Tag: Tim Farron

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Farron on 2016-09-12.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many GP surgeries do not have access to a high-speed broadband internet connection in each region.

Nicola Blackwood

NHS Digital does not keep records on the availability of high-speed broadband at all general practice (GP) sites. However NHS Digital does have records for broadband services provided by the Department to GP sites through the BT N3 arrangements.

Across England, some 6,021 GP sites receive broadband services through the National Health Service N3 connection arrangements; of these 6,010 GP sites are defined as high speed (i.e. 512 kilobits per second or greater).

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Farron on 2016-10-10.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the announcement by HM Treasury on EU regional funding, dated 3 October 2016, whether his Department plans to (a) guarantee and (b) replace European Solidarity Funding for flood relief.

Mr David Gauke

The Government finalised its application to the European Union Solidarity Fund (EUSF) in respect of the exceptional flooding in winter 2015-16 on 22 September 2016. Unlike multi-year European Union structural and investment funds, EUSF awards are paid in a single sum to the relevant Member State. If the UK’s current application is approved, any award would be received before the UK leaves the European Union.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Farron on 2016-01-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many times unsanctioned Russian military aircraft have been detected entering UK airspace in the last 12 months.

Penny Mordaunt

In the last 12 months there have been no unauthorised incursions by any foreign military aircraft into sovereign UK air space, which projects 12 miles off shore or to mutually agreed mid-points between adjacent nations over narrow straits such as the Straits of Dover. Russian military aircraft activity has remained in international airspace at all times. The UK civil air traffic region and the NATO Air Policing Area, for which the UK have responsibility for monitoring, include large areas of international air space through which foreign military traffic may legally transit.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Farron on 2016-03-08.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 29 January 2016 to Question 24285, how many times (a) Brimstone missiles, (b) Hellfire missiles and (c) Paveway IV guided bombs were deployed against targets in (i) Iraq and (ii) Syria since 24 January 2016.

Penny Mordaunt

The table below shows the number and type of missiles fired from RAF aircraft in Iraq and Syria between 24 January 2016 and 9 March 2016.

Munitions	Iraq	Syria
Brimstone	14	14
Hellfire	7	8
Paveway IV	166	21

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Farron on 2016-05-18.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will direct the Rural Payments Agency not to make any bonus payments to its Chief Executive until payments to eligible farmers have been completed.

George Eustice

Senior Civil Servants (SCS) who are moderated as top performers at the end of the performance management year are eligible to receive a bonus payment.

The performance management year for the SCS runs from 1 April to 31 March. Performance markings for 2015/16 will be determined by the end of May 2016. Only then will the eligibility of SCS for bonus payments be known.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Farron on 2016-06-06.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether the right hon. Member for Chingford and Woodford Green received a severance package following his resignation from the post of Secretary of State for Work and Pensions.

Justin Tomlinson

The Ministerial and other Pensions and Salaries Act 1991 (Section 4 of Chapter 5) governs Ministerial severance payments. The legislation outlines the criteria upon which severance payments are made and how the amount is calculated.

The relevant section of the legislation can be found at: http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1991/5/section/4

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Farron on 2016-07-12.

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 12 July 2016 to Question 42168, what legislative options are being explored by his Department to prevent more people from becoming homeless.

Mr Marcus Jones

We are considering a broad range of possible options, including legislation, to put prevention at the heart of how we tackle homelessness. We are keen to learn from the changes implemented in Wales and want to understand whether similar changes would work in the very different English housing market.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Farron on 2016-09-12.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether his Department has plans to improve the quality of Lyme disease tests.

Nicola Blackwood

The National Health Service and Public Health England (PHE) use well established validated diagnostic tests for Lyme disease that are highly reproducible between laboratories. International External Quality Assurance schemes are in place to ensure consistency between different tests centres.

However, Lyme disease is a complex infection; we recognise that there are real challenges in diagnosis and we are further strengthening the evidence base. Commercial manufacturers and international academic groups have research programmes into improved tests. PHE continuously reviews new Lyme serology tests and will validate and implement new tests if appropriate.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Farron on 2016-10-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much compensation her Department paid for the unlawful detention of individuals under immigration powers in each of the last three financial years; for what categories of reason such compensation was paid; and how many such payments were made for each such category of reason.

Mr Robert Goodwill

Our records indicate that over the past 3 financial years (covering 2012-13, 2013-14 and 2014-15), that a total of £13.8 million has been paid out to 573 claimants, as per the below table. All of whom were paid compensation following a period of unlawful detention.

Financial Year	Total Unlawful Detention Compensation payments (£ million)	Number of claimants for the last 3 financial years
FY 2012-13	£ 5.0	195
FY 2013-14	£ 4.8	199
FY 2014-15	£ 4.0	179

Caveat to provided data: This is provisional management information that is subject to change. It has not been assured to the standard of Official Statistics.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Farron on 2016-01-25.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what (a) market value and (b) weight of UK steel has been used in the manufacture of the TIDE Class Royal Fleet Auxiliary tankers.

Mr Philip Dunne

Under European and UK procurement regulations, the Ministry of Defence (MOD) could not contractually mandate the use of particular suppliers. Decisions on the source of steel are a matter for the contractors who take into account the cost, timeliness of availability and the quality of steel used in defence contracts. These considerations allow defence contractors to deliver value for money for the taxpayer.

The Military Afloat Reach and Sustainability contract to build the four Tide Class tankers was awarded to Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering in March 2012. Although UK companies participated in the competition to supply the vessels, none submitted a final bid.

In January 2015, the MOD awarded a contract worth approximately £15 million to A&P Group Ltd in the UK for the provision of UK customisation, Capability Assessment Trials and Support for all four tankers. The work will be managed by A&P Group Ltd’s Falmouth shipyard.

Manufacture of the four Tide Class tankers will in total require 44,000 tonnes of steel. Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering source this steel locally in South Korea. The market value of steel depends upon a number of factors, including geographical location and quality. The MOD does not hold information from which the market value of the steel used in the manufacture of the Tide Class tankers could be determined.