Written answers

Monday, 12 March 2012

  • Culture Media and Sport

    • Arts Council England: Finance

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport how much Arts Council England has at its disposal to give in grant supplied by (a) his Department and (b) the national lottery...

    • Arts: Scotland

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what recent estimate he has made of the number of people employed in the creative industries in Scotland.

      Broadband

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what recent progress has been made by the devolved administrations and local authorities in submitting draft local broadband plans.

      Broadband: Northern Ireland

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport how much funding he has allocated to support broadband implementation in Northern Ireland in the last two years.

      Broadband: Northern Ireland

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what meetings have been held with the Northern Ireland Executive on support for broadband delivery since September 2011.

      Departmental Ethnic Minority Staff

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport how many and what proportion of senior civil servants in his Department were from an ethnic minority in March (a) 2010, (b)...

      Film

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what consideration he has given to the effect on cinema exhibitors and film distributors of the different licensing regimes...

      Film

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what enforcement mechanism the Government intends to use to ensure adherence to BBFC classifications when the entertainment...

      Music

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what information his Department holds on how much funding has been allocated for the promotion of musical activities to (a)...

      Olympic Games 2012

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what steps the Government has taken to encourage companies producing official merchandise for the London 2012 Olympics to...

      Olympic Games 2012

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport if he will estimate the proportion of official memorabilia for the London 2012 Olympics that will be manufactured in the UK.

      Olympic Games 2012

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport when he or the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games will give guidance on the interpretation of the Olympic Symbol...

      Olympic Games 2012

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport when he or the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games will provide guidance to the magazine publishing industry on...

      Olympic Games 2012

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what discussions he has had with the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games on interpreting the Olympic Symbol etc....

      Olympic Games 2012: Voluntary Work

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what assistance with (a) travel and (b) accommodation expenses he plans to provide to volunteers for the Olympics living in...

  • Prime Minister

    • Computer Software

      To ask the Prime Minister what discussions he has had with the Minister for the Cabinet Office about the development of a personal iPad application for his use.

  • Wales

    • Departmental Ethnic Minority Staff

      To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many and what proportion of senior civil servants in her Department were from an ethnic minority in March (a) 2010, (b) 2011 and (c) 2012; and if she...

    • Education

      To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what recent discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Education on the potential effect of his education reforms on educational priorities in...

      NHS

      To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what recent discussions she has had with the First Minister of the Welsh Government on the impact of the Government’s NHS reforms in England on...

      Regulation

      To ask the Secretary of State for Wales which regulations her Department repealed between 1 June 2011 and 31 January 2012; and if she will estimate the likely savings to the public purse in each case.

      Welfare Reform

      To ask the Secretary of State for Wales (1) what recent discussions she has had with the First Minister of the Welsh Government on the potential effect of the Government’s welfare reforms...

  • Scotland

    • Departmental Ethnic Minority Staff

      To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many and what proportion of senior civil servants in his Department were from an ethnic minority in March (a) 2010, (b) 2011 and (c) 2012; and if he...

    • Equality and Human Rights Commission

      To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland pursuant to the answer of 6 March 2012, Official Report, column 629W, on Equality and Human Rights Commission, on what date he met the Equality and...

      Regulation

      To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland which regulations his Department repealed between 1 June 2011 and 31 January 2012; and if he will estimate the likely savings to the public purse in...

  • Defence

    • Departmental Procurement

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many contracts awarded by his Department to management consultants (a) since publication of the Strategic Defence and Security Review and (b) in...

    • Joint Strike Fighter Aircraft

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what recent estimate he has made of the through-life costs of the carrier variant Joint Strike Fighter; and if he will make a statement.

      MOD Bicester

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many failed courier deliveries, where the courier failed to make the delivery resulting in the consignment being taken back to the base, there have...

  • Home Department

    • Asylum Seekers: Iran

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps she is taking to support failed Iranian asylum seekers (a) to obtain travel documents given the closure of the Iranian embassy in...

    • Bail

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people detained by the UK Border Agency were granted bail in each of the last five years; and how many (a) absconded and (b) failed...

      British Nationals: Entry Clearances

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many British Overseas Territory nationals were refused entry to the UK in each of the last five years.

      Coinage: Counterfeit Manufacturing

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps her Department is taking to tackle the counterfeiting of (a) the pound sterling and (b) the euro in the UK.

      Crime Prevention

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether she plans to issue further guidance on the use of the Domestic Abuse, Stalking and Honour Based Violence (DASH 2009) Risk...

      Criminal Records

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the Government plans to announce its response to the Criminal Records Regime review.

      Departmental Ethnic Minority Staff

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many and what proportion of senior civil servants in her Department were from an ethnic minority in March (a) 2010, (b) 2011 and (c)...

      Departmental Redundancy

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much her Department has spent on redundancy payments in the last 12 months.

      Deportation: Christopher Tappin

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what discussions she had with the US Administration on the deportation of Christopher Tappin; and what aspects of the deportation were...

      Domestic Violence

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will discuss with senior civil servants in her Department how to encourage police forces to improve police response times to incidents...

      Drugs: International Cooperation

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many Memoranda of Understanding have been established between UK customs and business organisations operating in the EU to combat drug...

      Entry Clearances

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what her Department's policy is on charging representatives of Chernobyl children's charities for visas to enter the UK.

      Entry Clearances: Overseas Students

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment she has made of the accreditation system for English language schools offering courses which are (a) shorter than 11 months...

      European Convention on Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people have been temporarily transferred (a) to and (b) from the UK for the purposes of investigation under Article 9 of EU Council...

      Extradition: Counterfeit Manufacturing

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people have been extradited to another EU member state for counterfeiting offences involving the euro in each of the last 10 years.

      Families

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much funding police authorities will contribute from pre-allocated resources towards the troubled families initiative in (a) 2011-12, (b)...

      Foreign Nationals: Bail

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many foreign nationals in police custody have been released on bail as a result of problems with the provision of translation or...

      Foreign Workers: Domestic Service

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate has been made of the effect the removal of the right to change employer for overseas domestic workers will have on the number...

      Foreign Workers: Domestic Service

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment has been made of the effect of the removal of the right to change employer for overseas domestic workers on levels of...

      Foreign Workers: Domestic Service

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how overseas domestic workers will be able to escape abusive conditions of employment when their right to change employer is removed.

      Foreign Workers: Domestic Service

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how the written terms and conditions of employment agreed by overseas domestic workers and their employers referred to in the statement of...

      Gurkhas

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 23 November 2011, Official Report, columns 403-04W, on Gurkhas, how many (a) former Gurkhas and (b) dependants of...

      Immigration

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the average time was to reach a decision on in-time applications for (a) further leave to remain and (b) indefinite leave to remain in...

