Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Chris Heaton-Harris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Chris Heaton-Harris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Heaton-Harris on 2016-03-02.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many individuals recorded in (a) HM Revenue and Customs’ and (b) the Department of Work and Pension’s computer systems who were nationals of another EEA member country at time of registration for a National Insurance (NI) number and are recorded as having arrived in the last four years using the earlier of his or her arrival date or NI number registration date have either (i) paid NI contributions over the previous year, (ii) paid PAYE income tax over the previous year and (iii) claimed benefits or tax credits over the previous year.

    Mr David Gauke

    I refer the honourable members to the recent HMRC release.

    https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/tax-credit-statistics-on-eea-nationals

    “

  • Douglas Carswell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Douglas Carswell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Carswell on 2016-03-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what progress her Department has made in its programme to increase the use of Long Lasting Insecticide Treated Nets among children under five years of age and pregnant women in Uganda.

    Mr Nick Hurd

    Results from the 2014-15 internationally recognised Malaria Indicator Survey indicate that the proportion of children under five in Uganda who slept under treated nets had gone up from 42% in 2009 to 74%; and that the proportion of pregnant women who slept under a treated net had gone up from 47% in 2009 to 75%. The UK has been a significant contributor to bed nets in Uganda. We have funded procurement and distribution of 5 million bed nets and distributed an additional 4.5 million bed nets.

  • Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2016-05-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 25 April 2016 to Question 34910, what the completion rate is for recruits who start on an apprenticeship.

    Penny Mordaunt

    The Ministry of Defence (MOD) is able to provide the following information on completion rates for Level 2 and Level 3 Apprenticeships in the Armed Forces by Academic Year for 2011-12 and 2012-13. For information on completion rates for apprenticeships in 2013-14 and 2014-15, I will write to the hon. Member shortly.

    Level 2 Apprenticeships – 1 August 2011- 31 July 2012

    Level 2 Apprenticeships – 1 August 2012- 31 July 2013

    Level 3 Apprenticeships – 1 August 2011- 31 July 2012

    Level 3 Apprenticeships – 1 August 2012- 31 July 2013

    Army

    4,507

    3,116

    1,682

    1,763

    Royal Navy

    2,182

    2,006

    339

    334

    Royal Air Force

    764

    693

    665

    618

    Total

    7,864*

    5,891*

    3,134*

    2,893*

    *total numbers include apprenticeships completed by Service personnel and MOD civilian staff.

  • Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2016-06-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will estimate the level of income that the Health and Safety Executive will receive from commercial sources in each year up to 2019-20.

    Justin Tomlinson

    HSE estimate the total level of income from commercial sources will be £17m in 2016/17. Future year income estimates will be determined as part the business planning process and included as part of the published Business Plan.

  • Lord Hague of Richmond – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Lord Hague of Richmond – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hague of Richmond on 2016-09-06.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs has had with the government of the USA relating to the ban on commercial trade in African elephant ivory that came into effect in that country on 6 July.

    Lord Gardiner of Kimble

    The Government has conducted informal discussions with representatives of the arts and antique sector on the scale of legal trade in ivory currently taking place. An accurate assessment is challenging as records for antiques may not necessarily record an item as containing ivory where this is only a small component of a larger item. Extrapolation from available data indicates that sales of items containing ivory may be worth in the order of several tens of millions of pounds per annum.

    TRAFFIC, the wildlife trade monitoring organisation, has recently published its report: “A Rapid Survey of the UK ivory market”. Although not an exact comparison with a survey conducted in 2004, TRAFFIC’s survey found the number of market stalls offering ivory for sale had declined by approximately two-thirds and the number of items offered for sale had halved. No new or raw ivory was seen in any of the physical market outlets or online platforms; only one ivory item seen for sale was reportedly from after the legal cut-off (1947) for antique ivory being sold without Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) documentation within the EU. Ivory is a key UK wildlife crime priority with an enforcement action plan in place to tackle risk. For example, UK Border Force through Operation Quiver has in particular successfully targeted ivory sent through postal systems.

