Tag: Patrick Grady

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Patrick Grady on 2016-02-25.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will issue a response to EDM 1138, Anti-lobbying Clause in Government Grant Agreements.

Matthew Hancock

The grants clause announced on 6 February prevents recipients of taxpayer-funded grants from using them to lobby rather than for the purposes for which they were given.

The clause does not prevent grant recipients from meeting with ministers, responding to public consultations or giving evidence to select committees.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Patrick Grady on 2016-04-29.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the human rights situation in Macedonia.

Mr David Lidington

I am very concerned by the human rights situation in Macedonia and by related developments, including most recently the decision of President Ivanov to pardon those individuals currently under investigation over allegations of abuse of power. This decision undermines the principle that all people must be held legally accountable for their actions. I raised my concerns over this decision and its implications for the rule of law in my public statement of 14 April. I, along with international partners, have also spoken to Nikola Gruevski, former Prime Minister and leader of the governing party VMRO, and raised concerns over the credibility of forthcoming elections in Macedonia, attacks on democratic institutions, and the wider level of commitment to the democratic process including the lack of media reform and the intimidation of voters. As I made clear to Mr Gruevski and to other party leaders during my visit to Skopje in March, Macedonia must implement commitments on the rule of law and free and democratic institutions as set out in the European Commission’s Urgent Reform Priorities.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Patrick Grady on 2016-07-08.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of television advertising of junk food before the 9pm watershed on the health of children and young people.

Nicola Blackwood

Our forthcoming Childhood Obesity Strategy will look at everything that contributes to a child becoming overweight and obese. The Prime Minister and the Cabinet will be working over the coming days and weeks to establish their priorities and how we deliver on these commitments.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Patrick Grady on 2016-09-15.

To ask the Prime Minister, pursuant to the Answer of 12 September 2016 to Question 45481, where the information on Parliamentary Private Secretaries has been published; and at what time on 12 September 2016 that information was published.

Mrs Theresa May

Parliamentary Private Secretaries are not members of the Government. The information was published by the Conservative Party on the 12 September 2016.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Patrick Grady on 2015-12-14.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what funding support the British (a) Council and (b) Embassy in The Gambia provides to civil society organisations in that country.

James Duddridge

Over the past two financial years, the British Embassy in The Gambia has provided funding support to civil society organisations totalling £81,965. This funding has focused on ten projects relating to human rights, good governance, education, health and disease prevention and environmental conservation. The funding is part of the Embassy’s Bilateral Programme Fund and comes under Overseas Development Assistance. There is no British Council in The Gambia.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Patrick Grady on 2016-01-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment her Department has made of the effects of its spending on the education of disabled children in developing countries in the last 10 years.

Mr Nick Hurd

We made a number of education commitments in our Disability Framework including a commitment to help to strengthen global and national data systems to be able to better capture child functioning in education. An update of progress against the Disability Framework will be published in the coming weeks.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Patrick Grady on 2016-03-01.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions he has had with representatives of the government of Malawi on the content of the new tax treaty with that country in the last 12 months.

Mr David Gauke

Discussions with Malawi over a new tax treaty began some years ago, and substantive agreement has been reached at official level. We expect that the treaty will be concluded shortly.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Patrick Grady on 2016-04-29.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will issue a response to Early Day Motion 373, Applying Results of Experiments on Animals to Human Patients.

George Freeman

The Government considers that the carefully regulated use of animals in scientific research remains a vital tool in improving the understanding of how biological systems work and in the development of safe new medicines, treatments and technologies.

At the same time, the Government believes that animals should only be used when there is no practicable alternative and it actively supports and funds the development and dissemination of techniques that replace, reduce and refine the use of animals in research (the 3Rs), in particular through funding for the National Centre for the Replacement Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research (NC3Rs), and also through ongoing UK-led efforts to encourage greater global uptake of the 3Rs.

Advances in biomedical science and technologies – including stem cell research, in vitro systems that mimic the function of human organs, imaging and new computer modelling techniques – are all providing new opportunities to reduce reliance on the use of animals in research. As part of this Innovate UK, the NC3Rs, the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council, the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory, the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council and the Medical Research Council have produced a Non-animal Technologies Road map for the UK, which offers an approach for the UK to develop, exploit and deploy new non-animal technologies for long-term economic and societal benefit. Integral to this strategy have been two Innovate UK industry-led competitions which have awarded approximately £7m in grant funding; “Developing non-animal technologies” and “Advancing the development and application of non-animal technologies”.

EU and UK law requires safety testing on animals before human trials for new medicines can begin and animal research still plays an important role in providing vital safety information for potential new medicines.

The Early Day Motion (EDM 373) rightly draws attention to the UK life science sector’s Concordat on openness in animal research which was launched last year, and provides new opportunities for transparency and debate in this area.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Patrick Grady on 2016-07-08.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, whether her Department plans to publish its (a) Civil Society Review, (b) Multilateral Aid Review and (c) Bilateral Aid Review before the summer recess.

Sir Desmond Swayne

The Government intends to publish the outcome of the Civil Society Review, Multilateral Aid Review and Bilateral Aid Review in the early summer.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Patrick Grady on 2016-10-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what outcomes the Government expects from the recent and planned strategic dialogue with the government of Sudan.

Mr Tobias Ellwood

In order to maximise our ability to persuade all parties to the conflicts in Sudan to end the fighting and allow the Sudanese people the security and development they deserve, we need to have a greater level of direct engagement with the Government of Sudan. The Strategic Dialogue process provides a necessary platform for us to do this, exploring possibilities for cooperation on a wide range of UK interests where our aims align, as well as an avenue to raise concerns.