Daily Report Tuesday, 28 November 2017 CONTENTSqnadailyreport.blob.core.windows.net/qnadailyreportxml/Written... · Daily Report Tuesday, 28 November 2017 This report shows written

Daily Report Tuesday, 28 November 2017

This report shows written answers and statements provided on 28 November 2017 and the

information is correct at the time of publication (07:07 P.M., 28 November 2017). For the latest

information on written questions and answers, ministerial corrections, and written statements,

please visit: http://www.parliament.uk/writtenanswers/

CONTENTS

ANSWERS

ATTORNEY GENERAL

Domestic Violence:

Prosecutions

BUSINESS, ENERGY AND

INDUSTRIAL STRATEGY

Antidumping Duties

Business: Local Government

Climate Change Convention

Coal: Mining

Combined Heat and Power:

Non-domestic Rates

Electricity Generation: Waste

EU Grants and Loans

Foreign Companies

Industry: North East

Lithium: Mining

Productivity: North East

CABINET OFFICE

Average Earnings

Blood: Contamination

Cabinet Office: Telephone

Services

Cabinet Office: Written

Questions

Carillion

Cervical Cancer

Deloitte

Domestic Violence Protection

Orders

Electoral Register

Electoral Register: Databases

Electoral Register: Disability

Electoral Register: Internet

Electoral Register: North West

Electronic Government

Emigration: Zimbabwe

Government Chief Scientific

Adviser: Public Appointments

Government Departments:

Business Plans


Contracts for Services


Equality


Grants


Procurement


Staff


Telephone Services

http://www.parliament.uk/writtenanswers

Intelligence and Security

Committee

Local Government: Elections

Low Pay

Members: Email

Ministers: Autobiography

Prime Minister: Italy

Public Sector: Cybercrime

Public Sector: Procurement

Technology

TREASURY

Children: Day Care

Emergency Services: Scotland

Employee Benefit Trusts:

Regulation

Financial Services

Financial Services: EU Law

Income Tax: Tax Rates and

Bands

Job Creation

Research and Development

Expenditure Credit

Roadchef: Employee Benefit

Trusts

Tax Collection

Treasury: Postal Services

Unionlearn

Universal Credit

COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL

GOVERNMENT

Department for Communities

and Local Government: Postal

Services

Fireworks: Accidents

Grenfell Tower: Fires

Housing Estates:

Regeneration

Local Government:

Procurement

Religious Hatred: Islam

DEFENCE

Army

Army: Recruitment

Army: Resignations

Clyde Naval Base

Defence Equipment: Repairs

and Maintenance

Defence Nuclear Safety

Regulator

Islamic State: British Nationals

Abroad

Islands: Hurricanes and

Tornadoes

Military Exercises

Ministry of Defence: Postal

Services

National Security

Royal Air Force Centre of

Aviation Medicine

Trident

DIGITAL, CULTURE, MEDIA AND

SPORT

Arts: EU Grants and Loans

European Capital of Culture

Gaming Machines


Procurement

Licensed Premises

Mass Media: Internet

Olympic Games 2012

Sports: EU Grants and Loans

EDUCATION

Adult Education

Adult Education: Basic Skills

Adult Education: Finance

Adult Education: ICT

Adult Education: Student

Numbers

Child Minding

Children: Day Care

Department for Education:

Postal Services

Further Education

ICT: Teachers

Music: GCSE

Pre-school Education:

Apprentices

Pupils: Health

Schools: Sheffield

Soft Drinks: Taxation

Steve Lamey

Students: Finance

Supply Teachers: Expenditure

Teachers: ICT and

Mathematics

Teachers: Mathematics

Unionlearn: Finance

ENVIRONMENT, FOOD AND

RURAL AFFAIRS

Agriculture: Exports

Air Pollution

Bovine Tuberculosis: Disease

Control

Flood Control

Flood Control: Cumbria

Recycling

School Milk

Wild Boar

EXITING THE EUROPEAN

UNION

Charter of Fundamental Rights

(EU)

Department for Exiting the

European Union: Postal

Services

EU Law

FOREIGN AND

COMMONWEALTH OFFICE

Burma: Rohingya

Burma: United Nations

Companies: Ownership

Foreign and Commonwealth

Office: Postal Services

Foreign and Commonwealth

Office: Public Expenditure

India: Prisoners

Israel: Human Rights

Palestinians: Detainees

Poland: Hate Crime

Press Freedom

Russia: LGBT People

Syria: Kurds

Tajikistan: LGBT People

Turkey: Politics and

Government

Zimbabwe: British Nationals

Abroad

HEALTH

Autism

Contraceptives

General Practitioners: Finance

GP at Hand

Grenfell Tower: Mental Health

Services

Health Services and Social

Services

Health: Children and Young

People

Mental Health Services:

Children and Young People

Pregnancy: Mental Health

Services

Prisoners: Drugs

Prisons: Drugs

Self-harm and Suicide: Kent

Self-harm and Suicide: Young

People

Social Services

HOME OFFICE

Asylum: Children

Asylum: Sudan

British Nationality


Immigrants: English Language

Immigrants; English Language

Immigration

Immigration Controls:

Australasia

Immigration: Biometrics

Marriage Certificates

MI5

HOUSE OF COMMONS

COMMISSION

House of Commons: Staff

INTERNATIONAL

DEVELOPMENT

Bangladesh: Rohingya

Department for International

Development: Staff

Developing Countries: Poverty

Pakistan: Non-governmental

Organisations

Swaziland: Overseas Aid

INTERNATIONAL TRADE


Trade: Internet


Trade: Postal Services

Exports

Higher Education: Exports

Overseas Trade: Sri Lanka

Saudi Arabia: Arms Trade

Small Businesses

Trade Agreements

USA: Overseas Trade

JUSTICE

Bedford Prison

Berwyn Prison

Convictions: EU Nationals

Debt Collection

Magistrates' Courts

Ministry of Justice: ICT

Ministry of Justice: Vacancies

Oakhill Secure Training Centre

Offenders: Rehabilitation

Personal Injury: Compensation

Prisoners' Transfers: Gender

Recognition

Prisoners: Drugs

Prisoners: Suicide

Prisons: Drugs

Prisons: Smoking

NORTHERN IRELAND

British Irish Council

Magilligan Prison

TRANSPORT

Department for Transport:

Postal Services

Department for Transport:

Staff

Department of Transport:

Vacancies

Electric Vehicles

Electric Vehicles: Rural Areas

Electric Vehicles: Wales

Railways: Compensation

Railways: Concessions

Railways: Greater Manchester

Railways: Leigh

Railways: Mobile Phones

Railways: North East

Railways: Tickets

Rolling Stock

Taxis: Disability

Taxis: Vetting

Thameslink Railway Line

Thameslink Railway Line:

Timetables

Transport: Contracts

Transport: Finance

Transport: North of England

Uber

Volkswagen

WALES

Agriculture: Subsidies

WOMEN AND EQUALITIES

Equality and Human Rights

Commission

Females: Voting Rights

WORK AND PENSIONS

Department for Work and

Pensions: Vacancies

Employment and Support

Allowance

Farms: Safety

Funeral Payments

Unemployment

Universal Credit

WRITTEN STATEMENTS

DIGITAL, CULTURE, MEDIA AND

SPORT

Post-Council Written

Ministerial Statement for

Education, Youth, Culture and

Sport Council

ENVIRONMENT, FOOD AND

RURAL AFFAIRS

November Agriculture and

Fisheries Council

EXITING THE EUROPEAN

UNION

EU Exit: Release of sectoral

reports to the Committee on

Exiting the EU and Lords EU

Committee

General Affairs Council

November 2017

FOREIGN AND

COMMONWEALTH OFFICE

Developments in Zimbabwe

Foreign Affairs Council – 13

November 2017

Foreign Affairs Council – 16

October 2017

INTERNATIONAL TRADE

Trade Remedies

Notes:

Questions marked thus [R] indicate that a relevant interest has been declared.

Questions with identification numbers of 900000 or greater indicate that the question was originally tabled as an

oral question and has since been unstarred.

ANSWERS

ATTORNEY GENERAL

Domestic Violence: Prosecutions

Diana Johnson: [112584]

To ask the Attorney General, how many charges the Crown Prosecution Service has

brought against people under section 76 of the Serious Crime Act 2015 for alleged

controlling or coercive behaviour in an intimate or family relationship in each year since

that section of that Act came into force.

Jeremy Wright:

[Holding answer 28 November 2017]: The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) does

not collect data on defendants prosecuted by specific offence. However, the table

below shows the number of offences recorded in the magistrates' courts for the

offence of controlling or coercive behaviour since its implementation on 29 December

2015. This figure relates to the number of offences and not the number of individual

defendants.

2015-2016 2016-2017

5 309

BUSINESS, ENERGY AND INDUSTRIAL STRATEGY

Antidumping Duties

Gareth Snell: [115072]

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what

discussions he has had with (a) the Secretary of State for International Trade and (b) the

Chancellor of the Exchequer on the potential effect of adopting the lesser duty rule as

part of a future trade remedy scheme once the UK leaves the EU.

Margot James:

My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial

Strategy regularly discusses trade policy issues with his colleagues. The Trade White

Paper, published 9 October, set out the Government’s proposals for an independent

UK trade remedy scheme once we have left the EU. Our policy is for the amount of

any duties to be set at the lower of either: the level of the dumping or subsidy; or the

level of injury caused to a UK industry as identified during the investigation process.

This approach is known as the lesser duty rule. The Taxation (Cross-Border Trade)

Bill, introduced on 20 November, included provisions to apply the lesser duty rule

http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2017-11-13/112584


where remedies are recommended to address injury caused by dumping or

subsidies.

Business: Local Government

Chi Onwurah: [114952]

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to

the Answer of 16 October 2017 to Question 107986, whether the Government provides

any guidance to local authorities on assessing the effect of local council business support

programmes.

Claire Perry:

Local and combined authorities are responsible for evaluating any business support

programmes they deliver and reporting on outcomes to funders. Government has

therefore given local and combined authorities more powers and autonomy to decide

how to spend public money in their area and for deciding how the impact of locally

owned business support programmes should be assessed. At the same time,

Government has made local and combined authorities more transparent and

accountable for their actions.

The hon. Member might also like to note that we fund the What Works Centre (WWC)

for Local Economic Growth. The Centre assesses business support, and provides a

range of resources to help local government assess the impact of their business

support programmes.

Climate Change Convention

Dr David Drew: [115262]

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether he

plans to continue to participate in the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate

Change when the UK leaves the EU.

Claire Perry:

The UK is a world leader in climate change and has always been a party to the

United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) individually as

well as through the EU and we are bound by all the obligations of the Paris

Agreement under international law.

The UK’s commitment to action to tackle climate change and to the UNFCCC

process is not in doubt; we remain firmly committed to the Paris Agreement and to

our emissions reduction and climate finance efforts under it. We have demonstrated

our commitment domestically – we were the first country to introduce legally binding

emissions reduction targets through the Climate Change Act, and we have recently

published our highly praised Clean Growth Strategy, which is ambitious and robust in

setting out how we will decarbonise the UK economy through the 2020s. The UK is

also committed to phasing out unabated coal power generation by 2025, and at the

recent twenty-third Conference of the Parties (COP23) the UK, joint with Canada,

announced the Powering Past Coal Alliance which gained the support of more than



20 partners. Internationally, through our International Climate Finance we have

committed to provide at least £5.8bn between 2016 and 2020 to developing

countries, to help them mitigate and adapt to the impacts of climate change.

Whatever the nature of the future UK-EU relationship, the UK will remain committed

to international efforts to tackle climate change, and working closely with the EU will

remain very important.

Coal: Mining

Mary Glindon: [115389]

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what his

policy is on the development of new domestic coal mines and reducing fossil fuel usage;

and if he will make a statement.

Richard Harrington:

Domestic coal production fell to a record low of 4 million tonnes in 2016. The

development of any new domestic coal mines is subject to the relevant planning

consents, which include appropriate environmental impact and public safety

assessments.

Around two-thirds of demand for coal in 2016 was for electricity generation, which

has also fallen to record lows. The Government has made firm its commitment ending

unabated coal power generation by 2025 and to target an effective carbon price

ahead of then, to drive investment in cleaner, more flexible forms of generation.

Combined Heat and Power: Non-domestic Rates

Mr Roger Godsiff: [115377]

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what

proportion of gas CHP plant qualifies as Good Quality for the purposes of exemption from

business rates.

Claire Perry:

The Department does not hold specific data on the proportion of gas CHP plant that

qualifies as Good Quality for the purposes of exemption from business rates.

However, in 2016, based on data from the Digest of UK Energy Statistics and the

Combined Heat and the Power Quality Assurance (CHP QA) programme database,

there were 2,182 CHP schemes in the United Kingdom. Of these, 1,155 were

certified as Good Quality CHP. If schemes that are not ordinarily liable for business

rates, such as those in the public sector, are excluded then our data suggests that

749 Good Quality gas CHP schemes would be eligible for an exemption from

business rates.



Electricity Generation: Waste


To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how much

electricity was generated by incineration in (a) 2015 and (b) 2016; and how much CO2 or

CO2e, CO2 equivalent, was emitted by incinerators in each of those years.

Richard Harrington:

Table 6.4 in the Digest of United Kingdom Energy Statistics (DUKES) [i] shows

electricity generation from renewable sources. Figures for generation from waste in

2015 and 2016 are shown below:

Generation (GWh)

2015 2016

Biodegradable energy from waste (1) 2,585 2,741

Non-biodegradable wastes (2) 2,586 2,742

Total waste 5,171 5,482

(1) Biodegradable part only.

(2) Non-biodegradable part of municipal solid waste plus waste tyres, hospital waste and

general industrial waste.

The latest greenhouse gas emissions inventory, published in February 2017,

estimates that emissions from incineration plants were 3.3 million tonnes of carbon

dioxide equivalent (MtCO2e) in 2015. Figures for 2016 will be published in February

2018.

[i] https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/renewable-sources-of-energy-chapter-6-

digest-of-united-kingdom-energy-statistics-dukes

EU Grants and Loans

Nigel Dodds: [115147]

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy what plans the

Government has made on its plans for a UK Shared Prosperity Fund; what the

Government's planned timeframe is for (a) the whole introduction of the fund and (b)

introducing draft legislation; what he plans the scope of that fund will be; and what

consultation and input in plans to seek from the devolved administrations on that fund.


https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/renewable-sources-of-energy-chapter-6-digest-of-united-kingdom-energy-statistics-dukes

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/renewable-sources-of-energy-chapter-6-digest-of-united-kingdom-energy-statistics-dukes


Margot James:

The Government will create the UK Shared Prosperity Fund to boost productivity and

reduce economic inequality across the country following our departure from the

European Union.

As announced in the Industrial Strategy white paper, the Government will consult

widely on the design of the new Fund in 2018. We will work with devolved

administrations prior to public consultation.

Foreign Companies

Dr Rupa Huq: [115374]

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, when the

Government plans to respond to consultation on Property ownership and public

contracting by overseas companies and legal entities: beneficial ownership register.

Margot James:

The responses to the call for evidence are currently being analysed and a response

will be published in due course.

Industry: North East

Mr Stephen Hepburn: [115331]

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, with reference

to paragraph 4.7 of the Autumn Budget 2017, how much of the additional funding in the

modern Industrial Strategy will be allocated on projects in (a) Jarrow constituency, (b)

South Tyneside, and (c) the North East.



to paragraph 4.41 of the Autumn Budget 2017, how much of the additional public

investment in economic infrastructure his Department plans to allocate to projects in (a)

Jarrow constituency, (b) South Tyneside, and (c) the North East.

Claire Perry:

The Government is committed to providing high quality infrastructure to support

economic growth and prosperity across all regions of the UK. We will ensure our

infrastructure investments actively support our long-term productivity, providing

greater certainty and clear strategic direction.

The Transforming Cities Fund will provide £1.7bn to drive productivity by improving

connectivity, reducing congestion and utilising new mobility services and technology,

transform local productivity in city-regions.

We have already seen investment for projects for the North East that include:

increasing national research and development spending to 2.4 per cent, boosting

the North East’s strength in research and innovation




815,000 people living and working in the North of Tyne will benefit from an

ambitious devolution deal agreed between the government and the North of Tyne

authorities. This includes a new £600 million long-term investment fund over the

next thirty years to be spent on local priorities, such as skills and employment,

adult education, and rural productivity.

a £337 million investment to support a transformative modernisation programme to

replace the Tyne & Wear Metro system’s 40-year old trains with a brand-new fleet.

This will help to ensure that the Metro system is reliable, runs efficiently, and helps

local people get to where they need to be.

the Tees Valley Combined Authority will receive £59 million from a new £1.7 billion

Cities Transformation Fund. Funding will be invested in transport projects which

drive productivity by improving connectivity and reducing congestion.

as announced at Budget, the government is investing £123 million to support the

safe development of the Redcar steelworks site in the Tees Valley. Mayor Ben

Houchen will set up a Mayoral Development Corporation and use this funding to

drive forward an ambitious programme of regeneration for the area.

The North East has already benefitted from Industrial Strategy funding when the

International Centre for Life in Newcastle benefitted from a £13 million funding pot

aimed at encouraging more of the public to engage with STEM (science,

technology, engineering and maths) learning. The money will enable the centre to

reinvigorate its visitor experience and develop new STEM learning activities.

Lithium: Mining

Scott Mann: [115033]

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether he

will consider the mining of Lithium in Cornwall as part of the industrial strategy.

Claire Perry:

Our Industrial Strategy is about driving growth right across the whole country. We will

work with places to build on their particular strengths and to address barriers to

growth.

The Government is aware that Cornwall has been identified as a having potentially

valuable lithium resource, which is a key element in battery technology. That

technology has great potential, which we are backing with £246m through a Faraday

Challenge to boost expertise in the UK.

The current exploration for lithium ore reserves and research to extract lithium from

geothermal brines has potential to provide a UK source, though it is for the private

sector to demonstrate there are commercial opportunities and this sort of opportunity,

clearly linked to a location, underpins the department’s local industrial strategy policy.


Productivity: North East



to paragraph 4.54 of the Autumn Budget 2017, how the Government plans to increase

the productivity levels of the North East in its upcoming Industrial Strategy.

Claire Perry:

Local industrial strategies will identify local strengths, future opportunities and the

action needed in each area to boost productivity and competiveness, based on

rigorous analysis.

Through our Industrial Strategy, we will make sure that we are using all the tools we

have to stimulate growth in places such as the North East. This includes through the

North East LEP Growth Deal which is supporting jobs growth and economic

development with £379.6m of Local Growth Fund. The North East LEP estimates that

their Growth Deal will lead to the creation of 8,000 jobs.

Whilst it is not region specific the North East can take advantage of the further

investment of £725m in a second wave of the Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund

across the UK to respond to some of the greatest global challenges and opportunities

and support sector productivity. We will also increase the National Productivity

Investment Fund, by £8bn taking it to £31bn and extending to 2022-23. This will

support investments in transport, housing and digital infrastructure. In addition:

815,000 people living and working in the North of Tyne will benefit from an

ambitious devolution deal agreed between the government and the North of Tyne

authorities. This includes a new £600 million long-term investment fund over the

next thirty years to be spent on local priorities, such as skills and employment,

adult education, and rural productivity.

Increasing national research and development spending to 2.4 per cent, boosting

the North East’s strength in research and innovation

The Tees Valley Combined Authority will receive £59 million from a new £1.7 billion

Cities Transformation Fund. Funding will be invested in transport projects which

drive productivity by improving connectivity and reducing congestion.

CABINET OFFICE

Average Earnings

Chris Ruane: [114933]

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the average income was for an (a) public

and (b) private sector employee for each income decile in each of the last thirty years;




Chris Skidmore:

The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority.

I have asked the Authority to reply.

Attachments:

1. UKSA response [PQ 114933.pdf]

Blood: Contamination

Jo Platt: [115417]

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if his Department will require investigation into

allegations of cover-up as part of the inquiry into contaminated blood.

Jo Platt: [115422]

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether the inquiry into blood contamination

will include a panel of experts to assist the Chair of that inquiry.

Damian Green:

I refer the Honourable Member to my Written Ministerial Statement of 3 November, in

which I commit to making a further statement on the setting up of the inquiry before

the end of this year.

Cabinet Office: Telephone Services

Jon Trickett: [111471]

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, which public telephone lines for his

Department's services are charged at higher rates; and how much was taken by each

such telephone line in the last 12 months.

Caroline Nokes:

Cabinet Office has no public telephone lines that are charged at higher rates.

Cabinet Office: Written Questions

Justin Madders: [111181]

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, when he plans to respond to Question 108821,

tabled on 19 October 2017 by the hon. Member for Ellesmere Port and Neston.

Caroline Nokes:

I refer the Hon. Member to the answer given to Question 108821 on 28 November

2017.

Anneliese Dodds: [112759]

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, when he plans to answer Question 109638,

tabled on 25 October 2017.

Caroline Nokes:

I refer the Hon. Member to the answer given to Question 109638 on 27 November

2017.






Carillion


To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether a Crown Representative has been

assigned to Carillion.

Caroline Nokes:

As Carillion is a strategic supplier to Government, they have been assigned a Crown

Representative.


To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what risk was identified during the procurement

process that identified Carillion as a service delivery contractor to (a) the operation of

public services and (b) value for money of the potential effect of Carillion plc going into

administration.


To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, , what risk was identified during the

procurement process that identified Carillion as a service delivery supplier, to (a) the

operation of public services and (b) value for money in the event of any strategic supplier

to the Government going into administration.

Caroline Nokes:

It is the responsibility of the Contracting Authority to ensure it is compliant with EU

procurement legislation during any procurement process. Contracting Authorities will

assess the risk of appointing any given supplier, and this will be tailored to the

requirements of the specific procurement.

Cervical Cancer

John Mann: [114867]

To ask the Secretary of State for the Cabinet Office, what change there has been in the

number of deaths caused by cervical cancer in England in the last five years, broken

down by age group; what strains of HPV have been identified as causes of death; and

how many of those deaths occurred for women who had been vaccinated against HPV.

Chris Skidmore:



Attachments:

1. UKSA response [PQ114867.pdf]

Deloitte

Andrew Gwynne: [113309]

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 14 November 2017

to Question 111537, on Deloitte, on how many occasions Deloitte reported to

Government significant cyber security incidents in (a) 2016 and (b) 2017.






Caroline Nokes:

It is at the discretion of a company to choose whether to report cyber incidents to

Government. The Government maintains the confidentiality of these reports and does

not disclose the number of occasions an organisation has reported to us. The advice

from the National Cyber Security Centre is that timely notification is strongly

recommended.

Domestic Violence Protection Orders

Philip Davies: [114785]

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many Domestic Violence Protection

Orders have been (a) applied for and (b) granted in the latest year for which information

is available, broken down by the sex of the person subject to each order in each

category.

Chris Skidmore:



Attachments:


Electoral Register

Alex Norris: [111332]

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what estimate he has made of the number of

eligible people not on the electoral register for the last five general elections in (a) the UK

and (b) Nottingham North.

Chris Skidmore:

[Holding answer 15 November 2017]: Information regarding the total number of

unregistered people of voting age is not held by the Government. Only totals for the

number of registered electors are held, and these can be accessed through the Office

For National Statistics website. It should be noted, however, that registration levels

have increased at every General Election since 2005, and the register used for the

2017 General Election was the largest in our history, standing at 46.9 million entries.

This is undoubtedly due, in large part, to the introduction of the Government’s

Register to Vote website, which has delivered great benefits to electors, making

registering to vote simpler and more accessible than ever before.

It is the Government’s intention to build on this success by publishing a Democratic

Engagement Plan in December, which will have the ambition of making the General

Election in 2022 the most inclusive to date.

Jim McMahon: [113169]

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what recent estimate his Department has

made of the number of adults not registered to vote in each year from 2010 to date.




Chris Skidmore:

[Holding answer 20 November 2017]: Data concerning the number people registered

to vote is held by Electoral Registration Officers, not by the Government. Each year,

figures relating to the 1 December published register are provided by Electoral

Registration Officers to the Office for National Statistics. After processing, the ONS

then publishes the collected statistics on its website. You can find these at

goo.gl/uXB4aK. Statistics relating to the 1 December 2017 register will be available in

2018.


To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what recent steps his Department has taken to

encourage third sector organisations to help increase the level of electoral registration.

Chris Skidmore:

The Government recognises the vital role that civil society plays in promoting

democratic engagement and electoral registration. We will continue to work closely

with such organisations, including to deliver National Democracy Week in July 2018.

Electoral Register: Databases


To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, which (a) national and (b) local authority

databases may be interrogated by electoral registration officers.

Chris Skidmore:

Electoral registration officers have extensive powers in the Representation of the

People (England and Wales) Regulations 2001 (RPR) and equivalent Regulations in

Scotland. Regulation 23 allows an ERO to require information from any person for the

purpose of fulfilling an ERO’s duty to maintain the electoral registers. This includes

seeking to identify electors missing from the register who appear on other data

sources. Failure of a person to comply with an EROs’ request under this regulation is

an offence and could result in that person being subject to a fine.

Other regulations within the RPR (35 and 35A) also allow an ERO to inspect, for the

purpose of his/her registration duties, records kept by their local authority (including

across different tiers of local councils) and any registrar of births, deaths and

marriages.

Electoral Register: Disability


To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assessment his Department has made of

the potential merits of (a) joining up existing disability registers with the electoral register

and (b) recording preferences on accessing information on the electoral register.

Chris Skidmore:

[Holding answer 15 November 2017]: In response to the recent Department of

Health consultation on the future use of the CVI, I expressed my support to allow




someone to provide their consent for the local authority to use the information to

provide support at elections for blind and partially sighted voters, and my officials are

currently working with their DH colleagues to determine how this can be

implemented.

Local authorities already hold a register of partially sighted and blind people and are

expected to use this information to ensure that election communications are provided

to named citizens in accessible formats.

On 5th September, at the meeting of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Learning

Disability, I launched a Call for Evidence to support the Government’s commitment to

ensure the electoral system is accessible for all electors. The deadline for responses

was 14th November 2017 and around 250 responses have been received.

The Government, in partnership with the members of the Cabinet-Office-chaired

Accessibility of Elections Working Group, which includes representatives from leading

charities and key electoral stakeholders, will now review the evidence received and

produce a report of key findings and recommendations. The aim is to publish the

report in Spring 2018.

Electoral Register: Internet



the potential merits of setting up an online service for voters to check whether they are

already registered to vote for the purposes of reducing the number of duplicate

applications.

Chris Skidmore:

I refer you to my answer to the member for Lancaster and Fleetwood. Determining an

individual’s registration status is the responsibility of Electoral Registration Officers

and only EROs hold up-to-date information allowing a citizen to check if they are

registered. This means that citizens can contact their local electoral administration

office to make enquiries about registration status.

