Tag: Richard Burden

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-07-08.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of existing regulations on drones; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Robert Goodwill

The Government’s primary responsibility is the safety and security of our citizens. That is why we apply one of the highest regulatory safety standards for commercial aviation in the world.

There are existing regulations in place that require users of drones to maintain direct, unaided visual contact with their vehicle and to not recklessly or negligently cause or permit an aircraft to endanger any person or property. Guidance on tackling the risks of criminal drone use has been provided to constabularies across the UK.

The Department and the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) work with a wide range of industry partners across the aviation sector, (including manufacturers, airports, and airlines), to ensure our understanding of potential hazards to aircraft remains up-to-date and mitigations effective. Further work is underway to better understand the risk posed by flying drones close to commercial planes to ensure that regulations remain fit for purpose.

Awareness and education on current restrictions are vitally important. The Civil Aviation Authority is undertaking activities to raise awareness of the basic safety requirements, including an ongoing ‘Dronecode’ safety awareness campaign, issuing safety leaflets at the point of sale, publishing an animated video on their website, and running ‘small UAS’ Risk and Hazard workshops with industry as part of the Mid Air Collision Programme.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-09-02.

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what steps the Government is taking to provide employment and social enterprise opportunities for (a) the homeless and (b) those at risk of homelessness in (i) the West Midlands and (ii) Birmingham, Northfield constituency.

Mr Marcus Jones

The government is committed to preventing and reducing homelessness. We have increased central government funding for homelessness programmes to £139 million over the Spending Review period. We have also maintained and protected homelessness prevention funding for local government, totalling £315 million by 2019/20. One person without a home is one too many, and we are clear that more needs to be done to ensure that support is available for some of the most vulnerable in society.

We recognise that employment and social enterprise opportunities are key factors to help people avoid homelessness and secure a sustainable place to live and build personal resilience. That is why we have invested £15 million to improve outcomes for young people through the Fair Chance Fund. This funding is turning around the lives of around 1,900 18 to 25 year olds with complex and overlapping needs, by supporting them into accommodation, education, training and employment. Young people are being supported by seven projects across the country including in Birmingham, Coventry, Solihull, Walsall and Wyre Forest and the majority of projects are funded by social investment. We will build our learning on this to our £10 million Social Impact Bond for people with complex and multiple needs. In addition we have funded a £40 million Platform for Life programme, providing affordable shared accommodation for homeless young people, so that they have a stable platform for work.

Moreover, we are actively working across government and through our local partners to help vulnerable people find a job and get into training. STRIVE, a joint pilot project with BEIS, DCLG and DWP, is helping homeless people into jobs by improving their basic English, maths and IT skills and is being delivered by Crisis and St Mungo’s. We are continuing to drive cross government action through the Ministerial Working Group on Homelessness which is making sure that homelessness is an integral part of every department’s planning and that policies are joined up.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-10-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, with reference to the statement issued by his Department on 7 October 2016 on death sentences issued in Gaza, what discussions he has had with counterparts in the region on the subject of that statement.

Mr Tobias Ellwood

​We have not discussed the contents of this statement with regional counterparts. The increasing use of the death penalty in Gaza is a worrying trend. The UK maintains a no contact policy with the de facto authorities in Gaza.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-10-20.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make it his Department’s policy to ban internal combustion engines by 2030 to promote zero emission mobility.

Mr John Hayes

We are spending more than £600 million by 2020 to support the development, manufacture and use of ultra low emission vehicles. This programme includes incentives to encourage motorists to choose cleaner vehicles, and grants for essential recharging infrastructure. This is putting the UK on track to meet our goal of all new cars and vans being zero emission by 2040, making almost all cars and vans zero emission by 2050.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2015-11-04.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what assessment he has made of Innovate UK’s effectiveness in securing (a) jobs and (b) growth for UK businesses.

Joseph Johnson

Innovate UK has supported more than 5000 individual companies since it was established in 2007. It publishes an Annual Report which details its activities during the year and any reviews undertaken of individual programmes. A copy of Innovate UK’s latest Annual Report is in the library of the House and can also be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/446302/FINAL_-_Innovate_UK_Accounts_2014-15_.pdf.

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2015-11-13.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions his Department has had with his counterparts in (a) China, (b) Vietnam and (c) South Korea about the dog meat trade in those countries.

