Tag: Richard Burden

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

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what discussions she has had with (a) Germany, (b) Sweden and (c) other European countries on best practice for the management of the system for relocating refugees.

Mr Robert Goodwill

The UK has not opted in to any of the EU relocation proposals. The Government remains of the view that relocation of asylum seekers between Member States risks creating unintended consequences or perverse incentives for people to put their lives into the hands of traffickers in order to get to an EU Member State.

However, we continue to work closely with EU partners on addressing all aspects of the migration crisis. We are supporting the implementation of the EU-Turkey agreement and border hotspots, including through the deployment of UK officials to support Frontex and European Asylum Support Office missions in Greece and Italy. We also continue to work with other EU Member States to improve the operation of the Dublin Regulation, in particular the provisions on family reunification.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-10-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what the budget is for projects in (a) Israel and (b) the Palestinian territories within the Conflict, Security and Stability Fund (i) in 2016-17 and (ii) as projected for 2017-18.

Mr Tobias Ellwood

​(i) The total allocation for 2016-17 for both Israel and the OPTs is £7m. It is not separated into individual, distinct budgets as some of our projects and implementing partners deliver simultaneously in both (a) and (b).

(ii) We do not yet have a projected budget for 2017-18 so cannot provide this information.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the extent to which emissions type approval requirements are met during normal on road usage of each category of road vehicle.

Andrew Jones

The Government takes the unacceptable actions of Volkswagen (VW) Group extremely seriously. As we investigate what went wrong and what we can do to stop it happening again, the priority of course remains to protect the public. We expect VW to take every step necessary to protect its UK customers, but it is right that the Government carry out their own thorough and independent investigation.

A written statement was made today (10 November) informing the House of the latest developments on the Department for Transport’s vehicle emissions testing programme, following the revelations that VW had fitted defeat devices to some of its vehicles.

The Vehicle Certification Agency (VCA) is working to confirm that this issue is not industry wide. They have tested two VW group vehicles known to contain a defeat device and will rerun laboratory tests on popular cars sold in the UK to compare real world driving emissions against laboratory performance. This will include measuring CO₂ .

The Secretary of State spoke to Dr Herbert Deiss of VW on 4 November to discuss CO₂ emissions, seeking information on those vehicles affected in the UK and the extent of the discrepancy. VW have stated that they are working hard to clarify the situation and are liaising with relevant approval authorities.

The Secretary of State has written jointly with the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills to VW seeking clarification on several issues. Separately, officials from the Department for Transport, and its Agencies have held a number of discussions with VW regarding the recall of affected vehicles.

The Department for Transport has not made a specific assessment of on road emissions in relation to type approval requirements, but officials are aware of the findings in published reports suggesting significant differences.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2015-11-09.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assistance the Government has given to (a) Kent Police, (b) Kent County Council, (c) other operational organisations and (d) businesses to cover costs and losses during the implementation of Operation Stack in 2015.

Andrew Jones

To date, no additional financial assistance has been provided by the Department for Transport to Kent Police, Kent County Council, or other operational organisations / businesses in relation to Operation Stack being implemented during 2015.

However, we are working closely with Highways England on the best approach to address their additional costs brought about by the implementation of Operation Stack.

Any financial assistance relating to Kent Police and UK businesses is a matter for the Home Office and the Department for Business, Innovation & Skills respectively.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2015-11-17.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the set of proposals sent to his Department during the summer from local authorities, industry bodies and others about a long term alternative to Operation Stack.

Andrew Jones

I am very grateful to the local authorities, industry bodies and other members of the European Gateway Strategic Delivery Group for their hard work developing the proposals which they put forward this summer. This has informed subsequent work my Department and Highways England have been doing, working closely with stakeholders, to consider in further detail options for a long term alternative to Operation Stack. This work is progressing and we will continue to take on board stakeholders’ views to broaden our engagement and fully understand their views.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2015-11-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment she has made of the potential effect of agroecology on food production in the developing world; and if she will make a statement.

Grant Shapps

DFID supports a number of research programmes that assess the use of agroecology and sustainable intensification of agriculture, such as work with the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED), and the Sustainable Agricultural Intensification Research and Learning in Africa. Research shows that yields improvements are context-based and can vary significantly, according to local agroclimatic potential, effective productivity levels and farmers’ investment capacity.

DFID believes agro ecological approaches have an important role to play in specific contexts, but does not prescribe technical approaches centrally. DFID supports a wide range of programmes with agro-ecological components, from soil and water conservation and land use management to climate resilience, conservation agriculture and agroforestry. These include, for example, The Adaptation for Smallholder Agriculture Programme (ASAP), and Building Resilience and Adaptation to Climate Extremes and Disasters (BRACED). The full range of our programmes can be found on our Development Tracker website.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2015-12-03.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what (a) information, (b) financial support and (c) other support his Department provides to employed people looking to set up their own business.

Anna Soubry

We are helping everyone, including employed people, who want to set up and start their own business. The Business Support Helpline and the Business Finance and Support Finder tool on the GOV.UK website help people get simple straight forward advice and start up finance. At a local level we are investing in 39 Growth Hubs around the country which join up local business support to make it easier for people who want to find advice and information on how to start a business. The Start-Up Loans programme has also provided over 33,500 loans worth over £180 million pounds to people who want to start their own business.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-01-05.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what his Department’s guidance is on shipping flags it considers unsafe or dangerous to sail under; and how often that guidance is updated.

Mr Robert Goodwill

The Department does not issue its own guidance. The selection of a shipping register (flag State) is a commercial decision for ship owners.

However, owners can take account of the assessment of a flag State’s performance. The flag’s performance is published in the annual Paris Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) report on Port State Control. These reports can be found on the Paris MoU website at

https://www.parismou.org/publications-category/annual-reports.

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-01-20.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he had made of the progress in introducing graduated licensing for drivers in Northern Ireland; and what representations he has received on that matter.

Andrew Jones

Road traffic legislation is a matter for the Northern Ireland Assembly, including road user licensing. However, Northern Ireland officials have kept Department for Transport officials apprised of their plans and legislation.

From time to time the Department receives representations from stakeholders regarding graduated driver licensing, both in general and relating to Northern Ireland, including stakeholders in the insurance industry.

We are focusing our efforts on encouraging learner drivers to do more practice in a wider range of driving conditions, on ensuring that the driving test assesses the skills needed for today’s roads and vehicles and those of the future, and on identifying the most promising behavioural, educational and technological interventions that can reduce young driver casualties.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2016-01-27.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment he has made of the effect of the low oil price since summer 2014 on the number of UK seafarers employed on offshore supply vessels in the North Sea.

Mr Robert Goodwill

The 2015 seafarer statistics have just been published. We estimate that there were 23,380 UK seafarers active at sea in 2015, an increase of 2 per cent on the previous year. We are aware that the current downturn in the offshore sector may not yet be fully reflected in these figures.