Making information about registration status available on-line on a national basis

would be a significant undertaking and we have no current plans to introduce such a

system. It may be more appropriate for EROs to work with their software suppliers to

make registers available for checking on-line.

Electoral Register: North West

Dan Carden: [113051]

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many more people were registered to vote

as of 1 November 2017 than was the case at the time of the publication of the official

2015 electoral register in (a) Liverpool, Walton constituency, (b) Liverpool and (c) the

North West.



Chris Skidmore:

[Holding answer 20 November 2017]: Data concerning the number people registered

to vote is held by Electoral Registration Officers, not by the Government. Each year,

figures relating to the 1 December published register are provided by Electoral

Registration Officers to the Office for National Statistics. After processing, the ONS

then publishes the collected statistics on its website. You can find these at

goo.gl/uXB4aK. Statistics relating to the 1 December 2017 register will be available in

2018.

Electronic Government


To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what products have been sold through

Common Technology Services; to which Departments those products have been sold;

and what the value is of each such product.

Caroline Nokes:

Information on the range of services available under the Crown Commercial Service’s

Technology Services Framework (RM1058) can be found at:

http://ccs-agreements.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/contracts/rm1058

A total of £92, 568, 225 has been spent on services through this framework.

The following organisations have used this framework:

Aberdeen City Council

Aneurin Bevan University Health Board

Arena and Convention Centre Ltd

Army Training Department

Bank of England

Barking, Havering and Redbridge University Hospitals NHS Trust

Barnfield West Academy

Barts Health NHS Trust

Basildon and Thurrock University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

BBC

BBC Procurement

Bedford Borough Council

Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board

Big Lottery Fund

Birmingham Women’s and Children’s NHS Foundation Trust

Black Country Partnership NHS Foundation Trust



Bracknell Forest Borough Council

Bridgewater Community Healthcare NHS Trust

Bristol City Council

British Transport Police

Cabinet Office

Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue Service

Cardiff Council

Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service

Cleveland College of Art and Design

Community Health Partnerships

Competition Commission

Corby Business Academy

Coventry and Warwickshire Partnership NHS Trust

Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority

Criminal Justice Inspectorate

Defence Electronics and Components Agency

Defence Equipment and Support (Bath)

Defence Equipment and Support Information Services and Systems

Department for Business Energy & Industrial Strategy

Department for Education

Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs

Department for International Development

Department for Transport

Derby Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Derbyshire Constabulary

Dorset County Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency

East Ayrshire Council

East Cheshire NHS Trust

East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust

East Midlands Ambulance Service NHS Trust

East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust

Eden District Council

Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust

Essex Police

Frimley Park Hospital Nhs Trust

Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Government Actuary's Department

Government Commercial Function

Great Ormond Street Hospital

Guys and St Thomas NHS Foundation Trust

Hanover Housing Association

Health and Safety Executive

Health Research Authority

Heart of England NHS Foundation Trust

Highways England

Historic England

HM Prison Service Shared Services

Home Office

Home Office Scientific Development Branch

Homes and Communities Agency

HS2 Limited

Information Centre for Health and Social Care

James Paget University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Kent County Council

Kent Police

Kettering General Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

Kings College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

Land Registry

Lincolnshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust

London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham Council

London Borough of Lambeth Council

Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust

Manchester City Council

Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency

Medway NHS Foundation Trust

Met Office

Mid Essex Hospital Services NHS Trust

Mid Essex NHS Trust

Midland Heart

Midlands and Lancashire Commissioning Support Unit

MINISTRY OF DEFENCE

Ministry Of Defence Director Financial Management

Ministry of Justice

Moorfields Eye Hospital NHS Trust

National Archives

National Audit Office

National Library Of Scotland

National Museums Of Scotland

NHS Blood And Transplant

NHS Connecting for Health

NHS Digital

NHS Forth Valley

NHS Hertfordshire

NHS Hillingdon Clinical Commissioning Group

NHS North and East London Commissioning Support Unit

NHS South East London

North Cumbria University Hospitals NHS Trust

North East London NHS Foundation Trust

North Lanarkshire Council

North West London Commissioning Partnership

North Yorkshire Police

Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust

Northern Lighthouse Board

Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust

Nottinghamshire County Council

Ordnance Survey

Peterborough and Stamford Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Portsmouth Hospitals NHS Trust

Public Health England

Registers of Scotland

Rotherham Doncaster and South Humber NHS Foundation Trust

Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council

Royal Bournemouth Hospital NHS Foundation Trust The

Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust

Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals NHS Trust

Rural Payments Agency

Salford Royal NHS Foundation Trust

Sandwell and West Birmingham Hospitals NHS Trust

Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council

Scottish Police Authority

Scottish Prison Service

Shropshire Community Health NHS Trust

Shropshire Council

Skills Development Scotland

South Ayrshire Council

South Tees Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

South Wales Police

St Georges Healthcare NHS Trust

Stockport NHS Foundation Trust

Stratton Upper School

Student Loans Company

Supplier Nil Return

Surrey and Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust

Surrey County Council

Telford and Wrekin Council

The National Archives

The Pensions Regulator

The Water Services Regulation Authority

UK Atomic Energy Authority

UK Hydrographic Office

UK Shared Business Services Limited

University Hospital of North Midlands NHS Trust

University Hospitals of Bristol NHS Foundation Trust

University Hospitals of North Midlands NHS Trust

University of Aberdeen

University of Gloucestershire

Victoria Health Centre

Wakefield MDC

Warrington Borough Council

Watford Borough Council

West Midlands Police Authority

Wirral Metropolitan Borough Council

Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust

York Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

Zero Waste Scotland

To provide information on the cost of each item provided would incur a

disproportionate cost.

RM1058 was replaced by Technology Services 2 (RM3804), which came into effect

on 6 September 2017. Information on the range of services available under this

framework can be found at


As this is a new agreement, no spend data is available at present.


Emigration: Zimbabwe

Liz McInnes: [115286]

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what recent estimate his Department has

made of the size of the Zimbabwean diaspora in the UK.

Chris Skidmore:



Attachments:

1. UKSA response [PQ115286.pdf]

Government Chief Scientific Adviser: Public Appointments


To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many candidates were considered for the

position of Chief Scientific Adviser.

Damian Green:

There were 18 applications for the position of Government Chief Scientific Adviser.

Government Departments: Business Plans

Martyn Day: [114990]

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what guidance he gives to government

departments on the (a) timetable for publication of their Single Departmental Plans and

(b) extent of content reference in those plans to steps to attain the Sustainable

Development Goals; and if he will make a statement.

Caroline Nokes:

Following the election, Cabinet Office asked departments to update their Single

Departmental Plans. The Government intends to reflect updated SDPs on GOV.UK

later this year.

In updated plans, departments have been asked to outline how planned activity will

support the delivery of the Sustainable Development Goals.

Government Departments: Contracts for Services


To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what guidance his Department issues on the

contractual obligations of private companies delivering Government services and the

complaints procedures available to the public when those obligations are not met.

Caroline Nokes:

The Cabinet Office has issued a Model Services Contract, which includes sections on

contractual obligations and remedial procedures:

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/526358

/Model_Services_Contract_v1.02.pdf





https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/526358/Model_Services_Contract_v1.02.pdf

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/526358/Model_Services_Contract_v1.02.pdf

The Crown Commercial Service also published Procurement Policy Notes (PPNs) on

a range of issues including supplier past performance and prompt payment in supply

chains. PPNs can be found on GOV.UK:

https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/procurement-policy-notes

The Government Commercial Function has published a Supplier Code of Conduct,

which sets out the standards we expect of those companies supplying goods and

services to government:


/2017-09-13_Official_Sensitive_Supplier_Code_of_Conduct_September_2017.pdf

Government Departments: Equality

Jo Stevens: [114744]

To ask the Minister of State for the Cabinet Office, what form of technical capacity the

Government plans to provide to each relevant department to enable it to implement

Sustainable Development Goal 5.

Caroline Nokes:

The Government is committed to implementing the Sustainable Development Goals

including Goal 5.

The Cabinet Office's role is primarily to co-ordinate the departmental planning

process to ensure all of our obligations are adequately reflected. My department also

provides support to DfID as the lead department, however, all departments are

responsible for their respective contributions to the delivery of the Goals by 2030.

The departmental planning process is an effective tool in ensuring the Government is

making progress in meeting our obligations, including on gender equality.

Government Departments: Grants

Mr Steve Reed: [112173]

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, when the Government Grant Information

Service will standardise its use of the 360Giving format across all Government

departments.

Chris Skidmore:

[Holding answer 13 November 2017]: The Cabinet Office Grants Efficiency Function

developed the Government Grants Information system (GGIS) in close collaboration

with 360Giving to align GGIS data collection requirements with their recommended

standards. Data will be published at scheme level covering the 2017/18 financial year

in 2018. It is not currently possible to estimate how many departments will be in a

position to publish data to 360Giving Standards in 2018 because full data for 2017/18

has not yet been captured.

https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/procurement-policy-notes

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/646497/2017-09-13_Official_Sensitive_Supplier_Code_of_Conduct_September_2017.pdf

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/646497/2017-09-13_Official_Sensitive_Supplier_Code_of_Conduct_September_2017.pdf



Government Departments: Procurement

David T. C. Davies: [115358]

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what proportion of the Government's direct

cash spend in England on (a) general goods and services, (b) social care and (c)

construction works was won by firms registered in England in the last 12 months for

which figures are available.

Caroline Nokes:

Information on the nationality of suppliers is not routinely held centrally.

However, figures for contracts won by firms with UK addresses were set out in HMG's

Balance of Competences Service review in the summer of 2014:

https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/review-of-uk-and-eu-balance-of-

competences-call-for-evidence-on-the-single-market-free-movement-of-services .

This showed that UK firms won more than 95% of UK contracts advertised EU-wide,

either by number or value.

Government Departments: Staff


To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to Answer of 14 November 2017 to

Question 111108 on Department for Exiting the European Union: Staff, what estimate he

has made of the number of staff to be recruited in each Department; the grade at which

staff will be recruited and what professions will be recruited.

Caroline Nokes:

I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to him on 14 November 2017 to

Question 111108.

Government Departments: Telephone Services

Chris Stephens: [110803]

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps he is taking to ensure that third-

party telephone providers do not have access to Government helplines; and if he will

make a statement.

Caroline Nokes:

Government Helpline services are procured from a wide range of Telecommunication

providers in the UK. These services are contracted by Government from the

Telecommunication market in accordance with both Ofcom regulation and the Data

Protection act. As such third party telecommunications providers are an integral part

of the Government supply chain, and Government is taking no steps to remove third

party Telecommunications providers from ensuring that citizens can communicate

with Government easily.


https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/review-of-uk-and-eu-balance-of-competences-call-for-evidence-on-the-single-market-free-movement-of-services

https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/review-of-uk-and-eu-balance-of-competences-call-for-evidence-on-the-single-market-free-movement-of-services




To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether his Department's 2013 guidance that

ordered Departments to stop using higher-rate telephone lines for key services was ever

revoked or updated.

Caroline Nokes:

[Holding answer 13 November 2017]: In December 2013 the Government published

guidance on departments’ use of telephone prefixes and freephone numbers. This

was updated and published in October 2015 and can be found here:


/20151006_Customer_phone_lines_draft_guidance_October_2015.pdf

Intelligence and Security Committee

Paul Flynn: [107524]

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, when he expects the Intelligence Security

Committee for the current Parliament to be formally reconstituted; and if he will make a

statement.

Damian Green:

[Holding answer 17 October 2017]: The Intelligence and Security Committee has

been appointed following the approval of motions in both Houses of Parliament.

Local Government: Elections

Chris Green: [112666]

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, which local authorities expressed interest in

conducting a voter ID pilot in polling stations for the May 2018 local elections but

subsequently decided not to proceed with that pilot.

Chris Skidmore:

The opportunity to pilot voter ID in May 2018 was offered to all local authorities in

Great Britain and Woking, Gosport, Bromley, Swindon and Watford have committed

to do so. In addition, Tower Hamlets will be piloting measures to improve the integrity

of the postal vote process. In September 2017 we announced that Slough would also

be piloting voter ID however it subsequently voted to withdraw from the pilot.

While working with those that expressed interest over the following months the

Cabinet Office and the local authorities themselves agreed on the extent of their

participation, including their continuation to a live pilot or as a supportive reference

authority. Participation is voluntary and a matter for each local authority

Low Pay

Mr Gregory Campbell: [115135]

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the change has been in the number of

people employed full-time and earning less than £11,000 per annum from January (a)

2012 to (b) 2017.


https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/470411/20151006_Customer_phone_lines_draft_guidance_October_2015.pdf

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/470411/20151006_Customer_phone_lines_draft_guidance_October_2015.pdf




Chris Skidmore:



Attachments:


Members: Email

Justin Madders: [108821]

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether electronic communications from hon.

Members to Ministers are passed through any third parties before they reach their

recipient.

Caroline Nokes:

Electronic communications are passed across the internet via internet service

providers and the routing of an email between an Hon Member and a Government

department is dependent on which system and service an email is sent. Ministers’

Private Offices and correspondence teams routinely handle and respond to emails on

behalf of their Ministers.

Ministers: Autobiography


To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what records his Department holds on the use

of the Radcliffe exclusion rule recommended by the Radcliffe Committee of Enquiry into

Civil Service Security Procedure.

Caroline Nokes:

The then Prime Minister (Mr Blair) announced to the House on 19 June 1997 (Col

WA 246) the creation of the independent Security Vetting Appeals Panel, to hear

appeals against the refusal or withdrawal of security clearance. The establishment of

the Panel, chaired by a senior retired member of the judiciary, brought to an end the

role of the Three Advisers who, since 1948, had been available to consider cases

where security clearance was refused or withdrawn on the grounds of subversion.

The last reference to the Three Advisers was made in 1967. In his statement to

Parliament on 27 July 2010, the Prime Minister (Mr Cameron) set out HMG policy on

security vetting underlining its critical importance in protecting UK interests and its

application to those with access to sensitive Government assets and placed in the

library a document setting out Government policy in this area (Government Security

Controls)


/HMG_Personnel_Security_Controls.pdf.

This includes the mechanisms available to individuals to appeal against adverse

security vetting decisions. The Government continues to attach importance to

security vetting as part of its work to protect the country and its citizens, but it



recognises the rights of individuals to appeal against adverse decisions internally

and, if they are aggrieved about the outcome, to appeal to the Panel.

Prime Minister: Italy

Martin Docherty-Hughes: [112045]

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the cost to the public purse was of

translating and promoting the Prime Minister's speech in Florence on 22 September 2017

in (a) English, (b) German, (c) French, (d) Italian, (e) Spanish, (f) Polish, (g) Dutch and (h)

any other languages.

Martin Docherty-Hughes: [112046]

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the cost to the public purse was of his

Department's advertising of the Prime Minister's speech in Florence on 22 September

2017 on (a) Facebook, (b) Twitter and (c) all other social media platforms.

Chris Skidmore:

The Government regularly uses digital advertising to reach audiences with key

messages both at home and abroad. Annual government advertising spend is around

£140 million, of which £60 million is spent on digital channels. The Florence speech

was an important moment as we approach the next stage of Brexit negotiations -

discussing our future relationship with the EU once we have left. More detailed

information will be published in the Government Communication Service’s annual

report.

Public Sector: Cybercrime

Mr Jim Cunningham: [115042]

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what plans his Department has to record

centrally the number of cyber attacks on public services.

Caroline Nokes:

The Cabinet Office does currently not plan to record centrally the number of cyber

attacks against public services as each department manages incidents which affect

the services they are responsible for. The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC),

working with law enforcement partners, strongly encourages all organisations to

report cyber attacks but this is currently voluntary for all such incidents. Those reports

received by the NCSC are recorded.

Public Sector: Procurement

Catherine West: [111733]

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if the Government will implement a moratorium

on those companies which are being investigated as a result of the Paradise Papers

being awarded public sector contracts.






To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps the Government plans to take as a

result of information in the Paradise Papers relating to companies that hold existing

government contracts.

Caroline Nokes:

The 2015 Public Contract Regulations implemented the latest EU Public Procurement

Directive, and introduced a new obligation for public bodies to exclude suppliers from

a procurement where the supplier has been found guilty of breaching its obligations in

relation to payment of taxes. This has been established by a judicial or administrative

decision having final effect within the relevant jurisdiction.


To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assessment he has made of the effect of

the provisions of the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 set at in Procurement Policy

Note 04/15 on restricting the taking into account of past performance in awarding

contracts on competition, social value and value for money from the public purse.

Caroline Nokes:

UK public procurement policy is to award contracts on the basis of value for money,

which means the optimum combination of cost and quality over the lifetime of the

project. Wider socio-economic criteria can be taken into account at tender evaluation

stage if they relate directly to the subject matter of a contract from the point of view of

the contracting authority.

The Public Contracts Regulations 2015 explicitly allows past performance to be taken

into account, and we issued Procurement Policy Note 04/15 to assist public procurers

to do so.

Technology

Andrew Percy: [113183]


the (a) effect, (b) uptake and (c) observance of Government non-statutory guidance in the

IT, technology and digital sector by industry, civil society and others.

Caroline Nokes:

The Government Digital Service has lead responsibility for digital and technology

guidance and standards in central Government, through the Digital by Default Service

Standard, Government Service Design Manual and Technology Code of Practice. All

Government departments are required to follow the standards and guidance when

developing new IT and digital solutions. All standards and guidance are fully open

and other organisations are welcome to follow the good practice set out in these

documents.

Although my department makes no formal assessment of the uptake of these

standards and guidance beyond central government, we assure that central

government meets these standards through spending controls and service




assessments and via the monitoring of service performance on GOV.UK to assure

that high quality services are delivered to users.

TREASURY

Children: Day Care

Lucy Powell: [115530]

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many people eligible for tax-free childcare

earn (a) less than £10,000, (b) £10,001 to £19,999, (c) £20,000 to £29,999, (d) £30,000

to £39,999, (e) £40,000 to £49,999, (f) 50,000 to 59,999, (g) 60,000 to £69,999, (h)

£70,000 to £79,999, (i) £80,000 to £89,999 and (j) £90,000 to £100,000.


To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many households eligible for tax-free

childcare are on incomes of (a) less than £19,999, (b) £20,000 to £39,999, (c) £40,000 to

£59,999, (d) £60,000 to 79,999, (e) £80,000 to 99,999, (f) £100,000 to £119,999, (g)

£120,000 to £139,999, (h) £140,000 to £159,999, (i) £160,000 to 179,999, and (j)

£180,000 to £200,000.

Elizabeth Truss:

The income critiera for Tax-Free Childcare is that parents (and their partner if they

have one) earn at least the equivalent of 16 hours per week at national living wage,

and less than £100,000 per annum, and not be claiming tax credits or Universal

Credit.

Tracy Brabin: [115571]

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 20 November to

Question 113353, whether there has been no change in the number of tax-free childcare

accounts since 16 October 2017.

Elizabeth Truss:

As of 24 November there were live Tax-Free Childcare accounts for approximately

170,000 children.

Emergency Services: Scotland

Alan Brown: [115290]

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many meetings he has had with the hon.

Member for Ayr, Carrick and Cumnock to discuss a VAT exemption for police and fires

services in Scotland; and when those meetings took place.



Member for Banff and Buchan to discuss a VAT exemption for police and fires services in

Scotland; and when those meetings took place.








Member for Dumfries and Galloway to discuss a VAT exemption for police and fires

services in Scotland; and what the dates of those meetings were.



Member for East Renfrewshire to discuss a VAT exemption for police and fires services

in Scotland; and when those meetings took place.



Member for Moray to discuss a VAT exemption for police and fires services in Scotland;

and when those meetings took place.

Mel Stride:

Government ministers regularly meet with Members of Parliament to discuss policy

issues.

Employee Benefit Trusts: Regulation

Ian Austin: [114708]

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will review the regulation of employee

benefit trusts with reference to representations made on behalf of the Roadchef

Employees Benefit Trust.

Mel Stride:

I refer the Hon Member to my written answer of 5 July 2017 (UIN 1465).

Financial Services

Stephen Timms: [115454]

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans he has to promote the UK as a global

financial centre?

Stephen Barclay:

The UK is home to the world’s preeminent financial centre. In addition to our natural

advantages, such as a central time zone and the English language, we have

strengths across all the major sectors – banking, asset management, and insurance

– alongside a globally respected regulatory system, and world-class legal and

professional services.

The government is committed to further enhancing this position, as well as

strengthening the UK’s already world-leading positions in the markets of the future,

whether in FinTech, green and sustainable finance, or rupee and renminbi products.

In addition, the government maintains an open and constructive dialogue with the

financial services sector. This includes through the Financial Services Trade and






Investment Board, which is tasked with boosting and promoting the competitive

position of UK financial services.

The UK also holds a number of annual Economic and Financial Dialogues (EFD) with

key emerging markets, such as the UK-Brazil EFD last held in July, the UK-China

EFD taking place this December, and the UK-India EFD which will take place again

next year. These EFDs are Chancellor led Treasury to Treasury dialogues, aimed at

increasing financial cooperation and establishing the UK as the partner of choice for

priority overseas markets.

Financial Services: EU Law


To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the extent to

which the UK will be able to influence detailed regulation being developed from the

Markets in Financial Instruments Directive; and if he will make a statement.

Stephen Barclay:

The Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID) II implements commitments

made by the G20 in 2009 in light of the financial crisis. The UK achieved its key

objectives in negotiations for MiFID II, which introduces changes that are necessary

to support the effective functioning of financial markets.

The detailed regulations under MiFID II, which take the form of delegated acts and

regulatory technical standards, are largely complete ahead of their application on 3

January 2018. The UK authorities have been fully engaged in their development. The

Chancellor has no plans to make a specific statement at this time.

Income Tax: Tax Rates and Bands


To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the number of

people who pay higher-rate income tax in the last five years.

Mel Stride:

Estimates of the number of taxpayers by marginal tax rate are published in National

Statistics table 3.4, which is part of HMRC’s Personal Incomes Statistics collection.

The latest available tax year is 2014-15.

Tables for tax years 2010-11 to 2014‑15 can be found at the link below:

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/income-tax-liabilities-of-starting-savers-

basic-and-higher-rate-taxpayers-by-largest-source-of-income-2010-to-2011

For convenience, the numbers of individuals for each of the five years have been

collated in the table below:

TAX YEAR TOTAL NUMBER OF TAXPAYERS (THOUSANDS)

Higher rate Additional rate



https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/income-tax-liabilities-of-starting-savers-basic-and-higher-rate-taxpayers-by-largest-source-of-income-2010-to-2011

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/income-tax-liabilities-of-starting-savers-basic-and-higher-rate-taxpayers-by-largest-source-of-income-2010-to-2011

TAX YEAR TOTAL NUMBER OF TAXPAYERS (THOUSANDS)

2010-11 3,020 236

2011-12 3,570 262

2012-13 3,720 273

2013-14 4,200 311

2014-15 4,300 328

Notes on the table

1. Counts of individuals are rounded to the nearest thousand and to three significant

figures.

2. Counts of individuals liable at the Higher marginal rate excludes those liable at the

Additional rate, which are therefore shown separately.

3. Marginal tax rate is the rate paid on the last unit of income.

https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/personal-incomes-statistics


To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to paragraph 3.5 of the Autumn

Budget 2017, what estimate he has made of the number of taxpayers in (a) Jarrow

constituency, (b) South Tyneside, (c) the North East and (d) England who will benefit

from the increase of the personal allowance and higher rate threshold.

Mel Stride:

The Government is increasing the income tax personal allowance and higher rate

threshold to £11,850 and £46,350 respectively in 2018-19, as set out in paragraph

3.5 of the Autumn Budget 2017.

In England, government increases to the PA and HRT will have lifted around 986,000

people out of income tax altogether in 2018-19 compared to 2015-16, and 26.1m

people will have gained by an average of £195.

In the North East of England, government increases to the PA and HRT will have

lifted around 52,000 people out of income tax altogether in 2018-19 compared to

2015-16, and 1.2m people will have gained by an average of £185.

HM Treasury does not publish this information at district or constituency level.

Job Creation

Richard Graham: [902596]

What progress is being made on creating jobs and reducing unemployment.

Elizabeth Truss:

The unemployment rate is the lowest since 1975 / in over 42 years (at 4.3%)

https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/personal-incomes-statistics



Research and Development Expenditure Credit


To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to paragraph 3.26 of the Autumn

Budget 2017, what estimate the Government has made of the number of businesses that

will benefit from the increase in R&D expenditure credit in (a) Jarrow constituency, (b)

South Tyneside, (c) the North East and (d) England.

Mel Stride:

The number of businesses registered in (a) Jarrow constituency and (b) South

Tyneside which claim the R&D expenditure credit (RDEC) cannot be disclosed for

reasons of taxpayer confidentiality.

The estimated numbers of businesses registered in (c) the North East and (d)

England which claimed RDEC in 2015-16 are published in Table RD5 of the R&D Tax

Credits National Statistics:

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/corporate-tax-research-and-development-

tax-credit

These statistics also show the estimated number of businesses which claimed under

the large company scheme that has now been replaced by RDEC.

Roadchef: Employee Benefit Trusts


To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what representations he has received on

repayment of monies held by HM Revenue and Customs to the Roadchef Employees

Benefit Trust.

Mel Stride:

The Government receives representations on a wide range of issues. It is not normal

practice to release details of representations regarding specific cases.

Tax Collection


To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will issue guidance to HM Revenue and

Customs on unjust enrichment as a result of the case of the Roadchef Employees Benefit

Trust.

Mel Stride:

The administration of the tax system, including where appropriate the repayment of

tax or duties, is a matter for HM Revenue and Customs. It would not be appropriate

for Treasury Ministers to become involved in specific cases.


https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/corporate-tax-research-and-development-tax-credit

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/corporate-tax-research-and-development-tax-credit



Treasury: Postal Services

James Gray: [114611]

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what security measures his Department has in

place relating to the receipt by his Department of incoming post and parcels; and what

discussions he has had with the British Forces Postal Office on providing such services.

Andrew Jones:

The department’s mail is initially scanned offsite for suspect content, before being

delivered by private delivery service to our offices. We have had no discussion with

BFPO on providing such services.

Unionlearn

Paula Sherriff: [R] [115570]

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to Autumn Budget 2017,

paragraph 4.23, how much financial support will be provided to Unionlearn in the next two

years.

Elizabeth Truss:

As announced in the Autumn Budget, the government will provide £8.5 million over

the next two years to support Unionlearn. This additional funding will bring the total

government investment in Unionlearn to £12 million per year for the next two years.

Universal Credit

Fiona Onasanya: [902584]

What discussions he has had with Secretary of State for Work and Pensions on the

potential effect of the roll-out of universal credit on levels of household income?