      Immigration Controls

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when she received the Vine report on border security checks.

      Internet: Fraud

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent estimate she has made of the costs to (a) consumers and (b) businesses of (i) credit card fraud, (ii) intellectual property crime...

      Members: Correspondence

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when her Department plans to reply to the letters of 13 and 21 January from the right hon. Member for Manchester Central with T.O. Home...

      Members: Correspondence

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when a reply will be sent to the hon. Member for Harrow West's letter of 14 December 2011 about Mr Kakar of Harrow.

      Police Stations: Lincolnshire

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many companies made bids for the contract to run a police station in Lincolnshire.

      Police: Business Partnership Programme

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police forces in England and Wales have signed up to the Business Partnership Programme; and when she expects the programme to begin.

      Proceeds of Crime: EU Action

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many requests to (a) identify and trace and (b) confiscate the proceeds of crime in accordance with Article 1 of EU Council Joint Action...

      Sentencing: EU Action

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department with reference to EU Council Decision 1999/615/JHA, whether 4-MTA is subject to control measures and criminal penalties in the UK.

      Surrey Police: Redundancy

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) frontline and (b) back office staff in Surrey police she expects will be made redundant in (i) 2012, (ii) 2013, (iii) 2014 and...

      Temporary Employment

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much her Department has spent on employment agency fees in the last 12 months.

      UK Border Agency: Public Appointments

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what the salary will be of the new head of the UK Border Force; (2) when the position of the head of the UK Border Force was...

      West Midlands Police Authority

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what discussions she has had with the West Midlands Police Authority on the effect of changes in expenditure by her Department on the...

  • Transport

    • Bus Services: Olympic Games 2012

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the answer of 9 February 2012, Official Report, columns 407-8W on bus services: Olympic Games 2012, if she will place in the Library a copy...

    • Concessionary Bus Travel Act 2007

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether she plans to implement the provision in the Concessionary Bus Travel Act 2007 that bus passes issued in any part of the UK could be used...

      Crossrail

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many officials in her Department worked only on the Crossrail project in (a) 2009, (b) 2010 and (c) 2011; and how many hours they spent working on...

      Cycling: Training

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much funding her Department will allocate for cycling training in (a) each year of the current spending review period and (b) the following...

      Dartford-Thurrock Crossing

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many consultations her Department undertook in relation to the Dartford Crossing in each of the last 10 years.

      Departmental Carbon Emissions

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what reduction in carbon dioxide emissions her Department has made under the 10:10 initiative.

      Departmental Ethnic Minority Staff

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many and what proportion of senior civil servants in her Department were from an ethnic minority in March (a) 2010, (b) 2011 and (c) 2012; and if...

      Liverpool Port: Finance

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the answer of 1 March 2012, Official Report, column 451W, on Liverpool Port: finance, whether she expects that negotiations on the...

      Liverpool Port: Finance

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the answer of 1 March 2012, Official Report, column 451W, on Liverpool Port: finance, what assessment her Department has made of funding...

      London and South Eastern Railway: Franchises

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when her Department plans to decide whether to change the service level commitment in the Southeastern Franchise Agreement following the trial of...

      London and South Eastern Railway: Franchises

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what representations she has received on proposals to end the diversion of 3 am peak existing services from Rochester to London St Pancras and 3 pm...

      Luton Airport

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what work her Department has carried out on proposals to expand Luton airport.

      M1: Fires

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the answer of 9 February 2012, Official Report, columns 411-2W, on the M1: fires, when her Department will publish the Highways Agency and...

      Maritime and Coastguard Agency

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what responsibilities the Maritime and Coastguard Agency will have in respect of leisure craft following the reorganisation of the Coastguard Service.

      Network Rail: Compensation

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the answer of 21 February 2012, Official Report, column 744W, on Network Rail: compensation, which train operating companies (a) do and (b)...

      Railway Stations: Parking

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what information her Department holds on the rate of change in car parking charges levied by Network Rail relative to changes in the cost of living in...

      Railways: Franchises

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport with reference to the announcement of 29 February 2012, what the phasing will be for delivery of the new carriages for the First TransPennine Express...

      Railways: Information Services

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps her Department is taking to improve the provision of information to railway passengers during service disruptions.

      Railways: South West

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate she has made of the costs of the consultation exercise on the Greater Western franchise by venue in (a) Exeter, (b) Reading and (c) Bristol.

      Regulation

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport which regulations her Department repealed between 1 June 2011 and 31 January 2012; and if she will estimate the likely savings to the public purse in...

      Rescue Services: Clydesdale

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how the Maritime and Coastguard Agency proposes to cover the Maritime Rescue Co-ordination Centre (MRCC) Clyde Coastguard district during the period...

      Rescue Services: Clydesdale

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment she has made of the ability of staff at Belfast and Stornoway to cover the Maritime Rescue Co-ordination Centre Clyde coastguard area...

      Rescue Services: Clydesdale

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment she has made of the potential risks arising during the period between the closure of the Maritime Rescue Co-ordination Centre Clyde and...

      Travel: Prices

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether she plans to take steps to encourage airlines and travel companies to reduce the price of flights and holidays in the school holidays; and if...

  • Environment Food and Rural Affairs

    • Agricultural Wages Board

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when she expects to consult on proposed changes to the Agricultural Wages Board; and if she will make a statement.

    • Animal Welfare: Pigs

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of the effect of the sow stall and tether ban on UK pig providers; and if she will make a statement.

      Bureaucracy

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what plans she has to include environmental regulations in the Red Tape Challenge.

      Departmental Computers

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many tablet computers her Department purchased in each of the last five years.

      Flood and Waste Management Act 2010

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when she expects to implement the provisions of the Future Flood and Waste Management Act 2010 relating to bad debt; and if...

      Food: Supermarkets

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps she is taking to encourage supermarkets to redistribute food waste to help reduce food poverty in areas of high...

      Lyme Disease

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps her Department is taking to eradicate the ticks which cause Lyme disease.

      Marine Conservation Zones

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether the Government’s formal consultation on marine conservation zones will take place before the end of 2012.

      Nature Improvement Areas

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether nature improvement areas will be introduced with any guidance for local authorities and communities on their role...

      Nitrate Vulnerable Zones

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of the effect on farmers of nitrate vulnerable zones regulations on slurry storage.

      Water Charges

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate she has made of the cost to (a) the public purse and (b) an individual consumer of water and sewerage services...

      Water Charges

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what discussions she has had with ministerial colleagues in HM Treasury on the effect of the level of the retail prices index...

  • Education

    • Academies

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many officials of his Department work on the brokerage of sponsored academies; and how many such officials are being recruited to such roles.

