Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Laurence Robertson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Laurence Robertson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Laurence Robertson on 2016-01-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what requirement there is for a person to reveal their identity when requested to do so by a police officer.

    Mike Penning

    There are various requirements for a person to provide their name and address to reveal their identity to the police.

    These include:

    – the Road Traffic Act (RTA) 1988, for example, Section 164 gives constables the power to require the production of a driving license; and Section 165 RTA 1988 gives constables the power to obtain names and addresses of drivers and others, and to require production of evidence of insurance or security and test certificates. Full details of the Act can be seen here: http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1988/52/contents

    – the Police Reform Act, which also gives powers to Police Community Support Officers to require the provision of a name and address in certain circumstances. Full details of the Act can be seen here: http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2002/30/schedule/4/paragraph/1A –

    – the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 which can require a person to reveal their identity in certain circumstances in connection to suspecting them of a specific offence and arrest. Full details of the Act can be seen here: http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1984/60/contents

  • Lord Hunt of Kings Heath – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Lord Hunt of Kings Heath – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hunt of Kings Heath on 2016-02-08.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they propose to cap the rates paid by NHS bodies to management consultancies, similar to their policy with regard to staff agencies.

    Lord Prior of Brampton

    Cabinet Office have published guidance on the use of management consultants Cabinet Office controls guidance: version 4.0 which government departments and their arms length bodies are required to follow. A copy of the guidance is attached.

    National Health Service providers follow a similar consultancy spending approvals process as defined by Monitor and the Trust Development Authority (TDA). Monitor has published the following guidance for foundation trusts Consultancy spending approval process: Initial guidance to NHS foundation trusts, with TDA publishing similar for NHS trusts Consultancy spending controls: Initial Guidance to NHS Trusts. Copies of the guidance are attached.

    At this time, these do not include any directive to set caps on rates paid to management consultancies.

  • Lord Green of Deddington – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Lord Green of Deddington – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Green of Deddington on 2016-03-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the remarks by Lord Faulks on 2 March (HL Deb, col 928), how many of those families of EU migrants in the UK that are supported by the benefits system, and which include at least one member who has arrived in the last four years, include (1) an adult member recorded for these purposes as of UK nationality, and (2) an adult member recorded for these purposes as a non-UK national who has not arrived in the last four years, where recorded for these purposes” relates to nationality at the time the person was first issued with a National Insurance Number.”

    Lord Freud

    The information requested is not available and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

  • Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-04-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answers of 15 March 2016 to Questions 30647 and 30649, what the evidential basis is for the statement that her Department’s policy enables thousands of people each year to be reunited with their families in the UK; and how many extended family members seeking family reunion have been granted asylum in exceptional circumstances by the Entry Clearance Officer in each of the last three years.

    James Brokenshire

    In the last three years, over 13,000 family reunion visas have been granted under the Immigration Rules. This information is available in the quarterly statistics published by the Home Office and available on Gov.UK here:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/immigration-statistics-october-to-december-2015/list-of-tables#visas

    A further 65 visas have been granted outside the Rules due to exceptional circumstances.

    We have committed to making clearer in revised guidance the kinds of cases which may benefit from leave outside the Immigration Rules due to exceptional circumstances. The guidance will be updated by the end of April.

  • Andrew Rosindell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Andrew Rosindell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2016-05-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether the Government plans to place unaccompanied refugee children from European countries with foster families or in local authority care homes.

    James Brokenshire

    As announced on 4 May we will be consulting closely with local authorities to find suitable places within the UK for these children.

    Local authorities will be required to provide the right support, care and accommodation to meet the child’s specific needs. Statutory agencies at a local level are best placed to understand and meet the needs of all children and will continue to make decisions about the right accommodation and support services for those who are looked after.

    Unaccompanied children will be eligible for foster care if it is considered that that this placement type will provide appropriate support and best meet their individual needs.

    The UK has well-established and effective safeguarding procedures to ensure the safety of children who come to the UK.

  • David Hanson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    David Hanson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Hanson on 2016-06-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what information his Department holds on the average time between veterans applying for the Legion d’Honneur and subsequently receiving the award.