Elizabeth Truss:

I refer the hon member to my oral answer of earlier today to the hon member for

Midlothian (Danielle Rowley).

COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Department for Communities and Local Government: Postal Services


To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what security

measures his Department has in place relating to the receipt by his Department of

incoming post and parcels; and what discussions he has had with the British Forces

Postal Office on providing such services.

Mr Marcus Jones:

My Department follows guidance issued by the Centre for the Protection of National

Infrastructure for establishing secure postal monitoring services. We have had no





discussions with the British Forces Postal Office on providing screening mail

services.

Fireworks: Accidents

Toby Perkins: [114692]

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what information

his Department holds on the number of (a) people and (b) animals injured in incidents

involving fireworks during November in each of the last five years.

Jake Berry:

The Department for Communities and Local Government does not hold data for

people or animals injured in incidents involving fireworks.


Mr David Lammy: [114653]

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, pursuant to his

oral contribution of 5 September 2017, Official Report, column 78, what steps his

Department has taken to establish a family bereavement centre for families affected by

the Grenfell Tower fire.

Alok Sharma:

The Family and Friends Assistance Centre is a centre for bereaved families providing

them with access to professional support from a multi-disciplinary team and space to

spend time together. The centre has been operational since the immediate days

following the fire, overseen initially by the Grenfell Response Team and then the

Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea Council. Confidential rooms provide a

comfortable environment with staff on hand to provide support and advice.

The Centre recently moved to new long-term premises and services include

emotional support and counselling; NHS Post Traumatic Stress Disorder support;

financial advice by the Red Cross and support from specialist keyworkers, Family

Liaison Officers and Victim Support. The Senior Investigatory Officer from the

Metropolitan Police Service also attends the Centre to provide a link to the ongoing

police investigation.

The Grenfell Tower Inquiry will be engaging with bereaved families at the Centre,

explaining processes and answering queries.

At the Autumn Budget the Government announced £28 Million to enable the Royal

Borough of Kensington and Chelsea Council to support the victims and communities.

This includes £3 million towards the operating costs of the Friends and Family

Assistance Centre for the next three years


To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many

families affected by the Grenfell Tower fire have a key worker; and how many families

each such key worker is responsible for.




Alok Sharma:

As of the 21 November there are 155 keyworkers providing support to 508 families

affected by the Grenfell Tower fire.

Housing Estates: Regeneration


To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what funds his

Department has provided to local authorities and housing associations to support estate

regeneration since June 2017.

Alok Sharma:

The Estate Regeneration Programme is currently supporting and working with over

100 estates across the country.

The programme has been allocated £722 million of loans and grants to accelerate

schemes at the early stages of regeneration, build access to commercial skills and

provide long term finance for estate regeneration.

Local Government: Procurement


To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what proportion of

local authority cash spend in England on (a) general goods and services, (b) social care

and (c) construction works was won by firms registered in England in the last 12 months

for which figures are available.


To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what proportion of

capital contacts worth more than (a) £100,000, (b) £250,000, (c) £500,000 and (d) £1

million was won by firms registered in England in the last 12 months for which figures are

available.

Mr Marcus Jones:

The Department for Communities and Local Government does not collect data on the

amount or proportion of local government procurement going to companies registered

in England.

Religious Hatred: Islam


To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if he will make an

assessment of the potential implications for his policies of the Tell MAMA Annual Report

for 2016 on Anti-Muslim Hatred; and what steps his Department plans to take to address

the increase in the proportion of directly abusive and violent anti-Muslim incidents.

Mr Marcus Jones:

We take hate crime in all its forms very seriously that is why the United Kingdom has

some of the strongest hate crime legislation in the world. The increase in hate crime





reported to Tell Mama in part reflects a greater encouragement and confidence

around reporting as well as an increasing number of data sharing agreements with

police forces.

Nevertheless, it is deplorable that any Muslim citizens should be subjected to abuse

on account of their belief or appearance.

My Department works with Muslim communities through our anti-Muslim-hatred

working group to address the problem of hate crime and to encourage greater

reporting.

DEFENCE

Army


To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many members there were of each

Regiment of the British Army on 1st November 2017.

Mark Lancaster:

The number of personnel within each Army Arm/Corps as at 1 October 2017, latest

available figures, is shown below:

ARM/SERVICE TOTAL REGULARS

ARMY FUTURE

RESERVES 20

Staff 860 710 140

Household Cavalry/ Royal Armoured Corps 6,540 4,950 1,590

Royal Regiment of Artillery 8,450 6,240 2,210

Royal Engineers 11,350 8,370 2,980

Royal Corps of Signals 8,730 6,820 1,910

Infantry 29,050 21,470 7,580

Army Air Corps 2,170 1,740 430

Royal Army Chaplains' Department 200 130 60

Royal Logistic Corps 16,790 11,750 5,040

Royal Army Medical Corps 6,100 3,390 2,710

Corps of Royal Electrical and Mechanical

Engineers

10,140 8,440 1,700

Adjutant General's Corps 7,020 5,640 1,390


ARM/SERVICE TOTAL REGULARS

ARMY FUTURE

RESERVES 20

Royal Army Veterinary Corps 480 360 120

Small Arms School Corps 150 150 10

Royal Army Dental Corps 300 240 60

Intelligence Corps 3,120 1,790 1,330

Royal Army Physical Training Corps 470 440 30

Queen Alexandra's Royal Army Nursing Corps 1,690 950 740

Corps of Army Music 770 770 -

Senior Soldier Continuity Posts 230 230 -

General Service Corps/ General List 830 650 180

Others - - -

Officer Training Corps 110 - 110

Data Source Def Stat (Army) 01 October 2017

Notes:

Those figures marked ‘Regulars’ include Regulars, Gurkha’s, Full Time Reserve

Service Full Commitment ( FTRS (FC)) (excluding Lead First).

Those figures marked ‘Army Future Reserves 20’ include volunteer reserves who are

mobilised, High Readiness Reserves and those volunteer reserves serving on Full

Time Reserve Service and Additional Duties Commitment. Sponsored Reserves who

provide a more cost effective solution than volunteer reserve are also included.

Figures are for both untrained and trained strength.

For the purpose of this answer, FTRS have not been double counted in both FR20

and Full Time Strength and are within the FR20 column.

All Officers of Paid Rank Colonel and above are included in Staff, regardless of

previous Arm/Service.

For presentation purpose, figures have been rounded to 10; numbers ending in "5"

have been rounded to the nearest multiple of 20 to prevent systematic bias.

Totals have been rounded separately and so may not appear to be the sum of their

parts.

“-” denotes zero or rounded to zero.

Army: Recruitment


To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, How many new recruits have joined each

regiment of the British Army in 2017.

Mark Lancaster:

The following table shows the number of Untrained Regular, Gurkha’s and Future

Reserves 2020 (FR20) Intake of each Army Arm/Corps from 1 January 2017 to 30

September 2017.

ARM/SERVICE REGULARS ARMY FUTURE RESERVES 20

Staff - -

Household Cavalry/ Royal Armoured Corps 340 110

Royal Regiment of Artillery 420 150

Corps of Royal Engineers 560 150

Royal Corps of Signals 260 120

Infantry 1,820 700

Army Air Corps 60 20

Royal Army Chaplains' Department 10 -

Royal Logistic Corps 790 270

Royal Army Medical Corps 250 230

Corps of Royal Electrical and Mechanical

Engineers

580 120

Adjutant General's Corps 190 90

Royal Army Veterinary Corps 20 20

Royal Army Dental Corps 10 -

Intelligence Corps 40 110

Queen Alexandra's Royal Army Nursing Corps 30 50

Corps of Army Music 30 -

General Service Corps/ General List 590 30

Officer Training Corps - 40


Notes:

Those figures marked ‘Regulars’ include Regulars and Gurkha’s untrained intake.

Full Time Reserve Service (Full Commitment) (FTRS (FC)) population have not been

included in the figures as they must be trained on starting their FTRS engagement

and have previous service within the Armed Force.

Those figures marked ‘Army Future Reserves 20’ (FR20) include volunteer reserves

that are mobilised, High Readiness Reserves and those volunteer reserves serving

on Full Time Reserve Service and Additional Duties Commitment. Sponsored

Reserves who provide a more cost effective solution than volunteer reserve are also

included.

Personnel who transferred between the untrained Regular populations and the

untrained FR20 populations are included in the inflow figures. Intake to untrained

FR20 populations could include personnel coming from any other reserve population

not included in the FR20.

Regular officers (excluding Professionally Qualified Officers) join the Army as Officer

Cadets in the General Service Corps.

Professionally Qualified Officers (PQO) commission on entry to the appropriate

Regiment/Arm/Service on enlistment.

All Officers of Paid Rank Colonel and above are included in Staff, regardless of late

Arm/Service.

Figures are for untrained intake from 1st Jan 2017 to 30th Sept 2017, who inflow to

Phase 1 training, as well as those who direct entry into Phase 2 Training upon joining

the Army.

For presentation purpose, figures have been rounded to 10; numbers ending in "5"

have been rounded to the nearest multiple of 20 to prevent systematic bias.

Totals and sub-totals have been rounded separately and so may not appear to be the

sum of their parts.

“-” denotes zero or rounded to zero.

Army: Resignations


To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many members of the British Army have

left each regiment in 2017.

Mark Lancaster:

The information to answer this question will take time to collate. I will write to the hon.

Member shortly.


Clyde Naval Base


To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the cost to the public purse of the

Government's planned nuclear infrastructure projects at Faslane and Coulport will be.

Harriett Baldwin:

I refer the hon. member to the answer I gave on 21 November 2017, to Question

112912 to the hon. Member for Leeds North East (Fabian Hamilton).

Attachments:

1. 112912 - Nuclear Weapons: Scotland

[20171122_112912_Nuclear_Weapons_Scotland.docx]


To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what projects and programmes he plans to

expand nuclear infrastructure at Faslane and Coulport.

Harriett Baldwin:

I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 21 November 2017, to Question

112913, to the hon. Member for Leeds North East (Fabian Hamilton).

Attachments:




To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether expenditure for planned nuclear

infrastructure projects at Faslane and Coulport will be allocated from the budget for

Trident.

Harriett Baldwin:

I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 13 November 2017 to Question

112914 to the hon. Member for Leeds North East (Fabian Hamilton).

Attachments:



Defence Equipment: Repairs and Maintenance

John Spellar: [115059]

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment has his Department made of

the potential merits of the use of 3D printing for equipment maintenance for operations.

Harriett Baldwin:

The impact of 3D Printing on defence is being studied thoroughly, through research

programmes, international collaboration and trials. Areas of study include the

potential impact on logistics, in-field repair, reducing equipment development times

and enhancing the performance of defence components.





Defence Nuclear Safety Regulator


To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when he plans to publish recent reports of the

Defence Nuclear Safety Regulator.


To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent assessment he has made of the

safety of the trident nuclear weapons system; and if he will make a statement.

Harriett Baldwin:

I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 21 November 2017 to Questions

112915 and 113221 to the hon. Member for Leeds North East (Fabian Hamilton).

Attachments:

1. 112915 - WQnA extract on Trident [Hansard Extract Hansard Extract 21 November

2017, HOC 112915.docx]

Islamic State: British Nationals Abroad

Clive Lewis: [114631]

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what measures are in place to determine

whether British-born ISIS combatants have surrendered following the fall of Mosul and

Raqqa.

Clive Lewis: [115531]

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what measures are in place to determine

whether any British-born ISIS combatants have surrendered as a result of the fall of

Mosul and Raqqa.

Mark Lancaster:

The surrender of Daesh fighters in Iraq and Syria - no matter what their nationality - is

a matter for local Iraqi Forces or Syrian Democratic Forces operating on the ground.

If a British national is detained in Iraq, we would expect to be notified by the Iraqi

authorities. The UK has no diplomatic representation in Syria and all consular

services are suspended. As a result, we are unable to confirm the status of British

nationals in Syria.

Islands: Hurricanes and Tornadoes


To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much his Department has received from

the Department for International Development for its operation in support of hurricane hit

islands in 2017.

Mark Lancaster:

The detailed costs of the Defence response to hurricanes Irma and Maria are being

compiled and will be reported on in due course.






The Ministry of Defence will recover the majority of its additional costs from the cross-

Government Immediate Response fund established for the relief effort. Any additional

costs will be funded from the Deployed Military Assistance Pool, which exists to

support unforeseen short term military activity.

The cross-Government fund includes contributions from the Conflict Security and

Stabilisation Fund, Department for International Development and the Treasury

Reserve.

Military Exercises

Mrs Madeleine Moon: [114633]

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether Departmental guidance or regulations

stipulate a requirement to take temperature readings using a (a) mobile phone or (b) car

thermostat prior to (i) commencing (ii) continuing an exercise, training, or selection test;


Mr Tobias Ellwood:

Current Departmental guidance or regulations do not stipulate the use of a mobile

phone or car thermostat. This is because the risk of heat illness is not just from still

air temperature (as measured by a thermometer). Humidity and wind effects also

need to be factored in to give a more accurate predictor of risk.


To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether his Departmental guidance allows

exercise, training or selection events to take place in high temperatures where a wetbulb

globe temperature reading is not available; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Tobias Ellwood:

Departmental guidance does not preclude events taking place in high temperatures

where a Wet Bulb Globe Temperature index reading is not available. However, the

Commander must assess the risks (in accordance with the guidance), reduce them to

as low as reasonably practicable and then decide if the risk is acceptable.


To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether an exercise, selection or training

event would be cancelled in the event that some participants collapsed from heat

exhaustion; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Tobias Ellwood:

Current Departmental guidance calls for an activity to be 'paused' when a participant

is known to be suffering from heat exhaustion to allow time to assess the participant

and the risk to all other participants. If others are deemed to be at risk, further control

measures should be considered, including stopping the activity.




Ministry of Defence: Postal Services


To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what security measures his Department has in

place relating to the receipt by his Department of incoming post and parcels; and what


Mr Tobias Ellwood:

All mail received by the British Forces Postal Office (BFPO) is screened for potential

security threats. These security measures are reviewed annually.

The BFPO screens mail to international security standards assured by the Civil

Aviation Authority.

No discussions between Ministers and BFPO about security measures have taken

place.

National Security


To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when he plans to publish the findings of the

national security capability review.

Gavin Williamson:

The National Security Capability Review is being conducted by the National Security

Adviser, with individual strands taken forward by cross-departmental teams. Defence

is one strand of the overall work programme. Any decisions on whether, when or to

what extent the conclusions of this work are made public are for Ministers to decide.

Royal Air Force Centre of Aviation Medicine

Sir Nicholas Soames: [114588]

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is the (a) location and (b) establishment

by rank of the Royal Air Force Centre of Aviation Medicine.

Mr Tobias Ellwood:

The Royal Air Force Centre of Aviation Medicine is based at RAF Henlow.

The establishment by rank is as follows:

NUMBER RANK

~ Air Commodore

~ Group Captain

10 Wing Commander

10 Squadron Leader

10 Junior Officers




NUMBER RANK

~ Warrant Officer

10 Chief Technician/Flight Sergeant

20 Sergeant

30 Corporal

10 Senior & Leading Aircraftsman

Due to the small populations generated by this level of detail and the possibility of

identifying individual personnel, data has been rounded to 10. When rounding to the

nearest 10, numbers ending in 5 have been rounded to the nearest multiple of 20 to

prevent systematic bias. “ ~ ” denotes a number less than or equal to 5.

Trident


To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether the (a) safety, (b) affordability and (c)

strategic relevance of the trident nuclear weapons system will be considered as part of

the national security capability review.

Harriett Baldwin:

On 18 July 2016, Parliament decisively supported our commitment to maintain the

UK's independent nuclear deterrent. That decision has been taken, and it is not under

consideration as part of the National Security Capability Review.


To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he plans to reduce defence

expenditure in some areas to pay for the cost of trident replacement.

Harriett Baldwin:

The Dreadnought submarine replacement programme remains within its budget and

will provide the ultimate guarantee of our national security.

DIGITAL, CULTURE, MEDIA AND SPORT

Arts: EU Grants and Loans

Tom Watson: [115479]

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, if it is her

Department's policy that the UK should continue to pay in and be a member of the

Creative Europe programme once the UK has left the EU.




Matt Hancock:

We remain committed to supporting the UK creative industries and are consulting

closely with stakeholders to ensure that any ongoing funding commitments best serve

the UK's national interest.

The Prime Minister made clear in her speech in Florence that, where possible, and

where they are greatly to the UK and EU's joint advantage, we will want to continue

taking part in specific policies and programmes like Creative Europe.

European Capital of Culture

Alex Sobel: [115410]

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to

Istanbul's being the European Capital of Culture in 2010, whether she plans to appeal the

European Commission decision to withdraw the UK from the European Capital of Culture

competition.

Chris Law: [115461]

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions she

has had with the European Commission on the decision to discontinue participation of the

UK in the European Capital of Culture competition.


To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether her

department is negotiating with the European Commission on its reversing the decision

that the UK cannot participate in the European Capital of Culture 2023.

Hilary Benn: [115584]

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what representations

she has made to the European Commission on its decision to exclude (a) Leeds and (b)

other UK cities from bidding for the European Capital of Culture 2023.

John Glen:

The European Commission wrote to the Permanent Secretary for the Department for

Digital, Culture, Media and Sport on 22 November 2017. A copy of the letter has

been placed in the Library. The five candidate cities were informed of the European

Commission’s decision on 23 November 2017.

Chris Law: [115465]

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, on what date her

Department received notification of the European Commission's decision to discontinue

participation of the UK in the European Capital of Culture competition.

Chris Law: [115487]

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what representations

her Department has received from the European Commission on the reasons for its

decision to withdraw the UK entry for the European Capital of Culture in 2023.







John Glen:

The European Commission wrote to the Permanent Secretary for the Department for

Digital, Culture, Media and Sport on 22 November 2017. A copy of the letter has

been placed in the Library. The five candidate cities were informed of the European

Commission’s decision on 23 November 2017.


To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, how much

participating cities have spent on their bids to be European City of Culture 2023.

John Glen:

The information requested is not held by Government.

Gaming Machines


To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, if she will place in the

Library an estimate of the fiscal impact of each of the options in the Consultation on

Changes to Gaming Machines and Social Responsibility Measures?

Tracey Crouch:

On 31 October the Government published the Consultation on Proposals to Changes

to Gaming Machines and Social Responsibility Measures, together with its impact

assessment. The Consultation can be found at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/consultation-on-proposals-for-changes-

to-gaming-machines-and-social-responsibility-measures

As policy develops in this area, DCMS will work closely with HM Treasury to establish

the fiscal effect.

Government Departments: Procurement

Jim McMahon: [115580]

To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the

Answer of 26 October 2017 to Question 109191, on Big Ben: iron and steel, whether the

Government plans to extend the provisions of the Social Value Act 2012 to ensure that

central government contracts have an area of interest defined as the UK.

Tracey Crouch:

The Office for Civil Society is responsible for Public Services (Social Value) Act 2012.

Currently there are no plans to extend the reach of the act, but we are taking steps to

encourage uptake and will invite input on the topic of social value as part of the Civil

Society Strategy announced last week.




Licensed Premises


To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether the

Government intends to assess the importance of the night-time economy to regional

economies.

Matt Hancock:

We recognise the significant contribution that the night-time industries can make to

regional economies. Accessible culture is integral to this, so we have: revised

entertainment licensing and planning to make it easier for music and cultural venues

to operate and; ensured that public arts funding supports community organisations

and Creative Industry tax reliefs promote the development of new cultural

endeavours across the UK. As announced in the budget, DCMS will invest £2 million,

to support the role culture can play in regeneration and local growth.

Mass Media: Internet


To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether her

Department has commissioned research on the prevalence of so-called fake news across

social media and other internet platforms

Matt Hancock:

The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport has not commissioned any

research on the prevalence of fake news across online platforms including social

media. However as part of our Digital Charter we are looking at the role that such

platforms play in the news environment.

Olympic Games 2012


To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, how much Olympic

legacy funding has been disbursed in respect of the Metropolitan Borough of Sandwell;

and if she will make a statement.

Tracey Crouch:

Government’s strategy ‘Sporting Future: A New Strategy for An Active Nation’ and

Sport England’s strategy ‘Towards an Active Nation’ highlight the importance of

focusing on groups that are particularly unlikely to take part in sport and physical

activity, such as women and girls and some Black and Minority Ethnic (BAME)

groups. It places a clear emphasis on putting the customer first and there are some

innovative programmes to encourage female and BAME participation in sport, such

as the This Girl Can Swim campaign.

But as the Government’s sport strategy makes clear, participation is not just about

playing sport, and the "Sports Governance Code", launched in October 2016, seeks

to ensure the very highest standards of governance across all sport bodies that




receive public money, including in terms of diversity, and aims to help the sport sector

to be more inclusive and welcoming to all. If sports bodies do not adhere to the code

and cannot demonstrate full commitment to becoming compliant with its requirements

they will not be eligible to receive public funding.

Sports: EU Grants and Loans


To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, how much (a) funding

in total UK sports have received from the EU in each of the last 10 years and (b) funding

for infrastructure assistance, such as artificial pitches.

Tracey Crouch:

UK organisations have been able to access EU funding for sports projects since

2014, through Erasmus+. Erasmus+ is the EU's programme to support education,

training, youth and sport in Europe, and runs from 2014-2020. Its focus is on

educational mobility and exchange projects, and it does not provide assistance for

infrastructure projects.

Erasmus+ has seen UK-led sports partnerships allocated around €4m between 2014-

16. Sport England received £42,843 in 2014-15 and £33,440 in 2015-16 from

Erasmus+ for activity in support of the European Week of Sport.

EDUCATION

Adult Education


To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate she has made of (a) the

number of general further education colleges that offered evening and weekend course

for adult learners and (b) how many adult students attended such courses in each of the

last three years.

Anne Milton:

The government does not collect information on the number of general FE colleges

that offer evening and weekend courses for adult learners or the number of adult

students that attend those courses.

Evening and weekend courses play an important role in adult education; giving the

flexibility needed to attract those learners who have weekday commitments. These

courses are provided not only by Further Education (FE) colleges but also by other

training and learning providers, including those who receive Community Learning

funding as part of the Adult Education Budget.

However, a survey of adult and community learning commissioned last year showed

that evening classes are run in 1,380 local centres. The survey results from 97

providers suggested that approximately a third of those providers use more than 40%

of their budget for evening classes.



The government wants to explore new ways of making learning more accessible. On

31 October, we launched the £10 million Flexible Learning fund to support new and

flexible ways of delivering adult education. The deadline for bids is 31 January and all

successful pilots will be monitored to ensure they are engaging adults in learning.

Adult Education: Basic Skills


To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to protect the rights

of adults with poor literacy and numeracy skills to the national entitlement after the

devolution of the adult education budget.

Anne Milton:

Devolution of some aspects for adult education to the Mayoral Combined Authorities

(MCAs) will mean they are responsible for delivering the legal entitlements of maths

and English to those who have low numeracy and literacy skills.

The department is working with MCAs on their preparations to take on this duty

through the establishment of Strategic Skills Plans that will play a key role in aligning

local and national priorities.

Adult Education: Finance


To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many general further education colleges

sub-contract their adult education budget; and how many adult students have been

educated in this way in each year since 2010.

Anne Milton:

We are unable to provide accurate data for the total number of adult students that

were educated by Further Education (FE) colleges in this way.

FE colleges have historically submitted declarations for subcontracting activities. At

the time of making a declaration, each college details the maximum value of the

contract they have in place with each of their adult education budget subcontractors,

which is referred to as their ‘subcontracting commitments’.

We typically ask colleges (and other providers) to make their subcontractor

declarations each Autumn and again each Spring. While this provides relevant data

during the funding year, it does not offer the end of year figures. We are unable to

ascertain from this particular data what the end of year position is for each college

because some may have recruited new subcontractors after the Spring declaration.

Others may have employed a subcontractor, though a learner might not of started a

course. Therefore, these declarations do not provide an accurate picture of the

subcontracting that took place each year.



Adult Education: ICT


To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many adult students have received their

digital entitlement since it was announced in 2016.

Anne Milton:

The entitlement to free digital skills training for adults was provided through the Digital

Economy Act 2017. This entitlement is yet to commence, although the government is

currently working with Further Education institutions, employers and other

stakeholders to develop the appropriate training.

In advance of adults benefiting from the new entitlement, learners continue to study a

wide range of digital courses. In the 2013 to 2014, the Skills Funding Agency funded

201,000 learners to take digital qualifications and approximately £100 million was

spent through the Adult Skills Budget on training that provided a qualification in digital

skills.

The government will confirm in due course when the new provision for digital skills

will commence.


To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will set out approved digital

qualifications for adult learners and the examination bodies that offer them.

Anne Milton:

There are a range of digital qualifications approved for adult learners.

Digital qualifications and the examination bodies that offer them at level 3 and above

for adults are included in the Advanced Learner Loans catalogue which is published

online at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/advanced-learner-loans-

qualifications-catalogue.

Digital qualifications and the examination bodies that offer them at levels 2 and 3 are

included in the list of qualifications which form part of the statutory entitlements for

learners aged 19 to 23 which published online at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/qualifications-getting-approval-for-

funding.

There are also basic digital qualifications and units available as part of the local

flexibility offer within the Adult Education Budget.

The Digital Strategy published in March 2017 confirmed that the government will

introduce an entitlement for adults who lack basic digital skills to undertake fully-

funded training. The entitlement to free digital skills training for adults was provided

through the Digital Economy Act 2017. This will mirror the approach taken for adult

literacy and numeracy training.

The government is currently working with Further Education institutions, employers

and other stakeholders to develop the appropriate training. The department will set



https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/advanced-learner-loans-qualifications-catalogue

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/advanced-learner-loans-qualifications-catalogue

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/qualifications-getting-approval-for-funding

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/qualifications-getting-approval-for-funding

out specific basic digital qualifications for adult learners eligible for fully-funded

training in due course.

Adult Education: Student Numbers


To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many students aged 24 and over have

completed an (a) adult literacy, (b) adult numeracy, (c) GCSE and (d) functional skills

course in each year since 2010.

Anne Milton:

The table below provides the number of learners achieving their learning aim, for

students aged 24+ for English, Maths, GCSE and Functional Skills courses in each

year since the 2011/12 academic year.

ACADEMIC

YEAR

ENGLISH AND

MATHS ENGLISH MATHS GCSE

FUNCTIONAL

SKILLS

2011/12 481,600 286,600 279,600 11,400 35,200

2012/13 460,200 263,900 261,700 17,700 131,900

2013/14 430,600 251,000 237,900 20,900 238,600

2014/15 405,500 234,600 212,500 26,300 246,300

2015/16 358,300 205,700 193,500 27,400 222,200

Notes:

Figures have been rounded to the nearest 100.

