Written answers

Thursday, 18 July 2013

  • Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs

    • Hezbollah

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment he has made of Hezbollah involvement in Syria.

    • Hezbollah

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of recent reports that the Secretary General of Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah, has stated that...

      Shaker Aamer

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer of 18 June 2013, Official Report, column 631W, on Shaker Aamer, what steps he is taking to ensure Shaker...

      Sri Lanka

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer from the Deputy Prime Minister to the right hon. Member for Bermondsey and Old Southwark of 15 May 2013,...

      Uganda

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations the Government has made to civil society groups, churches and media organisations (a) in Uganda and (b)...

      Uganda

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations the Government has made to the Government of Uganda in relation to the Anti-Homosexuality Bill before the...

      Usa

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the existence of fraudulent websites selling fake electronic systems for travel authorization...

      Wales

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether his Department provides services to people resident in Wales or usually resident in Wales.

  • Electoral Commission Committee

    • Electoral Register: British Nationals Abroad

      To ask the honourable Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission what estimate he has made of the total number of potential overseas nationals...

    • Electoral Register: British Nationals Abroad

      To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, (1) what target the Electoral Commission has to increase the number of overseas...

      Electoral Register: British Nationals Abroad

      To ask the honourable Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission what recommendations the Electoral Commission has made to the Government to...

      Electoral Systems

      To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, what recommendations the Electoral Commission has carried out into different...

      Voting Rights: British Nationals Abroad

      To ask the honourable Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission how many overseas nationals are entitled to register to vote according to their...

  • Wales

    • Overseas Aid

      To ask the Secretary of State for Wales which projects administered by the National Assembly for Wales are UK overseas development assistance (ODA) attributable; what the total value of the...

  • Attorney-General

    • Duwayne Brooks

      To ask the Attorney-General whether any lawyers who worked on the 1993 prosecution of Duwayne Brooks are still employed by the Crown Prosecution Service.

    • Grant Thornton

      To ask the Attorney-General how much the Law Officers’ Departments have spent on contracts with Grant Thornton in each year since 2008.

      Serious Fraud Office

      To ask the Attorney-General what steps he took to avoid the £15,000 unauthorised ex-gratia payment to the Serious Fraud Office’s former chief operating officer being paid out of the...

      Serious Fraud Office

      To ask the Attorney-General whether there have been any recent instances of evidence for current or past Serious Fraud Office investigations being (a) lost or (b) returned to the wrong people.

  • Work and Pensions

    • Apprentices

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many apprenticeships his Department offered to people aged (a) 16 to 18, (b) 19 to 21 and (c) 22 to 26 years old in each year since 2010.

    • Child Benefit

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps his Department is taking to reduce the number of people claiming child benefit for children living outside the UK; and if he will...

      Employment and Support Allowance

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) what the outcome of the investigation undertaken by his Department into the telephone security questions asked of applicants for...

      Flexible Support Fund

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what criteria was used to allocate money to local authorities under the Support Fund.

      Housing Benefit: Gwynedd

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the level of need for discretionary housing payment in Gwynedd as a result of the under-occupancy penalty.

      Housing Benefit: Private Rented Housing

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people living in private rented accommodation are in receipt of housing benefit.

      Housing Benefit: Social Rented Housing

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the full cost to the Exchequer of reinstating the under-occupancy penalty in fiscal year 2015-16.

      Jobseeker's Allowance: Scotland

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the effect of the introduction of a seven day wait before jobseekers can claim jobseeker's allowance on (a)...

      Pensions: Fraud

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many non-UK-based companies are currently being investigated by the Pensions Regulator for the misappropriation of UK pension funds; and if...

      Personal Independence Payment

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether (a) multiple sclerosis nurse specialists and (b) other nurse specialists will (i) complete factual report forms in relation to personal...

      Redundancy

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) how many employees of the Health and Safety Executive resident in Scotland have been made redundant through compulsory redundancy schemes...

      Social Security Benefits

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the number of single earner families with net annual earnings of £26,000 who are also in receipt of (a) child...

      Social Security Benefits

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many households affected by the benefit cap in the pilot areas have moved out of London since the cap was introduced.