Mr Hugo Swire

The Government is committed to raising the standards of animal welfare at home and abroad. Whilst there are no international norms, laws or agreements governing the trade and consumption of dog meat, we believe it is necessary to work with governments to gain agreement on animal welfare standards and phase out cruel and inhuman farming practices.

I raised the importance of animal welfare with the Vietnamese government during my visit in February. Our Ambassador in Seoul has raised the issue of cruelty related to the dog meat trade with the South Korean authorities, explaining that UK Parliamentarians and the public would like to see regulation that would bring this to an end. Ministers have also raised the issue with Chinese counterparts, and we continue to work alongside the authorities there to help protect the welfare of stray animals.

I will be writing to all relevant Ambassadors about this issue in due course and the Government will consider a review of how we interact with various international organisations on dog meat consumption, specifically on the issue of health.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2015-11-23.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 19 November 2015 to Question 15363, how many drivers incurred a fixed-penalty charge for using a mobile telephone at the wheel in each of the last five years.

Mike Penning

Data on the number of fixed penalty notices issued by the police for using a handheld mobile phone while driving in England and Wales in the last five years is set out below.

The enforcement of this offence is an operational matter for individual Chief Officers of police and decisions on the size and composition of a force’s workforce are for Chief Constables and Police and Crime Commissioners.

Number of fixed penalty notices (FPNs) issued by police in England and Wales ⁽¹⁾ for using a handheld mobile phone while driving, 2010 ⁽²⁾ to 2014:

Number (thousands) England and Wales

Offence	2010	2011	2012	2013	2014
Use of handheld mobile phone while driving	124.7	123.1	92.7	52.4	29.7

Source: Police Powers and Procedures, year ending March 2015, Home Office

Notes

1. Excludes British Transport Police

2. Data for 2010 is not directly comparable with data from 2011 onwards due to the introduction of the PentiP system which records FPNs in England and Wales. Data from 2011 onwards is slightly lower that comparative data from the previous system.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2015-11-23.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to raise awareness among pupils of forced marriage and domestic violence.

Edward Timpson

Schools play an important role in safeguarding children from all forms of abuse. Our statutory guidance is clear that schools have an important role in identifying children who may be suffering abuse, or at risk of abuse, and then take necessary action, working with other services where appropriate. Schools also have an important role in raising pupils’ awareness of these issues, thus helping pupils to keep themselves safe.

The Department for Education has produced statutory guidance for schools, ‘Keeping Children Safe in Education’, which sets out the roles and responsibilities of schools and their staff, and which contains links to more detailed advice on specific forms of abuse, including domestic violence, teenage relationship abuse and forced marriage.

Schools can use relevant parts of the curriculum, including sex and relationship education and personal, social, health and economic education (PSHE), to raise pupils’ awareness. It is for schools to determine which issues they address and how, and the Government’s statutory guidance on sex and relationship education makes clear that schools should ensure that young people develop positive values and a moral framework that will guide their decisions, judgements and behaviour. To complement work done in schools, the Government’s ‘This is Abuse’ campaign has helped to educate young people about damaging behaviours within relationships.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-01-04.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the Government’s policy is on monitoring the contents of (a) imported and (b) exported containers for security purposes; and what recent discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Transport on such monitoring.

Mr John Hayes

It is a long standing convention of successive governments not to comment on matters relating to national security.

The Home Secretary regularly meets with the Secretary of State for Transport as part of the process of policy development and delivery, but it is not the Government’s practice to provide details of discussions concerning the development of national security policy.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-01-12.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 11 January 2016 to Question 21012, what repairs there have been to Tadcaster Bridge to date; and whether finance for any repairs will be found from (a) the Road Investment Strategy and (b) a contingency fund.

Andrew Jones

North Yorkshire County Council are continuing their assessment of the damage to Tadcaster Bridge as the water levels reduce, and they are also removing debris. We have not asked the Council for an estimate of repairs to date at Tadcaster Bridge as they work on a County wide assessment of damage to road and bridge infrastructure.

The Government recently announced funding of £3.3m to repair Tadcaster Bridge and for a temporary footbridge to reconnect the community, none of which has come from the Road Investment Strategy as that is funding for the Strategic Road Network managed by Highways England.