Figures for 2011/12 onwards are not directly comparable to earlier years as a Single

Individualised Learner Record data collection system has been introduced. Small

technical changes have been made in the way learners from more than one provision

type are counted, leading to a removal of duplicate learners and a reduction in overall

learner numbers of approximately 2 per cent.

Figures for English and Maths, and English includes achievements on English for

Speakers of Other Languages courses.

Child Minding


To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to

increase the number of childminders.

Mr Robert Goodwill:

Childminders are an important part of the childcare sector and can often provide a

level of flexibility that other providers cannot. To encourage new childminders into the



market and to support existing childminders, we have made it easier for them to work

outside of the home and play a full role in the 30 hours free childcare entitlement.

This includes setting an expectation that they should be paid monthly by councils,

offering start-up grants to new childminders delivering the free offer, supporting

childminders to improve their business skills and creating new partnerships between

childminders and schools.

Children: Day Care


To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether a local authority has the power to

(a) withdraw or (b) threaten to withdraw funding for 30 hours free childcare if it believes

that charges placed by a setting onto parents for additional extras such as food and

consumables are excessive.

Mr Robert Goodwill:

Local councils have the power to impose requirements on childcare providers as a

condition of funding in order to ensure that the early years’ provision is free of charge

and/or that any financial assistance provided by the local council is used properly and

in accordance with the provisions of the agreement between the provider and the

local council. It is for local councils to work together with providers when developing

their agreements.

Department for Education: Postal Services


To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what security measures her Department has

in place relating to the receipt by her Department of incoming post and parcels; and what

discussions she has had with the British Forces Postal Office on providing such services.

Mr Robert Goodwill:

The department follows guidance issued by the Centre for the Protection of National

Infrastructure for establishing secure postal monitoring services. We have had no

discussions with the British Forces Postal Office on providing screening mail

services.

Further Education

Anna Turley: [114571]

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate she has made of the number

of parliamentary constituencies in England that have no further education institution that

provides A-Levels.

Anne Milton:

We do not hold data for further education (FE) institutions not providing A Levels by

parliamentary constituency.




From the Single Individualised Learner Record for the 2015/16 academic year, there

were 280 parliamentary constituencies where there were no learners participating in

A Level courses in FE institutions based on the delivery location.

It is important to note that this does not include A level provision in school sixth forms.

There are significantly more school sixth forms than FE institutions providing A levels.

ICT: Teachers

Angela Rayner: [115546]

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to paragraph 4.25 of Autumn

Budget 2017, how much of the £84million allocated to upskill computer science teachers

will be spent in each year of the 2017 Parliament.

Nick Gibb:

The Department has been allocated £13 million in 2018-2019, £21 million in 2019-

2020, 2020-2021, and 2021-2022, and £8 million in 2022-2023 (total of £84 million) to

upskill up to 8,000 computer science teachers and establish a National Centre for

Computing Education.

Music: GCSE


To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether students taking music as a GCSE

subject perform better overall in the Progress 8 measure.

Nick Gibb:

Pupils who take music have higher progress 8 scores. This may not be the result of

taking music and may be the result of taking more GCSEs.

The average progress 8[1] scores of pupils in state funded schools[2], at the end of

key stage 4[3], split by whether they entered a GCSE or equivalent[4] qualification in

music[5], are presented in the tables below.

ACADEMIC YEAR 2016/17 [6]

Total pupils Average

Progress 8 score

Lower

confidence

interval [7]

Upper

confidence

interval 7

Pupils not

entering music 5

460,593 -0.05 -0.05 -0.05

Pupils entering

music 5

39,028 0.21 0.20 0.22



ACADEMIC YEAR 2015/16 6

Total pupils Average

Progress 8 score

Lower

confidence

interval 7

Upper

confidence

interval 7

Pupils not

entering music 5

469,513 -0.05 -0.05 -0.05

Pupils entering

music 5

42,540 0.18 0.17 0.19

1. Progress 8 is a new measure which schools and pupils are still adjusting to and

with the ongoing transition to reformed GCSE’s, it is expected that Progress 8

scores will be prone to fluctuations initially. Progress 8 is a measure which focuses

on each pupil’s ‘starting point’ (key stage 2 attainment) and the progress they

make, therefore more analysis is required to unpick which, if any, factors have a

definitive influence on these scores. With data for only two years, it is too soon to

draw conclusions. More information on Progress 8 is available here:


60/Secondary_accountability_measures_guide.pdf.

2. State-funded schools include academies, free schools, city technology colleges,

further education colleges with provision for 14- to 16-year-olds and state-funded

special schools. They exclude independent schools, independent special schools,

non-maintained special schools, hospital schools, pupil referral units and alternative

provision.

3. Pupils are identified as being at the end of key stage 4 if they were on roll at the

school and in year 11 at the time of the January school census for that year. Age is

calculated as at 31 August for that year, and the majority of pupils at the end of key

stage 4 were age 15 at the start of the academic year. Some pupils may complete

this key stage in an earlier or later year group.

4. Includes entries in graded music qualifications.

5. Pupils are recorded as ‘entering music’ if they sat at least one exam in any music

qualification which is counted in the secondary school performance tables as a

GCSE, equivalent or graded music qualification.

6. 2015/16 data is final; 2016/17 data is provisional.

7. Progress 8 scores are estimates and the confidence intervals provide the likely

bounds of the true score. Further information can be found here:


60/Secondary_accountability_measures_guide.pdf. There are also significantly

fewer pupils entering music than those who do not, this can lead to undue influence

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/659860/Secondary_accountability_measures_guide.pdf




by outliers in the smaller cohort and it is not advised to draw definitive conclusions

when the data is mismatched in this way.

Pre-school Education: Apprentices


To ask the Secretary of State for Education, for what reason there is only one PVI

representative on the Childcare and Education Panel recruited to scrutinise the Level 3

apprenticeship standard; and what assessment her Department has made of whether

that is representative of the childcare and early education sector.

Anne Milton:

The Institute for Apprenticeships is an independent body with responsibility for the

development and approval of apprenticeship standards. I have therefore asked the

Chief Executive of the Institute, Sir Gerry Berragan, to write to the hon. Member for

Batley and Spen directly responding to the question about the Childcare and

Education Route Panel.

A copy of that response will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses when it is

available.


To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many early years apprenticeships have

been started in each of the last three years; and what proportion of those apprentices

were employed in PVI settings.

Anne Milton:

The number of starts for the sector framework ‘Children’s Care Learning and

Development’ by academic year are below.

ACADEMIC YEAR 2014/15 2015/16 2016/17

Number of starts 21,900 24,160 27,200

Further information on breakdowns by framework or standard are available at the

links below.

For final 2016/17 data:


/201617_apprenticeships_by_framework_and_sector_subject_area.xlsx.

For data on previous years:


/201617_Oct_Apps_Level_SSA_And_Framework_Data_Tool_FINAL.xlsx.

These data are collected from the Individualised Learner Record. We do not collect

information on types of settings and so are unable to identify private, voluntary or

independent settings from the collection.



https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/661049/201617_apprenticeships_by_framework_and_sector_subject_area.xlsx

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/661049/201617_apprenticeships_by_framework_and_sector_subject_area.xlsx

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/650226/201617_Oct_Apps_Level_SSA_And_Framework_Data_Tool_FINAL.xlsx

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/650226/201617_Oct_Apps_Level_SSA_And_Framework_Data_Tool_FINAL.xlsx

Pupils: Health


To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 8 November 2017

to Question 110581, on pupils health, what assessment she has made of the ability of

schools to (a) prepare for and (b) comply with that statutory guidance.



to Question 110581, on pupils: health, what assessment he has made of the

effectiveness of his Department's social media campaign; whether that campaign

reached all schools in England; and how his Department will monitor compliance with the

statutory guidance by schools in England.



to Question 110581, on pupils: health, what discussions she has had with representatives

from Health Conditions in Schools Alliance on compliance by schools in England with the

statutory guidance.

Mr Robert Goodwill:

We worked with a range of stakeholders in the development of the statutory

guidance, including the Health Conditions in Schools Alliance, school leaders,

academy organisations, unions, young people and their parents, and Department of

Health officials. We then consulted publicly on the draft guidance, receiving 265

responses. Respondents included headteachers, teachers, school governors and

local councils, in addition to many voluntary and community sector organisations who

support children and young people with various medical conditions. 89% of

respondents said that, overall, the statutory guidance would be helpful in supporting

pupils with medical conditions effectively. Neither the consultation nor our discussions

with stakeholders identified concerns about schools not being prepared or able to

comply with the guidance.

The department recently promoted the guidance through the department’s social

media channels and reached over 32,000 people. We do not hold data on whether

this reached all schools in England. Ofsted’s Common Inspection Framework

requires inspectors, in making judgements upon schools, to pay particular attention to

the outcomes of a range of groups of pupils, including those with medical needs.

My officials are in regular communication with the Health Conditions in School

Alliance. My department will be inviting representatives to a roundtable in the near

future to discuss the issue of keeping children with medical conditions safe in school.

Schools: Sheffield

Jared O'Mara: [114685]

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the net change in funding will be for

schools in Sheffield under the new funding formula in the next 12 months.





Nick Gibb:

In 2018-19, Sheffield local authority will see a funding increase across the schools,

high needs, and central school services blocks of 2.7%, or £10.0 million. Within this,

the schools block element will also see a 2.7% increase in 2018-19, or £8.3 million,

and every school in Sheffield will attract at least a 0.5% per pupil increases under the

national funding formula. When the national funding formulae are fully implemented,

Sheffield would see an increase of up to 7.9%, or £29 million. This information is

available in the summary table at

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-funding-formula-tables-for-

schools-and-high-needs.

These increases are subject to changes in pupil data; we will publish updated

allocations for 2018-19 in December, which take account of the latest pupil numbers

from the October 2017 census.

Soft Drinks: Taxation


To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will provide (a) breakdown of forecast

expenditure of the proceeds of the Soft Drinks Industry Levy for (i) 2017-18, (ii) 2018-19

and (iii) 2019/20; and (b) unallocated funding for those years.

Paula Sherriff: [115565]

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much and what proportion of the

proceeds from the soft drinks industry level will be allocated to (a) the PE and Sport

Premium, (b) the Healthy Pupil Capital Fund, (c) expanding the opening hours of

secondary schools and (d) providing healthy breakfasts for primary school pupils over

each of the next two financial years; and what additional sums are to be allocated to

those programmes from the public purse.

Mr Robert Goodwill:

The 2016 Budget announced funding for a number of programmes linked to the

revenue from the Soft Drinks Industry Levy. The department will receive £575 million

during the current spending review period, which will be used to:

Double funding for the primary physical education and Sport Premium to £320

million a year from 2017. The Department for Education and the Department of

Health contribute £100 million and £60 million per year to the premium

respectively, with the Soft Drinks Levy funding contributing £415 million over the

remainder of the current spending review period, table attached.

Provide £100 million in 2018/19 for a new healthy pupils capital fund.

Provide £60 million to other relevant projects, for example breakfast clubs (£26

million over the next three years) and essential life skills programme.

Expected revenue from the levy during the Spending Review period is £550 million

for the UK as a whole. The total funding provided for these programmes in England is

£575 million. In addition, the devolved administrations will continue to benefit in full



from the Barnett formula arising from the levy-funded spending package announced

at the 2016 Budget.

We announced in February 2017 that the healthy pupils capital programme will build

on the government’s plans for schools to provide a longer school day, by changing

the focus of the scheme to provide new facilities or improve existing ones to make it

easier for a range of extra-curricular activities to be provided.

Attachments:

1. Funding for the premium from the soft drinks levy [115152, 115565 Table.docx]

Steve Lamey

Gordon Marsden: [115547]

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answers of 21 November to

Questions 113368, 113370 and 113371, for what reasons those answers did not refer to

discussions with (a) the Minister for the Cabinet Office, (b) Sir Paul Jenkins and (c) fellow

shareholders in the Student Loans Company on the circumstances surrounding the

dismissal of the chief executive of that company.

Joseph Johnson:

I have had no discussions with either the Minister for the Cabinet Office, Sir Paul

Jenkins, or fellow shareholders in the Student Loans Company (SLC) on the

circumstances surrounding the dismissal of the chief executive of that company.

As I stated previously, the dismissal of Steve Lamey following independent

investigations into allegations raised was a matter for the SLC to consider as his

employer, in line with established SLC processes.

Students: Finance


To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many students aged 24 or over will

have their funding delivered via a devolved budget in 2019-20.

Anne Milton:

The department is not yet able to set out the level of funding that will be devolved in

2019/20.

Devolution is dependent on agreement between the department and the Mayoral

Combined Authorities (MCAs) to a number of readiness conditions. From 2019/20 the

MCAs will be responsible to deliver the Adult Education Budget in their areas.

Supply Teachers: Expenditure

Anna Turley: [114566]

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate she has made of the

proportion of the schools budget spent on supply teachers in (a) Redcar and Cleveland

local authority area (b) the North East and (c) England in the last 12 months for which

figures are available.




Nick Gibb:

The below data has been taken from ‘income and expenditure in academies in

England 2015/16’ and ‘consistent financial returns 2015-16 data’ for maintained

schools. It covers directly employed supply teachers, agency supply teachers and

supply teacher insurance.

Academies

AREA SCHOOL COUNT TOTAL EXPENDITURE (£)

TOTAL SUPPLY SPEND

PERCENTAGE

Redcar and Cleveland 19 53,618,000 3.05%

North East 222 742,382,000 2.52%

England 5,266 17,095,395,000 2.28%

Maintained schools

AREA SCHOOL COUNT TOTAL EXPENDITURE (£)

TOTAL SUPPLY SPEND

PERCENTAGE

Redcar and Cleveland 41 70,969,936 3.43%

North East 953 1,410,755,499 3.18%

England 16,774 27,728,910,048 3.26%

In July 2017 we announced an additional £1.3 billion for schools and high needs

across 2018-19 and 2019-20, in addition to the schools budget set at Spending

Review 2015. This means funding per pupil for schools and high needs will be

maintained in real terms for the next two years.

Alongside our substantial investment, we are committed to helping schools improve

outcomes for pupils and promote social mobility by getting the best value from all of

their resources. This includes providing support to schools – on issues like managing

teacher workload, implementing flexible working, the recruitment of supply staff and

the effective deployment of support staff – so that as much resource as possible is

focused on enabling teachers to improve outcomes for pupils.

Teachers: ICT and Mathematics


To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the Autumn Budget 2017,

table 2.1, line 32, how much of the (a) £30 million in 2018-19 and (b) £50 million in 2019-

20 will be spent on each policy listed in paragraphs 4.24 and 4.25.


Nick Gibb:

The £30 million of funding in 2018-19 and £50 million of funding in 2019-20 in table

2.1 includes the costs in 2018-19 and 2019-20 for the below measures.

£13 million in 2018-19 and £21 million in 2019-20 to upskill computer science

teachers and set up a National Centre for Computing Education

£6 million in 2018-19 and £6 million in 2019-20 to expand the Teaching for Mastery

of Mathematics programme

£7.2 million in 2018-19 and £6.5 million in 2019-20 for Further Education Centres

of Excellence

£3 million in 2019-20 for more specialist maths schools

£5 million in 2019-20 to provide £600 for every pupil who decides to take Maths or

Further Maths A levels or Core Maths

The figures in table 2.1 includes the Barnett consequential for these measures, which

is provided to the Devolved Administrations.

Teachers: Mathematics


To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the Treasury Department's

press release of 21 November 2017 entitled Britain to benefit from multi-million pound

investment in education, how much will be spent from the public purse on each

programme covered by the £177m investment in maths teaching.

Nick Gibb:

The £177 million investment in Maths announced at the recent Budget comprises:

£8.5 million for the post-16 basic Maths pilot;

£40 million for Further Education Centres of Excellence;

£27 million to expand the Teaching for Mastery of Mathematics programme;

£83 million to provide £600 for every pupil who decides to take Maths or Further

Maths A levels or Core Maths; and

£18 million additional funding for specialist Maths Schools.

This £177 million investment includes the costs of these measures until 2022-23.

Unionlearn: Finance


To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to paragraph 4.23 of Autumn

Budget 2017, how much her Department will provide to Unionlearn in each of the next

two years.




To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much funding her Department provided

to the Union Learning Fund in each of the last two financial years.

Anne Milton:

Funding for Unionlearn was previously provided by the Department for Business,

Innovation and Skills (BIS) but following the machinery of government changes in

2017, this responsibility moved across to the Department for Education.

BIS provided Unionlearn with £14 million in the financial year 2015-16 and £12 million

in the financial year 2016-17.

The department is providing £11.89 million funding in the current financial year and a

further £12 millon in financial year 2018-19 and £12 million in financial year 2019-20.

ENVIRONMENT, FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Agriculture: Exports

Seema Malhotra: [114979]

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment

he has made of the potential effect on agricultural exports of there being no deal between

the UK and the EU.

George Eustice:

In 2016, UK food, feed and drink exports to the EU were worth £12 billion and EU

food, feed and drink exports to the UK were worth £30 billion. It is in the interests of

both parties to conclude a comprehensive customs agreement. We are conducting

rigorous analysis on various trade scenarios for the future to inform Government

policy.

Air Pollution

Alex Sobel: [115022]

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans he has

to change the number of active clean air monitoring sites.

Dr Thérèse Coffey:

The national monitoring network consists of 276 sites across the UK. Monitoring

stations for a wide range of pollutants are sited in accordance with criteria set out in

the EU Air Quality Directive to ensure that the data gathered are representative and

also comparable across all Member States.

The network is kept under review by the Environment Agency and the Department to

ensure it remains fit for purpose and compliant, while delivering value for money.

There are no immediate plans to make significant changes to the number or location

of sites that are part of the national network.




Bovine Tuberculosis: Disease Control

Mr Mark Prisk: [113496]

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the annual

cost to the public purse is of employing staff as part of the current testing regime for

controlling bovine tuberculosis.

George Eustice:

The direct costs of TB tests for routine surveillance and control are met by

government although no staff in my department are employed full time on TB testing.

In England government staff costs associated with TB testing totalled £2,454,234 in

2016-17. In the same year the cost to government of TB testing carried out under

contract by delivery partners totalled £17,489,217. Cattle keepers pay for pre- and

post-movement TB tests, however they can use a government-funded surveillance

test instead if it takes place within the required time period.

Flood Control

Trudy Harrison: [114929]

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he has

taken to ensure that water companies invest in flood mitigation.


On 13 September, the Government issued a strategic policy statement to Ofwat. This

set out clear priorities for Ofwat to secure the water industry’s long-term resilience to

flooding, drought, and other risks, and to protect vulnerable customers. The policy

statement makes clear that we expect Ofwat to challenge companies to assess the

resilience of their systems and infrastructure against flooding and take proportionate

steps to improve resilience where required.

Flood Control: Cumbria

Trudy Harrison: [114930]

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much the

Government has invested in Cumbria to reduce the risk of flooding downstream of

reservoirs in each of the last five years.


The Environment Agency has strategic oversight of all sources of flooding and

coastal erosion, including reservoir flooding. The Environment Agency also has a

regulatory role in managing flood risk with reservoirs and works to make sure

reservoir owners effectively manage their own flood risk.

Where appropriate, reducing the risk of flooding downstream from reservoirs is

integrated within flood risk management schemes. The Environment Agency does not

collect separate financial information for measures to reduce this specific flood risk.




The Government is committed to reducing flood risk and has made the following

capital investment to flood and coastal erosion risk management in Cumbria in each

of the last five years:

2012/13 £ 4.3 MILLION

2013/14 £ 2.4 million

2014/15 £ 2.1 million

2015/16 £ 3.0 million

2016/17 £ 14.3 million

Recycling

Emma Hardy: [114903]

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his

Department is taking to encourage more people to recycle.


The Government is committed to increasing recycling rates. With the Waste and

Resources Action Programme (WRAP) we are working with local councils and

industry to make it easier for households to recycle, by rationalising packaging

formats (in particular ridged plastic packaging) to those that are recyclable and to

expand the range of materials collected for recycling.

WRAP has refreshed and relaunched its national Recycle Now campaign with new

communication materials for local authorities and others. Information on what

householders can recycle locally is available on the Recycle Now website.

School Milk


To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when he plans to

begin discussions on a new domestic school milk subsidy programme to replace the

current EU Scheme.

George Eustice:

As we leave the EU we have a great opportunity to reshape policies to meet our

national priorities. We are considering the longer term approach to the EU school milk

scheme in the context of our domestic schemes. Any future changes in this area will

be subject to wide consultation with stakeholders.



Wild Boar

Jim Shannon: [114841]

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans he has

to reduce the number of wild boar to protect their habitat.


Defra has no plans to reduce the number of wild boar. The responsibility for carrying

out the management of wild boar, as with other wildlife, lies with local communities

and individual landowners and managers. The Government and its partner

organisations, such as the Deer Initiative, facilitate boar management by providing

advice and guidance.

EXITING THE EUROPEAN UNION

Charter of Fundamental Rights (EU)

Jo Platt: [114599]

To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, if his Department will

publish a memorandum setting out what rights contained in the EU Charter of

Fundamental Rights the UK will retain when the UK leaves the EU.

Mr Steve Baker:

The Government has committed to publishing a detailed memorandum setting out

how each Article in the Charter of Fundamental Rights will be reflected in UK law

after we leave the European Union. This will be published on 5 December.

Department for Exiting the European Union: Postal Services


To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, what security measures his

Department has in place relating to the receipt by his Department of incoming post and

parcels; and what discussions he has had with the British Forces Postal Office on

providing such services.

Mr Steve Baker:

This information cannot be disclosed as it may jeopardise the Department’s

Protective Security stance.

However, as Department Exiting the European Union is a tenant in other government

department’s buildings, it abides by the rules and regulations that they stipulate for

the delivery and management of mail and parcels.

All secure mail is handled as part of the Government Secure Mail Service, which may

include the use of the British Forces Postal Office, but the Department has not had

any direct communications with the BFPO about providing these services.




EU Law

Bill Esterson: [112767]

To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, pursuant to the Answer of 1

November 2017 to Question 110712, on EU law, what representations he has received

from businesses on differences to rules and regulations between the UK and the EU after

the UK leaves the EU.

Mr Robin Walker:

The UK Government is committed to making the UK the best place in the world to do

business and ministers from across Government have carried out extensive

engagement on EU exit - with businesses and industry bodies from all sectors of the

economy and all regions of the UK.

To make the UK the best place to do business means fostering a high quality, stable

and predictable regulatory environment. This means the Withdrawal Bill will, so far as

possible, maintain the status quo in this regard and provide a good starting point for a

deep and special partnership with the EU. Through the Withdrawal Agreement and

Implementation Bill we will legislate for the Implementation Period. As the PM said in

her Florence speech, the framework for this strictly time-limited period, which can be

agreed under Article 50, would be the existing structure of EU rules and regulations.

With regards to the future regulatory relationship this is subject to negotiations, but as

the PM set out this should be straightforward in areas where regulation is outside the

scope of our trade and economic relations. But there will be areas which do affect our

economic relations where we and our European friends may have different goals; or

where we share the same goals but want to achieve them through different means.

This is where we recognise that the single market is built on a balance of rights and

obligations, and so our task is to find a new framework that allows for a close

economic partnership but holds those rights and obligations in a new and different

balance.

As negotiations progress, we will continue to seek the input of businesses across a

range of issues, including on the subject of rules and regulatory differences between

the EU and UK.

Jo Platt: [114596]

To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, what the legal status of

retained EU law under the European Union (Withdrawal) Bill will be; and whether it will be

liable to judicial review.

Mr Steve Baker:

Retained EU law includes both preserved domestic legislation and converted direct

EU legislation. The latter was not made by UK legislators and will operate in a

different way to both primary and secondary legislation. It would therefore not be

appropriate to assign a single status to this legislation for all purposes.

Preserved domestic legislation will continue to hold the same status as it does

currently (i.e. primary or secondary). Converted EU legislation will not automatically



have primary or secondary status. Instead, the Bill sets out the status of this

legislation for specified purposes in a number of places. For example, for the

purposes of the Human Rights Act, it will be treated as primary legislation. Further

regulations may be made under the Bill for the purpose of status under other statutes.

Existing domestic legislation will remain amenable to judicial review as at present. In

general (and subject to any further regulations made under the Bill), it will not be

possible to challenge the validity of converted EU legislation. To do otherwise would

raise uncertainties and practical difficulties as the EU instruments being converted

were not made by UK Ministers but by EU institutions.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH OFFICE

Burma: Rohingya


To ask the Secretary of State for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, what

discussions he has had with his counterpart in Myanmar counterparts on the Bangladesh-

Myanmar deal to return Rohingya Muslims to Myanmar.

Mark Field:

The UK has been clear that an agreement on returning the Rohingya refugees to

their homes in Burma must provide for voluntary, safe and dignified return. I made

these points to the Bangladesh High Commissioner Nazmul Quaunine and Foreign

Secretary Shahidul Haque when they met on 2 November. The Foreign Secretary

has spoken to Aung San Suu Kyi three times since this crisis began, most recently on

21 October, when he urged her to implement her commitment to ensure the return of

refugees. At ASEM (20-21 November) I met with Minister of Defence U Sein Win, the

Chief of Staff to State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi, U Kyaw Tin Swe and the

Deputy Foreign Minister U Kyaw Tin and in each meeting raised the need for early

returns. The principle of non-refoulement is also detailed in the United Nations

Security Council Presidential Statement made on 6 November – a statement the UK

was instrumental in achieving.


To ask the Secretary of State for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, what

discussions he has had with his Bangladeshi counterparts on the Bangladesh-Myanmar

agreement to return Rohingya Muslims to Myanmar?

Mark Field:

The UK has been clear that an agreement on returning the Rohingya refugees to

their homes in Burma must provide for voluntary, safe and dignified return. I made

these points to the Bangladesh High Commissioner Nazmul Quaunine and Foreign

Secretary Shahidul Haque when they met on 2 November. The Foreign Secretary

has spoken to Aung San Suu Kyi three times since this crisis began, most recently on

21 October, when he urged her to implement her commitment to ensure the return of

refugees. At ASEM (20-21 November) I met with Minister of Defence U Sein Win, the



Chief of Staff to State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi, U Kyaw Tin Swe and the

Deputy Foreign Minister U Kyaw Tin and in each meeting raised the need for early

returns. The principle of non-refoulement is also detailed in the United Nations

Security Council Presidential Statement made on 6 November – a statement the UK

was instrumental in achieving.

Richard Burden: [115467]

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he is

taking to secure humanitarian access to northern Rakhine in Burma.

