Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • David Warburton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    David Warburton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by David Warburton on 2016-04-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what her Department’s policy is on ensuring that Afghan interpreters who have assisted British troops are able to claim asylum in the UK; and whether her Department plans to review that policy.

    James Brokenshire

    The Government accepts that we have a responsibility to those who have worked for the British forces in conflict zones. Many have served with distinction and at great personal risk. Separate schemes have existed since 2013 to assist interpreters previously employed by our forces in Afghanistan. These apply only to those who have remained in Afghanistan and, in recognition of their unique and exceptional service or the danger interpreters may face because of their work, can lead to relocation to the UK if certain criteria are met.

    There is no change to the way in which asylum claims by former interpreters with British forces in Afghanistan are considered. All claims made in the UK are individually considered on their merits in accordance with our international obligations under the Refugee Convention. Those who we accept have a well-founded fear of persecution are normally granted asylum. Those who are found not to be in need of international protection have a right of appeal to the independent courts. If all appeal rights are exhausted, they are then required to leave the UK.

    Government policy is however very clear that we only consider asylum claims lodged in the UK. We have no obligation to extend the asylum process to those outside the UK and cannot undertake to consider claims by individuals or groups in other countries or facilitate their journey to the UK. People who need international protection should seek protection in the first available safe country – that is the fastest route to safety.

  • Nick Clegg – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Nick Clegg – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nick Clegg on 2016-05-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment his Department has made of the contribution of community pharmacies to (a) local minor ailments services, (b) needle exchanges and (c) local commissioned services; and what assessment he has made of the potential effect of the closure of such pharmacies on (i) such services, (ii) patient care, (iii) GP practices and (iv) hospitals.

    Alistair Burt

    The Department has not made a specific assessment of the contribution of community pharmacies to local minor ailment services, needle and syringe exchange services and other locally commissioned services. However, information available from the Health and Social Care Information Centre shows that during 2014/15, 1,863 community pharmacies were commissioned to provide local minor ailment services and 29 were commissioned to provide needle and syringe exchange services, as National Health Service pharmaceutical services. Clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) and local authorities are, however, able to commission local services and it is very likely that local authorities commission needle and syringe exchange services from community pharmacies and CCGs commission minor ailment services. However, this information is not available nationally.

    Community pharmacy is a vital part of the NHS and can play an important role in delivering services such as management of minor ailments locally, needle and syringe exchange services and other locally commissioned services. The Government’s vision is for a more efficient, modern system that will free up pharmacists to spend more time delivering high quality clinical and public health services to the benefit of patients and the public.

    In the Spending Review the Government re-affirmed the need for the NHS to deliver £22 billion in efficiency savings by 2020/21 as set out in the NHS’s own plan, the Five Year Forward View. Community pharmacy is a core part of NHS primary care and has an important contribution to make as the NHS rises to these challenges. The Government believes efficiencies can be made without compromising the quality of services or public access to them. Our aim is to ensure that those community pharmacies upon which people depend continue to thrive and so we are consulting on the introduction of a Pharmacy Access Scheme, which will provide more NHS funds to certain pharmacies compared to others, considering factors such as location and the health needs of the local population.

    Our proposals are about improving services for patients and the public and securing efficiencies and savings. A consequence may be the closure of some pharmacies but that is not our aim. The community pharmacy proposals for 2016/17 and beyond, on which we have consulted, are being considered in respect to the public sector equality duty, the family test and relevant duties of the Secretary of State under the NHS Act 2006. An impact assessment will be completed to inform final decisions and published in due course.

    Local commissioning and funding of services from community pharmacies will be unaffected by these proposals.

    NHS England has taken account of the potential impact of a pharmacy minor ailments service on general practitioner services and other parts of the NHS. The findings of the Minor Ailment study (‘MINA’ study), conducted by the University of Aberdeen, in collaboration with NHS Grampian and the University of East Anglia, on behalf of Pharmacy Research UK in 2014, were considered. In addition, evaluations of local minor ailments schemes have continued to inform decision-making about local commissioning of such schemes.

  • Baroness Northover – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Baroness Northover – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Northover on 2016-07-06.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to support humanitarian and human rights organisations that seek the ability to cross the border at Semalka between Iraqi Kurdistan and Northern Syria in order to provide humanitarian aid.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    DFID currently funds a number of NGO partners who use the Semalka border crossing to provide humanitarian aid –health, food, livelihoods, and protection programmes – to people in parts of northern Syria. In general, access across the border is negotiated by agencies themselves.

  • Andrew Rosindell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Andrew Rosindell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2016-09-15.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to address shortfalls in (a) recruitment and (b) retention in the Royal Navy.

