Tag: Parliamentary Question

  • Lord Empey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    Lord Empey – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Empey on 2016-03-01.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government when they intend to publish papers relating to the review of the workings of the Electoral Office for Northern Ireland.

    Lord Dunlop

    The Chief Electoral Officer for Northern Ireland is currently considering a range of options for reforming his office. Any reforms will ensure that elections and electoral registration will continue to be delivered in the most effective way while placing his office on a sustainable financial footing. I understand work on some of the options for reform remains at an early stage.

    In addition to the currently available paper registration process we propose to introduce, by the end of 2016, an on-line registration service. This will improve the registration service offered to people in Northern Ireland.

    The consideration of possible structural changes to the Electoral Office for Northern Ireland is a matter for the Chief Electoral Officer and it will be for him to consult with stakeholders once the options have been fully explored.

  • Steve Reed – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Steve Reed – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve Reed on 2016-03-23.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if he will publish the methodology used by his Department to calculate the distribution of the Transitional Grant announced in the local government finance settlement 2016-17.

    Mr Marcus Jones

    The Secretary of State has published an explanatory note setting out the method of calculation of the Transition Grant. It is available to view at:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/510870/Explanatory_note_on_the_allocation_of_the_Transition_Grant.pdf

  • Baroness Cox – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Baroness Cox – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Cox on 2016-05-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to support the Beja people in Eastern Sudan, in particular to prevent kidnapping and people trafficking.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    The UK is supporting the people of Eastern Sudan, including the Beja people, in a number of ways. The Department for International Development (DfID) spends £30million in Eastern Sudan to help improve vulnerable communities’ food security and nutrition, provide sustainable water supplies and improve sanitation. DfID also provides core funding to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees which supports host and refugee communities across Sudan to improve livelihoods and reduce the risk of human trafficking. The UK is also taking a lead role in the Khartoum Process, which prioritises tackling smuggling and trafficking across the Horn of Africa, including Sudan.

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

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

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Scriven on 2016-06-20.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions they have had with the government of Turkey about the reported use of tear gas and rubber bullets at a LGBT pride march in Istanbul.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    We have not discussed these specific cases with the Government of Turkey. We regularly underline the importance of all fundamental freedoms as part of our broader dialogue with the Turkish government, including the freedom of assembly and the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, and/or intersex persons. We did not fly the rainbow flag over our Embassy in Ankara over the weekend commencing 24 June. British Missions overseas fly the Diplomatic, Union or Consular flag throughout the year, the flags of the constituent countries of the UK on their respective national days and in certain countries the European flag. Missions do not fly any other flags.

  • Clive Lewis – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Clive Lewis – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Clive Lewis on 2016-09-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what estimate his Department has made of the potential cost of terminating and re-tendering the Carillion Amey housing contract.

    Mark Lancaster

    The Ministry of Defence has put in place a strategy to provide an alternative solution should CarillionAmey fail to sustain performance. The Department continues to assess CarillionAmey’s performance to determine whether the implementation of this strategy is necessary.

    I will be meeting senior CarillionAmey staff in September to hold them to account for their performance.

  • Diana Johnson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Diana Johnson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Diana Johnson on 2016-10-20.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the effect on the UK’s obligations as agreed in the August 2015 joint ministerial declarations, Managing migratory flows in Calais, of the French government’s decision to close the Calais camp for refugees and migrants.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    Although the decision to clear the camp in Calais is a matter for the French Government, the UK and France remain committed to working together to protect our shared border in Calais and address the humanitarian challenges in the camps.

    Both governments are clear that those in northern France in need of protection should claim asylum in France and those not in need should return to their home country.

    Our priority is to ensure the safety and security of children in the camps. The UK Government has made clear its commitment to transfer unaccompanied refugee children under the 2016 Immigration Act, where it is in their best interests, and to ensure those with close family in the UK are brought here using the Dublin Regulation.

  • Andrew Rosindell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Andrew Rosindell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2015-11-09.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he is taking to cooperate with his Egyptian counterpart on measures to (a) counter security threats and (b) ensure the safety of air passengers travelling from Egypt.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    On 5 November, the Prime Minister, my right hon. Friend the Member for Witney (Mr Cameron) and I spoke with President Sisi and Foreign Minister Shoukry about the safety of air passengers travelling to and from Egypt. Her Majesty’s Ambassador in Cairo is in regular contact with the Egyptian authorities, and the UK has an ongoing dialogue with Egypt on security issues.

    The Foreign and Commonwealth Office is engaging with international partners about the ongoing aircrash investigation and its implications. We have shared all information we are able to share and discussed our conclusions with partners. We are also helping officials from the Department for Transport to work closely with Egyptian counterparts to ensure necessary airport security measures are in force. The safety of British nationals remains our priority.

  • Stephen Timms – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Stephen Timms – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2015-12-08.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate she has made of the cost to the public purse of the Syrian Vulnerable Person Relocation scheme in each year until 2020.

    Richard Harrington

    The first 12 months of each refugee’s resettlement costs under the Syrian Vulnerable Persons Resettlement (VPR) Scheme will be funded using Official Development Assistance, meaning over £460 million of the overseas aid budget will be used by 2019-20. At the Spending Review the Government committed £129 million to assist with local authority costs over years 2-5 of the scheme.

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

    Lord Whitty – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Whitty on 2016-01-18.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what has been the effect of the reduction of the budget of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on staffing, and scientific expenditure and activity, at Kew Gardens.

    Lord Gardiner of Kimble

    Budgets for 2016/17 to 2020/21 have not yet been finalised. Defra’s internal business planning process is still underway, and it would not, therefore, be appropriate at this time to comment on how particular policy areas may be affected.

  • Emily Thornberry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Emily Thornberry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emily Thornberry on 2016-02-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 27 January 2016 to Question 23290, whether it is his policy for the House to be given an opportunity to debate in advance any decision to (a) launch airstrikes against ISIL/Daesh targets outside Syria and Iraq and (b) deploy UK military personnel, embedded within other nations’ armed forces, on military operations against ISIL/Daesh targets outside Syria and Iraq.

    Michael Fallon

    The Government is committed to the convention that, before UK troops are committed to conflict, Parliament should have an opportunity to debate the matter, except when such action is necessary in an emergency. The Government will inform the House of any exceptional operation where there has not been prior debate in Parliament, as the Prime Minister did on 7 September 2015 in relation to the precision airstrike that took place on 21 August 2015.

    The embedding of UK forces in the armed forces of allies is a valuable and commonplace activity governed through long standing and frequently reciprocal international arrangements. Although it is not policy for the House to be given the opportunity to debate their deployment we are committed to continued transparency about UK Service personnel embedded in other nations’ armed forces on operations and I refer the hon. Member to the Written Ministerial Statement I made on 17 December 2015 (Official Report, column 97-98WS) which updated the House on this.