    Mark Lancaster

    Following the answer I gave to the hon. Member for York Central (Rachael Maskell) on 6 June 2016 to Question 38675, the Ministry of Defence (MOD) has received approximately 5,200 applications for the Legion d’Honneur between June 2014 and June 2016. We are unable to provide a breakdown by month. As at 24 June the MOD had submitted 3,750 cases to the French authorities. We are not automatically advised when awards are issued, but a list provided by the French authorities on 13 May 2016 showed that 3,200 awards had been made.

    It is not possible to give a meaningful figure for an average waiting time for veterans to receive their awards, as this has reduced steadily, from over a year for initial applications to the current time of around two to three months owing to changes in the processing. Some priority cases, particularly where there are health concerns, are processed much more quickly.

    The Department is working closely with the French authorities and we are doing our best to ensure that all awards are issued as soon as possible and at the maximum rate at which they can be produced.

  • Pat McFadden – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Pat McFadden – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Pat McFadden on 2016-09-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what proportion of children receiving free school meals obtained five GCSEs, including English and mathematics in each local authority area in England in the latest year for which figures are available.

    Edward Timpson

    The percentage of pupils who are eligible for free school meals and obtained five GCSEs, including English and mathematics, in each local authority area in England is published in table LA8 as part of the “GCSE and equivalent attainment by pupil characteristics 2015” statistical first release (SFR)[1].

    [1] KS4 SFR 2014/15: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/493475/SFR01_2016_LA_Tables.xlsx (Table LA8)

    “

  • John Mc Nally – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    John Mc Nally – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Mc Nally on 2015-11-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the human rights situation for religious minorities in Burma.

    Mr Hugo Swire

    Burma remains a country of concern in our annual Human Rights report. We, therefore, produce biannual updates on the human rights situation, the latest can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/burma-in-year-update-july-2015/burma-in-year-update-july-2015.

    We have been concerned by the increase in religious intolerance in Burma and the treatment of minority groups, particularly religious miniorities. This has been evidenced starkly in the four discriminatory race and religion laws as well as in the appalling treatment of the Rohingya community in Rakhine State, their disenfranchisement from the 8 November elections, and the rise of Buddhist nationalism, hate speech and anti-Muslim violence. We have raised our concerns about this in detail with the Burmese authorities, both bilaterally, in company with our partners in the EU and in international fora like the UN. We will continue to raise this important issue facing Burma with any incoming government.

  • Lord Falconer of Thoroton – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Lord Falconer of Thoroton – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Falconer of Thoroton on 2015-12-09.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what was the total spent, above basic salaries, on staff on detached duty at young offender institutions in England and Wales in each month between October 2014 and October 2015 inclusive.

    Lord Faulks

    The deployment of staff between prisons on detached duty is a regular and normal part of prison resourcing. It allows staff to be allocated from prisons with the capacity to provide them, to those where additional staffing is required.

    The total amount spent on staff on detached duties above basic salaries could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

  • Daniel Zeichner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Daniel Zeichner – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Daniel Zeichner on 2016-01-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the rationale is for people on spousal visas resident in the UK being required to pay a health surcharge as part of their visa.

    James Brokenshire

    The Immigration Health Surcharge was introduced in April last year to ensure that temporary, non-EEA migrants (unless subject to an exemption), who apply to come to the UK to work, study or join family, for a time-limited period of more than 6 months or who make an application to remain in the UK, contribute to the extensive and high quality range of NHS services available to them in a manner in line with their immigration status. This includes individuals resident in the UK with temporary spousal visas of more than 6 months, until such time they are eligible for indefinite leave to remain in which case the Immigration Health Surcharge does not apply.

    It gives migrant’s access to the NHS on the same terms as a permanent UK resident. The surcharge is set at a competitive rate and is a lower cost over the period of stay than the cost of even basic private medical insurance. In setting the Immigration Health Surcharge level at £200 per annum per migrant and £150 for students, the last Government considered the range of health services available without charge to migrants, the valuable contribution migrants make to our country and the need to ensure that the UK remains an attractive destination for global talent.

    In the first 6 months since its introduction, the Immigration Health Surcharge collected more than £100 million in income for the NHS.