    • Children: Health

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will assess research into the level of self control of a child as a predictor of well-being and attainment and its implication for his policies.

      Children's Centres

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of introducing payment-by-results in children's centres.

      Departmental Data Protection

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will publish details of the six data loss cases which involved either personal data loss or a breach of confidentiality in 2011; and what...

      Departmental Ethnic Minority Staff

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many and what proportion of senior civil servants in his Department were from an ethnic minority in March (a) 2010, (b) 2011 and (c) 2012; and if...

      Departmental Ministers' Private Offices

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many full-time equivalent staff at each Civil Service grade are employed in his private Ministerial office; and what the cost is of their annual...

      Early Education

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education what estimate he has made of the number of extra early years workers required to deliver 15 free hours of early education to 40% of two-year-olds.

      Early Education

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education what funding he plans to provide for recruitment of early years workers.

      Education: Non-departmental Public Bodies

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education what progress he has made on abolishing education quangos.

      Families

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will commission research on the effects of parents moving to less stressful jobs on (a) the quality of family life and (b) children's subjective...

      Free Schools

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education (1) whether he plans to measure the satisfaction of parents with the service provided by (a) free schools, (b) academies and (c) local authority-run...

      GCSE: Denton

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many children received A* to C grades in GCSE (a) mathematics, (b) English, (c) geography and (d) sciences in Denton and Reddish constituency in...

      Members: Correspondence

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education when he expects to reply to the letter of 1 February 2012 from the hon. Member for Walsall North concerning a constituent, reference 2012/0008558.

      Ministers' Private Offices

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education (1) how much his private office spent on newspapers, periodicals and trade profession publications in the last 12 months; (2) how much his private...

      National Curriculum in England Review

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education what contracts have been let in respect of the work of the working group for the National Curriculum Review; which such contracts have been extended;...

      Ofsted: Inspections

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many schools in (a) the Leeds North West constituency and (b) Leeds received an outstanding result from Ofsted in the last three years.

      Personal, Social, Health and Economic Education

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education what funding (a) his Department and (b) its agencies provided for continuous professional development in Personal Social Health and Economic education...

      Primary Education: Admissions

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education how much the Government plans to spend on creating extra primary school places in the current Parliament.

      Schools: Admissions

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education what steps he is taking to ensure that more parents secure a place for their child at their first choice school.

      Schools: Assessments

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education what provision is made in (a) state and (b) other schools for teaching to prepare students for sixth term examination papers.

      Schools: Inspections

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many inspections have been undertaken by Ofsted of services sponsored by the Department for Work and Pensions in each of the last five years.

      Schools: Transport

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education what recent representations he has received on increasing provision of free transport to schools.

      Science: GCSE

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education (1) how many and what proportion of pupils were entered for GCSEs in each of the three separate sciences in (a) comprehensive, (b) selective and (c)...

      Teachers: Recruitment

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education what steps he is taking to attract the brightest graduates to teaching.

      Teaching Methods

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will commission an assessment of the effectiveness of the Good Behaviour Game programme.

      Ted TV

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will make an assessment of the potential of TED TV to inform and educate British pupils.

  • Northern Ireland

    • Departmental Ethnic Minority Staff

      To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many and what proportion of senior civil servants in his Department were from an ethnic minority in March (a) 2010, (b) 2011 and (c) 2012;...

    • EU Grants and Loans

      To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what discussions he has had with the (a) Minister for Europe, (b) Irish Government and (c) Northern Ireland Executive on the future of EU...

  • Communities and Local Government

    • Council Tax

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what steps he is taking to help keep council tax bills down.

    • Council Tax: Redcar and Cleveland

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the percentage change in band D council tax was in Redcar and Cleveland local authority area in each year since 2001.

      Council Tax: Students

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what discussions he has had with (a) other Ministers, (b) local authority leaders and (c) the Local Government Association on...

      Day Centres: Fees and Charges

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many local authorities have increased charges (a) for the use of day centres and (b) for transport to day centres in...

      Diamond Jubilee 2012: Medals

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what plans he has to extend eligibility for the Queen's Jubilee Medal to fire service personnel based in control rooms.

      Employment Schemes: Yorkshire and the Humber

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government which sub-contractors have been employed by the main Work programme contractors in each part of the four unitary authorities in...

      Empty Property

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if he will provide a breakdown of the 38,000 empty homes brought back into use by (a) former tenure and (b) English local...

      Floods: Insurance

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate he has made of the potential cost to (a) his Department and (b) English local authorities of the ending of the...

      Landlords: Registration

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if he will undertake a national consultation of local authorities to gain their views on the merits of a statutory register of...

      Local Government Finance

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if he will increase resources available to local authorities to help with the transition to the National Planning Policy Framework.

      Non-domestic Rates

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government when he expects to publish the business rate returns for 2011-12.

      Planning Permission: Appeals

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if his Department will take steps to ensure that local communities can appeal against planning decisions granted by a local...

      Planning Permission: Sustainable Development

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether he applied the definition of sustainable development recommended by the Communities and Local Government Select...

      Urban Areas: Rents

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if his Department will take steps to encourage private sector landlords to offer reduced rents to businesses who wish to acquire...

      Voluntary Organisations: Nottinghamshire

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what powers he has to instruct Nottinghamshire county council to abandon its plans to cut funding to the voluntary sector; if he...

      Voluntary Organisations: Nottinghamshire

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if he will publish his communications with Nottinghamshire county council about their plans to cut funding to the voluntary...

  • Cabinet Office

    • Charities: Annual Reports

      To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what steps are taken by the Charity Commission to ensure that all the annual returns submitted by charities are accurate.

    • Childbirth

      To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office (1) how many live births there were in Northern Ireland in each quarter since the first quarter of 2001; (2) how many live births there were in...

      Citizenship: Young People

      To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many children in Dartford constituency participated in the National Citizen Service scheme in (a) 2010 and (b) 2011.

      Employment

      To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the net change in (a) public sector and (b) full-time equivalent private sector jobs has been in each region of England since May 2010.

      Fraud

      To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office when he expects guidance on passing on allegations of fraud to Ministers to be ready.

      Homes and Communities Agency: Statistics

      To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office (1) what discussions the UK Statistics Authority have had with representatives of the BBC on the issue of Homes and Communities Agency statistics...

      Meetings

      To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office if he will publish the minutes and meetings of his Transparency Board since May 2010; and if he will make a statement.

      Public Appointments

      To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office which Government Departments have appointed champions or czars; and what the (a) role and (b) terms and conditions of service are of each.

      Public Sector: Pay

      To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many (a) civil servants and (b) other people whose salaries are paid from the public purse in Shropshire earned a basic salary greater than...

      Senior Civil Servants: Pay

      To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what representations he has received from organisations representing the collective interests of civil servants on the use of tax avoidance schemes and...

  • Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs

    • Africa

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1) if he will commission research into the potential effects of illegal fishing in African waters on levels of piracy in that...

    • Bahrain

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent reports he has received on the Bahraini Government's policies towards non-governmental organisations.

      Bahrain

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with the Bahraini Government on non-governmental organisations in Bahrain.

      Bahrain

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent reports he has received on steps taken by the Bahraini Government to act upon the recommendations proposed by the...

      Bahrain

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with (a) the Bahraini Government, (b) non-governmental organisations in Bahrain, (c) his...

      Bahrain

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make representations to the Bahraini government on the recommendations proposed by the Bassiouni Commission on 23...

      Bahrain

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent representations he has received on reports that Bahrain is in violation of a number of articles of international...

      Bahrain

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with (a) his Bahraini counterpart, (b) the Government of Saudi Arabia and (c) others on...

      British Overseas Territories

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many officials from his Department have visited (a) St Helena and (b) Tristan da Cunha in the last 12 months.

      Colombia

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which peace and civil society organisations ministerial colleagues will be meeting on the forthcoming visit to Colombia.

      Departmental Ethnic Minority Staff

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many and what proportion of senior civil servants in his Department were from an ethnic minority in March (a) 2010, (b) 2011...

      Egypt

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1) whether (a) Ministers and (b) officials of his Department have had discussions with (i) the United States Department of...

      EU Accession

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment he has made of the progress made by Bulgaria and Romania against post-EU accession benchmarks.

      Guatemala

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent reports he has received on death threats and aggression against members of the Verapaz Union of Peasant Farmer...

      Lesotho

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many officials in his Department are responsible for Lesotho; and where they are located.

      Libya

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1) what recent discussions he has had with the Libyan authorities on the release of British journalists held in that country;...

      Libya

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he is taking to ensure that those responsible for the attacks on a British war cemetery in Libya are brought to justice.

      Libya

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the development of new political parties in Libya; what support his Department is providing to...

      Lockerbie: Bombings

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he is taking to ensure that the Lord Advocate's letter to the Libyan government on Lockerbie is acted upon.

      Lockerbie: Bombings

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will ask the Libyan Government to publish all documents, letters, records of meetings and other material relating to the...

      Macedonia

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment his Department has made of Macedonia's prospects for NATO membership.

      Maldives

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many UK nationals requested consular support in the Maldives in the last month.

      North Korea

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with the government of North Korea on (a) human rights and humanitarian concerns, (b) access to that...

      North Korea

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the level of religious freedom in North Korea.

      Palestinians: Prisoners

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will raise with the Israeli Government the detention of Palestinian prisoners without charge or trial.

      Serbia: Ghana

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has held with the Commonwealth Secretariat on the expulsion by Serbia of the ambassador of Ghana.

      Serbia: Kosovo

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he is taking to encourage Serbia to improve relations and co-operation with Kosovo.

      Serbia: Kosovo

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment his Department has made of recent developments in negotiations between Serbia and Kosovo and the effect of those...

      Sri Lanka

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many unsuccessful asylum seekers have been forcibly removed to Sri Lanka other than by charter flight since May 2009.

      St Helena

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with his South African counterpart on the provision of broadband internet connection in St Helena.

      St Helena

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he has taken to increase the provision of broadband internet connection in St Helena; and if he will make a statement.

      Turkey

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will discuss with his Turkish counterpart the number of journalists being held in Turkish prisons without charge.

      Uganda

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has received about the arrest of Joseph Kony on a warrant issued by the International Criminal Court in...

      Western Sahara

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received on those administering power in the (a) unoccupied zone and (b) occupied Western Sahara.

      Western Sahara

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether the Government recognises a de jure Administering Power in Western Sahara.

  • Work and Pensions

    • Action for Employment: Fraud

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when he was made personally aware of the allegations of fraud at A4e.

    • Action for Employment: Fraud

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when (a) the Minister for Employment and (b) senior officials of his Department were made aware of the allegations of fraud at A4e.

      Carer’s Allowance: North West

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in Denton and Reddish constituency were in receipt of carer's allowance in (a) 2008-09, (b) 2009-10 and (c) 2010-11.

      Children: Maintenance

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the number of child support cases that are dealt with manually.

      Departmental Consultants

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions which consultancy reports were produced by (a) audit and (b) management consulting firms for his Department in (i) 2010 and (ii) 2011.

      Employment and Support Allowance

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he made of the number of people in receipt of employment and support allowance that would be referred to the Work programme prior...

      Employment and Support Allowance: Complaints

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many complaints he has received relating to the performance of the employment and support allowance benefit delivery centre in each year...

      Employment Schemes

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions which Work programme contractors are operating in each area of the UK; and what the local unemployment rate in each such area was (a) when the...

      Employment Schemes

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when he next plans to publish data on the length of benefit claims for people participating in the (a) work experience and (b) mandatory work...

      Employment Schemes: Fraud

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many allegations of fraud relating to the Work programme have been (a) reported and (b) investigated; and how many such investigations have...

      Employment Schemes: Fraud

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many staff in his Department are working on the investigation of reports of fraud relating to the Work programme.

      Employment Schemes: Fraud

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many staff in his Department are working on the investigation of fraud relating to contract management arrangements with Work programme...

      Jobcentre Plus

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the cost of administration complaints relating to the performance of Jobcentre Plus was in each year since 2008; and if he will make a...

      Jobcentre Plus

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many complaints he has received relating to the performance of Jobcentre Plus offices in (a) Walthamstow constituency, (b) London and (c)...

      Jobcentre Plus: Yorkshire and The Humber

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the success of the Archive Operations Management pilot in the Yorkshire and Humber region of Jobcentre Plus.

      Pensions

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the number of people entitled to pension credit who have not claimed it in (a) England, (b) Cumbria and (c)...

      Pensions: Females

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the potential effect on expenditure on state pensions of the Government's proposal that women born in 1951 should...

      Personal Independence Payment

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions which organisations are represented on his Department’s Personal Independence Payment Implementation Development Group; and if he will...

      Regulation

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions which regulations his Department repealed between 1 June 2011 and 31 January 2012; and if he will estimate the likely savings to the public...

      Social Security Benefits

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many awards have been made under the Flexible Support Fund since April 2011.

      Social Security Benefits: Appeals

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people who were previously receiving incapacity benefit and have been reassessed for employment and support allowance have (a)...

      Social Security Benefits: Appeals

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the (a) mean and (b) median waiting time was for a work capability assessment following the start of a claim or receipt of a reassessment...

      Universal Credit

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when he expects all local authorities to participate in the (a) short-term and (b) long-term universal credit local authority pilots he has...

