Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • 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 2016-03-17.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether there is a limit on the number of Tier 2 (ICT) visas a company can apply for each year.

    James Brokenshire

    A Tier 2 (Intra company transfer) certificate of sponsorship (CoS) issued by a Tier 2 (ICT) licensed company is required for a migrant worker to be granted a Tier 2 (ICT) visa. There is no limit to the number of Tier 2 (ICT) CoS that a company can apply for each year. When applying for a sponsor licence the company must tell UKVI how many CoS they may need to the end of the financial year and justify why they need them.

    Licensed companies with a proven history of compliance are automatically allocated the same number of CoS they used in the previous financial year. All other sponsors must request CoS each financial year and justify why they are needed. Additional CoS can be requested at any time by all licensed sponsors.

  • Julie Cooper – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Julie Cooper – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Julie Cooper on 2016-04-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many court buildings have been sold in (a) Lancashire and (b) Burnley.

    Mr Shailesh Vara

    Two court buildings in Lancashire have been sold since the creation of HM Court Service in 2005. Neither of these were in Burnley.

    Prior to 2005 magistrates’ courts were the responsibility of locally managed magistrates’ courts committees.

  • Lord Judd – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Lord Judd – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Judd on 2016-05-24.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what arrangements they have in place to publish the details of police, law enforcement specialists and other relevant civilian experts in service in UN operations and at the UN Headquarters.

    Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

    The National Police Chiefs’ Council has established the new Joint International Policing Hub to triage requests for international police assistance through a single point. The Hub joins up the police at a national level and with Home Office and Foreign and Commonwealth Office and is intended to promote the UK model of policing by consent. Decisions on who to recommend to deploy, and where, lies with Chief Constables, in conjunction with their Police and Crime Commissioners.

    As the first professional body for all of policing in England and Wales, the College of Policing develops standards and guidance for policing. The College is considering flexibility and the structure of entry, exit and re-entry of officers. It is also considering routes for officers to gain external experience, such as secondments, as part of the Leadership Review.

    The Government has no plans to publish the details of police, law enforcement specialists and other relevant civilian experts in service in UN operations and at the UN Headquarters. Any personnel deployed as part of a national contingent are listed on the UN website: http://www.un.org/en/peacekeeping/contributors/2016/apr16_4.pdf

  • Richard Burden – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Richard Burden – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-07-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has made to the Palestinian authorities on reports that three death sentences were issued or upheld by Gaza Military Court on 19 July 2016; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    We have not raised this issue with the Palestinian Authority (PA) as the sentences were issued by the de-facto authorities in Gaza and the PA, at this present time, has no control over the Gaza Strip. However, the EU missions in Jerusalem and Ramallah issued a statement on 21 July condeming the death sentances, calling for the de facto authorities in Gaza to refrain from carrying out any executions of prisoners and comply with the moratorium on executions put in place by the PA.

    On 19 August, I issued a statement condemning the latest death sentence issued in Gaza on 17 August and also called on the de-facto authorities in Gaza to respect the PA’s moratorium on implementation of the death penalty.

  • Alison Thewliss – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Alison Thewliss – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alison Thewliss on 2016-10-11.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent assessment she has made of the effectiveness of Part 10 of the Gambling Act 2005.

    Tracey Crouch

    The Government continues to keep under review all aspects of the Gambling Act 2005. The Triennial Review of Stakes and Prizes is due to be published shortly, and will consider stakes and prizes of all gaming machines.

  • Nicholas Brown – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Nicholas Brown – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nicholas Brown on 2015-11-02.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what progress his Department has made in tackling international tax avoidance.

    Mr David Gauke

    The Government is committed to countering tax avoidance to ensure all tax payers pay their fair share. The UK has been at the forefront of international efforts to tackle corporate tax avoidance through the OECD Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) project, which had the objective of ensuring profits are taxed where economic activities are performed.