    We are actively exploring options with interested parties and other Government Departments about how to implement the UK Government’s manifesto commitment to press for a total ban on ivory sales. The UK has successfully lobbied for the EU-wide adoption of the existing UK ban on trade in raw ivory tusks, which was agreed through European Council Conclusions on an EU Action Plan on Wildlife Trafficking adopted in June. Trade in such tusks presents the greatest risk of poached ivory entering the legal market. In addition, these conclusions urged EU Member States to consider further measures to put a halt to commercial trade in ivory from elephants.

    A substantial number of proposals on elephant and ivory related issues will be discussed at the Conference of Parties to CITES to be held in South Africa between 24 September and 5 October 2016. This will include discussions on the existing global ban on the trade in ivory, which the UK is committed to maintaining, and the role of domestic ivory markets in illegal trade. The UK is, and will continue to, play a full role in these discussions.

    In relation to the confirmation by the USA Government to limit commercial trade in African elephant ivory to items more than 100 years old, with some exemptions, the then Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Environment and Rural Affairs, Rory Stewart, discussed this issue with the USA Government during a trip earlier this year. In addition officials in Defra are in regular contact with their US counterparts and have discussed the US measures on a number of occasions.

    Finally on the Elephant Protection Initiative, this has grown from 5 to 14 members since the London Conference in February 2014. A Ministerial-level meeting of members to agree governance arrangements took place in Addis Ababa in September 2015. Range states have been supported to develop their National Elephant Action Plans and through these a number of priority conservation projects have been funded.

  • Tulip Siddiq – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Tulip Siddiq – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tulip Siddiq on 2016-10-21.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 14 October 2016 to Question 47528 and the Answer of 17 October 2016 to HL 2020, if he will provide further detail on the consideration of responses to questions seven and 11 and summary paragraphs 45 and 67 of the consultation on housing benefit reform, Cm 8152, where there are references to meeting appointed housing needs through locally administered funding; and if he will make a statement.

    Caroline Nokes

    We received a number of responses to questions 7 and 11 on the consultation CM8152, along with the other questions in the consultation, which the Government considered at the time. There was a range of views, comments and suggestions, from a range of stakeholders, relating to the proposition that local authorities should administer funding for supported housing and that supported housing should be removed from Housing Benefit altogether.

  • Baroness Smith of Basildon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Baroness Smith of Basildon – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Smith of Basildon on 2015-11-09.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the (1) Constitution Committee, (2) Procedure Committee, (3) Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee, and (4) Delegated Powers Committee, of the House of Lords, and (5) the Joint Committee on Human Rights, will be consulted prior to Lord Strathclyde’s review of the powers of the House of Lords being published.

    Baroness Stowell of Beeston

    The Lord Privy Seal (Baroness Stowell of Beeston):

    Lord Strathclyde is being supported in his review by a panel of external experts and a small secretariat of civil servants in the Cabinet Office. The secretariat does not include political advisers. The expert panel comprises Sir Stephen Laws, former First Parliamentary Counsel; Jacqy Sharpe, a former Clerk in the House of Commons and Clerk to the Joint Committee on Conventions; and Sir Michael Pownall, former Clerk of the Parliaments.

    Several reviews have examined the powers of the House of Lords, including the Royal Commission on the reform of the House of Lords (2000) and the Joint Committee on Conventions referenced above (2006).

    The review led by Lord Strathclyde is due to consider how to protect the ability of elected Governments to secure their business in Parliament in the light of the operation of certain conventions. The review will consider in particular how to secure the decisive role of the elected House of Commons in relation to its primacy on financial matters; and secondary legislation.

    Ministers regularly discuss a wide range of issues with the Cabinet Secretary and Head of the Civil Service.