      Welfare Reform Act 2012: Northern Ireland

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent discussions he has had with the Minister for Social Development in the Northern Ireland Executive about the effect of the Welfare...

      Work Capability Assessment

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people have attended a scheduled work capability assessment but have not been seen by Atos even though they had an appointment in the...

      Work Capability Assessment: North West

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in (a) Denton and Reddish constituency and (b) the north west who have attended a work capability assessment have been deemed...

      Work Programme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many referrals to the Work programme each job centre has made in each Jobcentre Plus district between June and October 2011.

  • Treasury

    • Credit: EU Law

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) on which date a formal request for state aid approval was submitted to the European Commission in respect of his credit easing scheme; (2) on what...

    • Departmental Ethnic Minority Staff

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many and what proportion of senior civil servants in his Department were from an ethnic minority in March (a) 2010, (b) 2011 and (c) 2012; and if he...

      Entrust

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) when he will next reassess the role and effectiveness of ENTRUST, the regulator of the Landfill Communities Fund; (2) what recent discussions he has...

      European Bank for Reconstruction and Development

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what representations he has received on the extension of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development's scope to cover southern and eastern...

      Excise Duties: Alcoholic Drinks

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what estimate he has made of the proportion of off-trade sales in financial years (a) 2008-09, (b) 2009-10 and (c) 2010-11 in respect of (i) spirits,...

      Excise Duties: Fuels

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the findings of the report from the Centre for Economic and Business Research on the potential effects of a reduction in fuel...

      Foreign Loans: Argentina

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his policy is on future votes at the World Bank on loans to Argentina.

      Freezing Orders: Libya

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much in frozen Libyan assets has been returned to Libya; and whether any assets are still frozen.

      Housing: Construction

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if his Department will act as a guarantor for smaller developers in the construction sector to enable them to compete for the Get Britain Building Fund; and...

      Income Tax

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many (a) male and (b) female higher rate taxpayers there were in the most recent period for which figures are available.

      Monetary Policy: Pensioners

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the effect on pensioners of quantitative easing; and if he will make a statement.

      Revenue and Customs: ICT

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the effect spending on systems to allow tax offices to communicate would have on levels of (a) service and (b) savings to the...

      Rural Areas: Grants

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what fiscal steps he is taking to ensure that rural areas receive a fair share of central Government grants.

      Taxation

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what estimate HM Revenue and Customs has made of the loss to the public purse arising from tax not being collected from people registered as...

      Taxation: Energy

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the change in cost to consumers of the planned introduction of the carbon floor price.

      Taxation: Multinational Companies

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what assessment he has made of the effect on developing countries of his proposed changes to the rules on controlled foreign companies; (2) if he...

      Taxation: Nuclear Power

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he has considered introducing a windfall tax on nuclear operators for the purposes of mitigating the effect of the proposed feed-in tariff with...

      Vat

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the effect of the rise in the level of VAT on the (a) retail and (b) construction sector.

      VAT: Employment

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent assessment he has made of the effect of the change in the level of VAT on unemployment.

      Working Tax Credit

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many couples with children working between 16 and 23 hours per week were in receipt of working tax credit at the latest date for which figures are...

      Working Tax Credit: Liverpool Riverside

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the effect on families in Liverpool, Riverside constituency of changes in working tax credit eligibility rules to be...

      Working Tax Credit: North West

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will estimate the cost to the economy of (a) Warrington and (b) the North West on (i) the freeze in the (A) 30 hour element and (B) the couples or...

  • Business, Innovation and Skills

    • Apprentices: North West

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment he has made of the potential effects of expected trends in apprenticeship uptake on reducing youth unemployment...

    • Business: Innovation

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many businesses in each constituency in the North West have received funding under the Business Innovation Scheme since the...

      Business: Loans

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps the Government has taken to promote a range of forms of finance for small businesses.

      Business: Loans

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent assessment his Department has made of the ability of small businesses to access finance.

      Business: Wales

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent discussions he has had with Ministers in the Welsh Government on the Government's industrial vision.

      Competition

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent progress his Department has made in finalising the Government’s response to the consultation on A Competition...

      Competition Commission: Office of Fair Trading

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills when he expects the merger of the Competition Commission and the Office of Fair Trading to be completed; and if he will make a...

      Copyright

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what representations he has received on proposals to change licensing schemes operated by the Copyright Licensing Agency and the...

      East Midlands Development Agency: Pay

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether any staff employed by the East Midlands Development Agency received retention bonuses after the announcement by the...

      Higher Education

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what submissions are required to be made by higher education providers in order for their courses to be designated; and if he...

      Higher Education: Admissions

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what information his Department holds on the relative performance at university of students entering university from (a) state...

      Higher Education: Standards

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how often designated higher education courses are audited (a) for quality assurance and (b) to ensure student loans claimed match...

      Money Advice Service: Scotland

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills (1) whether in the transitional period from April 2012 to March 2013, the Money Advice Service will enter new agreements with...

      Office for Fair Access

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what areas of expenditure in the Office for Fair Access will increase in 2012-13.

      Office for Life Sciences

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 21 November 2011, Official Report, column 149W, on Office for Life Sciences, how many full-time...

      Office for Life Sciences

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many projects the Office for Life Sciences has completed since May 2010; what projects are underway; and what the budget is...

      Oxford University: Admissions

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many people from each parliamentary constituency were accepted to study at Oxford and Cambridge universities (a) in the last...

      Research: Science

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills which official in his Department has lead responsibility for communicating with the life sciences industry; and which directorate...

      Royal Mail

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills when Ministers in his Department met with (a) the chief executive and (b) the chairman of Royal Mail to discuss the financial and...

      South East England Development Agency: Incentives

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether staff employed by the South East England Development Agency received retention bonuses after the announcement by the...

      Student Loans Company: Pay

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills on what dates (a) he, (b) the Permanent Secretary of his Department and (c) the Minister of State for Universities and Science...

      Students: Finance

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps he is taking to increase awareness of the student finance arrangements for academic year 2012-13 amongst parents and...

      Students: Loans

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what discussions he has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on the decision not to impose charges on graduates who repay...

      Unfair Practices

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to question 97635, how many prosecutions were brought under the Consumer Protection From Unfair Trading Regulations 2008...

  • Justice

    • Approved Premises

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what his policy is on the safeguards needed on contracts for the provision of bail accommodation that does not meet the definition of approved premises...

    • Approved Premises

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice by what means his Department governs the provision of bail accommodation under (a) the contract with Stonham and (b) other arrangements for the provision...

      Approved Premises

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what steps he is taking to ensure local authorities comply with the joint working protocol on bail and accommodation support services; and what...

