Tag: Tim Loughton

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Loughton on 2015-12-16.

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many incidents his Department has recorded of drones operating over prison estates in the last year for which figures are available; what steps his Department took following each such incident; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Selous

If an incident involving a drone occurs, prisons will invoke appropriate contingency plans and will work alongside the police and CPS to ensure those responsible are caught. NOMS are exploring research options with the Home Office Centre for Applied Science and Technology (CAST) on detection and mitigation technology for drones.

There were 30 reported drone related incidents between 1 December 2014 and 30 November 2015. This includes drone finds and drone sightings by prison staff in and around public and private prisons in England and Wales.

Individual prisons will invoke the appropriate contingency plan relevant to the circumstances of the incident involving a drone. This includes, for example, working with the police and CPS to ensure those responsible for an incident involving a drone are caught and, if appropriate, prosecuted.

These figures have been drawn from live administrative data systems. Care is taken when processing and analysing the returns, but the detail collected is subject to the inaccuracies inherent in any large scale recording system.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Loughton on 2016-01-11.

To ask the Attorney General, what contingency arrangements the Law Officers’ Departments have made for the eventuality of a majority leave vote in the upcoming EU referendum.

Jeremy Wright

I refer the Hon. Member to the answer given to question 21952 by my Rt. Hon Friend the Prime Minister on the 14^th January.

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Loughton on 2016-01-11.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what contingency arrangements her Department has made for the eventuality of a majority leave vote in the upcoming EU referendum.

Mr Nick Hurd

I refer the Honourable Member to the answer provided by my Right Honourable Friend the Prime Minister on Thursday 14 January 2016 (UIN: 21952).

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Loughton on 2016-01-29.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, for what reason she has not yet brought forward proposals to include the names of mothers on their children’s marriage certificates.

James Brokenshire

There is agreement that the names of both parents should be included in the marriage entry. The Home Office has, therefore, been working with all interested parties to consider the most efficient and effective way to achieve this. Doing so is likely to require additional funding and changes to legislation, IT systems and administrative processes.

A timetable will be confirmed for changes as soon as there is an opportunity to legislate on this matter.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Loughton on 2016-02-04.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what recent assessment of the value for money of the National Citizenship Service his Department has commissioned or reviewed.

Mr Rob Wilson

Value for money assessments take place yearly as part of the independent evaluation of the National Citizen Service (NCS).

The most recent 2014 evaluation shows that every £1 spent on NCS generates up to £3.98 of social benefits. This figure quantifies a range of benefits, including the time participants spend volunteering on their social action projects.

It is estimated by the NCS Trust that NCS participants have volunteered 8 million hours since the programme began in 2011.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Loughton on 2016-03-23.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, which universities have opened a Confucius Institute on campus; and what guidance he has issued to those universities on relations with the Chinese government.

Joseph Johnson

The Government values the productive links our universities have with China, and we welcome the increasing number of UK students and institutions benefitting from such international collaborations.

Higher education institutions are autonomous and, as such, are responsible for developing their own academic and international partnerships, while ensuring that they comply with any relevant statutory duties, including the requirements of the Education Reform Act 1988.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Loughton on 2016-04-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what modelling his Department has carried out on the potential effect of a bilateral trade deal between the UK and India (a) in general and (b) on UK economic growth.

Anna Soubry

The Government has not carried out any modelling of the potential effects of a bilateral trade deal between the UK and India.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Loughton on 2016-06-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much has been paid in fines by Govia Thamelink Railway to his Department to compensate for poor performance in each of the last three years.

Claire Perry

Govia Thameslink Railway’s (GTR’s) provision of services for the Thameslink, Southern and Great Northern franchise only began on 14 September 2014, with Southern services included from 26 July 2015.

There is an incentive/penalty regime in place and this has seen just over £2 million levied against GTR in respect of their Cancellation and Short-Formation performance benchmarks.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Loughton on 2016-07-21.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to encourage young deaf people to take part in the National Citizen Service.

Mr Rob Wilson

In order to encourage young people with sensory disabilities to take part NCS, the Department for Culture, Media & Sport is working closely with NCS Trust, the independent organisation which delivers NCS, to ensure that NCS is accessible.

Many NCS providers already reach out and offer support to those with disabilities, including deaf young people. The largest provider, The Challenge, has worked with the National Deaf Children’s Society, and adapted the programme for deaf young people, including providing dedicated support workers.

The NCS Trust is currently developing a detailed inclusion strategy to ensure that over the longer term there is consistent and high quality provision for young people with disabilities to take part in the programme.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Loughton on 2016-10-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to ensure that archaeology continues to be offered as an A-level subject.

Nick Gibb

The AQA exam board has taken the decision no longer to develop specifications for A and AS level archaeology. Whilst we are disappointed with this outcome, AQA is an independent organisation and is therefore free to make its own decisions on which qualifications to offer. In 2015/16, there were 340 entries for A level archaeology, including 332 in state-funded schools and Further Education colleges.

We published content for archaeology AS/A level in January 2016. The option for AQA or another exam board to develop a specification in future will remain open.