Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Lord Cashman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Cashman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Cashman on 2016-03-23.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to support better co-ordination of financial and political support amongst governments and multilateral organisations in the advancement of the human rights of LGBTI people at the Global LGBTI Human Rights Conference that will take place in Uruguay from 13 to 15 July.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    As I set out to the House of Lords on the 21 March, the UK will send a delegation to the Global Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and/or Intersex (LGBTI) Human Rights Conference taking place in Montevideo in July. We are committed to working with those countries that will be represented at the conference, and others, to combat discrimination and violence against LGBTI people. This forms an important part of our wider international human rights work.

    We continue to work through our Embassies and High Commissions and through international organisations, including the UN, EU, the Council of Europe and the Commonwealth, to promote general tolerance and non-discrimination toward LGBTI people and to address discriminatory laws, in particular those that criminalise homosexuality. The Global LGBTI Human Rights Conference will provide an opportunity to share information, best practice and lessons learned with partners and to discuss how to better coordinate international efforts and resources to support the promotion and protection of the rights of LGBTI people worldwide.

  • Clive Efford – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Clive Efford – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Clive Efford on 2016-04-28.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions he has had with ministerial colleagues in other departments on whether breaches of UK laws have occurred as a consequence of secondary ticketing companies offering tickets for sale via their websites to UK-based customers for the European Football Association Championships.

    David Evennett

    It is an offence for an unauthorized person to sell a ticket for a designated football match via the internet under section 166A of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994. The Government expects companies in the secondary market to comply with the law.

    Professor Michael Waterson is chairing an independent Review of consumer protection measures applying to the re-sale of tickets for music, sporting or cultural events in the UK through secondary ticketing facilities. In supporting Professor Waterson in carrying out his Review, my officials have had discussions with their counterparts in the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and the Home Office about online re-sale of football tickets.

    The Department agrees with the Football Association that fans of the home nations participating in the Euro 2016 Football Championships should purchase tickets through authorised channels. Such channels include UEFA’s Euro 2016 ticket resale platform.

    The safety and security of the Euro 2016 Football Championships is a matter for the French Government and UEFA. The UK Government co-operates closely with France on matters of policing and security.

  • Chi Onwurah – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    Chi Onwurah – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chi Onwurah on 2016-06-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment he has made of the effect of telephone design on whether the mobile coverage detailed in Ofcom’s published maps of coverage is attainable.

    Mr Edward Vaizey

    Ofcom had commissioned a study in 2015 into the sensitivity of mobile handsets. The study can be found here: http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/market-data-research/other/technology-research/2015-reports/mobile-handset-testing/

    “

  • Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the implications for her policies on the provision of mental health services for young people in (a) the community and (b) school of the recent 10 per cent increase in instances of depression and anxiety among school-aged girls.

    Edward Timpson

    Children and young people’s mental health is a priority for this Government, supported by an additional £1.4 billion over the lifetime of this Parliament. Each clinical commissioning group has worked with partners, including schools and colleges, to develop a Local Transformation Plan setting out how they will provide support for the full spectrum of mental health conditions, including early intervention measures.

    Schools and colleges have an important role to play in supporting the mental health of children and young people, and we will continue to invest in this. We have provided them with a range of information, support, advice and guidance to help them develop ‘whole-school’ approaches to best suit the needs of their pupils. This includes guidance on: teaching about such issues as depression and anxiety within their personal, social, health and economic education curriculum, and providing effective school-based counselling. Teachers can also access free online support for pupils with a range of mental health issues, including depression and anxiety, through the MindEd website.

    We want to support schools and colleges further, and to help us to know where to best direct this support we are currently conducting a large-scale survey asking them what approaches they use, as well as what they find to be the most effective. The results should be available next spring.

    The Department of Health has also commissioned a new prevalence survey that should provide updated information on a range of specific mental health conditions such as anxiety and depression. This is due to report in 2018.

