The below Parliamentary question was asked by Liz McInnes on 2016-01-26.
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what rail routes are planned to be designated driver controlled operation in the Northern Franchise.
Andrew Jones
This is an operational matter for the new franchisee to discuss with its staff and their trade union representatives after they have taken over the franchise on 1st April.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Mowat on 2016-02-23.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the extent of Israeli settlement-building in the occupied territories since the cessation of Operation Protective Edge.
Mr Tobias Ellwood
Israeli settlement building in the West Bank and East Jerusalem has continued since the cessation of Operation Protective Edge. In August 2014, the Israeli Government expropriated over 1000 acres of Palestinian land near Bethlehem, the largest expropriation in 30 years. In September 2014, Israeli authorities approved 2610 units in Givat Hamatos. In 2015, according to Israeli Non-Government Office Peace Now, construction for 1800 previously-tendered housing units began in the settlements. New tenders for 1143 housing units were also published, 560 in the West Bank and 583 in East Jerusalem. 2016 has seen a number of concerning announcements, including: the extension of the Gush Etzion settlement to include the former church compound of Beit al Baraka; the declaration of 385 acres of land near Jericho as ‘state land’; and approval for a further 153 settlement units. We strongly urge the Israeli Government to reverse its policy over illegal settlements.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Charles Walker on 2016-03-18.
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate his Department has made of the number of its senior civil servants who will potentially fall under the provisions of the Fourth EU Money Laundering Directive, 2015/849; and what assessment he has made of which of his Department’s agencies or other public bodies will potentially be classed as holding a prominent public function for the purposes of that directive.
Mr Edward Vaizey
Under the Fourth Anti-Money Laundering Directive, which will be transposed into national law by June 2017, a politically exposed person is one who has been entrusted with a prominent public function domestically or by a foreign country. This would include some senior civil servants, such as ambassadors and chargés d’affaires. The Government’s view is that the Directive permits a risk-based approach to the identification of whether an individual is a politically exposed person and, when identified, the Directive enables the application of different degrees of enhanced measures to reflect the risks posed. The Government will be setting out this view in a consultation which will be published shortly.
The changes proposed under the Directive should not prevent any individual in this category from gaining or maintaining access to financial services. The Treasury regularly raises these issues with financial institutions and the regulator, and we encourage financial institutions to take a proportionate, risk-based approach when applying these measures.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2016-04-18.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government under what conditions they would refer an incident or a series of incidents of suspected mass killings or alleged human rights abuses to the UN Security Council for a determination on whether genocide was occurring as defined by the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide.
Baroness Anelay of St Johns
The Government believes that recognition of genocides should be a matter for international courts, not political bodies. It should be a legal, rather than political determination, decided by international judges after consideration of all the evidence available in the context of a credible international judicial process.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Greg Mulholland on 2016-05-25.
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, whether lease renewal and rent review will remain trigger points for the market rent only option procedure, as set out in Part 6 of the withdrawn Pubs Code etc. Regulations 2016.
Anna Soubry
Yes. Lease renewal and rent review will remain trigger points for the ‘Market Rent Only’ option procedure in the revised regulations.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tulip Siddiq on 2016-07-21.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when his Department plans to publish its response to the recommendations in the final report of the Review on Antimicrobial Resistance, published in May 2016.
Nicola Blackwood
The Department is finalising the cross-Government response to the recommendations contained in the final report of the Review on Antimicrobial Resistance. The response will be published shortly.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Henry Bellingham on 2016-10-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the cost of the Iraq Historic Allegations Team (IHAT) has been to date; and who is on the Board of the IHAT.
Mike Penning
As of 30 September 2016, the Iraq Historic Allegations Team (IHAT) has cost £34.7 million.
There is no Board of the IHAT. Its senior command team comprises the Director, who reports to the Provost Marshal (Navy), the Head of the Royal Navy Police, for investigative purposes; the Deputy Head, a Commander in the Royal Navy Police; the Legal Adviser, a Captain in the Royal Navy; and the Assistant Head, a civil servant who is responsible to the Director for resourcing and administrative issues.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Falconer of Thoroton on 2015-10-28.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how much income was generated by the Commercial Court in each of the last 10 years, and what were the operating costs for that Court in each year.
Baroness Evans of Bowes Park
HM Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) does not analyse the income or cost of the Commercial Court in this way. Such information could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julian Sturdy on 2015-11-24.
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what account he has taken of trends in reports of pregnancy discrimination as in his review into employment tribunal fees.
Mr Shailesh Vara
On 11 June we announced the start of the post-implementation review of the introduction of fees in the Employment Tribunals. The review will consider, so far as is possible, the impact the fees have had on those with protected characteristics and the types of case they bring. In order to do this, we will be giving all relevant material the appropriate consideration.
The review is underway and will report in due course.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by John Healey on 2016-01-05.
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, with reference to the announcement of 4 January 2016, The Government will directly build affordable homes, what the difficulties are which have resulted in credible bidders being deterred for the development in Daedelus Waterfront.
Brandon Lewis
The holding costs for the site relate to the entirety of the site and are consistent with the legal and health and safety obligations of the Homes and Communities Agency as land owner.