce on 2016-01-13.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what his policy is on the commercial provision of consumer debt advice services.
Harriett Baldwin
The Government is very concerned about evidence of consumer detriment in the debt management market. That is why we have given the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) robust powers to protect borrowers using debt management firms.
For profit debt management plan providers, operating with consumers’ interest at heart and in full compliance with regulatory requirements, can help provide a wider supply of solutions and products for consumers, and help them get in control of problem debts. The Government’s focus has therefore been on comprehensively reforming regulation of this sector, and ensuring firms act in customers’ best interests.
The FCA is currently scrutinising debt management firms as part of its authorisation process. Firms which do not meet the required standards will not be able to continue to provide debt management services.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Shannon on 2016-02-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the effect on the advancement of democracy in Colombia of ongoing killings by paramilitaries there; and if he will make a statement.
Mr Hugo Swire
The Government of Colombia has made significant progress on peace process negotiations with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). Both sides have committed to sign a final agreement by the end of March 2016. This agreement has significant potential to advance democracy for all Colombians.
However, I am concerned about the continued influence of organised criminal gangs and resulting violence in Colombia, which challenges the implementation of the peace process. I am pleased to see that, on 1 February, President Santos launched a committee to tackle organised criminal groups.
Our Embassy officials regularly discuss the challenges posed by armed criminal groups (so called ‘Bandas Criminales’ or BACRIM) in their meetings with the Colombian government. Our Ambassador to Colombia met with the Minister of Interior on 1 February when they discussed security challenges, including those posed by the BACRIM. In forthcoming meetings with the Minister of Defence and Minister of Post-Conflict, our Ambassador will seek to raise these issues again. The UK is also contributing £1m to the Organisation of American States’ Peace mission (also known as MAPP-OAS) which is monitoring demobilisation.
A peaceful Colombia, where authorities effectively tackle organised crime and promote democratic practices nationwide, will bring about real change for all Colombians.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Cunningham on 2016-02-29.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 22 February 2016 to Question 26579, what estimate he has made of the total cost of the Troubled Families Programme in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.
Greg Clark
£448 million was made available for the original Troubled Families Programme, which ran from 2012-2015 and successfully helped over 116,000 families.
The programme was expanded and rolled out nationally in April 2015, to support a further 400,000 families by 2020. The programme secured £200 million for 2015/16, the first year of its expansion; it secured a further £720 million at the Spending Review 2015 to run it until 2020.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Karl Turner on 2016-03-24.
To ask the Attorney General, if he will place in the Library the number of cases of (a) rape, (b) domestic violence, (c) child abuse and (d) human trafficking referred by each police force in England and Wales to each regional division of the Crown Prosecution Service in (i) 2014 and (ii) 2015.
Jeremy Wright
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) maintains a central record of the numbers of suspects referred by the police to each CPS business area of cases flagged as involving allegations of rape, domestic violence, child abuse and human trafficking. The attached tables show the volumes of referrals for 2013/14 and 2014/15. The tables are accompanied by a number of caveats and explanatory notes which should be observed when reviewing the data. Data for 2015/16 will be published later this year and will be placed in the House of Commons Library.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sue Hayman on 2016-04-27.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to ensure that the Rural Payments Agency learns the lessons of the introduction of the Basic Payment Scheme.
George Eustice
The Rural Payments Agency has learnt a number of lessons following the introduction of the Basic Payment Scheme in 2015, in particular, allowing farmers and their agents the opportunity to apply online and on paper for 2016. In addition the online application process has been simplified for 2016.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kirsten Oswald on 2016-06-10.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the long-term effect on incomes of households with children affected by the planned replacement of widowed parent’s allowance by bereavement allowance.
Priti Patel
Bereavement support payments (BSP) will replace both Widowed Parent’s Allowance and Bereavement Allowance for those bereaved from April 2017 onwards.
BSP will not be taken into account when calculating income for the benefit cap and will also be paid in addition to income related benefits to ensure that the least well off families are financially better off under the reform.
Further information is provided via the link below.
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Matthew Pennycook on 2016-09-06.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent assessment she has made of the effect of the cost of private-rented sector accommodation on the ability of London boroughs to resettle vulnerable Syrian refugees under the Vulnerable Persons Resettlement programme.
Mr Robert Goodwill
Participation in the Syrian Refugee Resettlement Programme is voluntary and a number of Syrians have already been resettled under the Syrian Vulnerable Persons Resettlement scheme in London. Overall the programme is on track to meet the commitment to resettle 20,000 vulnerable Syrians by 2020. Local authorities, including London boroughs are expected to arrange affordable and sustainable accommodation for families before they arrive. They are provided funding by Government to meet the cost of resettlement. This funding is un-ring fenced so it will be for them to determine the best use of the funds to support the placements in their area.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Altmann on 2016-10-17.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Freud on 15 September (HL1462), what action was taken to trace new addresses and re-send letters to those affected by the increase in State Pension Age under the Pensions Act 2011; and for whom letters sent between January 2012 and November 2013 were returned due to the Department for Work and Pensions having the incorrect address.
Lord Freud
The Department has a robust process in place to review all incorrect address returns and properly scrutinise and update customer account details when an address is confirmed. Letters are issued to the latest address held on our records. DWP takes all reasonable steps to determine the correct address. For State Pensions this may include contact through Local Authority or a DWP Visiting Officer. Where an updated address is confirmed the customer account details are amended.
Information on the number of individuals who had letters returned due to incorrect address details, and details on resending letters is not collated centrally and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2015-11-04.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the effect of the creation of 28 states in South Sudan on the prospects for peace in that region.
Mr Philip Hammond
With our Troika partners, the United States and Norway, we issued a statement on 6th October expressing serious concern at President Kiir’s announcement of 2nd October concerning the creation of 28 states in South Sudan, as it contradicts the Government of South Sudan’s stated commitment to implement the peace agreement. The full text of this statement can be found at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/south-sudan-troika-statement