      Approved Premises

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what conditions he sets for premises to be used for bail accommodation; and whether local authorities require planning consent for such usage.

      Ashfield Young Offender Institution

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) how many incidents of segregation have been recorded at Ashfield Young Offender Institution in each year since 2006; and how many such segregations...

      Chief Coroner

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice when he plans to appoint the chief coroner; and what the functions and responsibilities of the role will be.

      Closed Circuit Television

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what information his Department holds on the number of people who were convicted where CCTV evidence was a contributory factor in (a) the West Midlands,...

      Departmental Ethnic Minority Staff

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many and what proportion of senior civil servants in his Department were from an ethnic minority in March (a) 2010, (b) 2011 and (c) 2012; and if he...

      Departmental Public Expenditure

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much funding his Department proposes to allocate to (1) the (a) Policy Group, (b) Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority, (c) Corporate Services,...

      Driving Offences

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many and what proportion of people whose driving licence was suspended temporarily before trial as a condition of their bail had been charged with...

      Driving Offences

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the average time was for a defendant to be brought before a court when charged with (a) causing death by dangerous driving, (b) causing death by...

      European Court of Justice

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice whether the UK has introduced the measures required by articles 3 to 9 of EU Council Framework Decision 2000/383/JHA.

      Euthanasia: Prosecutions

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many people have been prosecuted for helping another person to end their life in each of the last 10 years for which figures are available.

      Legal Aid Scheme: Females

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many additional women he estimates will be eligible for legal aid following the amendment made in the House of Lords on 5 March 2012 to the Legal Aid...

      Prisoners

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what recent representations he has received on ensuring convicted murderers do not move into areas where they might come into contact with their...

      Prisoners: Ex-servicemen

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer of 14 November 2011 to the hon. Member for Luton North, Official Report, column 552W, on prisoners: ex-servicemen, if he will make...

      Proceeds of Crime

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how monies and assets recovered under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 are being used by his Department.

      Reoffenders

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the reoffending rate for (a) Northamptonshire, (b) the area with the worst record in England and Wales and (c) the area with the best record in...

      Suicide

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) if he will take steps to ensure training on the needs of relatives bereaved through suicide is provided to coroners in England and Wales; and if he...

      Translation Services

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer of 6 March 2012, Official Report, column 706W, on translation services (1) which of the key performance indicators the...

      Translation Services: Foreign Nationals

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many foreign nationals in the criminal justice system have been released on bail rather than remanded in custody because of problems with the...

  • International Development

    • Air Travel

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development on what occasions he has taken overseas flights to countries on official business since August 2010; what class of travel was used on...

    • Global Fund to Fight Aids, Tuberculosis and Malaria

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent discussions he has had with his counterparts in other donor countries on meeting commitments to the Global Fund to fight...

      Jamaica

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what the cost has been of UK aid to Jamaica since his Department's records began.

      Leishmaniasis

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will estimate the number of people globally affected by visceral leishmaniasis; and what steps his Department is taking to tackle...

      Members: Correspondence

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development when the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for International Development plans to respond to the letter of 16 February 2012 from...

      North Korea

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps the Government is taking to respond to the humanitarian situation in North Korea.

      Palestinians

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent representations he has made to the Israeli government on the restrictions in permitted fishing off the coast of Gaza and...

      Palestinians

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent representations he has made on the opening of crossings into Gaza.

      Sahel

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what discussions he has had with (a) other governments and (b) multilateral organisations about funding for food insecurity in the Sahel.

  • Energy and Climate Change

    • Energy: Prices

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate his Department has made of the value of support fuel-poor households will receive in 2013 from the energy company...

    • Energy: Prices

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate has been made of the average annual amount which will be levied on a dual fuel bill to pay for the energy company obligation.

      EU Emissions Trading Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of the Emissions Trading Scheme.

      Green Deal Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change when his Department plans to bring forward Green Deal secondary legislation.

      Green Deal Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what progress has been made in establishing a Green Deal apprenticeship scheme.

      Green Deal Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will place in the Library copies of correspondence he received between 1 January 2012 and 1 March 2012 from energy companies or...

      Green Deal Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will take steps to establish clear rules for the independence of Green Deal assessors from Green Deal providers.

      Green Deal Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what steps he is taking to ensure Green Deal assessors are appropriately qualified to provide advice to the consumer of the effect of...

      Green Deal Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what steps he is taking to ensure that the Code of Practice for Green Deal assessors enables consumers to access advice on Green Deal...

      Green Deal Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will take steps to ensure that consumers have access to advice from qualified built environment professionals on the full effects...

      Nuclear Power Stations: Safety

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what information he has received from HM Chief Nuclear Inspector on progress made in resolving each of the outstanding issues...

      Renewable Energy: Feed-in Tariffs

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how much additional funding he has allocated to the feed-in tariff scheme in the most current spending period.

      Renewable Energy: North West

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what plans he has to promote renewable energy sources in the North West of England.

      Solar Power

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what steps he will take if deployment levels of solar photovoltaics are not on a trajectory to meet his 22GW ambition.

      Solar Power

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what levels of solar photovoltaic deployment he expects in (a) 2012-13, (b) 2013-14 and (c) 2014-15, broken down by (i) 0 to 4kw and...

      Tidal Power: North West

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent assessment he has made of the potential for the use of tidal energy in the North West of England.

  • Deputy Prime Minister

    • Political Parties: Directors

      To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what discussions he has had on requiring Government funded bodies to publish a register showing the political affiliations, if any, of directors and senior staff.

  • Health

    • Ambulance Services: Pay

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the cost was of all the salaries of the chief executives of NHS ambulance trusts in England in (a) 2007 and (b) 2011.

    • Ambulance Services: Pay

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what information his Department holds on the levels of pay of chief executives of ambulance services in other EU member states.

      Brain: Injuries

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 28 February 2012, Official Report, columns 244-5W, on the brain: injuries, for what reason civilian patients treated in NHS...

      Breast Cancer

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what progress his Department has made on a national breast cancer audit as part of the National Clinical Audit and Patient Outcome Programme; (2)...

      Cumbria Primary Care Trust

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the number of patients from the Cumbria Primary Care Trust area who have been referred to out-of-county specialists in each...

      Departmental Ethnic Minority Staff

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many and what proportion of senior civil servants in his Department were from an ethnic minority in March (a) 2010, (b) 2011 and (c) 2012; and if he...

      Diabetes: Screening

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the number of people with diabetes who did not receive the nine health care checks recommended by the National Institute for...

      Drugs

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what funding his Department makes available for independent research into branded medicines which are in short supply.

      Drugs: Delivery Services

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 1 March 2012, Official Report, column 474W, on drugs: delivery services, if he will (a) make and (b) publish an assessment of...