Mark Field:

The Red Cross and the World Food Programme are currently the only aid

organisations with permission to provide humanitarian support in Northern Rakhine.

The UK has provided £2 million to the World Food Programme and £1 million to the

Red Cross. We continue to urge the Burmese authorities to grant full access to UN

and other agencies so that they can help meet the urgent need in Northern Rakhine.

During my visit to Burma on 20-21 November, I met Burma's Minister of Defence Sein

Win and the Deputy Foreign Minister U Kyaw Tin and pressed again the need for full

humanitarian access.


To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps his

Department is taking to support the documentation and investigation of sexual violence

against Rohingya women and girls in Rakhine State, Burma.

Mark Field:

The UK has been clear about the need for the Burmese authorities to end all violence

including gender-based violence in Rakhine. I urged an independent investigation of

reports of atrocities and incidents of sexual violence when I met Burma's Minister for

the Office of the State Counsellor on 20 November in Nay Pyi Daw. The Foreign

Secretary has raised his concerns about reports of sexual violence directly with State

Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi.

The UK Government has deployed two civilian experts to Bangladesh to conduct a

capacity needs assessment on the investigation and documentation of sexual

violence. This will provide recommendations for the UK Government to consider on

support for evidence gathering: it is vital that any evidence or testimony gathered is

collated in the proper way. The UK is also funding the provision of medical services,

counselling and psychological support to Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh who have

either witnessed or are survivors of sexual violence. An FCO official recently travelled

with the UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence to

meet victims and witnesses of sexual violence in Bangladeshi refugee camps; the UK

is supporting the Special Representative's proposal to brief the UN Security Council

on her findings.



Burma: United Nations


To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps his

Department is taking to support the United Nations fact-finding mission in Rakhine State,

Burma.

Mark Field:

The UK co-sponsored the resolution at the Human Rights Council in March 2017

which set up a Fact-Finding Mission to look into the human rights situation in Burma.

We also supported the extension of its mandate until September 2018. We have

repeatedly urged Burma to cooperate with the Fact-Finding Mission and grant it

access to Rakhine State, and shall continue to do so. I look forward to meeting the

members of the Fact-Finding Mission during their visit to London in December.

Companies: Ownership

Layla Moran: [115266]

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the

Answer of 13 November 2017 to Question 111541, on companies: ownership what

access the Government has to registers of beneficial ownership in each British Overseas

Territory.

Sir Alan Duncan:

Central registers of beneficial ownership information or similarly effective

arrangements are in place in Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands

and Gibraltar.

Under bilateral arrangements concluded in 2016 with Overseas Territories with

financial centres, UK law enforcement authorities have the automatic right of access

to beneficial ownership information held on companies incorporated in those

Territories within 24 hours or one hour in urgent cases.

Anguilla and the Turks and Caicos Islands have not yet established a central register

or similarly effective arrangement. We continue to monitor progress and to offer

support to both these Territories.

Montserrat has committed to establish a public central register and is expected to

introduce new legislation to implement its central register shortly.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office: Postal Services


To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what security

measures his Department has in place relating to the receipt by his Department of

incoming post and parcels; and what discussions he has had with the British Forces

Postal Office on providing such services.




Mark Field:

All Royal Mail post and parcels addressed to the FCO buildings in King Charles

Street and Lancaster House in London are diverted to the British Forces Postal Office

(BFPO) Northolt, where they are security scanned by trained staff, before being

forwarded to their destination. Mail destined for the FCO's overseas posts is either

processed at BFPO Northolt or Hanslope Park. The latter also handles mail for staff

working at Hanslope Park and Northgate House.

FCO Services has already moved the majority of post and parcel receipt and security

scanning requirements to the BFPO. FCO Services is in discussions with BFPO

about transferring further elements of this work to them during 2018.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office: Public Expenditure

Tommy Sheppard: [115306]

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many losses

and special payments have been made by his Department in the 2017-18 financial year

to date; and what the value of those losses and payments have been.

Sir Alan Duncan:

The figures requested form part of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s annual

report submitted to Parliament. The outturn for the 2017-18 financial year has not yet

been finalised.

India: Prisoners

Dr Rupa Huq: [114524]

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he plans to make

an assessment of the adequacy of consular support provided to British nationals in Indian

prisons.

Mark Field:

Consular assistance is provided to all British national prisoners, if they request it.

Consular staff endeavour to contact the prisoner, by telephone or in person, as soon

as possible after being notified of their arrest. If there are problems accessing the

prisoner, they seek the support of the local authorities to provide access. Consular

staff provide tailored assistance to prisoners, according to their individual

circumstances and the local conditions.

Israel: Human Rights


To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether he has

plans to encourage the Israeli Government to engage with the United Nations Human

Rights Council Universal Periodic Review taking place in January 2018.




Alistair Burt:

The UK values the Universal Periodic Review, which allows an open and constructive

dialogue on the key human rights concerns of all 193 UN member states. We

encourage all UN member states to reap the benefits of such a dialogue by engaging

fully with the Universal Periodic Review process.

Palestinians: Detainees


To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment

he has made of the humanitarian needs of Palestiinian detainees in Israeli prisons.

Alistair Burt:

The Government has concerns about allegations of mistreatment of Palestinian

detainees and about Israel’s respect for its relevant obligations as an Occupying

Power under applicable international law. While we have not made an assessment of

the humanitarian needs of Palestinian detainees, a focus of UK human rights

engagement is Palestinian minors in Israeli military detention, as we have concerns

about the treatment of minors during arrest and interrogation. We have raised these

concerns with the Israeli authorities on many occasions, and will continue to do so.

Poland: Hate Crime

Lyn Brown: [114569]

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will assess the

diplomatic implications of reports of anti-Semitic, Islamophobic, racist and anti-refugee

hate speech during the recent march in Warsaw to mark Poland’s Independence Day.

Sir Alan Duncan:

Her Majesty's Government strongly condemns all types of hate speech and we

encourage all countries to investigate and tackle any reported incidents of hate

speech. The UK and Poland have worked together on combatting hate crime through

a joint workshop in London in 2017 and by co-hosting an expert panel at an

Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe event in September 2016. Our

Embassy in Warsaw is in contact with local NGOs who monitor incidents of hate

crime.

Press Freedom


To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions

his Department has had with organisations that promote press freedom in the last 12

months

Mark Field:

The FCO and its network of Embassies and High Commissions overseas has had

extensive contact in the last 12 months with organisations that promote press

freedom. This information is not recorded centrally and accordingly it would be




impractical to attempt to produce a comprehensive list of such meetings and

discussions. The Foreign Secretary himself met his Human Rights Advisory Group on

10 October to discuss current challenges to press freedom.

The FCO also supports projects run by organisations that promote press freedom. In

the past 12 months, the FCO has granted more than £1.3 million from the Magna

Carta Fund for Human Rights and Democracy to projects dedicated to freedom of

expression and support for civil society.

Russia: LGBT People

Emma Hardy: [114636]

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions

he has had with his counterpart in Russia on the rights of LGBT people in (a) Chechnya

and (b) Russia and if he will make a statement.

Sir Alan Duncan:

I refer the Hon. Member to my answer of 17 November 2017 (PQ 111577).

Syria: Kurds

Chris Williamson: [115392]

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he

plans to take help ensure that Kurdish authorities in northern Syria can participate in

future peace talks.

Alistair Burt:

Kurdish groups have been represented in Syrian peace negotiations in Geneva

through the Kurdish National Council, as part of the opposition High Negotiations

Committee. Invitations for any other groups to the Geneva peace negotiations are a

matter for the UN Special Envoy for Syria. The UN Envoy has involved Kurdish and

other minority groups in civil society discussions alongside formal negotiations in

Geneva.

We maintain that any political settlement must be inclusive. All Syrian constituencies

must ultimately be represented in discussion on Syria's future – this is a key principle

in the 2012 Geneva communique and UNSCR 2254.

Tajikistan: LGBT People

Lyn Brown: [114563]

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what

representations he has made to his counterpart in Tajikistan on reports that authorities in

that country have drawn up lists of LGBTQ citizens in an operation titled morality and

purge.

Sir Alan Duncan:

Following reports that the government of Tajikistan had required 367 people to

register and undergo medical testing because of their sexual orientation, our




Ambassador made representations to the Tajik Ministry of Foreign Affairs about

Tajikistan's international commitments to combat all forms of discrimination.

In addition, our delegation to the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in

Europe (OSCE) in Vienna took the lead in drafting and submitting an EU statement at

the OSCE Permanent Council. The statement raised our concerns and urged the

Tajik authorities to ensure the safety and security of all its citizens including those

identifying as LGBTQ.

Lyn Brown: [114565]

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent

assessment he has made of the ability of LGBTQ support organisations to operate freely

in Tajikistan.

Sir Alan Duncan:

There is an increasingly difficult operating environment for NGOs in Tajikistan. Three

Tajik NGOs working with the LGBTQ community have closed in the past two years.

The operating environment for NGOs, for example the pressure and harassment

imposed on NGOs by the burdensome inspections, fines and registration

requirements, was raised at the October 2017 EU Human Rights Dialogue with the

Government of Tajikistan.

Our Ambassador meets members of the LGBTQ and other minority communities in

Tajikistan to give them the opportunity to share their concerns. Something which

demonstrates UK leadership in the area of human rights.

Turkey: Politics and Government

Chris Williamson: [115379]

To the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will condemn the

Turkish Government for imprisoning almost 100 elected representatives and more than

5,000 activists from the Peoples' Democratic Party.

Sir Alan Duncan:

Following the failed coup in 2016 and the subsequent imposition of a State of

Emergency, we expect Turkey, as a modern democracy, to undertake any legal

processes against elected representatives and activists fairly, transparently and with

full respect for the rule of law. It is important that legal measures under the State of

Emergency be proportionate, justified and in line with Turkey's democratic principles

and its international human rights obligations. We have made these points

consistently with Turkish Ministers, as has the Prime Minister and the Foreign

Secretary.

Zimbabwe: British Nationals Abroad

Liz McInnes: [115284]

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent

estimate has made of the number of British citizens living in Zimbabwe.




Rory Stewart:

We estimate there are approximately 20,000 British citizens living in Zimbabwe, many

of whom are long-term residents.

We ask all British nationals to regularly check travel advice.

HEALTH

Autism

Luciana Berger: [115537]

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many children in England have been

diagnosed with autism in each of the last three years.

Jackie Doyle-Price:

Information on the number of children diagnosed with autism each year is not

collected centrally.

Contraceptives


To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many training sessions for Long-Acting

Reversible Contraception have been provided to General Practitioners in each year since

2009-10.


To ask the Secretary of State for Health, (a) how many and (b) what proportion of general

practitioners were qualified to provide long-acting reversible contraception in each year

from 2009-10.

Steve Brine:

This information is not collected centrally.


To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the average waiting time for appointments

for contraceptive advice at sexual and reproductive health services in each local authority

was in England in each year since 2009-10; and what steps he is taking to reduce those

waiting times.

Steve Brine:

Information on waiting times for appointments for contraceptive advice at sexual and

reproductive health services is not collected centrally. Public Health England (PHE)

published an action plan in August 2017 to address concerns identified in their report

entitled Sexual health, reproductive health and HIV: a review of commissioning,

which is available at:


/Sexual_health_reproductive_health_and_HIV_a_survey_of_commissioning.pdf





https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/640578/Sexual_health_reproductive_health_and_HIV_a_survey_of_commissioning.pdf


As part of the action plan, PHE will take forward a range of activities aimed at

strengthening commissioning, including providing evidence and data to

commissioners to support commissioning, and the monitoring of outcomes and

building capacity and capability in sexual and reproductive health commissioning.


To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much NHS England provided to GP

surgeries to fund contraceptive services in each year since 2009-10; and what the

average waiting time to access GP contraceptive services was in each of those years.

Steve Brine:

This information is not collected centrally.


To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to improve co-ordination

of local-authority-provided sexual and reproductive health services, clinical

commissioning group-commissioned abortion services and NHS England-funded

contraceptive services funded under GP contracts.

Steve Brine:

Public Health England (PHE) published an action plan in August 2017 to address

concerns identified in their report entitled Sexual health, reproductive health and HIV:

a review of commissioning, which is available at:


/Sexual_health_reproductive_health_and_HIV_a_survey_of_commissioning.pdf

As part of the action plan, PHE will take forward a range of activities aimed at

strengthening commissioning, including providing evidence and data to

commissioners to support commissioning, and the monitoring of outcomes and

building capacity and capability in sexual and reproductive health commissioning.

General Practitioners: Finance

Jo Platt: [114582]

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made changes to the level

of income of GP practices as a result of patients enrolling in the GP at Hand service.

Steve Brine:

Patients have the ability to change the general practitioner (GP) surgery they are

registered with and since January 2015 all GP practices in England have had the

option to register patients that live outside their practice boundary area.

Hammersmith and Fulham Clinical Commissioning Group and NHS England

recognise the need to ensure general practice is stable and sustainable. The roll-out

and impact of GP at Hand will be monitored and evaluated.






Jo Platt: [114584]

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what plans he has to provide support to GP

practices that are affected by the roll-out of GP at Hand service.

Steve Brine:

Hammersmith and Fulham Clinical Commissioning Group and NHS England

recognise the need to ensure that general practice is stable and sustainable. The roll-

out and impact of GP at Hand will be monitored and evaluated.

GP at Hand

Jo Platt: [114583]

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many and what proportion of patients have

enrolled in the GP at Hand service in the areas that the service has been rolled out.

Steve Brine:

According to NHS England, about 5,000 patients have registered with GP at Hand.

This is a very small proportion of the population that GP at Hand have made their

service available to which comprises of anyone that lives or works within London

travel zones 1 to 3.

Jo Platt: [114590]

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how her Department will monitor the (a) quality,

(b) cost and (c) effect of the GP at Hand Service.

Steve Brine:

The Hammersmith and Fulham Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) primary care

commissioning committee has asked that a robust evaluation is carried out of the

development following the clinical review. In addition, an oversight group has been

set up with representation from the CCG and NHS England London region which will

monitor progress on a regular basis.

Grenfell Tower: Mental Health Services


To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment has been made of the mental

health support needs of survivors of the Grenfell Tower fire; and what additional

resources have been provided to fund this support.


To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many survivors of the Grenfell Tower fire

have received (a) mental health support, (b) bereavement counselling and (c) trauma

counselling; how many survivors had to wait more than four weeks to receive (i) mental

health support, (ii) bereavement counselling and (iii) trauma counselling; and how many

individuals are on waiting lists for (A) mental health support, (B) bereavement counselling

and (C) trauma counselling.






Jackie Doyle-Price:

Mental health support for people affected by the Grenfell Tower fire has been co-

ordinated by West London Clinical Commissioning Group and Central and North

West London (CNWL) Foundation Trust.

Since August a proactive ‘screen and treat’ programme has been underway to

support individuals in the local area potentially affected by the fire. Latest data

provided by West London Clinical Commissioning Group details that 767 adults

identified as having an urgent need have been screened to date. The programme will

reach up to 23,000 people in the area who may have a need for treatment.

The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea have commissioned Cruse

Bereavement Support to provide support to bereaved families.

There are currently 357 adults in treatment for mental health conditions and 38 adults

have completed treatment. In addition 162 children and young people have been

referred into Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services to date. Local children’s

services are also conducting screening and treatment. At present there are 51

children receiving specialist care, and 22 of these children have completed their

treatment.

Information on waiting times for these services is not collected centrally.

Emotional support is being provided by Hestia, a well-established local care provider.

Hestia is providing outreach and intervention capacity to support to those in need of

emotional support. This provision includes a wide range of drop-in support,

psychological first aid, counselling and support groups which can be accessed by

anyone in the local community. At night Hestia are based in a number of hotels with

the most Grenfell residents and will contact CNWL if more significant needs are

identified.

Mental health support by the National Health Service is being funded from existing

budgets. Future NHS funding for Grenfell mental health support will have to be met

from local budgets. NHS England will need to consider budget allocation to CNWL in

light of the additional demands on services post Grenfell.

The Chancellor indicated in the Budget statement of 22 November that the

Government will provide £28 million for Kensington and Chelsea council to provide

counselling services and mental health support for victims of the Grenfell fire and for

regeneration of surrounding area.


To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what mental health support and counselling has

been (a) offered and (b) provided to emergency workers who were present at the Grenfell

Tower fire.

Jackie Doyle-Price:

Emergency workers present at the Grenfell fire were offered support via London Fire

Brigade Counselling and Wellbeing team and other internal employee assistance


programmes. Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust has indicated

they will be seen quickly and offered assessment and treatment if approached.

Health Services and Social Services


To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment his Department has made of

the effectiveness of health and social care integration at a local level.


To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps the Government is taking to support

local authorities to integrate health and social care.

Steve Brine:

In March 2017, the Department of Health and the Department for Communities and

Local Government, working with the Local Government Association, Association of

Directors of Adult Social Services and NHS England, published the Integration and

Better Care Fund Policy Framework 2017-19. The document includes the policy

framework for the implementation of the Better Care Fund (BCF), which is the first

national, mandatory integration policy. The BCF has helped to join-up health and care

services so people can manage their own health and wellbeing, and live

independently in their communities for as long as possible. In both 2015-16 and

2016-17, local areas voluntarily pooled more than the minimum required taking the

total to £5.3 billion and £5.9 billion respectively.

The Policy Framework also sets out our proposals for going beyond the BCF towards

further integration, including that areas will be allowed to ‘graduate’ once they have

demonstrated that they have moved beyond the requirements of BCF reporting and

are exemplars of integration. To help local areas understand whether they are

meeting our integration ambition, we are developing integration metrics for assessing

process, particularly at the interface where health and social care interact. The

Department is working with the Social Care Institute for Excellence to better

understand ‘what good looks like’ in integrated care and how we could develop a

more balanced set of measures of success in this area.

Health: Children and Young People


To ask the Secretary of State for Health, on what date he expects the National Study of

Health and Well-being: Children and Young People to be published.

Jackie Doyle-Price:

The Department has commissioned a new prevalence survey of children and young

people’s mental health. The survey is due to be published in autumn 2018. It will

estimate prevalence of mental ill health in 2-19 year olds, as well as consider impact

of social media, cyberbullying, self-harm and eating disorders.




Mental Health Services: Children and Young People


To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 16 November to

Question 112701, on mental health services: children and young people, whether the

money underspent in the Future in Mind programme from (a) 2015-16 and (b) 2016-17

will be added to the budgets for (i) 2017-18 (ii) 2018-19 and (iii) 2019-20.

Jackie Doyle-Price:

The Government sets annual funding limits for the National Health Service in the

Government Mandate for the NHS, along with clear expectations on use of that

funding and that the NHS budget will balance in every year. It is for local decision

makers to ensure the best use of that funding within those expectations, during any

given year. As an exception, a commitment has been made to allow for underspends

in the Future in Mind budget in 2015-16 to be added to future years’ NHS budgets.


To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many children in England (a) were referred

to CAMHS and (b) completed treatment through CAMHS in each of the last three years.

Jackie Doyle-Price:

This information is not held in the format requested.

Pregnancy: Mental Health Services


To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 13 November 2017 to

Question 112698, and with reference to the Answer of 16 January 2017 to Question

60196, whether his Department has recently stopped holding data on available perinatal

beds in an annual format.

Mr Philip Dunne:

The earlier answer to Question 60196 provided the number of in-patient perinatal

mental health beds whereas my answer to the hon. Member’s Question 112698

provided information about the number of maternity beds. NHS England’s specialised

commissioning function continues to hold information on the numbers of in-patient

perinatal mother and baby beds as part of its normal commissioning practice with

providers.




The following table shows the numbers of commissioned mother and baby beds for

each year since 2013/14:

YEAR COMMISSIONED BEDS (ENGLAND)

2013/14 110

2014/15 110

2015/16 112

2016/17 120

Mother and baby beds are commissioned by NHS England (Specialised Services),

which came into existence in April 2013. As such, robust data are only available from

2013/14.

Prisoners: Drugs

David Hanson: [114694]

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many prisoners have been identified as

suffering a drug-induced psychosis in prison in each year since 2010.

Jackie Doyle-Price:

The information requested is not collected centrally.


To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many emergency callouts for prisoners

suffering the effects of drug usage there have been (a) in each prison and (b) broken

down by primary healthcare provider in each year since 2010.


To ask the Secretary of State for Health, on how many occasions emergency services

have attended prisoners affected by illegal drug use by (a) prison and (b) primary

healthcare provider in each year since 2010.

Jackie Doyle-Price:

The information requested is not collected centrally.

In February 2013, the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) (now HM

Prison and Probation Service) issued guidance to prisons and immigration removal

centres operated by NOMS concerning emergency ambulance call-outs. This

guidance, Prison Service Instruction (PSI) 03/2013 Medical Emergency Response

Codes outlines the medical symptoms in a prisoner, but not behaviours such as drug

misuse, for which a prison must always call out an emergency ambulance. This PSI

is mandatory in all prisons in England.




Prisons: Drugs


To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment his Department has made of

the effectiveness of Project NEPTUNE in prisons.

Jackie Doyle-Price:

No such assessment has been made.

NHS England is currently revising the National Substance Misuse Specification which

will be published in December 2017. The Project NEPTUNE clinical guidance will be

referenced within the specification.


To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many prisons use the National Early

Warning Score to respond to symptoms of new psychoactive substances.


To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the

effectiveness of use of the National Early Warning Score in prisons in Liverpool.

Jackie Doyle-Price:

Information is not collected centrally on how many prisons use the National Early

Warning Score to respond to symptoms of new psychoactive substances.

The Government has not made an assessment of the effectiveness of the use of the

National Early Warning Score in prisons in Liverpool.

Self-harm and Suicide: Kent

Sir Michael Fallon: [114528]

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the rates of (a)

suicide and (b) self-harm in West Kent Clinical Commissioning Group in each (i) 2005, (ii)

2009, (iii) 2010, (iv) 2015 and (v) 2017.


To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he as made of the rates of (a)

suicide and (b) self-harm in Dartford, Gravesham and Swanley Clinical Commissioning

Group in (i) 2005, (ii) 2009, (iii) 2010, (iv) 2015 and (v) 2017.



suicide and (b) self-harm rates in West Kent Clinical Commissioning Group for people

aged (i) 11 to 18, (ii) 19 to 24 years old, and (iii) over 25 years old.


To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of rates of (a)

suicide and (b) self-harm rates in Dartford, Gravesham and Swanley Clinical








Commissioning Group for people aged (i) 11 to 18, (ii) 19 to 24, and (iii) over 25 years

old.

Jackie Doyle-Price:

The information is not available in the format requested.

Self-harm and Suicide: Young People



suicide and (b) self-harm for people aged 11 to 18 years old in (i) England and (ii) Kent in

(A) 2005, (B) 2009, (C) 2010 and (D) 2015.



suicide and (b) self-harm for people aged 19 to 24 years old in (i) England and (ii) Kent in

(A) 2005, (B) 2009, (C) 2010 and (D) 2015.



suicide and (b) self-harm for people over 25 years old in (i) England and (ii) Kent in (A)

2005, (B) 2009, (C) 2010 and (D) 2015.

Jackie Doyle-Price:

The information is not available in the format requested. Data is not collected on rates

of self-harm either nationally or by local area.

Social Services


To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent assessment the Government has

made of the capacity of local authorities to implement the prevention duty under the

provisions of the Care Act 2014.

Jackie Doyle-Price:

The Department has prioritised prevention and through the Care Act 2014 it requires

local authorities to provide or arrange for the provision of services, facilities or

resources that will contribute towards preventing, delaying or reducing the needs for

care and support of adults and carers.

For 2017/18, the Department has provided £7.274 million funding to the Local

Government Association to provide sector led improvement support to councils. This

includes support to help councils meet their prevention responsibilities. The

programme is focusing on building leadership capacity and capability on integration

and providing evidence-based decision-making in prevention and early intervention.





HOME OFFICE

Asylum: Children


To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 20

November 2017 to Question 113318, whether her Department collected data on the

number of people aged 18 to 25 who applied for asylum as unaccompanied children and

were then served with removal directions in previous years.

Brandon Lewis:

Service of Removal Directions to adult failed asylum seekers does not take into

consideration whether the individuals were former unaccompanied asylum seeking

children.

Published Stats on Returns (vol 2) includes returns by age, gender and nationality

and can be found in the following table.

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/immigration-statistics-april-to-june-

2017/list-of-tables#returns

Asylum: Sudan


To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, will she list how many Darfur

asylum seekers have been (a) granted and (b) refused leave to remain for each of the

last five years for which figures are available.

Brandon Lewis:

Published data relating to the outcomes of asylum claims from each country

(including Sudan) can be found in tab as_01 at volume 1 of the quarterly Immigration

Statistics release:

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/immigration-statistics-april-to-june-2017-

data-tables

British Nationality

Anna McMorrin: [115367]

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessments her

Department has made of what changes may be required to the process of obtaining

British citizenship for those with permanent residency status in the UK once the UK has

left the EU.

Brandon Lewis:

EU nationals and their family members are already required to meet the same

statutory requirements as non-EU nationals when seeking to naturalise as British

citizens. This includes a requirement, amongst others, to demonstrate that they are

free from any immigration restriction on the period for which they might remain in the

UK.


https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/immigration-statistics-april-to-june-2017/list-of-tables#returns

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/immigration-statistics-april-to-june-2017/list-of-tables#returns


https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/immigration-statistics-april-to-june-2017-data-tables

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/immigration-statistics-april-to-june-2017-data-tables




To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many Grenfell Tower fire

survivors have been granted (a) limited leave to remain in the UK and (b) permanent

residence.

Brandon Lewis:

The dedicated Grenfell immigration policy is a targeted scheme that we expect to

benefit a limited number of people.

We have plans to publish statistics on the Grenfell immigration policy in due course

and will not be providing updates on numbers in the meantime.

Immigrants: English Language

Keith Vaz: [115194]

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many Tests of English for

International Communication cases have not yet been received.

Brandon Lewis:

Evidence given to the Home Affairs Select Committee inquiry into English Language

Testing provides information on the number of tests affected

http://www.parliament.uk/business/committees/committees-a-z/commons-

select/home-affairs-committee/inquiries/parliament-2015/inquiry3/

Additionally, UKVI transparency data provides details of refusal, curtailments and

removal decisions in response to the abuse of secure English language testing. A link

to the most recent available data is provided here:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/temporary-and-permanent-migration-

data-february-2017

The table in SELT_02 is the closest match to the information requested.

The data was last published in February 2017 and only contains data to the last

quarter (December 2016). ETS data is no longer published after this date.

Keith Vaz: [115195]

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many Test of English for

International Communication cases resulted in people being deported.

