Tag: Sammy Wilson

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sammy Wilson on 2015-11-13.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessments her Department has made of the effect of the relocation of the Visa and Entry Clearance Office from Dakha to New Delhi on people from Bangladesh applying for a visa to enter the UK.

James Brokenshire

An internal assessment of the potential impact of transferring decision making on UK visa applications from Dhaka to New Delhi was completed in early 2014. This assessment covered all key aspects of the move, including security, decision quality and customer service.

There has been, and will be, no change to the customer experience when applying for a visa in Bangladesh. Customers are still able to apply in the same Visa Application Centres (Dhaka and Sylhet) and applications are decided within the same global customer service standards (15 working days for non-settlement or 60 days for settlement).

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sammy Wilson on 2016-09-15.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what recent discussions she has had with her Cabinet colleagues on the effect on tourism of an expansion of Heathrow Airport.

Tracey Crouch

The Government has accepted the case for airport expansion in the South East and the Airports’ Commission’s shortlisted options. Transport and connectivity are key issues within the tourism sector, as highlighted in the Prime Minister’s new Tourism Action Plan. The Department will be ensuring that tourism is one of the factors considered, when a final decision is taken on a preferred scheme.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sammy Wilson on 2015-11-13.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, for what reasons the Government’s Visa and Entry Clearance Office in Dakha, Bangladesh is being relocated to New Delhi, India.

James Brokenshire

Decision making on UK visa applications lodged in Bangladesh was moved from Dhaka to New Delhi in September 2014. Logistical changes like this are made for operational reasons and to refine the longstanding hub and spoke structure of the visa network, where applications are decided at regional decision making centres. UKVI retains a small team in the British High Commission, Dhaka to carry out local checks and the remote printing of some visas. There has been, and will be, no change to the customer experience when applying for a visa in Bangladesh. Customers are still able to apply in the same Visa Application Centres (Dhaka and Sylhet) and applications are decided within the same global customer service standards (15 working days for non-settlement or 60 days for settlement).

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sammy Wilson on 2016-09-15.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the effect of the outcome of the EU referendum on the timetable for a decision on Heathrow expansion.

Mr John Hayes

The Government is committed to delivering the important infrastructure projects the country needs. This includes delivering runway capacity to the timetable set out by the Airports Commission. The Government’s work in preparation for negotiations to leave the EU does not affect the timing of this decision.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sammy Wilson on 2015-11-17.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what his policy is on the taxation of travel expenses for councillors in Northern Ireland.

Mr David Gauke

A new exemption from tax and National Insurance Contributions for councillors’ travel expenses will take effect from 6 April 2016. This was legislated for in the Summer Finance Bill. It will apply to travel expenses paid to councillors across the UK, including those in Northern Ireland.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sammy Wilson on 2016-10-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent steps the Government has taken to tackle the threat from the Asian hornet to the honeybee population in the UK.

Dr Thérèse Coffey

A contingency plan outlining the Government’s response against the Asian hornet is in place. The emergency measures it sets out are tested twice a year by the National Bee Unit ensuring that all field inspectors and support staff are trained in how to respond should an outbreak occur.

Following a confirmed sighting of the Asian hornet in Gloucestershire, the National Bee Unit (NBU) enacted our established biosecurity protocols to confirm the scale of the outbreak and eradicate the pest. A single nest was located and destroyed. To date, no more live hornets have been seen in this area.

The outbreak follows on from a policy review in 2013 whereby the National Bee Unit (NBU) increased the number of risk-based exotic pest inspections it carries out each year. These are targeted at early interception of non-native invasive species such as the Asian hornet. NBU Bee Inspectors also routinely provide advice and training to beekeepers to raise awareness of the threat and the need for vigilance.

The Non-Native Species Secretariat has carried out a risk assessment looking at the risks and impacts of an Asian hornet outbreak. The key threat is believed to be against honey bee species, rather than other bee species. Asian hornets will impact on native species through predation, competition and impact on natural pollination.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sammy Wilson on 2015-11-26.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what procedures are in place to ensure that animals sent from the UK for use in experiments in laboratories abroad were not subject to a greater degree of suffering than that which they would have experienced in UK laboratories.

Mike Penning

The Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 requires that before an animal can be released from the controls of the Act, in order to be sent to a laboratory abroad, I must be assured that:

• the animal’s state of health allows it to be sent to a new establishment;

• the animal poses no danger to public health, animal health or the environment;

• there is an adequate scheme in place for ensuring the socialisation of the animal upon being sent to new establishment; and,

• appropriate measures have been taken to safeguard the animal’s well-being when being sent to a new establishment.

The Home Office will seek reassurance that there are appropriate measures to safeguard the well-being of protected animals exported, within the context of their use in scientific procedures. Consent is only given for export where it is to a recognised scientific research establishment with a requirement for the specific live animals and sending tissue is not practicable.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sammy Wilson on 2016-10-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the threat from the Asian hornet to the honeybee population in the UK.

Dr Thérèse Coffey

A contingency plan outlining the Government’s response against the Asian hornet is in place. The emergency measures it sets out are tested twice a year by the National Bee Unit ensuring that all field inspectors and support staff are trained in how to respond should an outbreak occur.

Following a confirmed sighting of the Asian hornet in Gloucestershire, the National Bee Unit (NBU) enacted our established biosecurity protocols to confirm the scale of the outbreak and eradicate the pest. A single nest was located and destroyed. To date, no more live hornets have been seen in this area.

The outbreak follows on from a policy review in 2013 whereby the National Bee Unit (NBU) increased the number of risk-based exotic pest inspections it carries out each year. These are targeted at early interception of non-native invasive species such as the Asian hornet. NBU Bee Inspectors also routinely provide advice and training to beekeepers to raise awareness of the threat and the need for vigilance.

The Non-Native Species Secretariat has carried out a risk assessment looking at the risks and impacts of an Asian hornet outbreak. The key threat is believed to be against honey bee species, rather than other bee species. Asian hornets will impact on native species through predation, competition and impact on natural pollination.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sammy Wilson on 2015-11-26.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what proportion of animals that had been used in experiments and were classed as re-homed in government statistics in the last three years were sent for slaughter.

Mike Penning

The Home Office does not collect data regarding the number of animals, used in scientific procedures, which after release from the controls of the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986, are subsequently sent directly to slaughter. Establishments are required to keep information of the source, use and final disposal of protected animals, bred kept or used at the establishment for any regulated activities, which would include whether an animal used was sent directly to slaughter.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sammy Wilson on 2016-10-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the effect of Heathrow Airport expansion on UK industry.

Mr John Hayes

The Airports Commission shortlisted three airport expansion schemes, two at Heathrow and one at Gatwick. The Government accepted the Commission’s shortlist in December 2015 and is considering all of the evidence very carefully before reaching a view on its preferred scheme. The Government is not providing a running commentary on this work before an announcement on its preference.