    The first phase of the BEPS project was delivered in 2014, and the UK was the first adopter of the 2014 recommendations, by legislating for the internationally agreed country-by-country reporting template; and consulting on implementing the OECD agreed rules to deal with hybrid mismatch arrangements.

    In line with the objectives of the BEPS project, the Government also introduced the Diverted Profits Tax to target contrived arrangements used by large multinational companies to divert profits away from the UK.

    The final BEPS project reports were published on 5 October 2015. The UK will give full consideration to the outputs of the BEPS project and will engage with the OECD’s work on developing a framework for monitoring implementation.

  • Andrew Rosindell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Andrew Rosindell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2015-11-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what consultations he has had with the chief ministers of the UK Overseas Territories on the Strategic Defence and Security Review (SDSR); if he will take steps to ensure that the security interests and requirements of the Overseas Territories are adequately addressed in the SDSR; and if he will make a statement.

    Michael Fallon

    The Strategic Defence and Security Review (SDSR) consulted widely with external stakeholders and internal staff. As reflected in chapter four of the SDSR, the Government takes seriously its responsibility to support communities in the Overseas Territories and their right to safety, security and determination. My hon. Friend, the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office responsible for the Overseas Territories (James Duddridge), has written to the Chief Ministers to inform them of the SDSR’s outcome and he looks forward to discussing the conclusions further at the Joint Ministerial Council on 1 and 2 December.

  • 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 2016-01-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 17 December 2015 to Question 20054, what funding was allocated to the Winter Weather Repair Fund in 2014-15.

    Andrew Jones

    In 2014/15, the Government provided £950 million to local highway authorities for highways maintenance, including £168 million to specifically tackle potholes across the country.

    In March 2014, the Government provided an additional £183.5 million to help repair local highway infrastructure damaged by the winter floods of 2013/14. This funding was spent by local highway authorities in 2014/15.

    Overall, between 2010 to 2015, local highways maintenance funding was 27% or £1billion higher than under the previous Labour administration.

  • Brendan O’Hara – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Brendan O’Hara – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Brendan O’Hara on 2016-01-29.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether there is a shortfall in the number of Ministry of Defence Police Officers; and what provision there is for tasking such officers beyond their contracted hours of work.

    Mark Lancaster

    The Ministry of Defence Police (MDP) currently has a number of vacancies within the Force. Where there is a shortfall in numbers at an MDP station the use of overtime working may be authorised in order to cover essential duties. Volunteers to work additional hours are sought in the first instance, but officers may be directed to work additional hours if insufficient volunteers are available.

  • Norman Lamb – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Norman Lamb – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Norman Lamb on 2016-02-24.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, with reference to paragraph 2 of Delivering the Forward View: NHS Planning Guidance, published in December 2015, how much of the £8.4 billion real terms increase in NHS funding by 2020-21 is allocated to mental health; whether that figure includes funding for children and young people’s mental health announced before the 2015 General Election; and under which of his Department’s budget headings that funding has been allocated.

    Alistair Burt

    Regarding the £8.4 billion real terms increase in funding, NHS England (NHSE) does not stipulate a specific spend level for commissioning bodies, this is to be determined by national policy directives like parity of esteem and specific local needs based assessment. At a commissioning stream level, NHSE has set a principal commitment to achieving mental health parity of esteem. Through its assurance process NHSE will hold individual commissioners to account for increasing spend on mental health in line with their increase in allocations, taking account of the additional mental health funding that has been received.

    The difference between the 2015/16 funding for children’s and young people’s mental health in NHSE baseline and subsequent increase in funding over the five-year period from 2016-17 to 2020-21 is included in the £8.4 billion growth in the Mandate.

    The Department allocates funding to NHS England as set out in the government’s mandate to NHSE and accompanying financial directions. The mandate to NHSE for 2016-17 and accompanying directions are both available at:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/nhs-mandate-2016-to-2017

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