Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Lilian Greenwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Lilian Greenwood – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lilian Greenwood on 2016-05-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what proportion of (a) tolls and (b) fines related to non-payment of tolls were unpaid on the Dartford Crossing in each of the last three years; and what the cost to the public purse of unpaid fines was in each of those years.

    Andrew Jones

    A new payment system was introduced at the Dartford Crossing on 30 November 2014 known as Dart Charge. 93% of drivers are paying the charge on time and I understand that similar charging systems without barriers also do not achieve complete first time compliance. Cases of non-payment are followed up appropriately.

    Year – Dart Charge

    Proportion of crossings charges not paid

    Proportion of unpaid Penalty Charge Notices

    Value of unpaid Penalty Charge Notices

    April 2015 – March 2016 (New system)

    7.5%

    Note 1

    Note 1

    30 November 2014 – March 2015 (New system)

    6.1%

    1.73%

    £13,431,945.07

    Year – Pre Dart Charge

    Proportion of crossings where the charge has not been paid

    Number of violations* and DTDs**

    Value of unpaid road user charge from DTD passages
    (Not inclusive of money not recovered from violations as this historical data was not collected)

    April 2014 – 30 November 2014

    0.36%

    107,449

    £64,940

    April 2013 – March 2014

    0.34%

    151,311

    £85,828

    Note 1 – The proportion of unpaid Penalty Charge Notices (PCNs) for April 2015 to March 2016 and the subsequent cost to the public purse of unpaid PCNs for that year cannot be accurately determined at this point in time because around 275,000 of these PCNs were issued in 2016 and are still in the early stages of the enforcement process. Action is ongoing and can take many months to complete so the proportion of unpaid PCNs relating to 2015/16 and the cost to the public purse can be expected to change as a proportion will be paid over the coming months.

    *Violation – Any crossing for which there is no valid payment eg tailgaters.

    **DTD – Dockets used to be issued to personal users of the Crossing with no means of payment that were allowed passage at that time.

  • Luke Hall – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Luke Hall – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Luke Hall on 2016-07-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what support her Department is providing to support the development and innovation of (a) pure fibre and (b) FTTP broadband delivery technology in rural areas.

    Matt Hancock

    Through the Government’s investment of over £780 million, superfast broadband is now available to 90% of homes and businesses in the UK, compared to 45% in 2010. By the end of 2017 it will be available to 95% of homes and businesses. An increasing proportion of the additional coverage to be delivered in rural areas will be provided through fibre to the premises (FTTP).

  • Gareth Thomas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Gareth Thomas – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gareth Thomas on 2016-10-11.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, which agreed EU directives have not yet been transposed directly into UK law; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr David Gauke

    Until exit negotiations are concluded, the UK remains a full member of the European Union and all the rights and obligations of EU membership remain in force. During this period the Government will continue to negotiate, implement and apply EU legislation.

    EU Directives related to HM Treasury responsibilities awaiting transposition into UK law are as follows: The Fourth Anti-Money Laundering Directive, The Anti-Tax Avoidance Directive, VAT Vouchers Directive, Markets in Financial Instruments Directive II, the Payment Services Directive II, the Insurance Distribution Directive and amendment to the Directive on Administrative Assistance and Mutual Cooperation.

  • Baroness Helic – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Baroness Helic – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Helic on 2015-11-02.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations the Foreign and Commonwealth Office has made through the Permanent Mission to the United Nations regarding the incitement of violence in Burma against the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Burma.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    The Government supports the Special Rapporteur, Professor Yanghee Lee, and deplores the hateful and threatening language that has been used against her by MaBaTha monk Wirathu. We have also called for Burma’s Ministry of Religious Affairs to take action on the matter. I was able to convey my sympathy and concern to Professor Lee in person during her visit to London in March. Last week, we publicly reiterated our support for Professor Lee and her mandate at the UN General Assembly in New York, at a dedicated session discussing her most recent report on the Human rights situation in Burma.

    Unfortunately, statements like those of Wirathu are symptomatic of a troubling rise in intolerance, discrimination and hate speech in Burma. We have repeatedly raised our concerns over this trend, both bilaterally and in company with our international partners. The Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for East Devon (Mr Swire), did so with senior Burmese government ministers during his visit to Burma in July and, most recently, with Foreign Minister Wunna Maung Lwin in September in New York.

  • Bob Blackman – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Bob Blackman – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Bob Blackman on 2015-11-23.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if his Department will undertake an analysis of the feasibility of devolving property taxes to London linked to specific infrastructure projects.

    Mr David Gauke

    By 2020, local government will retain 100% of business rates and will have the power to reduce business rates. Directly elected mayoral authorities, such as the Mayor of London, will have the power to levy a small supplement on business rates to fund new infrastructure.

    In the last Parliament, the Government gave local councils greater power over council tax support schemes and the treatment of second homes and empty properties. The Government believes there would be difficulties in devolving other property taxes, such as Stamp Duty Land Tax and Capital Gains Tax, to London as this would create a distortive effect around the border, increase administration costs and complexity and expose local government to significant fiscal risk.

  • Gregory Campbell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Gregory Campbell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gregory Campbell on 2016-01-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many passports were processed by each Passport Office in the UK between 2010 and 2015.

    James Brokenshire

    I refer to the attached table which provides by calendar year the volume of passports issued by each passport office in the UK from 2010 to 2015.

    The number of passports issued by the Newport office dropped in 2012 and 2013 because it ceased to process postal applications during this time. Newport then restarted postal passport production in 2014.

    The number of passports issued by the Glasgow office dropped in 2011 because it also ceased to process postal applications during this time. However, Glasgow continued to utilise counter staff to process a small number of postal applications through the subsequent years.

  • Kevin Brennan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Kevin Brennan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kevin Brennan on 2016-01-29.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, which provisions of the Regulatory Reform Act 2013 need to be removed in order to achieve balance sheet reclassification for the purposes of privatisation of the Green Investment Bank.

    Anna Soubry

    The Government’s proposals to amend and repeal provisions in the Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Act 2013 relating to UK Green Investment Bank plc (GIB) are contained in clause 30 of the Enterprise Bill. The Government has explained the background to these proposals in paragraphs 62 – 73 of our November 2015 policy statement on the future of GIB which can be found on the GIB pages of the GOV.UK website.

  • Angela Smith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Angela Smith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Angela Smith on 2016-02-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department plans to make an assessment of the environmental effects of the disposal of imported (a) animal blood, faeces and urine and (b) other biological by-products in rural areas of the UK.

    Rory Stewart

    We have no plans to make such an assessment.

  • 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 2016-03-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many agency mental health nurses have been employed by each clinical commissioning group in each year since 2010.

    Ben Gummer

    This information is not collected centrally either by the Department or NHS England.

  • Ruth Smeeth – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Ruth Smeeth – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ruth Smeeth on 2016-04-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many Tier 2 visas have been issued for pharmacists in each of the last three years.

    James Brokenshire

    The figures below show the number of Certificates of Sponsorship (CoS) assigned in support of visa applications for Pharmacists in each of the last three years. A Certificate of Sponsorship (CoS) is required to support all visa applications and a sponsor is required to enter a Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) code on their CoS. There is a SoC code for Pharmacists.

    Assigning a CoS does not guarantee a visa will be issued.

    2013 380

    2014 380

    2015 400