      Drugs: Misuse

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what his strategy is for training and workforce development to support the transfer of responsibility for drug and alcohol services for the new public...

      Drugs: Plymouth

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what information his Department holds on which branded medicines are in short supply in Plymouth.

      Health

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) whether there are any (a) organisations and (b) individuals that have withdrawn from the plenary group which oversees the development of the Public...

      Health

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many meetings have been held of the plenary group which oversees the development of the Public Health Responsibility Deal since its inception.

      Health

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the Public Health Responsibility Deal in tackling obesity and other health issues.

      Health and Social Care Bill

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many representations he has received urging him to drop the Health and Social Care Bill from (a) individuals and (b) organisations.

      Health Services: North West

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the (a) capital and (b) ongoing revenue costs of providing extra intensive care and high dependency unit beds at (i)...

      Heart Diseases: Children

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the budget is for the safe and sustainable review of children's heart services in England which is being carried out by the National Specialised...

      Midwives

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Hackney North and Stoke Newington of 20 February 2012, Official Report, column 701W, on midwives, what...

      Multiple Sclerosis: Drugs

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 1 March 2012, Official Report, columns 476-7W, on multiple sclerosis: drugs, how many prescriptions for the Tysabri form of the...

      Multiple Sclerosis: Drugs

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 1 March 2012, Official Report, columns 476-7W, on multiple sclerosis: drugs, how many prescriptions for the Fampyra form of the...

      NHS: Innovation

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what role the Specialised Commissioning Innovation Fund will have in supporting the adoption and diffusion of innovation.

      NHS: Innovation

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many bodies within the NHS he proposes will have specific responsibility for the promotion of innovation in health care after March 2012; (2)...

      NHS: Procurement

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health how he plans to monitor the personalisation of healthcare by primary care trusts and clinical commissioning groups.

      NHS: Procurement

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) whether he plans to transfer commissioning support services to the private sector; (2) what future arrangements he plans for the control and...

      NHS: Reorganisation

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance he has issued on the conduct of consultations with the public on proposed changes to NHS services; and what procedures he has put in place...

      Pharmacy

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department is taking to review the effect on the supply of prescription drugs of the Direct to Pharmacy initiative; and for what reasons...

      Pharmacy

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 20 February 2012, Official Report, column 711W, on pharmacy, what his policy is on imposing a legal obligation to ensure a...

      Pinderfields Hospital: Spinal Injuries

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what information his Department holds on whether a review of spinal cord injury services is being undertaken at Pinderfields hospital, Wakefield.

      Prescription Drugs: Exports

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent discussions he has had on reducing the exports of prescription drugs which are in shortage in the NHS.

      Primary Ciliary Dyskinesia: Prescriptions

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what representations he has received on exempting adults with primary ciliary dyskinesia from prescription charges in the last 12 months.

      Recruitment

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much his Department has spent on advertising job vacancies since October 2011.

      Shrewsbury and Telford Hospitals NHS Trust: Public Appointments

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he plans to give guidance to the Shrewsbury and Telford NHS Hospitals Trust board on the inclusion of interested stakeholder groups in the...

      South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the responsibilities are of the (a) chair and (b) chief executive of the South London and Maudsley NHS Trust.

      Sugar

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he considered including a pledge on sugar as part of the Responsibility Deal Collective Pledges on Food.

      West Midlands Ambulance Service NHS Trust: Pay

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what the total value of the remuneration package is for the chief executive of West Midlands Ambulance Service, including costs associated with...

      West Midlands Ambulance Service NHS Trust: Pay

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) if he will take steps to reduce the salary of the chief executive of West Midlands Ambulance Service; (2) if he will arrange for officials in his...

  • Women and Equalities

    • Equality and Human Rights Commission: Pay

      To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities for what reason the Deputy Chair of the Equality and Human Rights Commission's daily rate of pay is set at £700; and if she will make a statement.

  • House of Lords

    • Cafcass

      To ask Her Majesty's Government how many cases the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service have allocated to self-employed practitioners in each quarter since the first quarter of 2007.

    • Agriculture: Peat

      To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs have carried out an environmental impact assessment of the extraction of peat for horticultural use.

      Agriculture: Single Farm Payment

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of how many farmers will not be able to submit their single farm payment claims online, as required after April 2012; and what...

      Armed Forces: Aircraft

      To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Astor of Hever on 27 February (WA 192-3), whether a list of enhancements required to allow the deployment of Tornado...

      Armed Forces: Destroyers and Frigates

      To ask Her Majesty's Government whether three destroyers and frigates are required to ensure that one destroyer and frigate can remain on a deployed task.

      Armed Forces: Destroyers and Frigates

      To ask Her Majesty's Government whether, during the Strategic Defence and Security Review, the National Security Council discussed with the Ministry of Defence whether 19 destroyers and frigates...

      Armed Forces: Maritime Assets

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what consideration they have given to the possible attrition of maritime assets during operations.

      Banking

      To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will review the steps necessary to address any investor uncertainty about client money rules as they apply to investment accounts operated through...

      Banking: World Bank

      To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will support a meritocratic selection process for the next President of the World Bank.

      BBC

      To ask Her Majesty's Government whether there is any audit process to ensure that the BBC is politically neutral.

      Benefits

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what proportion of welfare benefit cases finalised under a legal services contract were (1) appeal cases, or (2) revision cases; and, of those, how many of the...

      Benefits

      To ask Her Majesty's Government how many appeals have been lodged as a result of incapacity benefit reassessments since October 2010; and, of those how many (1) are still pending before the...

      Building Stability Overseas Strategy

      To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Northover on 29 November 2011 (WA 40), how many countries are on their internal watch-list of fragile states.

      Burma

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what financial support they provide to the International Labour Organisation Office in Burma.

      Caribbean: Police Forces

      To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will train Caribbean police forces in basic human rights as part of their governance and security programme in the Caribbean.

      China

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what efforts they are making to encourage China to abide by its responsibilities under the 1951 Refugee Convention with respect to repatriation of North Korean...

      Employment Tribunals

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the success rates for race and religion discrimination claimants, who have had full hearings at employment tribunals over the...

      Employment Tribunals

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what action they propose to improve race and religion discrimination claimants' representation in employment tribunal case hearings.

      Energy: Nuclear Reactors

      To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the answers by Lord Marland on 7 July 2011 (Official Report, col. 347-9) and the Written Answer by Lord Marland on 24 May 2011 (WA 406-7) in which he...

      Equality Act 2010

      To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will bring into effect the power conferred by the Equality Act 2010 to make age discrimination unlawful in providing goods, services and facilities,...

      Global Positioning Systems

      To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they are concerned about the illegal jamming of global positioning systems; and, if so, what action they are taking to prevent this in the United Kingdom.