  • Andrew Gwynne – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Andrew Gwynne – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Gwynne on 2016-10-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has held with his counterparts in Qatar on the human rights situation and working conditions for foreign workers building stadia for the 2022 World Cup.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    We continue to support Qatar’s efforts in preparing for the FIFA World Cup in 2022, including ensuring UK businesses involved adhere to international and Qatari labour laws, and we support the steps that the Qatari government has taken to respond to concerns about the treatment of migrant workers. We continue to discuss implementation with the Qatari government and we welcome the Government of Qatar’s commitment to the ongoing, systematic reform of Qatar’s labour laws.

  • Lord Oates – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Lord Oates – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Oates on 2015-11-18.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of what is an acceptable average period for (1) small businesses, and (2) personal taxpayers, to wait for their calls to a government department to be answered.

    Lord O’Neill of Gatley

    HM Revenue and Customs has a target to handle 80 per cent of call attempts to their contact centre helplines. It also aims to answer calls within 5 minutes.

  • Adam Holloway – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Adam Holloway – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Adam Holloway on 2015-12-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps are being taken to reduce congestion at the northbound entrance to the Dartford Tunnel caused by lorries carrying dangerous cargo being stopped and investigated.

    Andrew Jones

    Highways England is continuing to work to reduce times for dangerous goods vehicles which are prohibited from entering the tunnels and need to be removed, or to release vehicles in escorted convoys to ensure smooth traffic flow while ensuring safety of users. Since the road layout changes at the Crossing were completed in 2015, fewer but larger convoys are used to minimise disruption with the number of convoys reducing to 70 – 80 per day from around 110 per day, which equates to a reduction of around a third.

    Clear road signs already provide advance instruction for drivers of dangerous goods vehicles and are enforceable by regulations. Work is also underway with the freight industry to educate drivers of restricted vehicles what lane or route to take to avoid being stopped, which causes delays for other drivers.

  • Douglas Chapman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Douglas Chapman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Chapman on 2016-01-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what road routes have been used for the movement of nuclear materials in Scotland in each of the last five years.

    Penny Mordaunt

    It is Ministry of Defence policy not to comment upon the frequency or routes used by nuclear material convoys, as to do so would, or would be likely to, prejudice national security. Nuclear material convoy movements are kept to the minimum necessary to maintain the operational effectiveness of the UK’s nuclear deterrent.

  • Teresa Pearce – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Teresa Pearce – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Teresa Pearce on 2016-02-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many railway stations are (a) staffed and (b) unstaffed.

    Claire Perry

    The Department for Transport does not collect this information as station staffing is a matter for operators. They are not required to inform us of which stations are staffed beyond the obligations as set out in the Ticketing and Settlement Agreement.

    We regulate Ticket Office opening times through the Ticketing and Settlement Agreement and a list of which stations have open ticket offices by operator can be seen at http://www.atoc.org/about-atoc/rail-settlement-plan/governance/ (Schedule 17 July 2015).

    “

  • Lord Touhig – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Lord Touhig – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Touhig on 2016-03-14.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many British air strikes in (1) Syria, and (2) Iraq, have been conducted since 2 December 2015, and what assessment they have made of their effectiveness.

    Earl Howe

    The UK military campaign in Iraq and Syria is part of a wider Coalition effort to counter Daesh. Between 2 December 2015 and 14 March 2016 there were 36 UK airstrikes in Syria and 236 in Iraq. These airstrikes have contributed significantly to the coalition’s wider efforts, which are placing Daesh under increasing pressure in both Syria and Iraq. Among the targets successfully engaged by UK aircraft were oil facilities, which Daesh used to generate revenue to fund their campaign, and command and control centres. UK aircraft have also lent direct assistance to regional ground forces, which have achieved notable successes in retaking territory from Daesh.

    All UK strikes are undertaken as part of a rigorous targeting process, which assesses before, during and after a strike to ensure that the Law of Armed Conflict is adhered to.