Tag: Paul Flynn

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Flynn on 2015-02-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will place in the Library a list of each of the parliamentary constituencies through which nuclear warheads are transported to and from RNAD Coulport, omitting all details of travel routes, times and frequencies.

Mr Philip Dunne

It is Ministry of Defence policy not to comment on the routes used to transport nuclear weapons as to do so would prejudice national security.

Annex A of the Local Authority and Emergency Services Information document, however, lists all local authorities that Defence nuclear material, including both nuclear weapons and special nuclear material, may travel through or fly over. The document is published on the Gov.uk website at the following link: www.gov.uk/government/publications/local-authority-emergency-services-information. The corresponding list of Parliamentary constituencies is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Flynn on 2015-10-09.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when his Department first learnt of the installation by Volkswagen of software to distort emissions tests on diesel vehicles; and what steps he took in response to that information.

Andrew Jones

The government first became aware of the installation of software fitted to Volkswagen vehicles to distort emissions tests following the announcement of the US Environmental Protection Agency investigation in the US on 18 September 2015.

In response, the Vehicle Certification Agency, the UK regulator, has started investigations to establish whether this affects other manufacturers.

As part of this work they will re-run laboratory tests where necessary and compare them against real world driving emissions.

The government have called on the EU to conduct a Europe wide investigation into whether there is evidence that cars here have been fitted with illegal defeat devices.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Flynn on 2014-06-25.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what discussions on potential job losses in Newport took place between his Department, the Home Office and Steria prior to the decision to privatise the Ministry of Justice Shared Services.

Mr Shailesh Vara

The Ministry of Justice are entering into detailed discussions with Shared Services Connected Limited (SSCL) regarding the future delivery of their back office services, with the intention of awarding a contract in August 2014. We expect this to bring increased savings and efficiency in back-office functions, provide further benefits across wider Government and offer better value for money to the tax payer.

SSCL have stated their intention of providing 12 months job protection for all transferring staff from the point of transfer in October 2014. This means that there will be no compulsory redundancies during this period. No decisions have been made to close buildings and we expect all sites to remain open during this period.

Following the transfer of staff, services and IT, there will be a stabilisation stage during which SSCL will look at how the service is currently delivered. No decisions will be made until SSCL has had the opportunity to fully understand the operation.

We will continue to work with staff, trade unions and other stakeholders to assess any impacts on staff.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Flynn on 2015-02-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what communications he has had with the European Commission in respect of his plans to hold a departmental golden share in the Hinkley Point C nuclear power plant.

Matthew Hancock

DECC officials had initial discussions with the Commission on the possibility of a special (or ‘golden’) share for the Hinkley Point C project. Any arrangement will be designed to be fully compliant with existing EU legislation.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Flynn on 2014-06-24.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many assessments of (a) nuclear facilities and (b) other critical infrastructure have been undertaken against his Department’s information assurance maturity model; and if he will publish all such assessments undertaken since May 2010.

Mr Francis Maude

There is on-going work assessing and mitigating vulnerabilities in UK’s critical national infrastructure. Details of this work, including any assessments, are classified.

Progress against the National Cyber Security Strategy is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/uk-cyber-security-strategy-statement-on-progress-2-years-on

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Flynn on 2015-02-20.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will publish evidence held by his Department supporting the conclusion that passengers on Great Western services do not wish to have buffet cars on the new Intercity Express Programme trains.

Claire Perry

The catering provision in the Great Western Inter City Express fleet reflects the preferences of the operator who are closest to their passengers’ priorities. It is a matter for First Great Western whether they wish to release the information supporting the decision.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Flynn on 2014-06-24.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, with reference to the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority’s Annual Report and Accounts for 2013-14, published on 23 June 2014, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policy on the evaluation of proposals for funded radioactive waste and decommissioning plans presented to him by private nuclear operators of the recent increase in the cost of dealing with legacy radioactive waste and decommissioning announced in that report.

Michael Fallon

Recent changes in the estimated costs of dealing with legacy radioactive waste and decommissioning announced in the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority’s Annual Report and Accounts for 2013/14 are due in their entirety to the decommissioning programme at Sellafield. These costs should not be used as a guide to costs of decommissioning modern nuclear reactor sites. The vast majority of the liability at Sellafield is a result of the Cold War military programme on that site, dating back to the 1940s, and the very early days of the civil nuclear industry, dating back to the 1950s and 1960s. These historic facilities were built extremely rapidly to very different quality and safety standards compared with nuclear plants constructed today and without plans for how they would be ultimately decommissioned, These facilities present a unique decommissioning challenge requiring a complex suite of engineering projects in order to first gain access to their waste inventory before retrieving and then treating this material ready for long-term disposal. The activity required to decommission these facilities at Sellafield bears no relation to the work required to decommission modern nuclear facilities. Operators of nuclear power stations being constructed under the Government’s new build programme are required to publish plans detailing how these facilities will be decommissioned and the operators themselves are liable for the costs associated with this decommissioning work.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Flynn on 2015-02-20.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he plans to sign off the Great Western direct award.

Claire Perry

We currently expect to conclude negotiations with First Great Western, and finalise the second Directly Awarded franchise contract during March 2015, for the provision of services from September 2015.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Flynn on 2014-06-24.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what the evidential basis was for the statement made by his Department’s Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State in her foreword to the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority’s Annual Report and Accounts for 2013-14, issued on 23 June 2014, that the continuation of Nuclear Management Partner’s contract to manage the Sellafield site offers the potential of stability and focus on the priorities during a vital five-year period in the history of Sellafield as it transitions from an operational plant into a fully-fledged decommissioning site.

Michael Fallon

The decision on contract extension was for the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority in line with its duties and responsibilities under the Energy Act 2004. The Department has oversight of all NDA activity and, given the particular importance of Sellafield, officials were closely involved throughout the contract review. From this we were assured that the NDA reached its decision based on a thorough and independent review of performance in the first period of the contract and consideration of all the options available to it. Ministers endorsed the NDA Board’s decision to extend the contract for a second term on the basis that rolling the contract forward represented the best way forward, giving the opportunity for NMP to build on progress made to date, address weaker areas of performance and make further real progress in this next five year term.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Paul Flynn on 2015-02-20.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what total amount his Department has spent on consultant fees for the Great Western direct award to date.

Claire Perry

The total amount the Department has spent on consultancy fees for the Great Western Direct Award (DA) from November 2012 to date (January 2015) is approximately £1.6m. This amount is inclusive of VAT.