      Social Security Benefits: Greater London

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many households have had their weekly income (a) reduced and (b) reduced by over £100 in (i) Croydon, (ii) Bromley, (iii) Enfield and...

      Wales

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether his Department provides services to people resident in Wales or usually resident in Wales.

      Welsh Language

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether his Department has a current Welsh Language scheme; when that scheme was adopted; and whether it has been reviewed since May 2011.

      Work Programme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) what assessment he has made of the extent to which people finding jobs through the Work Programme are doing so in (a) small firms and (b)...

      Work Programme: Ashfield

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in Ashfield constituency have found employment lasting more than six months through the Work programme since its inception; how...

  • Energy and Climate Change

    • Apprentices

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many apprenticeships his Department offered to people aged (a) 16 to 18, (b) 19 to 21 and (c) 22 to 26 years old in each year since...

    • Apprentices

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what strategies he has to create apprenticeships in his Department; and what plans he has to promote such strategies.

      Arctic

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change (1) what recent assessment he has made of (a) the area of Arctic sea ice that will remain during September 2015 and (b) the plausible...

      Energy Companies Obligation

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what the minimum volume is of Energy Companies Obligation that Green Deal providers are obliged to deliver in respect of individual...

      Energy Companies Obligation

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 8 July 2013, Official Report, column 67W, on energy companies obligation, for what reasons he does not intend...

      Fuel Poverty

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many people living in private rented accomodation are living in fuel poverty.

      Green Deal Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate his Department has made of how much the credit checking process for Green Deal customers adds to the cost of delivering...

      Green Deal Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what testing Green Deal systems were subject to before that scheme was launched in January 2013.

      Green Deal Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how much of the £200 million of incentive money for the Green Deal has been used to carry out free Green Deal Assessments to date.

      Hinkley Point C Power Station

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change when he plans to announce the detail on the community benefit package for the new Hinkley Point C nulear power station.

      Hinkley Point C Power Station

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many meetings (a) Ministers and (b) officials of his Department have had with Électricité de France in (i) the UK and...

      Insulation

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what criteria were used to determine that hard to treat cavity wall insulation and solid wall insulation would not be identified as...

      Nuclear Industry Council

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what matters were discussed and what decisions taken at the Nuclear Industry Council meeting on 10 July 2013; when full minutes of the...

      Official Cars

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change which officials in his Department are entitled to use a car from the Government car pool.

      Official Cars

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many officials of his Department were entitled to use the Government car pool in (a) 2009, (b) 2010, (c) 2011 and (d) 2012.

      Official Cars

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many officials of his Department used Government cars in (a) 2009, (b) 2010, (c) 2011 and (d) 2012.

      Regulation

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what the title is of each regulation his Department (a) introduced and (b) revoked in (i) 2010, (ii) 2011, (iii) 2012 and (iv) 2013 to...

      Security

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many passes for his Department have been issued (a) to persons who are not officials of his Department and (b) to representatives...

      Welsh Language

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change whether his Department has a current Welsh Language scheme; when that scheme was adopted; and whether it has been reviewed since May 2011.

      Written Questions

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change (1) how many answers by his Department to Parliamentary Questions involving tables of statistics fewer than four pages in length were...

  • Justice

    • Capita

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much his Department currently spends on contracts with Capita; and how much was spent in each year since 2008.

    • Clothing

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many officials in (a) his Department and (b) the non-departmental public bodies for which he is responsible have made a claim for evening dress...

      Community Orders

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many people aged (a) 10 to 15, (b) 16 to 18 and (c) 18 to 21 years and sentenced to community orders were sentenced to (i) unpaid work for up to 300...

      Conditions of Employment

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer of 10 June 2013, Official Report, column 93W, on conditions of employment, how many people in his Department were employed on zero...

      Court of Protection

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) how many cases coming before the Court of Protection were later subject to Judicial Review in each year since May 2005; (2) how many decisions of...

      Court of Protection

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) how many cases were considered by the Court of Protection in each year since May 2005; (2) in how many cases the Court of Protection has made a...