    Lord Strathclyde will determine the way in which the review is undertaken and the content of his recommendations, including any definitions required. It is not possible to provide an estimate of the cost of the exercise at this stage, but neither Lord Strathclyde nor his panel of experts will be paid a fee. Lord Strathclyde is expected to seek views from a wide range of Parliamentarians, parties and groups in undertaking his review, and has issued a letter to all Parliamentarians inviting their input. He is also seeking views from the Clerk of the Parliaments and the Clerk of the House. Lord Strathclyde will report to the Prime Minister, and the Government will decide how to proceed upon receipt of his recommendations.

  • Emma Lewell-Buck – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Emma Lewell-Buck – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emma Lewell-Buck on 2015-12-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, if she will make an estimate of the number of UK jobs that would be created if contracts in the energy sector supply chain were awarded to UK firms.

    Andrea Leadsom

    A report on ‘The size and performance of the UK low carbon economy’ published by the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills contains estimates of the number of jobs supported by the low carbon sectors across the UK. [1] The report estimates in 2013 there were 460,600 jobs supported by these sectors, comprising 269,800 people employed by firms operating directly in the sector, with a further 190,800 jobs supported in the supply chain.

    Activity in the oil and gas industry supports jobs directly (those working immediately in the sector), and indirectly (those working in the supply chain), plus others supported in unrelated industries as a result of the direct and indirect workers spending their incomes on goods and services. Oil and Gas UK’s 2014 report estimated 450,000 jobs across the whole economy, comprising:

    • 36,000 employed directly
    • 200,000 in the supply chain
    • 112,000 jobs elsewhere in the economy (induced jobs)
    • 100,000 jobs in related export industries

    Oil and Gas UK updated their analysis in 2015, giving a total of 375,000 jobs across all these areas.

    The investment driven by the government will support thousands of new jobs across the energy sectors. For example, Hinkley Point C will provide a vital boost for the national and local economy – expected to support 25,000 jobs, with at least 5,000 people from Somerset expected to work directly on the project, providing a £40 million boost to the local economy every year. EDF expects that more than 60% of the value of construction work on HPC will go to UK-based businesses.

    Work is ongoing between the Department of Energy and Climate Change and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills regarding support for jobs in the energy sector. Wherever possible we want to see UK firms completing supply chains and exporting around the world.

    [1] BIS (March 2015), The Size and Performance of the UK Low Carbon Economy https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/low-carbon-economy-size-and-performance

    “

  • Luciana Berger – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Luciana Berger – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Luciana Berger on 2016-01-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how his Department (a) identified and (b) supported children of parents with mental illness.

    Alistair Burt

    We have changed the law to improve how young carers and their families including those of parents with mental illness are identified and supported. These new duties came into effect in April 2015. Changes introduced through the Children and Families Act 2014 consolidate and simplify the legislation relating to young carers’ assessments, make rights and duties clearer to both young people and practitioners, extend the right to an assessment of needs of all young carers regardless of who they care for or what type of care they provide and make it clear to local authorities that they must carry out an assessment of a young carer’s needs for support on request or on the appearance of need.

    These new provisions work alongside those in the Care Act 2014 for assessing adults to enable ‘whole family approaches’ to assessment and support. This means that when a child is identified as a young carer, the needs of everyone in the family will be considered in the first place.

    The Royal College of Psychiatrists’ Report CR164 Parents as patients: Supporting the needs of patients who are parents and their children published in January 2011 and available at

    http://www.rcpsych.ac.uk/usefulresources/publications/collegereports/cr/cr164.aspx

    sets out the College’s position on how the needs of parents and children can be managed and dealt with sensitively in the case of parental mental illness.

    “

  • Corri Wilson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Corri Wilson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Corri Wilson on 2016-02-05.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has target times for responding to written correspondence from members of the public; and what change there has been in the volume of written correspondence to HMRC from the public seeking information or assistance over the last three years.

    Mr David Gauke

    HM Revenue and Customs’ (HMRC) targets for responding to written correspondence received via post are to reply to 80% within 15 working days and 95% within 40 working days.

    The volume of written correspondence received by HMRC has decreased over the past three years, and is currently at around one million items per month. HMRC regularly publishes general performance reports on Gov.uk.