    Mike Penning

    The Naval Service utilises a wide range of mechanisms to aid the recruitment and retention of personnel. For recruitment these include targeted marketing, specific recruitment events and staged remunerative awards to attract recruits in specialist areas. A number of initiatives have also been developed in order to retain experienced personnel, such as the use of targeted retention incentives and career extensions. Further developments under the Defence People Programme, such as flexible engagements, will help ensure that this process continues.

  • Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town on 2015-11-18.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what consultations they have conducted on the impact of the cap on low- to middle-income earners in the public sector, and what protections were considered when setting the level of the exit payment cap at £95,000.

    Lord O’Neill of Gatley

    The Government set out its proposals for the cap on public sector exit payments in the consultation document published on 31 July 2015 and confirmed the design of the cap in the consultation response document published on 16 September 2015. The consultation document gave details of the number of exits over recent years that cost the taxpayer more than £100,000.

    The precise number of those affected by the public sector exit payment cap will depend on the number and type of exits in coming years. However, in recent years the large majority of exits in the public sector are below the level of the cap. For example, the Whole of Government Accounts states that, in 2013-14, 1,838 out of 72,445 pay outs were in excess of £100,000.

    The exit payment clauses currently before the House of Lords in the Enterprise Bill set out how the cap is expected to apply.

  • Phil Boswell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Phil Boswell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Phil Boswell on 2015-12-10.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what statistical information his Department holds on small- and medium-sized enterprises which have defaulted on a loan received through the Funding for Lending Scheme.

    Harriett Baldwin

    The Bank of England does not lend directly to small and medium sized enterprises as part of the Funding for Lending Scheme (FLS). Under the FLS, the Bank of England provides funding to UK banks and building societies participating in the scheme. The amount of funding participant banks and building societies are eligible to borrow from the Bank of England is determined by their net lending to certain sectors of the economy.

  • Jessica Morden – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    Jessica Morden – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jessica Morden on 2016-01-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how much funding the Green Investment Bank has invested in fracking projects in the UK.

    Anna Soubry

    The Green Investment Bank has not invested in any fracking projects.

  • Keith Vaz – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Keith Vaz – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Keith Vaz on 2016-02-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps the Government has taken to (a) alleviate the blockade of Yemen and (b) address the shortage of essential medicines in that country.

    Mr Desmond Swayne

    The UK is the 4th largest donor to the crisis in Yemen and has more than doubled its humanitarian support over the last year to £85 million for 2015/16. We have so far helped more than 1.3 million Yemenis with medical supplies, food, water, and emergency shelter. This includes support to the UN Humanitarian Air Service (UNHAS) to import essential medical supplies. From 27 April until 31 December 2015 UNHAS transported 9,547 kg of medical cargo on passenger flights. They also organised separate cargo flights to transport a total of 192 metric tons of medical and nutrition supplies. The UK also fund the UN’s Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) to support critical relief projects, including the provision of emergency drugs and medical supplies.

    There is no blockade, although some restrictions have been put in place to prevent the flow of arms to Yemen. One of our top priorities now is working to help commercial shipping return to pre-conflict levels. This is why the UK is providing £1.42m of support to the UN’s Verification and Inspection Mechanism (UNVIM). UNVIM will help speed up checks for commercial cargo, including food, fuel and medical supplies, entering Yemen and increase commercial confidence to get markets working again and lower very high commodity prices.

  • Tom Watson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Prime Minister

    Tom Watson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Prime Minister

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Watson on 2016-03-14.

    To ask the Prime Minister, what discussions he has had with his ministerial colleagues on compliance with Privy Council rules.

    Mr David Cameron

    I refer the hon. Member to the statement made to the House by the Lord President of the Council on 14 March 2016, Official Report, columns 653-654.

  • Andrew Rosindell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Andrew Rosindell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2016-04-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 9 March 2016 to Questions 30551 and 30552, on UK membership of EU: Crown Dependencies, if his Department will take steps to ensure that the principles underlying those arrangements are not affected in the event that the UK leaves the EU.

    Dominic Raab

    The Channel Islands and the Isle of Man enjoy special arrangements for access to the EU, provided under Protocol 3 to the UK’s Treaty of Accession to the European Community. As set out in the Government’s White Paper: ‘The process for withdrawing from the European Union’, published on 29 February, the withdrawal process is unprecedented. There is uncertainty about how it would work. There would be no requirement under EU law for these arrangements to be maintained if the UK left the EU.

    The Government respects and values the constitutional relationship between the UK and the Crown Dependencies, and will continue to engage constructively with them to address issues and areas of concern.