      Courts: Shropshire

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice for what reason changes to the low-level courts structure are being initiated in Shropshire in advance of his Department's review of the future shape of...

      Criminal Injuries Compensation

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many applications for compensation from the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme Hardship Fund were rejected due to being received after the four...

      Criminal Proceedings

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) what the average length of time was between a crime being committed and an offender being sentenced in (a) 2010, (b) 2011 and (c) 2012; (2) what...

      Death

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many convictions or reported offences there have been under the amended section 5 of the Domestic Violence, Crime and Victims Act 2004 offence of...

      Domestic Violence

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what definition of the term domestic violence his Department uses for court operational purposes; and which relationships are covered by that term.

      Driving Offences: Insurance

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much was raised from fines for driving whilst uninsured in (a) Barnsley Central constituency, (b) South Yorkshire and (c) England in each of the last...

      Driving: Disqualification

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what redress is available to a person whose driving licence is revoked as a result of a court wrongly notifying the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency...

      Driving: Disqualification

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice on what date East London Magistrates Court notified the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency that the court had wrongly identified Mr Byrne of...

      Driving: Disqualification

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice for what reason East London Magistrates Court did not write to Mr Byrne of Christchurch reinstating his driving licence as soon as it realised on 5 July...

      Electronic Tagging

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) how his Department plans to monitor the effectiveness of GPS-style tagging of offenders by private companies; (2) what estimate his Department has...

      Electronic Tagging

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) what steps his Department has taken to monitor the effectiveness in reducing re-offending of the electronic tagging of offenders currently...

      Electronic Tagging

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many of those who breached the conditions of their tagging and were due to be recalled to prison failed to be recalled in 2012.

      Electronic Tagging

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many incidents there were of tags being incorrectly removed from offenders in 2012.

      Electronic Tagging

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many incidents there were of tags being incorrectly fitted to the wrong person in 2012.

      Electronic Tagging

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will direct his Department to halt the process of contracting out probation services until the forensic audit by PwC and investigation by the...

      Employment Tribunals Service

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what cost to the public purse has been incurred in the last financial year arising from employment tribunal cases involving claims for equal pay where an...

      Equality

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much has been spent by his Department (a) in total and (b) on staff costs on promoting equality and diversity in each of the last three years for...

      Family Courts: Rhyl

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what progress has been made on the closure of Rhyl family courts.

      Family Courts: Rhyl

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what plans he has to dispose of the Rhyl Family Court building.

      Family Law

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) what steps he has put in place to promote the availability of new legal aid-funded family mediation since 1 April 2013; (2) what assessment he has...

      Grant Thornton

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much his Department has spent on contracts with Grant Thornton in each year since 2008.

      Homicide

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what proportion of (a) male and (b) female victims of homicide were acquainted with the principal suspect in their murder in each of the last five years.

      Homicide: Bail

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) how many people have been given court bail after being charged with (a) murder and (b) attempted murder in each of the last three years; (2) how...

      Judicial Review

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what steps he has taken to stop weak judicial review cases.

      Legal Aid Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much legal aid has been spent on each of the top 10 per cent of the most costly criminal cases in the last three years.

      Legal Aid Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment he has made of the potential effect of the Government's proposed reforms to legal aid funding on provider choice in rural areas.

      Legal Aid Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment he has made of public confidence in the legal aid system.

      Legal Aid Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will take steps to ensure that solicitors working with children are adequately trained in communicating with children in his proposals for legal aid.

      Legal Aid Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what estimate he has made of the optimum distance of travel to legal firms to enable people to be able to access legal aid.

      Legal Aid Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what steps he will take to ensure that children have access to appropriately qualified solicitors under his proposals for criminal legal aid.

      Legal Aid Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment he has made of the representation sent to him on 25 June 2013 by the campaign group Liberty, setting out its concerns about the proposals...

      Legal Aid Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will publish an age impact assessment of the proposals contained in his Department's consultation, Transforming Legal Aid.

      Legal Aid Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will publish an equality impact assessment of the proposals contained in his Department's consultation, Transforming Legal Aid.