Brandon Lewis:

UKVI transparency data provides details of refusal, curtailments and removal

decisions in response to the abuse of secure English language testing. A link to the

most recent available data is provided here:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/temporary-and-permanent-migration-

data-february-2017

The table in SELT_02 is the closest match to the information requested.



http://www.parliament.uk/business/committees/committees-a-z/commons-select/home-affairs-committee/inquiries/parliament-2015/inquiry3/


https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/temporary-and-permanent-migration-data-february-2017





The data was last published in February 2017 and only contains data to the last

quarter (December 2016). ETS data is no longer published after this date.

Immigrants; English Language

Keith Vaz: [115193]

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, for what reasons independent

experts have not been appointed to review Tests of English for International

Communication cases.

Brandon Lewis:

Evidence given to the Home Affairs Select Committee inquiry into English Language

Testing provides details of the methods through which the validity of TOEIC were

determined and the subsequent reports into those methods. A link to the evidence

given to the inquiry is provided here:

http://www.parliament.uk/business/committees/committees-a-z/commons-

select/home-affairs-committee/inquiries/parliament-2015/inquiry3/

Immigration

Sarah Champion: [115094]

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment the

Government has made of provision of discretionary leave to remain for survivors of

modern slavery identified in the UK.

Sarah Champion: [115095]

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether the Government has

plans to protect the right to work for victims of modern slavery identified in the UK?

Brandon Lewis:

There is no right to work in the UK based on a person being confirmed as a victim of

modern slavery. A person’s immigration status will determine whether a person has

the right to work in the UK.

Confirmed victims of modern slavery who do not qualify for leave to remain in another

immigration route can be considered for a grant of Discretionary Leave to remain in

the UK based on the particular circumstances of the individual case. This can include

needing to stay in the UK in order to pursue a claim for compensation against their

traffickers, the need to assist with police enquiries or due to personal circumstances.

Those granted Discretionary Leave have recourse to public funds and permission to

work.

Not all victims of modern slavery will wish to remain in the UK and so the

Government is also committed to supporting those who wish to return home. The

Home Office’s Voluntary Returns Service can assist victims of modern slavery to

return home.






The Home Office has recently produced a leaflet to raise awareness about

immigration options for victims of modern slavery which can be found at the following

link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/help-for-adult-victims-of-modern-slavery

Immigration Controls: Australasia


To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 13

September 2017 to Question 8860, whether her Department has discussed with the

Australian Government the operation of e-passport gates in that country for nationals of

designated countries.

Brandon Lewis:

We engage regularly with our international partners to share ideas and learn from

their approaches to border control. However the Australian Government is

responsible for the policies relating to the usage of their e-passport gates, just as the

UK determines the policies for our own e-passport gates.

Immigration: Biometrics


To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department holds

data on biometric resident permit cards that have required revision due to errors in

England.

Brandon Lewis:

This information could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

Marriage Certificates


To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many officials in her

Departmental are working on (a) administrative, (c) technical and (c) legislative tasks

relating proposals to include a mother's name and details on marriage certificates.

Brandon Lewis:

The Home Office has a number of officials who are working, or have worked, on

proposals to include mothers’ names on marriage certificates. This work forms just

part of these officials' wider responsibilities.


To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, (a) how many and (b) which

computer systems will need to be altered to allow mothers names and details to be given

on marriage certificates.

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/help-for-adult-victims-of-modern-slavery





Brandon Lewis:

All marriage registrations in England and Wales are recorded on a computer system

that is used by registration officers administrating the registration service. Changes

would need to be made to this system to allow mothers names and details to be

recorded. This can only be achieved once the necessary legislation is in place.


To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, which acts of Parliament need to

be amended in order to allow mothers' names and details to be given on marriage

certificates.

Brandon Lewis:

Any change to the content of the marriage entry to include mothers’ names would

ideally also bring forward reform to how marriages are registered to introduce

efficiencies and create a more secure system for the maintenance of marriage

records.

To introduce such reform would require changes to primary legislation, in particular

the Marriage Act 1949, and associated regulations. We continue to look for

opportunities to introduce the legislative change required.

MI5


To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much MI5 spent from the

public purse on sponsorship of the National Diversity Awards 2017; and how many full-

time equivalent MI5 staff worked on that project.

Mr Ben Wallace:

Any law enforcement or intelligence agency must represent the diverse communities

it serves, to enable them to gather the intelligence they need to keep us all safe.

Diversity is therefore recognised as a crucial component of the intelligence agencies’

workforce. The Intelligence and Security Committee of Parliament recognised as

much when they carried out an inquiry on Parliament’s behalf into women in the

intelligence agencies.

It has been the longstanding policy of successive Governments not to reveal details

of the budgets or spending of the intelligence agencies. Statutory oversight for this is

provided by the Intelligence and Security Committee of Parliament.

HOUSE OF COMMONS COMMISSION

House of Commons: Staff


To ask the right hon. Member for Carshalton and Wallington, representing the House of

Commons Commission, what steps the Commission is taking to improve the (a) physical

and (b) mental well-being of all employed staff.




Tom Brake:

The Parliamentary Health and Wellbeing Service (PHWS) support staff to help

maintain and improve their physical and mental well-being.

PHWS offer a number of services including:

healthcare advice to improve fitness and wellbeing

wellbeing classes on the Parliamentary Estate, including yoga, pilates and

mindfulness

advice and guidance for staff with disabilities

support to give up smoking plus dietary and lifestyle advice

access to physiotherapy services.

The House also has a contract with Westminster Gym which provides employees,

amongst others, to access to gym facilities and a range of classes and treatments.

Wellbeing support is also provided and includes counselling by Wellbeing

Practitioners. Support, advice and guidance is also provided to help with issues such

as:

Mental Health

Problems at home or work

Ill health or ill health of loved ones

Financial difficulties and debt

Bereavement

Alcohol and Drug issues

A minor treatment clinic is located in the Palace of Westminster. The Clinical Nurse

Adviser can provide advice and information about illness, injuries at work, lifestyle

and wellbeing issues. The Clinical nurse is able to refer clients onto specialist

agencies or in-house services where necessary. Minor treatments such as dressings,

ear syringing, removal of stitches and blood pressure monitoring can take place at

this clinic.

The Service also runs Health & Wellbeing events. These are organised regularly

during the parliamentary year and include an annual Wellbeing Day. This gives staff

the opportunity to have an individual health check and obtain advice and guidance on

health & wellbeing related issues.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Bangladesh: Rohingya


To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department

is taking to help ensure there are confidential spaces for Rohingya women and children

refugees to report any abuse and sexual violence in Bangladesh

Alistair Burt:

We are committed to protecting vulnerable groups in the refugee camps in

Bangladesh, and are providing support for survivors and addressing the risk of

Gender Based Violence (GBV). DFID is supporting the establishment of Child

Friendly Spaces and Women and Adolescent Friendly Spaces to provide protective

services, and psychosocial and psychological support. Through UK funding to the UN

Population Fund (UNFPA), UK support will reach over 10,000 women suffering from

trauma, and over 2000 survivors of sexual violence, as part of the larger response to

the risks. We are now planning to scale-up our GBV response.

Department for International Development: Staff


To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what estimate he has made

of changes in staff numbers at each grade and salary band which will be needed in her

Department after the UK leaves the EU.

Alistair Burt:

DFID, at this point, is not projecting any change in staffing numbers. Any future

requirements will be addressed via DFID’s annual workforce planning process which

allows identification of future resourcing and capability requirements.

Developing Countries: Poverty


To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what discussions she has

(a) recently had and (b) plans to have with her international counterparts on the

percentage of gross national income each of their countries contributes towards global

efforts to eradicate poverty.

Alistair Burt:

After taking office on 9 Nov, the Secretary of State is considering opportunities to

engage with her international counterparts, including strategic dialogues on

development with several of them in the New Year.

While it is for other governments to decide what percentage of gross national income

(GNI) to allocate as Official Development Assistance (ODA), the Secretary of State

will highlight the importance the UK Government places on meeting the international

commitment to spend 0.7% of GNI as ODA. She will make clear the vital role that




international development activity plays in tackling global challenges such as mass

migration and disease, as well as helping the world’s poorest and most vulnerable.

Pakistan: Non-governmental Organisations

Jim Shannon: [114849]

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment he has

made of the potential effectiveness of using UK aid to Pakistan as leverage with which to

engage the Government of Pakistan on its relations with NGOs.

Alistair Burt:

International and national NGOs are important development partners, and the UK is

concerned about some of the restrictions they face. DFID and FCO officials regularly

press the Government of Pakistan to ensure registration and regulation is

implemented appropriately, and allow NGOs to continue their important work. Our aid

relationship with the Government of Pakistan is based on assessment against our

Partnership Principles and funding is subject to programme performance and

progress by government on key policy reforms.

Swaziland: Overseas Aid


To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how much aid she has

provided to Swaziland since her Department was established.

Alistair Burt:

The total amount of UK Net Official Development Assistance (ODA) spend to

Swaziland since 1997, when my Department was established, was £6.8 million. This

figure is sourced from the OECD DAC database and Statistics on International

Development (DFID).

INTERNATIONAL TRADE

Department for International Trade: Internet


To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, whether she plans to upgrade the

Department’s website to attract more foreign investment.

Mark Garnier:

Great.gov.uk was launched in November 2017. The platform’s purpose is to help UK

businesses secure their place on the global stage and present and promote the UK

as a natural choice for overseas investment. DIT continuously monitors the site for

opportunities to upgrade.

In addition, invest.great.gov.uk was launched in January 2017 and for China from

February 2017.




https://invest.great.gov.uk/

invest.great.gov.uk targets investors in eight languages: from November 2016 in

German, Chinese and English; from January 2017 in Spanish, Portuguese, and

Japanese; from February 2017 Arabic; and, French followed in February 2017.

Sector content is also updated regularly which now includes: Automotive, Creative,

Health and Life Sciences, Energy, Financial Services, and Technology, with later

additions in Retail, Food and Drink, Aerospace, and Advanced Manufacturing.

All content and features will be developed according to the processes outlined in the

Government’s Digital Service Standard. We continuously research the needs of

investors, iterate content and collect feedback to improve the service, as set out in

the standard. As such, updates to ensure the site remains relevant are ongoing.

Department for International Trade: Postal Services


To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what security measures his

Department has in place relating to the receipt by his Department of incoming post and

parcels; and what discussions he has had with the British Forces Postal Office on

providing such services.

Greg Hands:

The Department of International Trade (DIT) follows government security standards

relating to the receipt of incoming post and parcels, as laid out under the HMG

Security Policy Framework and as appropriate for each DIT location. DIT has not had

discussions with the British Forces Post Office on this matter.

Exports


To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, for what reason the figures in the

Red Book, published on 22 November show growth in exports of goods and services in

the UK falling from 3.4% in 2018 to 0.1% in 2020.

Mark Garnier:

The Budget takes its trade projections from the Office for Budget Responsibility’s

(OBR) autumn forecast. Details of the OBR’s forecast can be found in its Economic

and Fiscal Outlook for November 2017. As the OBR stresses, there is considerable

uncertainty around these forecasts.

Higher Education: Exports

Angus Brendan MacNeil: [114598]

To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what target her Department has set

for the level of higher education exports in the next five years; and what steps her

Department plans to take to meet that target.

https://www.gov.uk/service-manual/service-standard




Mark Garnier:

A target to increase the value of exports across the education sector to £30bn by

2020 was set by the previous government. The target is rightly ambitious and the

Department for International Trade (DIT) remains committed to working with the rest

of government and the sector to drive progress towards achieving it.

The Government actively promotes study in the UK through the GREAT Campaign

and through the British Council, which promotes the UK in over 100 countries. There

continues to be no limit to the number of overseas students who can come here to

study, and the UK is second only to the USA in terms of our market share.

This Government continues to support growth in UK education exports, including

through the work of the team dedicated to education exports in DIT. I have recently

announced the establishment of a DIT Education Sector Advisory Group, chaired by

myself, which will support the aspirations of the sector internationally. The inaugural

meeting is scheduled for December.

Overseas Trade: Sri Lanka

Mr Ranil Jayawardena: [R] [114573]

To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what steps his Department is taking

to increase trade and investment relationships with Sri Lanka.

Mark Garnier:

The Department for International Trade (DIT) has a team in Sri Lanka which focuses

on significant opportunities. DIT works with Sri Lankan counterparts and the wider

business community to identify emerging opportunities that will continue to increase

bilateral trade and investment between the UK and Sri Lanka.

This financial year, DIT has already supported British companies in securing multi-

million pound projects in the advanced engineering and financial and professional

services sectors.

UK Export Finance, the UK’s export credit agency, has capacity to support UK trade

with Sri Lanka and welcomes new applications for support.

Saudi Arabia: Arms Trade

Christine Jardine: [114920]

To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, if he will impose a ban on the export

of arms to Saudi Arabia.

Mark Garnier:

The Government takes its export licensing responsibilities very seriously and our

processes have been subjected to public and judicial scrutiny.

The Government operates a rigorous and robust process to ensure that any licences

for UK defence exports are consistent with the Consolidated EU and National Arms

Export Licensing Criteria. The policy remains as announced to parliament in a Written

Ministerial Statement on 25 March 2014.



http://hansard.parliament.uk/commons/2014-03-

25/debates/14032566000018/ConsolidatedEUAndNationalArmsExportLicensingCriter

ia

The key test for the Government for our continued arms exports to Saudi Arabia in

relation to International Humanitarian Law (IHL) is whether there is a clear risk that

those weapons might be used in a serious violation of IHL. The situation is kept under

careful and continual review.

Small Businesses


To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, pursuant to his Oral Answer on 23

November 2017, what criteria he used to locate staff from the Export Hub on Small

Business Saturday.

Mark Garnier:

The Export Hub is invited to locations across the UK, and has so far visited 235 sites.

Any Member of Parliament is able to request for the Export Hub to visit their

constituency.

The logistics for managing the Export Hub is contracted through an external

company.

Many cross-party MPs have spoken highly of the work of the Export Hub at the

Department for International Trade’s (DIT) Monthly MPs Briefings which the DIT

Ministerial team hosts.


To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, pursuant to the Oral Answer on 23

November 2017, how much funding from UK Export Finance has been spent on (a)

supporting UK businesses and (b) advisers to those businesses.

Mark Garnier:

UK Export Finance (UKEF) operates at no net cost to the taxpayer, and has provided

£14 billion of support for UK exports in the last five years. Over that period,

administrative costs were £137 million, of which around £4m related to its network of

24 Export Finance Managers, who act as local points of contact for businesses

across the UK. UKEF generated £532 million in premium for the same period.

Trade Agreements

Angus Brendan MacNeil: [114600]

To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what representations he has

received from which countries on their seeking future trade deals with the UK.

Greg Hands:

As the Government has set out in the Department for International Trade’s (DIT)

White Paper, ‘Preparing for our future UK trade policy’, DIT is engaging with a broad

http://hansard.parliament.uk/commons/2014-03-25/debates/14032566000018/ConsolidatedEUAndNationalArmsExportLicensingCriteria






range of partners about future trading options, including new Free Trade Agreements.

The Government will aim – through Working Groups, Joint Trade Reviews and other

discussions – to improve trading relations and remove barriers affecting UK

businesses.


To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade pursuant to his Oral Answer of 23

November 2017, what the timetable is for the agreement of each of the trade agreements

to be rolled over from the EU after the UK leaves the EU; and how many staff in his

Department have been allocated to each agreement.

Greg Hands:

The Department for International Trade is engaging with all countries with which the

European Union currently has free trade agreements with a view to replicating, as far

as possible, the effects of existing agreements as the United Kingdom leaves the

European Union, including in any implementation period that might be agreed

between the UK and the EU.

This work involves staff across the Department and in other government

departments.


To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what estimates his Department has

made of changes in staff levels needed to negotiate trade deals after the UK leaves the

EU.

Greg Hands:

The Department is already increasing staff levels to support future trade negotiations.

Since July 2016 our Trade Policy Group has grown significantly from 45 to around

400 today. The Group includes lawyers, analysts, trade policy and country specialists

drawn from across all relevant Government departments that will be involved in

developing policy for and negotiating trade deals.

USA: Overseas Trade


To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what the value of (a) imports from

and (b) exports to the US was for each region and nation of the UK in each of the last 30

years for which data is available.

Mark Garnier:

Data on the value of UK trade (exports and imports) in goods and services with the

USA since 1999 are available from the ONS at:

https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/nationalaccounts/balanceofpayments/adhocs/0077

16additionalcountrydatafortradeingoodsandservicesbetween1999and2016




https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/nationalaccounts/balanceofpayments/adhocs/007716additionalcountrydatafortradeingoodsandservicesbetween1999and2016

https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/nationalaccounts/balanceofpayments/adhocs/007716additionalcountrydatafortradeingoodsandservicesbetween1999and2016

Data on the value of UK trade in goods by UK region with the USA since 1996 are

available from HM Customs and Revenue (HMRC)’s Build Your Own Tables

application at:

https://www.uktradeinfo.com/Statistics/BuildYourOwnTables/Pages/Home.aspx (RTS

data)

Data on the value of exports of services (excluding travel, transport and financial

services) by GB region to the USA in 2015 are available from the ONS at:

https://www.ons.gov.uk/businessindustryandtrade/internationaltrade/articles/estimatin

gthevalueofserviceexportsabroadfromdifferentpartsoftheuk/2015 (data for earlier

years are not available).

Notes:

1. The data at the links above are not comparable due to differences in coverage and

methodology between sources

2. Data on the value of imports of services from the USA are not available

JUSTICE

Bedford Prison

Mohammad Yasin: [115333]

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many additional days of imprisonment

were imposed as punishment on prisoners at HM Prison Bedford during 2016?

Mr Sam Gyimah:

The number of additional days awarded to prisoners at HM Prison Bedford as a result

of adjudications in 2016 was 26.

Discipline procedures are central to the maintenance of a safe custodial environment.

They are provided for by the Prison and Young Offender Institution Rules, which

require adjudications to be conducted lawfully, fairly and justly. Independent

Adjudicators are District Judges or Deputy District Judges who attend prisons and

young offender institutions when necessary to hear those adjudication cases which

are deemed to be sufficiently serious. Such cases may merit a punishment of

additional days to a prisoner’s time spent in custody if the prisoner or young person is

found guilty. Only Independent Adjudicators can make an award of additional days as

a punishment. The most serious offences will be referred to the Police.

Berwyn Prison

Liz Saville Roberts: [115125]

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate he has made of the level of

turnover in staff at HM Prison Berwyn since that prison opened in Spring 2017.

https://www.uktradeinfo.com/Statistics/BuildYourOwnTables/Pages/Home.aspx

https://www.ons.gov.uk/businessindustryandtrade/internationaltrade/articles/estimatingthevalueofserviceexportsabroadfromdifferentpartsoftheuk/2015

https://www.ons.gov.uk/businessindustryandtrade/internationaltrade/articles/estimatingthevalueofserviceexportsabroadfromdifferentpartsoftheuk/2015



Mr Sam Gyimah:

Berwyn has to date (Friday 24 November) a total of 570 direct employees (this is

headcount and not Full Time Equivalents, FTE), since the start we have had 27

resignations. This is a total turnover of 4.7%, 11 of these were Prison Officers which

equates to a turnover of 1.9%.


To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many incidents of seizures of drugs at HM

Prison Berwyn have been recorded since that prison opened in Spring 2017.

Mr Sam Gyimah:

We take a zero-tolerance approach to drugs in our prisons. Anyone found with

contraband will be subject to disciplinary action and police investigation. We are

taking unprecedented action to stop the supply and use of drugs, including an

innovative new drug testing programme and have over 300 dogs to detect

psychoactive substances.

We have also invested £3 million in enhanced intelligence, to improve our targeted

intelligence and search capabilities. We are working closely with government partners

to address issues with drugs at every stage of the supply chain, including those

attempting to smuggle drugs into prisons.

Figures drawn from the HMPPS Incident Reporting System show that there were 24

incidents recorded where drugs were found in HMP Berwyn between March and

October 2017.

These figures have been drawn from the HMPPS Incident Reporting System. 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.


To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many incidents of assault on prison staff

have been recorded as crimes at HM Prison Berwyn since that prison opened in Spring

2017.


To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many assaults by prisoners on staff at HM

Prison Berwyn have been dealt with by internal disciplinary hearings since that prison

opened in Spring 2017.


To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prisoner-on-prisoner assaults have

been recorded as crimes at HM Prison Berwyn since that prison opened in Spring 2017.


To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prisoner-on-prisoner assaults at HM

Prison Berwyn have been dealt with by internal disciplinary hearings since that prison

opened in Spring 2017.






Mr Sam Gyimah:

We take crime in prison extremely seriously. All allegations of assault by prisoners

are investigated, and rigorous action is taken against the perpetrators. Serious

assaults are referred to the Police for criminal investigation. We do not hold data on

how many such incidents are recorded as crimes.

HMP Berwyn opened on 28 February 2017. The figures in the table below cover the

period to June 2017, which is the latest for which data is available. “Adjudication”

refers to cases dealt with through internal prisoner disciplinary hearings.

PRISONER ASSAULTED MEMBER

OF STAFF

PRISONER ASSAULTED ANOTHER

PRISONER

Adjudication 8 2

Referred to Police 1 0


To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, on how many occasions ambulances have been

called to HM Prison Berwyn since that prison opened in Spring 2017.

Mr Sam Gyimah:

There have been 43 occasions where the ambulance service has been required to

enter HMP Berwyn since opening in Spring 2017.


To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, on how many occasions the North Wales Fire

and Rescue Service has been called to HM Prison Berwyn since that prison opened in

Spring 2017.

Mr Sam Gyimah:

There have been 4 occasions where the Fire Service has been required to enter

HMP Berwyn since opening in Spring 2017. All fires were extinguished by the time

the fire service arrived at Berwyn.


To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prisoners from HM Prison Berwyn

have attended accident and emergency departments at local district general hospitals

since that prison opened in Spring 2017.

Mr Sam Gyimah:

Since opening in Spring 2017, a total of 69 men have attended the local Accident and

Emergency department at Wrexham Maelor Hospital.




Convictions: EU Nationals


To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many (a) Romanian, (b) Bulgarian, (c)

Polish and (d) Croatian nationals were convicted of offences in the UK in each of the last

3 years.

Mr Sam Gyimah:

Any foreign national who comes to our country and abuses our hospitality by

breaking the law should be in no doubt of our determination to deport them. Since

2010 more than 38,000 have been removed from prisons, Immigration Removal

Centres and the community, and last year a record number of over 6,300 were

removed.

Information on convictions in England and Wales for these four nationalities is not

held centrally and can only be obtained at disproportionate cost. However,

information is available on the total number of foreign prisoners held by HM Prison

and Probation Service in England and Wales; this can be found here:

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/offender-management-statistics-quarterly-

april-to-june-2017. This information provides the total number of prisoners by

nationality, with the total including unconvicted, convicted, and sentenced prisoners.

In relation to convictions in Scotland and Northern Ireland, these are matters for the

respective devolved administrations.

Debt Collection

Yasmin Qureshi: [10415]

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether his Department has made an estimate

of the potential number of civilian enforcement officers who will transfer to the private

sector as a result of its decision to outsource the work of such officers.

Dominic Raab:

No decision has been made yet. Should a decision to include this work be made then

139 HMCTS Civilian Enforcement Officers may be in scope to transfer to a new

service provider under TUPE (Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment)

Regulations 2006) if it applies.

Magistrates' Courts

Dr Matthew Offord: [114763]

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, for what reasons his Department uses the

Witness Service to supply drinking water to victims at magistrates courts.

Dr Phillip Lee:

The Ministry of Justice grant funds the court based Witness Service for the provision

of emotional and practical support to witnesses giving evidence in criminal courts in

England and Wales. The Witness Service does not have a specific responsibility to

provide drinking water in courts but has, in the past, put in place arrangements for the


https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/offender-management-statistics-quarterly-april-to-june-2017

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/offender-management-statistics-quarterly-april-to-june-2017



provision of drinking water in a number of witness waiting areas where they did not

exist as this is an element of supporting witnesses as they prepare to give evidence.

Ministry of Justice: ICT


To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how much his Department has spent on (a)

phones, (b) computers and (c) iPads in each of the last three years.

Dr Phillip Lee:

The information requested is not held centrally.

The Ministry of Justice (MOJ) comprises many organisations including Arm’s Length

Bodies (ALBs). Each organisation holds separate contracts for these IT products and

this information is not held or collated centrally.

Ministry of Justice: Vacancies


To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many vacancies there were in his

Department in each month since January 2015; and if he will make a statement.

Dr Phillip Lee:

The following table shows how many recruitment campaigns and how many vacant

posts (excluding Senior Civil Servants - SCS) were advertised by MoJ during each

month since October 2016, using the department’s e-recruitment system, WCN. Data

is not available prior to October 2016, as MoJ no longer has access to data from the

previous e-recruitment system, i-Grasp, that was in use before this date.

The data does not include campaign information for certain posts that are not

advertised on WCN, such as those that are part of certain professional, cross-

government schemes.

Table 1: Vacant posts advertised on WCN since October 2016 (excluding SCS)

DATE

NUMBER OF CAMPAIGNS

ADVERTISED ON WCN

NUMBER OF VACANT POSTS

ADVERTISED ON WCN

Oct 16 669 1830

Nov 16 966 2543

Dec 16 777 2043

Jan 17 819 2385

Feb 17 782 2331

Mar 17 884 2124

Apr 17 536 1569



DATE

NUMBER OF CAMPAIGNS

ADVERTISED ON WCN

NUMBER OF VACANT POSTS

ADVERTISED ON WCN

May 17 518 2049

Jun 17 545 1534

Jul 17 517 1485

Aug 17 582 1445

Sep 17 483 1132

Oct 17 535 1768

Nov 17 (until 24/11/17) 403 997

The following table shows how many Senior Civil Service (SCS) vacancies were

recruited for MoJ from January 2015.

Table 2: Vacant SCS posts advertised on behalf of MoJ by Civil Service Resourcing

since January 2015

NUMBER OF VACANT SCS POSTS ADVERTISED ON BEHALF OF MOJ BY CIVIL SERVICE

RESOURCING

Jan 2015 2

Feb 2015 2

Mar 2015 9

Apr 2015 0

May 2015 6

Jun 2015 2

Jul 2015 6

Aug 2015 1

Sep 2015 1

Oct 2015 3

Nov 2015 8

Dec 2015 2

Jan 2016 8

NUMBER OF VACANT SCS POSTS ADVERTISED ON BEHALF OF MOJ BY CIVIL SERVICE

RESOURCING

Feb 2016 2

Mar 2016 7

Apr 2016 5

May 2016 7

Jun 2016 12

Jul 2016 7

Aug 2016 2

Sep 2016 14

Oct 2016 3

Nov 2016 8

Dec 2016 6

Jan 2017 5

Feb 2017 4

Mar 2017 11

Apr 2017 8

May 2017 3

Jun 2017 5

Jul 2017 6

Aug 2017 8

Sep 2017 4

Oct 2017 3

Nov 2017 (until 24/11/17) 4

MoJ’s recruitment has been subject to a recruitment freeze since October 2015, and

recruitment controls are in place to support this.