      Government Departments: Performance Criteria

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what are the performance criteria they have set for achieving the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's Charter for Business.

      Government Departments: Staff

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the management structure of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and each of its agencies; how many managers are at each level in each body;...

      Government Departments: Staff

      To ask Her Majesty's Government how much HM Revenue and Customs has paid in relation to speeding tickets incurred by staff in the course of their work in each of the past 10 years.

      Government: Contracts

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what action they have taken to support United Kingdom companies, or companies with a United Kingdom workforce, to obtain a larger percentage of government contracts.

      Government: Ministerial Salaries

      To ask Her Majesty's Government how many Ministers are currently paid from public funds and how many are currently unpaid. To ask Her Majesty's Government what would be the total cost of paying...

      Gypsies and Travellers

      To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will respond to the recommendations of the Department for Education's Gypsy, Roma and Traveller Education Stakeholder Group, and in particular to the...

      Houses of Parliament: Energy Costs

      To ask the Chairman of Committees what are the additional energy costs incurred when one House of Parliament sits and the other House is in recess over the costs incurred when both Houses are in...

      India and Pakistan

      To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they intend to mark the tenth anniversary of the Gujarat violence in India, and the first anniversary of the assassination of Shahbaz Bhatti in Pakistan;...

      Indonesia

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their assessment of the opinion stated by the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention that the imprisonment of Filep Karma constitutes a breach...

      International Development

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what are their priorities for the next round of international development goals following the expiry of the millennium development goals in 2015.

      Iraq

      To ask Her Majesty's Government how they have raised with the Government of Iraq access in that country to fair reviews and justice for those in administrative detention, held without charge or...

      Israel

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what evaluation they have made of the importance of the Al-Aqsa Mosque as a holy site for Muslims; and what assessment they have made of the reported movements by...

      Israel

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what representations they have made to the Government of Israel concerning the judgment of the Israeli High Court on 26 December 2011 to allow 11 Israeli companies...

      Israel

      To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will encourage the Government of Israel to release Hana Shalabi.

      Israel

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what representations they have made to the Government of Israel concerning alleged human rights violations in the week ending 23 February.

      Israel and Palestine

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what impact the statement on 20 February by the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied since...

      Israel and Palestine

      To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they and the Quartet are making representations to the Government of Israel about official registration of land at Atarot in East Jerusalem as municipal.

      Israel and Palestine

      To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will invite the Government of Israel to return the equipment confiscated by Israel from Al Wattan and Al-Quds educational television stations in the...

      Israel and Palestine: Tony Blair

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the role of the quartet, and of Tony Blair as its leader, in negotiating a Middle East peace process; and what is the cost of...

      Israel and Palestine: West Bank

      To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they and the quartet are making representations to the Government of Israel about preliminary approval for 600 new homes in the West Bank near Shiloh.

      Money: £50 Notes

      To ask Her Majesty's Government how many (1) old, and (2) new, £50 notes are currently in circulation; when they plan to withdraw the old notes; and what guidance and rules have been issued...

      National Loan Guarantee Scheme

      To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the provision of subsidy to borrowers from banks under the national loan guarantee scheme has been cleared by the European Union under state aid rules; and...

      North Korea

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their assessment of the situation in North Korea following the death of Kim Jong-il and the succession to the leadership by his son, Kim Jong-un and of...

      North Korea

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their assessment of the current state of religious freedom in North Korea.

      North Korea

      To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they are involved with the repatriation of North Korean refugees from China to North Korea; and what assessment they have made of the likely treatment of...

      North Korea

      To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will encourage the BBC World Service to consider establishing a Korean-language service broadcasting into North Korea.

      North Korea

      To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they agree with the assessment of the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in North Korea in his February 2012 report to the...

      North Korea

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of food shortages in North Korea, and of their impact on health for children, women and the elderly in North Korea; and why the...

      North Korea

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what efforts they are making to respond to the humanitarian situation in North Korea; what discussions they have had with Baroness Amos, following her visit to...

      North Korea

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what support they are giving to the development of the English language in North Korea; and what Foreign and Commonwealth Office and British Council work is being...

      Pensions

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the increase in the number of pensioners leaving the United Kingdom to reside overseas if all overseas United Kingdom state...

      Pensions

      To ask Her Majesty's Government how many people living outside the United Kingdom received non-uprated United Kingdom state pensions in the most recent period for which data is available, broken...

      Pensions

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the estimated cost of uprating United Kingdom state pensions in each of the countries affected by the frozen pensions regulations.

      Performance and Innovation Unit and Strategy Unit

      To ask Her Majesty's Government how many reports were produced by the Performance and Innovation Unit, and then the Strategy Unit in each year since 1997.

      Saudi Arabia

      To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will make representations to the Government of Saudi Arabia regarding the participation of women in their team for the London Olympics.

      Schools: Teachers

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what was the teacher turnover rate in state schools in the past five years; and what was the breakdown of teacher turnover by type of state school.

      Schools: Worship

      To ask Her Majesty's Government whether allowing non-religious parents to withdraw their children from collective worship is an adequate alternative for the parents to having their children...

      Schools: Worship

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment the Department for Education has made of the options open to parents who do not wish their children to attend collective worship, and of whether...

      Scotland: Referendum

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what additional powers are envisaged by the Prime Minister to be made available to the Scottish Parliament if Scotland were not to vote for independence in a...

      Separated Children's Guardianship Project

      To ask Her Majesty's Government whether it is intended that the Children's Commissioner will consider the interim findings of the Separated Children's Guardianship Project scheme in Scotland...

      Syria

      To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they are discussing ceasefires, access for humanitarian supplies, and possible safe zones in Syria with the International Committee of the Red Cross.

      Syria

      To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they are considering, or are aware that their international partners are considering, military intervention in Syria.

      Taxation

      To ask Her Majesty's Government how much revenue they estimate they receive from the tax of those whose income is over £150,000 per year.

      Tristan da Cunha

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what assistance is being given to Tristan da Cunha to develop economic activity.

      Turkey

      To ask Her Majesty's Government how they have raised with the Government of Turkey access in that country to fair reviews and justice for those in administrative detention, held without charge or...

      UK Trade and Investment

      To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Green of Hurstpierpoint on 29 November 2011 (WA 65), which countries they regard as "emerging powers".

      UN: War Crimes Commission

      To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have obtained their copy of the United Nations War Crimes Commission archive; and, if not, whether they will seek to do so.

      UN: War Crimes Commission

      To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will seek publication of the United Nations War Crimes Commission archive.

What is this?

The parliamentary question is a great way for MPs and Peers to discover information which the government may not wish to reveal. Ministers reply via written answers, a list of which gets published daily.

We let you vote on whether or not the answer given is adequate.

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