MoJ implemented the Civil Service Recruitment Framework in April 2017, which

applies to all civil servants except SCS, and the recruitment approaches the

department uses are consistent with those in other departments. MoJ’s recruitment is

regulated by the Civil Service Commission, and MoJ adheres to its recruitment

principles.

Oakhill Secure Training Centre


To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what plans he has to further review the

performance and management of Oakhill training centre following the recent Ofsted

inspection report.

Dr Phillip Lee:

The Ofsted inspection report on Oakhill Secure Training Centre is unacceptable and

we have taken urgent action to address the concerns raised by Ofsted. A new interim

Director, with extensive experience, has been appointed at Oakhill and an

experienced HMPPS Governor has been brought in to provide extra scrutiny.

We are robustly monitoring performance against the contract and are clear that we

will take further steps, if needed, to improve delivery.

More widely across the estate, we are investing £64 million to reform youth custody

and increase staffing, to improve safety and reduce violence.

Offenders: Rehabilitation


To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what plans he has to implement the

recommendations of the HM Inspectorate of Probation and HM Inspectorate of Prisons

report Through the Gate resettlement services for prisoners serving 12 months or more,

published in October 2016.

Mr Sam Gyimah:

We acknowledge that current delivery of Through the Gate services is falling short of

our expectations. We are continuing work with providers to improve delivery

throughout England and Wales and the findings and recommendations from HMI

Probation’s thematic reports are informing this work.

The performance of Community Rehabilitation Companies (CRCs), including their

delivery of Through the Gate, is assessed through a range of service levels and

through a robust contract management and assurance process. Our contract

management teams continue to carry out regular assurance of Through the Gate

delivery, and host regular local review meetings with CRCs, the National Probation

Service (NPS) and prisons, identifying and working through resolutions of any issues.

We have made changes to how CRCs are paid for future years so they can focus on

activities that best rehabilitate offenders and keep society safe.



Personal Injury: Compensation

Craig Tracey: [114936]

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, when he plans to publish the results of the

Government's review of the latest draft clauses on the discount rate reforms.

Mr Sam Gyimah:

The Justice Select Committee is conducting a pre-legislative scrutiny inquiry into the

draft legislation published by the Ministry of Justice on 7 September (Cm 9500).

The Government will respond to the Committee’s conclusions and other comments

received on the draft legislation within two months of the publication of the

Committee’s report.

Prisoners' Transfers: Gender Recognition

Andrew Bridgen: [115348]

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people were transferred from a male

to a female prison after reassigning their gender in (a) 2015, (b) 2016 and (c) 2017, and

how many of those prisoners in each of those years had been convicted of sex-related

offences.

Dr Phillip Lee:

The information requested is not held centrally and could be obtained only at

disproportionate cost.

Prisoners: Drugs


To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what discussions his Department has had with

prison governors about the use of talking therapies to help prisoners with drug

dependency.

Dr Phillip Lee:

NHS England commission all healthcare services in prisons, including the use of

talking therapies. Since April 2017, we have empowered Governors to have greater

input into decision making with NHS England commissioners to ensure their prison

have effective healthcare services.

Health service providers and Governors recognise that talking therapies are an

integral part of all substance misuse psychosocial interventions.

Prisoners: Suicide


To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 13 September to

question 9658, on prison: suicides, how many prisoners have died by suicide in each

prison in England in each month of 2017 to date.





Mr Sam Gyimah:

Data on deaths in prison custody is published quarterly in the Safety in Custody

statistics. The most recent statistics were published on 26 October 2017 and cover

deaths in prison custody to September 2017. Data at individual prison level is

available at


/deaths-data-tool.xlsx.

Prisons: Drugs


To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment his Department has made of

the effect of the implementation of a smoking ban on narcotics use in prisons.

Mr Sam Gyimah:

Guidance has been developed, in conjunction with Public Health England to provide

information and practical advice to staff to assist with managing the potential risks

associated with narcotics. There are strategies in place to reduce the supply of

narcotics and detection of all psychotic substances (PS). This include the

empowerment and training of staff to tackle PS use.

We have also taken swift action to stop the supply of drugs into all our prisons,

equipping all prisons with portable and fixed detectors to tackle illicit use of phones in

prisons. We are working with the police to catch and convict criminal using drones to

smuggle contraband into prisons, and are testing physical and technological

countermeasures to stop incursions.


To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the level of

use of synthetic drugs in prisons in each of the the last three years.


To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many seizures of synthetic drugs there

have been in each prison in each of the last 3 years.

Mr Sam Gyimah:

Psychoactive substances are a significant driver of violence and instability in

prisons. We have put in place a range of supply and demand reduction measures

to address the availability and use of such harmful substances. This is based on a

multi-agency approach working closely with health partners and law enforcement

agencies. We are the first prison jurisdiction in the world to have developed a test

for psychoactive substances, and have trained more than 300 sniffer dogs to

specifically detect psychoactive substances. We have invested £3m in enhancing

our intelligence capability to identify the organised crime groups and individuals

behind supply routes, and are using this intelligence to work with the police to

disrupt them.




Figures drawn from the HMPPS Incident Reporting System suggest there were just

under 10,000 incidents where psychoactive substances were found in prisons

between October 2015 and October 2017 in England and Wales. Data prior to

October 2015 cannot be provided as this is when a new incident type was

introduced to the Incident Reporting System.

Testing for psychoactive substances was only in place across the whole prison

estate from September 2016 onwards. Between October 2016 and March 2017,

there were 27,277 random mandatory drug tests administered. Each sample taken

is tested for a range of illicit drugs, including psychoactive substances. As these

are random drugs tests, prisoners tested in a single month are unique, but an

individual prisoner could be chosen in multiple months. Figures for 2017/18 will be

published in the Annual HMPPS Digest in July 2018.

Prisons: Smoking


To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prison disturbances have been

linked to the ban on tobacco use on the prison estate in each prison facility since that ban

was implemented.

Mr Sam Gyimah:

Maintaining order and control in our prisons is our priority and this large-scale project

has been carefully managed. There is no evidence to link smoking as the causal

factor in any incidents this year where national resources were deployed.


To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether his Department received

representations from the Prison Governors Association on the banning of the use of

tobacco on the prison estate; and if he will place a copy of any such representations in

the Library.

Mr Sam Gyimah:

The Prison Governors Association (PGA) made no representation on the banning of

the use of tobacco on the prison estate.

Throughout the roll out, the PGA have been briefed regularly on the progress of the

project including details of the prisons which sit in each phase of the roll out.


To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether his Department received

representations from Action on Smoking and Health on the banning of the use of tobacco

on the prison estate; and if he will place a copy of any such representations in the Library.

Mr Sam Gyimah:

There have been no representations received from Action on Smoking and Health

(ASH) on the banning of the use of tobacco on the prison estate.




The Director of ASH, Deborah Arnott is a member of the national smoke free prisons

project board and is informed of the progress of the roll out.

NORTHERN IRELAND

British Irish Council


To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what the operation of the British-Irish

Council forum for consultation and co-operation will be in the absence of a Northern

Ireland Executive.

James Brokenshire:

The Government is fully committed to the British Irish Council as a forum to maintain

and strengthen relations between member administrations.

At the recent meeting of the British Irish Council on 9 and 10 November 2017,

Ministers reaffirmed their commitment to the Council and its role in promoting

harmonious and mutually beneficial relationships across these islands as set out in

the 1998 Belfast Agreement. The Council agreed that political developments across

Member Administrations underlined the importance of this unique forum to share

views and strengthen relationships. The Council looked forward to the restoration of

the devolved institutions in Northern Ireland as soon as possible. This remains the

Government’s priority.

Magilligan Prison


To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, whether work is continuing on

preparations to rebuild HM Prison Magilligan.

James Brokenshire:

Responsibility for prisons in Northern Ireland are primarily a devolved area. Under the

devolution of policing and justice in 2010, the Department of Justice (DoJ) is solely

responsible for management of the prison estate.

TRANSPORT

Department for Transport: Postal Services


To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what security measures his Department has

in place relating to the receipt by his Department of incoming post and parcels; and what





Mr John Hayes:

The Department has protective measures in place to receive packages into the

Department safely and securely. We have not had discussions with the British Forces

Postal Office regarding such services.

Department for Transport: Staff


To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 21 November to

Question 112580, how many staff are employed in the Regional Transport Strategies

Directorate and in which NUTS 1 regions these staff are based.

Jesse Norman:

The Regional Transport Strategies Directorate was created to support the Northern

Powerhouse, with its remit subsequently expanded to support the Government’s re-

balancing agenda. Following a reorganisation, implemented on Monday 27th

November, Regional Transport Strategies has been restructured in order to support

the Department’s ‘place based engagement’ better. As a result, the Directorate has

been renamed Regions, Cities and Devolution.

The geographical spread of the new Directorate’s staff, which includes a mix of full-

and part-time working, by NUTS1 regions is set out below:

NUTS 1 REGION NO. OF STAFF

West Midlands (England) 6

Yorkshire & the Humber 5

North West (England) 1

North East (England) 16

London 44

Total 72

Whilst the staff in this Directorate are spread across the above five regions, their work

is not limited to the region in which they are based.

Department of Transport: Vacancies


To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many vacancies there were in his

Department in each month since January 2015; and if he will make a statement.

Mr John Hayes:

In looking at vacancies as target staffing levels compared to actual staffing levels, the

total for the Department and the Executive Agencies is outlined below.



There is some inconsistency with reporting which may skew the results, with DVLA

and DVSA both providing Full Time Equivalent numbers as opposed to Headcount.

Highways Agency was part of the Department between January 2015 and April 2015

but their figures are not included in subsequent months. DVSA was not able to report

on any information prior to April 2015.

MONTH DFT TOTAL MONTH DFT TOTAL MONTH

DFT

TOTAL

Jan-15 432.8 Jan-16 636.0 Jan-17 378.0

Feb-15 509.4 Feb-16 661.4 Feb-

17

404.1

Mar-15 590.4 Mar-16 594.0 Mar-

17

584.8

Apr-15 683.5 Apr-16 525.5 Apr-17 636.0

May-15 433.3 May-16 575.8 May-

17

644.3

Jun-15 446.5 Jun-16 587.9 Jun-17 617.4

Jul-15 535.2 Jul-16 621.6 Jul-17 588.9

Aug-15 520.4 Aug-16 583.7 Aug-

17

510.7

Sep-15 585.3 Sep-16 603.5 Sep-

17

626.8

Oct-15 664.5 Oct-16 476.8 Oct-17 587.6

Nov-15 615.7 Nov-16 519.0

Dec-15 622.2 Dec-16 585.7

Electric Vehicles

Jamie Stone: [114641]

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to

incentivise manufacturers to produce more affordable electric cars.

Jesse Norman:

Through the Office for Low Emission Vehicles and Innovate UK, the Department for

Transport is investing over £200m to support UK businesses to build on their

strengths in electric vehicle technology and the design, development and

manufacture of electric vehicles. The Government is also incentivising the purchase


of electric vehicles with a grant of up to £4500 to consumers to offset the cost of this

technology.

Electric Vehicles: Rural Areas



ensure the provision of suitably located charging points in remote and rural areas.


To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many publicly available charging points

for electric cars there are in the UK; and what plans he has to increase the number of

charging points.

Jesse Norman:

The vast majority of charging takes place at home, overnight. To support this, the

Government provides funding for the installation of both on-street and off-street

charging infrastructure. In addition, support exists UK-wide, including for rural areas,

to enable workplaces to install infrastructure for use of employees and fleets.

The UK also now has over 11,500 publically accessible chargepoints, including over

900 rapid chargepoints. This is one of the largest rapid networks in Europe.

In addition, the Automated and Electric Vehicle Bill, currently going through

Parliament, will give powers to the UK Government to expand deployment of

infrastructure at motorway service areas and large fuel retailers, UK-wide.

As announced at Autumn Budget 2017, a new £400m electric car Charging

Infrastructure Investment Fund (£200m new Government investment to be matched

by private investors) will accelerate the roll-out of charging infrastructure by providing

access to finance to companies that deliver chargepoints.

Electric Vehicles: Wales

Daniel Kawczynski: [114678]

What assessment he has made of the adequacy of rapid charging point provision on the

strategic road network in Wales.

Jesse Norman:

The Department has funded rapid charge point roll-out through a competitive bidding

approach via Local Authorities, through the OLEV National Infrastructure Grant

Schemes, and Go Ultra Low Cities scheme (ongoing), which have provided funding

to projects to support rapids. These grant schemes have also been available to

Welsh local authorities.

The Welsh Government is also providing £2 million to help secure a network of

charging points throughout Wales in order to support the uptake of electric vehicles.

The funding will be released in 2018/19 and 2019/20. The Welsh Government is

currently scoping the priorities for deploying the money and delivery options, and will




be engaging with a range of stakeholders as part of the process. A key priority will be

the installation of a network of points along/near the trunk road network in Wales for

longer, through journeys to help alleviate range anxiety and therefore increase

electric vehicle uptake.

Railways: Compensation

Michael Fabricant: [114576]

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make it his policy to extend the

compensation package to rail season ticket holders for delays of under 30 minutes.

Paul Maynard:

In October 2016, we announced an improved compensation scheme under which rail

passengers, including rail season ticket holders, will be able to claim compensation if

their train is delayed by 15 minutes or more. ‘Delay Repay 15’, (DR15) which

provides compensation of 25% of the cost of the single ticket or 25% of the cost of

the relevant portion of the return ticket for delays of between 15 and 29 minutes, has

been introduced on Govia Thameslink Railway services and is being rolled out more

widely across DfT-franchised Train Operating Companies, starting with South

Western, West Midlands and South Eastern.

DR15 will be contracted as a requirement for new DfT franchises when contracts

come up for renewal. We have also asked a number of train operating companies for

proposals to implement DR15 before their contract expires; and will introduce DR15 if

the proposals are affordable and represent value for money for taxpayers.

Railways: Concessions

Andy McDonald: [115279]

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether the 26-30 year old travel discount

scheme is mandatory for all Train Operating Companies.

Paul Maynard:

The government is working with industry to extend the benefits of discounted travel.

My current expectation is that, after a trial period, this card will be subject to a binding

agreement between all franchised operators.

Railways: Greater Manchester


To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans he has to ensure that Orsdall

Chord of the Great North Rail Project delivers full capacity at (a) Manchester Piccadilly

and (b) Manchester Oxford Road stations.

Paul Maynard:

The Ordsall Chord connects Manchester’s three main railway stations for the first

time. It will enable more trains to run to Piccadilly from the south and will support new

and direct services across the region. By 2020, passengers as far afield as




Newcastle and Bradford will benefit from faster, more frequent journeys to

Manchester Airport as a result of this new link.

The corridor that includes Manchester Piccadilly and Manchester Oxford Road will

increase from 12 to 15 trains per hour from May 2018. This increase in capacity is not

linked to the building of the Ordsall Chord, it is as a result of changing the rules about

how the corridor will operate.

Railways: Leigh

Jo Platt: [114760]

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment his Department has made

of the potential costs and benefits of installing a rail line and station to the town of Leigh.

Paul Maynard:

The Department for Transport has not made an assessment of the potential costs

and benefits of installing a rail line and station to the town of Leigh.

The Government’s policy is that it is for local authorities and Local Enterprise

Partnerships (LEPs) to determine the best way to meet local transport needs and

take the first step in evaluating benefits and prioritising available resources. It would

be for Transport for Greater Manchester to develop such plans and seek funding

opportunities.

Railways: Mobile Phones

Andrew Percy: [115316]


improve access to mobile phone networks on trains.

Paul Maynard:

In December 2016 my Department introduced a requirement that future rail

franchises have better mobile connectivity for their passengers. My Department is

also working closely with the Department of Digital, Culture Media and Sport (DCMS)

to see what further improvements can be made to mobile connectivity on trains.

DCMS will be shortly consulting upon commercial options to improve mobile

communications for rail passengers and will invest up to £35 million to enable trials,

as announced in the Budget. This will be used to: upgrade the Network Rail test track

in Melton Mowbray; install trackside infrastructure along the Trans-Pennine route

between Manchester, Leeds and York; and support the rollout of full-fibre and 5G

networks.

Railways: North East


To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to paragraph 4.46 of the

Autumn Budget 2017, what estimate his Department has made of the number of people




aged 26 to 30 who will benefit from the proposed introduction of a new discount railcard

for that age group in (a) Jarrow constituency, (b) South Tyneside and (c) the North East.

Paul Maynard:

The government is working with industry to extend the benefits of discounted travel.

The Department has not made estimates of the number of people who will benefit

from the proposed railcard on such a geographic basis. All people aged 26 to 30 who

purchase a card would be eligible for discounted rail travel under the proposal.

Railways: Tickets


To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the cost of the

roll-out of smart ticketing and what the timetable is for that roll-out across the UK.

Paul Maynard:

The Department has allocated a total budget of £80 million which, together with the

Rail Delivery Group’s mobile barcode programme and the work of Transport for the

North, will offer smart ticketing coverage to almost all of the country by the end of

2018.

Rolling Stock



Question 111721, whether the bi-mode trains commissioned for the services referred to

(a) will or (b) will not be more expensive to operate than electric trains.

Paul Maynard:

Government has been clear that bi-modes are likely to be more expensive to operate

than electric only trains but that is not the whole picture.

Bi-modes allow us reduce the up-front capital costs of infrastructure compared to

electric trains as overhead wires and gantries do not need to be installed along entire

routes. The trains provide greater flexibility for operators when developing their

timetables and increase service resilience during disruption. These factors are part of

what the government has considered in delivering both genuine benefits to

passengers and value to the taxpayer.



Question 111766, whether the (a) bi-mode Intercity Express trains on Great Western and

(b) Class 319 flex trains on Windermere will be slower than the trains they replace in (i)

diesel mode or (ii) electric mode.

Paul Maynard:

a) The Great Western Intercity Express Programme bi-mode fleet has been specified

to ensure they can deliver the timetable operated by current diesel trains. Once the

current planned electrification programme is complete the IEP trains will operate an




enhanced timetable with shorter journey times. At this point, passengers will see the

introduction of the full capacity benefits and a reduced journey time of up to 15

minutes between London and South Wales.

b) The Class 319 flex, otherwise known as a Class 769, is a bi-mode train, adapted

from a former electric-only train which will be able to run under its own power as well.

The trains can run at 100mph in electric mode and are designed to have very similar

diesel acceleration to the 75mph units they will replace.

Converting these trains will enable passengers in the Lake District to benefit from

double the number of direct services to Manchester Airport from May 2018. The train

operator, Northern, will be responsible for determining the precise timetables under

which these trains will run.

Taxis: Disability

Tim Farron: [115255]


ensure that licensing authorities (a) introduce disability equality training and (b) publicise

the 2010 Best Practice Guidance for taxi and private hire vehicle drivers.

Mr John Hayes:

Taxi and private hire vehicle (PHV) services must be accessible to those who rely

upon them, and disability awareness training can be effective in equipping drivers

with the skills and knowledge to provide all passengers with the assistance they

require. The Department is currently considering the responses to the consultation on

the draft Accessibility Action Plan which will inform the updated Best Practice

Guidance for taxi and PHV licensing authorities. It is the Department’s expectation

that the guidance will include a recommendation that authorities should use their

existing powers to require prospective drivers to complete disability awareness and

equality training.

I announced in a Westminster Hall debate that I would be setting up a working group

to consider current issues concerning taxi and PHV licensing, reporting its findings to

me in the new year.

Taxis: Vetting

Daniel Zeichner: [114891]

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the

potential merits of designating private hire drivers as Disclosure and Barring Service

regulated professionals.

Mr John Hayes:

There are certain circumstances, such as undertaking specific contracted work

driving children, which fall into the definition of a regulated activity. The definitions of

regulated activity that apply to work with children or work with adults are set out in



legislation and such activities include teaching or supervision of children and the

provision of health or personal care services.

In addition, all licensing authorities currently require an enhanced DBS check for

drivers of taxis and PHV, and are able to request a barred list check alongside this.

Consequently designating taxi and PHV driving as a regulated activity would not

mean any additional information would be disclosed. The Government considers that

it would be disproportionate to designate taxi and PHV driving as regulated activity

because not all taxi or PHV drivers take on such work with children or vulnerable

adults.

I announced in a Westminster Hall debate that I would be setting up a working group

to consider current issues concerning taxi and PHV licensing, reporting its findings to

me in the new year.

Thameslink Railway Line


To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, assessment he has made of (a) the value for

money delivered by and (b) benefit:cost ratio of the Thameslink upgrade programme.

Paul Maynard:

The Department for Transport’s latest business case for the Thameslink Programme

records estimated total benefits of £9.6 billion in 2010 prices, and a benefit cost ratio

of 1.24 to 1. This was reported in the National Audit Office report ‘Update on the

Thameslink Programme’ published on 23 November.

Rachael Maskell: [115506]

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the timescale is to introduce (a) stabling

for new Thameslink trains and (b) new accommodation for Thameslink drivers.

Paul Maynard:

Stabling for Thameslink trains and accommodation facilities for Thameslink drivers

are planned to be provided to accord with the full introduction of the Thameslink

timetable in December 2019.

The Thameslink Programme has already provided stabling at the following locations:

new Thameslink depots at Hornsey (north London) and Three Bridges (Crawley) and

at Brighton, Bedford, Cricklewood, Horsham and Peterborough.


To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many times the Thameslink Programme

Industry Readiness Board has met since it was established in 2016, and if he will publish

the minutes of the board’s meetings.

Paul Maynard:

The Thameslink 2018 Industry Readiness Board has met 10 times. The Board is led

by the rail industry and discusses commercially and operationally sensitive issues.

There are no plans to publish the minutes of meetings.




Thameslink Railway Line: Timetables


To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, (a) what planning his department has

undertaken to assess the impact of timetable changes to Thameslink services and (b)

what risk assessment has been undertaken of any changes

Paul Maynard:

The new Thameslink timetable to be introduced from May 2018 has been developed

by Govia Thameslink Railway as Thameslink operator, working with Network Rail and

other rail industry stakeholders including the Department for Transport (DfT).

The proposed timetable has been considered both by DfT and the rail industry and

the Secretary of State for Transport has agreed to phase its introduction to reduce

the risk of disruption to passengers.

Transport: Contracts


To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the ability

of (a) Carillion and (b) Babcock to fulfil their contractual obligations in the transport sector.

Mr John Hayes:

In each procurement a risk assessment is taken based on the project or services

being delivered.

Transport: Finance

Jo Platt: [114627]

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the planned criteria are for the

allocation of the £1.7bn Transforming Cities Fund to improve transport connectivity.

Jo Platt: [114628]

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will allocate Transforming Cities funding

to improve transport connectivity in Leigh constituency.

Jesse Norman:

As the Chancellor announced at Budget, Greater Manchester will receive £243

million from the Transforming Cities Fund. It will be for the Mayor and the Greater

Manchester Combined Authority to decide whether to use this allocation to develop

projects to improve connectivity in Leigh constituency. After allowing for allocations to

the other Mayoral combined authorities, the remaining half of the fund will be open to

bids from English cities.

Transport: North of England

Jared O'Mara: [114700]

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what criteria his Department will use to

assess transport strategies proposed by Transport for the North.






Jesse Norman:

The Cities and Local Government Devolution Act 2016 Section 102I provides that a

sub-national transport body’s transport strategy should contain its proposals for the

promotion and encouragement of sustainable, safe, integrated, efficient and

economic transport facilities and services to, from and within its area, as required to

meet the needs of persons (including pedestrians) living, working or visiting its area

and the needs of freight.

Uber

Wes Streeting: [115551]

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many meetings have taken place

between Uber and (a) Ministers and (b) Officials of his Department in each year since

May 2010.


To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what representations he has received from

police forces relating to Uber.


To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what representations his Department has

received on the safety record of Uber.

Mr John Hayes:

The Department has received numerous representations regarding Uber from

individuals, trade bodies, driver representation organisations and regulatory bodies.

However, since the Department does not hold information categorised as requested,

this information could only therefore be obtained at disproportionate cost.

Details of Ministerial meetings with external organisations are published on a

quarterly basis and are available via the gov.uk website.

Officials at the Department are not required to keep record of meetings attended; it is

not therefore possible to provide a comprehensive list of meetings with any party,

including Uber. However, a search of diaries by officials most likely to meet with Uber

and that are still at the Department indicates that there was one meeting in 2015, six

in 2016 and three in 2017 (as of 24 November).


To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of Uber's

fitness to operate in the UK.

Mr John Hayes:

The Government is responsible for setting the regulatory structure within which local

licensing authorities in England and Wales license private hire vehicle (PHV)

operators. It is the responsibility of these authorities to ensure that any person or

organisation to whom they grant an operator licence is ‘fit and proper’ to hold such a

licence and compliant with PHV legislation. Furthermore, once a licence has been





issued, licensing authorities have an ongoing responsibility to ensure that operators

continue to be ‘fit and proper’.

Volkswagen


To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress has been made in expediting

compensation to vehicle owners affected by the Volkswagen emissions scandal since the

debate in Westminster Hall on 20 April 2017 on emissions and vehicle type approval;

whether such compensation will match that given to vehicle owners in the the US; and

whether his Department has made an assessment of the heightened incidence of

breakdowns and mechanical failures reported by the Volkswagen Diesel Customer

Forum after updates have been completed.

Jesse Norman:

The Government continues to take Volkswagen’s actions in relation to diesel

emissions extremely seriously and is working hard on behalf of UK consumers.

Following pressure from the UK Government, Volkswagen Group now offer a ‘Trust

Building Measure’ for all consumers that have had, and will have, the technical

measure applied. This commits Volkswagen to respond reasonably and appropriately

to every complaint which relates to the implementation of the service action. Officials

have met with the Volkswagen Diesel Customer Forum to hear their concerns and

plans for a further meeting in January 2018 are being finalised.

WALES

Agriculture: Subsidies


To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what meetings he has had with farmers’ unions

and representatives of rural communities on replacing common agricultural policy

subsidies to UK farmers.

Alun Cairns:

As befits their importance to the Welsh economy, my ministerial team and I regularly

meet with farmers’ unions and representatives of rural communities to discuss a

number of issues, including the impact of the UK leaving the European Union.

Most recently, the UK Government Minister for Wales, Guto Bebb MP, along with the

Minister for Farming, George Eustice MP, met with the Farmers Union of Wales on

13 November and the National Farmers Union Cymru on 15 November.

Both the FUW and NFU Cymru, along with the Country Land and Business

Association, are members of my Expert Panel. The panel meets regularly, and last

met on 6 November.



WOMEN AND EQUALITIES

Equality and Human Rights Commission

Mr Philip Hollobone: [115545]

To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, on what date the the GEO informed the

Prime Minister's Office that the Equality and Human Rights Commission intended to

abolish the position of Disability Commissioner.

Nick Gibb:

The non-statutory roles and responsibilities of Board members of the Equality and

Human Rights Commission (EHRC), including the former ‘Disability Commissioner’

role are matters for the EHRC to decide. The GEO would not normally inform the

Prime Minister’s Office of intended EHRC changes to these roles and responsibilities

and did not do so in this case.

Females: Voting Rights

Helen Goodman: [115534]

To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what the criteria for application for the £3.8

million for local and community projects within the centenary fund are and how people

can apply for that funding.

Anne Milton:

This week, the Chancellor announced that £1.2 million of the centenary fund will go

directly to seven Centenary Cities and towns in England with a strong suffrage

history, to strengthen the reach and legacy of the celebrations to inspire a new

generation with this story.

A further £1.5 million will be available to organisations and communities through a

grants scheme. We have appointed a grant administrator to oversee the application

and award process, and I will write to all Members with details of the scheme

including application criteria shortly.

We are developing an exciting national programme to celebrate and remember the

suffrage movement, which also includes funding the statue of Millicent Fawcett in

Parliament Square, and a suite of education programmes.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Department for Work and Pensions: Vacancies


To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many vacancies there were in

his Department in each month since January 2015; and if he will make a statement.

Caroline Dinenage:

DWP have advertised 1,053 External Vacancies since January 2015 containing

21,432 posts. The breakdown provided by Government Recruitment Services is




provided as requested below. It is worth considering these vacancies are not

guaranteed to have been filled.

These are the vacancies we advertised. Not all roles advertised were filled and

therefore this data will include repeat adverts.

MONTH NUMBER OF VACANCIES NUMBER OF POSTSADVERTISED

Jan-15 8 214

Feb-15 15 353

Mar-15 9 60

Apr-15 8 62

May-15 13 54

Jun-15 20 311

Jul-15 15 326

Aug-15 26 1,698

Sep-15 15 1,479

Oct-15 13 469

Nov-15 28 397

Dec-15 14 239

Jan-16 14 290

Feb-16 47 1,274

Mar-16 50 2,107

Apr-16 74 1,309

May-16 31 500

Jun-16 58 1,081

Jul-16 26 214

Aug-16 34 804

Sep-16 61 1,251

Oct-16 50 542

Nov-16 34 567

Dec-16 5 48


Jan-17 101 1,540

Feb-17 35 483

Mar-17 17 131

Apr-17 4 22

May-17 42 891

Jun-17 64 1,238

Jul-17 24 433

Aug-17 21 243

Sep-17 18 66

Oct-17 30 605

Nov-17 29 131

Total 1,053 21,432

Employment and Support Allowance

Frank Field: [115232]

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is

taking to reimburse claimants of Employment and Support Allowance who were subject to

payment miscalculations between 2011 and 2015 when those people were moved from

incapacity benefit and if he will make a statement.

Sarah Newton:

We are aware that some individuals have been underpaid when moving to

Employment and Support Allowance. The department has started to put this right and

will bring these plans to parliament.

Farms: Safety


To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent steps he has taken to

promote safety for those who visit, work and live on farms.

Sarah Newton:

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is responsible for enforcement of health and

safety legislation on farms in Great Britain (GB). On 15 September 2017 HSE

published its sector action plan for agriculture, setting out actions HSE will take to



promote farm safety (http://www.hse.gov.uk/aboutus/strategiesandplans/sector-

plans/agriculture.htm).

HSE is currently running a programme of Safety and Health Awareness Days

(SHADs) for farmers across GB ( http://www.hse.gov.uk/agriculture/diary.htm ) and is

undertaking a targeted inspection campaign focussing on agriculture as set out in

HSE’s 2017/18 Business Plan (

http://www.hse.gov.uk/aboutus/strategiesandplans/businessplans/plan1718.pdf ).

Working with HSE, Local Authorities carry out visits to open farms and animal visitor

attractions to deal with matters of visitor safety in relation to infection risks (

http://www.hse.gov.uk/lau/activities.pdf ).

HSE also works closely with industry stakeholders, through GB’s Farm Safety

Partnerships, to promote and support their activities to improve health and safety in

farming.

Funeral Payments

Neil Coyle: [114829]

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what representations he has

received on concern about the adequacy of the funeral fund to cover basic funeral costs;

and whether he plans change to that fund.

Caroline Dinenage:

DWP have advertised 1,053 External Vacancies since January 2015 containing

21,432 posts. The breakdown provided by Government Recruitment Services is

provided as requested overleaf. It is worth considering these vacancies are not

guaranteed to have been filled.

These are the vacancies we advertised. Not all roles advertised were filled and

therefore this data will include repeat adverts.


Jan-15 8 214

Feb-15 15 353

Mar-15 9 60

Apr-15 8 62

May-15 13 54

Jun-15 20 311

Jul-15 15 326

Aug-15 26 1698

http://www.hse.gov.uk/agriculture/diary.htm

http://www.hse.gov.uk/aboutus/strategiesandplans/businessplans/plan1718.pdf

http://www.hse.gov.uk/lau/activities.pdf



Sep-15 15 1479

Oct-15 13 469

Nov-15 28 397

Dec-15 14 239

Jan-16 14 290

Feb-16 47 1274

Mar-16 50 2107

Apr-16 74 1309

May-16 31 500

Jun-16 58 1081

Jul-16 26 214

Aug-16 34 804

Sep-16 61 1251

Oct-16 50 542

Nov-16 34 567

Dec-16 5 48

Jan-17 101 1540

Feb-17 35 483

Mar-17 17 131

Apr-17 4 22

May-17 42 891

Jun-17 64 1238

Jul-17 24 433

Aug-17 21 243

Sep-17 18 66

Oct-17 30 605


Nov-17 29 131

Total 1053 21432

Unemployment


To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he is taking to reduce

the time unemployed people spend out of work.

Damian Hinds:

The number of unemployed is currently 1.42m, down 59,000 this quarter, down

182,000 on the year, down over 1.08 million since 2010.

Jobcentre Plus has a flexible support model to provide support and District Managers

have discretion on how to target interventions. The model has three elements: a core

regime of regular face-to-face meetings; flexible work coach support; and a flexible

menu of support options.

Where Jobcentre Plus District Managers identify gaps in skills or other provision they

have discretion to purchase extra support to meet particular needs using the Flexible

Support Fund.

Jobcentre Plus work coaches can advise claimants on the localised provision and

support available, either by employment sector or skills/employability.

Universal Credit


To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he will take to ensure

that people paid weekly do not lose universal credit entitlements in months that contain

five Fridays.

Damian Hinds:

No one on Universal Credit, who are weekly paid, will see a drop in their total income

from earnings and benefits in any assessment period with 5 paydays in it. In contrast

because of the way UC works in 5 payday assessment periods, the total income a

claimant will receive in that month will always be higher, whether their UC is reduced

or extinguished

For example if someone is weekly paid at a rate of £200, and has a gross UC

entitlement of £1400 a month their total UC entitlement (assuming no work

allowance) is £896 a month and £800 from earnings. Total income in the month,

benefits and earnings of £1696.

In a five payday month their earnings rise to £1000, UC falls to £770. Total income

from benefits and earnings £1770.



For someone on higher earnings of £450 a week, with the same UC gross entitlement

of £1400 will receive in a four payday month earnings of £1800 and UC of £266 a

month with a total monthly income of £2066. In a five week month their total earnings

rise to £2250, UC entitlement zero but total income in that month is higher than in the

four payday month.

Everyone who is weekly paid will have a higher income in the 5 payday month, either

through a combination of UC and earnings or on straight earnings. The UC taper

ensure that people keep every pound of their earnings, with only a 63% reduction in

UC entitlement. This is how the system works and how we make work pay. Media

reports to the contrary were wrong, misleading and alarmist for UC claimants and I

welcome the opportunity to put the record straight.

WRITTEN STATEMENTS

DIGITAL, CULTURE, MEDIA AND SPORT

Post-Council Written Ministerial Statement for Education, Youth, Culture and Sport

Council

Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (Karen Bradley):

[HCWS279]

The Education, Youth, Culture and Sport (EYCS) Council took place in Brussels on 20

and 21 November 2017. The UK’s Deputy Permanent Representative to the EU

represented the interests of the UK at the Youth, Culture and Sport sessions of this

Council.

Youth

The Council achieved a General Approach among EU Member States on the proposals

laying down the framework for the European Solidarity Corps. The UK voted in favour of

the General Approach, which achieved almost unanimous support. The Commission

commented on how they would in consider the expansion of geographical scope of the

Corps, which is an important matter for the UK. Members also unanimously agreed to

adopt draft Council conclusions on Smart Youth Work.

The main policy debate focused on the issues that matter to young people and possible

European efforts to address these issues. The debate was positive, with the UK setting

out the importance of hearing directly from young people about the issues that matter to

them, as well as highlighting the important work of the British Youth Council. The

Commission also provided information on a new narrative for Europe, which further

emphasised the importance of giving a political voice to Europe’s youth.

Culture/Audiovisual

Draft Council conclusions on promoting access to culture via digital means, were adopted

by the Council with the UK supporting their adoption.

On audiovisual, the Presidency provided an update on the Audiovisual Media Services

Directive (AVMSD). This update acted as the first reading since a General Approach was

achieved at the last EYCS Council in May 2017. The discussion focused on the progress

thus far of Trilogue discussions between the Council and the European Parliament.

Crucial areas of agreement thus far between the EP and Council included the provision of

greater access of online digital content to people with disabilities. The UK emphasised

how it can be a valuable asset as discussion progressed with the EP.

A policy debate on the role of culture in building cohesive societies in Europe, and a later

item on Remaking Europe through Culture, put forward by the French delegation,

emphasised a number of important themes including cultural heritage, using culture to

integrate migrants, and the mobility of artists. The UK’s position, in line with the spirit of

the discussion, was supportive of the role culture plays in building community cohesion,

http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-statement/Commons/2017-11-28/HCWS279/


raising the importance of tourism, and how creative and cultural exports shape the way

member states, and the EU as a bloc, are viewed by the rest of the world.

Information was provided by the German delegation on the current legislative proposal

regarding the regulation on the import of cultural goods. This focused on the responsibility

of Member States to better regulate the illicit trade of cultural goods as a means to

prevent such trade funding terrorist activities. The UK did not comment on these

proposals, however my Department and HM Revenue and Customs continue to work with

the EU in developing this file. In addition to this item, information was provided on

international cultural relations, cultural property, and the role of the EU in the defense of

cultural heritage crisis areas.

Sport

The Council session on sport led with a policy debate, covering the main challenges

facing sport in the 21st century and cooperation between the EU, governments, and the

sport movement. The debate highlighted crucial role of sport for society as a whole and

the importance of protecting the autonomy and integrity of sport. The UK’s intervention

emphasised how we are ensuring all citizens can access sport, targeting the least active

in society. We also drew attention to the work that the UK government is doing to combat

corrupt practices in sport, through our Code for Sports Governance and our work

alongside the International Olympic Committee to develop an “International Partnership

Against Corruption in Sport”. Council conclusions on the role of coaches in society and a

Council resolution on the EU structured dialogue on sport were adopted, with the UK

supporting both items.

The Bulgarian delegation provided information regarding the Meeting of the World Anti-

Doping Agency (WADA) Foundation Board in Seoul on 16 November. The Polish

delegation then announced the 2019 World conference on doping in sport to be held in

Katowice, and provided an informal invitation to Member States. There was also

information from the Greek delegation on Supporting the Olympic Truce during the Winter

Olympic Games, to be held in Pyeongchang, South Korea in 2018.

Other

The Council received information from the Bulgarian delegation, as the incoming

presidency for the first half of 2018, setting out their work programme for the next six

months. They highlighted a number of priorities for their presidency including:

continuing to move forward with the revision of AVMSD;

moving to the next stage of discussions on the EU Solidarity Corps, while focusing

on the role of young people in peace-keeping and security;

highlighting the importance of cultural heritage and strengthening international

relations through culture; and

fighting doping through information and education of young people.

The next Council is scheduled for 22 and 23 May 2018.

ENVIRONMENT, FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

November Agriculture and Fisheries Council

Minister of State for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (George Eustice):

[HCWS278]

I represented the United Kingdom at the Agriculture and Fisheries Council on 6

November in Brussels.

The Council opened with Member States responding to the Presidency’s questions

on the sustainable use of pesticides. There was widespread agreement that National

Action Plans are a good way for Member States to tailor their approach to meeting

the objectives of the Sustainable Use of Pesticides Directive, and widespread support

for the principles of Integrated Pest Management. The UK welcomed the European

Commission’s report on the sustainable use of pesticides, highlighting that Integrated

Pest Management is the key to future crop protection.

The Presidency outlined the conclusions of the sustainable soil management

conference held on 4-6 October in Tallinn, which highlighted the importance of

managing soils and designing policies based on a strong evidence base. Responding

to questions posed by the Presidency, the UK informed Council that soil health goes

hand in hand with farming productivity.

Commissioner Hogan then updated the Council on EU agricultural trade.

Three further items were discussed under ‘any other business’:

the Slovakian and Czech delegations thanked Council for cooperation on the issue of

dual quality foodstuffs

the Agriculture Ministers of the Visegrad Member States informed Council about the

Renewable Energy Directive post-2020

the Agriculture Ministers of the Visegrad Member States informed Council about the

BIOEAST initiative.

On 23 June 2016, the EU referendum took place and the people of the United

Kingdom voted to leave the European Union. Until exit negotiations are concluded,

the UK remains a full member of the European Union and all the rights and

obligations of EU membership remain in force. During this period the Government will

continue to negotiate, implement and apply EU legislation. The outcome of these

negotiations will determine what arrangements apply in relation to EU legislation in

future once the UK has left the EU.



EXITING THE EUROPEAN UNION

EU Exit: Release of sectoral reports to the Committee on Exiting the EU and Lords

EU Committee

Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union (Mr Robin

Walker): [HCWS277]

Following the Opposition Day debate motion on 1 November, the Government committed

to making arrangements to respond to the motion which called on the Government to

provide the Committee on Exiting the European Union with impact assessments arising

from the sectoral analysis it has conducted with regards to the list of 58 sectors referred

to in the answer of 26 June 2017 to Written Question 239.

On 27 November the Department for Exiting the European Union provided analysis

covering these 58 sectors of the economy to the House of Commons Committee on

Exiting the EU and the House of Lords European Union Committee. The reports were

also shared with the devolved administrations on the same terms.

As the Government has previously made clear, the information requested in the motion

does not exist in the form requested. During the Opposition Day debate I told the House

"there has been some misunderstanding about what this sectoral analysis actually is. It is

not a series of 58 impact assessments." The Secretary of State for Exiting the EU also

made this clear before the House of Lords EU Committee on 31 October and to the

House at DEXEU oral questions on 2 November.

The reports cover:

i. a description of each sector;

ii. the current EU regulatory regime;

iii. existing frameworks for how trade is facilitated between countries in this sector; and;

iv. sector views.

We now consider the motion of 1 November 2017 to have been satisfied.

General Affairs Council November 2017

Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union (Mr Robin

Walker): [HCWS280]

I represented the UK at the General Affairs Council (GAC) meeting in Brussels on

Monday 20 November, in place of Minister of State Lord Callanan. The main items on the

agenda were: preparations for the December European Council on 14 and 15 December;

a follow-up to the October European Council; legislative programming, with the

Commission presenting its 2018 Work Programme; the implementation of the Inter-

institutional Agreement; and a roadmap of the European Semester.

A provisional report of the meeting and the conclusions adopted can be found on the

Council of the European Union’s website at:

http://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/meetings/gac/2017/11/20/



http://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/meetings/gac/2017/11/20/

Preparation of the European Council, 14 to 15 December 2017

The Presidency presented the Annotated Draft Agenda for the December European

Council, which included: Defence; and Social Issues, Education and Culture; and

Migration.

On the Defence agenda item, the Council welcomed a discussion of both PESCO

(Permanent Structured Cooperation) and EU-NATO cooperation. I intervened to agree on

the importance of EU-NATO cooperation. I also stressed the need for third country

participation in PESCO and welcomed early sight of the accompanying Council Decision.

Ministers also welcomed the agenda item on Social, Education and Culture following on

from the Gothenburg Social Summit on 17 November. The outcomes of this meeting

would provide the basis for Council Conclusions. I confirmed the UK’s ongoing

commitment to education and culture, as set out in the Prime Minister’s Florence speech

and agreed on the importance of mobility and exchange programmes such as Erasmus.

Under the Migration item, Ministers welcomed a discussion of both internal and external

aspects of migration which would be discussed by leaders over dinner.

October European Council follow-up

The Presidency and Commission highlighted the need to address the funding gap for the

EU Trust Fund for Africa (EUTF) for projects in Libya. I emphasised the UK’s significant

bilateral contributions to Libya, which contribute to EUTF outcomes.

Legislative Programming - Commission’s Work Programme (CWP) 2018

Following a presentation by the Commission, Ministers exchanged views on the CWP.

These views will determine the Council’s input for the Joint Declaration between the

European Parliament, the Council and the Commission on legislative priorities for 2018

and the first few months of 2019. I intervened to express support for open, flexible

markets which lead to prosperity and strong economies. I also reiterated the UK’s

unconditional commitment to ensuring European security.

Interinstitutional Acts Implementation

The Presidency provided an update on the implementation of the Interinstitutional

Agreement, particularly with regards to international agreements, delegated and

implementing acts and the Transparency Register. Meanwhile, the Commission

explained the role of the new task force on Proportionality and Subsidiarity, as set out

previously by Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker in his State of the Union

speech.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH OFFICE

Developments in Zimbabwe

The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (Boris Johnson):

[HCWS274]

Since I updated the House on the 15th November there have been historic developments

in Zimbabwe. Robert Mugabe’s 37-year rule came to an end on 21st November, sparking

joyous celebrations as Zimbabweans looked forward to the opportunity for a brighter

future.

The UK’s objective has remained constant throughout these dramatic developments. We

want to support the people of Zimbabwe in building a democratic, stable and prosperous

country. The only way for Zimbabwe to achieve a legitimate government is through free

and fair elections held in accordance with the constitution. We stand ready to support a

legitimate government to rebuild their beautiful country, working alongside our

international and regional partners, with whom we are already engaging in order to lead

the response.

President Emmerson Mnangagwa, who was inaugurated on the 24th November, has

stated that this marks the beginning of a “new unfolding democracy” in Zimbabwe. He

must now demonstrate his sincerity by delivering political and economic reform. In

particular, he must hold an election in which all Zimbabweans can participate without fear

of intimidation or violence. A transition from one despotic ruler to another would be a

tragedy for Zimbabwe and its people.

The process of democratisation and economic recovery will be led by Zimbabweans. The

Minister for Africa visited Harare on 23rd and 24th November and met with actors from

across the political spectrum to discuss the transition to democracy. He made clear to the

incoming administration that the UK stands ready to play a key role in support

Zimbabwe’s recovery, but only on the basis of genuine political and economic reforms,

including respect for human rights and the rule of law. In this moment of hope for

Zimbabwe, the UK will be looking for tangible indications of progress.

Foreign Affairs Council – 13 November 2017

Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (Sir Alan Duncan):

[HCWS276]

My Right Honourable Friend the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth

Affairs and My Right Honourable Friend the Minister of State for Defence attended the

joint session of the Foreign Affairs Council (Foreign and Defence Ministers) on 13

November. The Council was chaired by the High Representative of the European Union

for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Federica Mogherini. The meeting was held in

Brussels.

Foreign Affairs Council

EU Foreign Ministers discussed EU-Africa relations and EU strategic communications.

EU Defence Ministers discussed EU-NATO and met as the European Defence Agency





Steering Board. EU Foreign and Defence Ministers also participated in a joint session on

security and defence cooperation.

Venezuela The Council adopted Conclusions on Venezuela and agreed targeted

sanctions to encourage a peaceful, negotiated solution. These included an embargo on

arms and related material that might be used for internal repression, and a legal

framework for the possible targeted listing of persons.

EU-Africa relations Foreign Ministers discussed EU-Africa relations with particular

reference to the upcoming 5th African Union - EU Summit on 29-30 November in Abidjan,

Ivory Coast. EU Foreign Ministers welcomed the focus on youth and discussed the

common challenges which were expected to be covered at the Summit.

EU strategic communications

Foreign Ministers discussed the European External Action Service’s current work on

strategic communications for the Eastern Partnership region, the Southern

Neighbourhood and the Western Balkans. The Council agreed to further enhance the

work, and supported the development of the three task forces. EU Foreign Ministers

underlined the need to counter disinformation where and when needed.

Security and defence cooperation EU Foreign and Defence Ministers discussed the

implementation of the EU Global Strategy in the area of security and defence. In the

margins of the Council, 23 Member States signed a notification for the establishment of a

Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO). The UK did not sign.

EU-NATO

EU Defence Ministers discussed EU-NATO cooperation together with NATO Secretary

General Jens Stoltenberg.

European Defence Agency

EU Defence Ministers met as the European Defence Agency (EDA) Steering Board.

Ministers agreed a number of measures without discussion:

- The Council adopted the legal acts providing for the de-listing of the FARC from the EU

list of individuals and entities subject to restrictive measures to combat terrorism; - The

Council adopted conclusions on a strategic approach to resilience in the EU's external

action; - The Council appointed Toivo Klaar as EU Special Representative for the South

Caucasus and the crisis in Georgia; - The Council adopted a regulation reviewing the list

of luxury goods subject to an import and export ban on the Democratic People's Republic

of Korea; - The Council adopted a decision to open negotiations on a Missions

Framework Participation Agreement with Jordan; - The Council approved the

requirements catalogue 2017 which identifies the military capability requirements for the

Common Security and Defence Policy stemming from the EU level of ambition as agreed

by the Council in November 2016; - The Council endorsed the European Defence Agency

report and adopted the guidelines for the work of the European Defence Agency in 2018;

- The Council established the EU position ahead of the ninth meeting of the Stabilisation

and Association Council between the EU and Albania which will take place on 15

November in Brussels; and - The Council established the EU position ahead of the fourth

meeting of the Stabilisation and Association Council between the EU and Serbia which

will take place on 16 November in Brussels.

Foreign Affairs Council – 16 October 2017

Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (Sir Alan Duncan):

[HCWS275]

My Right Honourable Friend the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth

Affairs attended the Foreign Affairs Council on 16 October. The Foreign Affairs Council

was chaired by the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and

Security Policy, Federica Mogherini. The meeting was held in Luxembourg.

Foreign Affairs Council

The meeting covered discussions on Burma, Iran, Turkey, the Democratic People’s

Republic of Korea (DPRK) and Human Rights.

Burma

The Council adopted Conclusions on Burma, in the light of the humanitarian and human

rights situation in Rakhine State

Iran

EU Foreign Ministers agreed a statement underlining EU commitment to the continued

full and effective implementation of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPoA), and

also expressing concerns related to Iran’s ballistic missiles programme and increasing

tensions in the region.

Turkey

Over lunch, EU Foreign Ministers discussed Turkey in preparation for the European

Council discussions held by EU Heads of State and Government on 19 October. They

focused on cooperation with Turkey in the region, including Syria, Iraq and relations with

Iran.

DPRK

The Council discussed the situation in the Korean peninsula following recent provocative

acts by the DPRK. EU Foreign Ministers agreed the need to maintain pressure on the

DPRK, including through engagement with regional actors and outreach efforts to

strengthen the implementation of UNSC Resolutions by all UN Member States. The

Council adopted additional EU sanctions on the DPRK to complement and reinforce the

UN Security Council sanctions.

Human Rights

EU Foreign Ministers discussed the EU’s policy on Human Rights. Conclusions were

adopted on the mid-term review of the Action Plan on Human Rights and Democracy and

the Annual Report on Human Rights and Democracy in the World in 2016.



EU Foreign Ministers agreed a number of measures without discussion: - The Council

adopted Conclusions on an EU strategy on Afghanistan; - The Council adopted

Conclusions on Bosnia and Herzegovina; - The Council approved the EU programme of

exercises and exercise-related activities under the Common Foreign and Security Policy

(CFSP) for the period 2017-2021; - The Council approved the signing and conclusion of a

Protocol to the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement establishing a partnership

between the EU and the Kyrgyz Republic to take account of the accession of the

Republic of Croatia to the European Union; - The Council established and launched a

new CSDP mission to support security sector reform in Iraq. The Council also adopted

the Operation Plan and a decision authorising the opening of negotiations to conclude an

agreement on the status of the EU Advisory Mission (EUAM); - The Council adopted

three decisions authorising the opening of negotiations with Albania, Montenegro and

Bosnia and Herzegovina for agreements on activities carried out by the European Border

and Coast Guard Agency in those countries; - The Council adopted two decisions on

positions to be adopted by the EU at the joint Council of Caribbean States (Cariforum)

and EU Member States to be held on 17 November 2017; - The Council received the

High Representative's report on the six-monthly review of Operation Althea.

INTERNATIONAL TRADE

Trade Remedies

SECRETARY OF STATE FOR INTERNATIONAL TRADE AND PRESIDENT OF THE

BOARD OF TRADE (Dr Liam Fox): [HCWS273]

On 28 November the Government published a Call for Evidence to identify UK interest in

existing EU trade remedy measures. Currently, there are a number of trade remedy

measures being applied by the EU, some of which are relevant and significant to UK

industry. In preparation for the UK being an independent trading nation, it is important

that we provide certainty and continuity to UK businesses, and avoid exposing them to

injury from known unfair trade practices.

The Call for Evidence will obtain the necessary information from UK businesses to enable

the Government to assess which measures matter to the UK and therefore can be

maintained when the UK begins to operate its own independent trade remedies

framework. The Government will take account of the terms of any time-limited

implementation period agreed between the UK and the EU.

We recognise that new EU measures may be put in place after the call for evidence

closes and before the UK begins to operate its independent trade remedies framework.

We will approach those interested parties ahead of the UK operating its independent

trade remedies framework to understand whether there is an interest for any future

measures to be maintained.

We will assess whether the transition of an existing measure is important to UK industry,

and can be retained based on three criteria:


We have received an application from UK companies which produce products

subject to trade remedies measures;

The application is supported by a sufficient proportion of the UK companies which

produce those products;

The market share of the UK companies which produce those products is above a

certain level.

The Government is committed to ensuring continuity to UK industry as the UK prepares

to leave the EU. We are also committed to maintaining a fair and transparent approach to

the handling of these existing remedies and aligning them as far as possible with our

WTO obligations.

Documents

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