      Legal Aid Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what meetings with legal aid consultees he has planned; and if he will make a statement on the response to the consultation.

      Legal Aid Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will list all meetings he and Ministers have held as part of the legal aid consultation; and on what dates these meetings took place.

      Legal Aid Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will list all submissions received in response to his recent consultation on legal aid changes and ensure that they are all published.

      Legal Aid Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if his Department will publish all responses to the recent legal aid consultation.

      Legal Aid Scheme: Wales

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what impact assessment he has made of the financial effects of price competitive tendering on legal service provision in Wales.

      Legal Profession: Payments

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the average length of time a member of the publicly-funded criminal bar waits for payment of invoiced funds; and what the longest length of time...

      Life Imprisonment

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what recent estimate he has made of the average length of time served by people sentenced to a life term in prison.

      Magistrates' Courts: Salford

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how the theft of a network server from Salford magistrates' court in January 2012 took place; who stole the server; what the value of the server was; how...

      Missing Persons

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) what plans he has to review the law relating to presumption of death provisions; (2) what practical assistance is given to those whose loved ones...

      MITIE Group

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much his Department spends on contracts with MITIE; and how much was spent on contracts with MITIE in each year since 2008.

      Northcote House

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many (a) Ministers and (b) officials in his Department used the facilities at Northcote House, Sunningdale Park, Berkshire in (i) 2010-11, (ii)...

      Oakwood Prison

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many complaints from (a) prisoners and (b) prison staff there have been about conditions at HM Prison Oakwood since it first opened.

      Offenders: Rehabilitation

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the cost will be of creating new posts in the Ministry of Justice and the National Offender Management Service in relation to implementing the...

      Personal Independence Payment: Appeals

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what estimate he has made of the cost to HM Courts and Tribunal Service of appeals against personal independence payments.

      Prisoner Corruption Unit

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice in which periods the Prisoner Corruption Unit has been without an overall manager since 2008.

      Prisoner Corruption Unit

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many full-time equivalent officials worked in the prison corruption unit on 1 June (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012 and (d) 2013.

      Prisoners

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what his policy is on the extent to which prison governors can exercise discretion in awarding extra privileges to prisoners.

      Prisoners' Release

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) how many prisoners wrongly released were still at large in each of the last three years; and what crimes they committed in each such year; (2) of...

      Prisoners' Release

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many people have been released on parole licence in each of the last three years.

      Prisoners: EU Nationals

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many nationals of other EU member states are held in UK prisons (a) in total and (b) by country of origin.

      Prisoners: Older People

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) what assessment his Department has made of the needs of older prisoners compared to younger inmates; (2) what assessment he has made of the number...

      Prisoners: Pay

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice with reference to the answer of 25 April 2013, Official Report, column 1314W, on prisoners: pay, how much was spent per head on prisoners' earnings in...

      Prisoners: Pay

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) what the required level of performance and effort required by HM Prison Service is in any given activity in order to secure eligibility for the...

      Prisoners: Per Capita Costs

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the (a) cost per place and (b) cost per prisoner was in (i) publicly run and (ii) privately run prisons in (A) 2010-11, (B) 2011-12 and (C) 2012-13.

      Prisoners: Personal Records

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many prisoner records in each prison establishment in England and Wales have gone missing in each year since 2008.

      Prisons

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) what arrangements were made for the disposal of equipment, furniture and other assets belonging to HMP (a) Shepton Mallet, (b) Kingston, (c)...

      Prisons: Boxing

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what advice his Department issues on the provision of boxing in prisons and young offenders' institutions.

      Prisons: Crimes of Violence

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many assaults against prison staff in the (a) youth estate and (b) adult estate there were in (i) 2010, (ii) 2011 and (iii) 2012.

      Prisons: Drugs

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many incidents of smuggling drugs and contraband into prisons were committed by (a) prison staff and (b) non-prison staff in 2012.

      Prisons: Education

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the two most recent Ofsted inspection findings were on the standard of prison education, by prison.

      Prisons: Food

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what proportion of food procured by prisons came from UK food producers in the latest period for which figures are available.

      Prisons: Private Sector

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much was paid to private contractors for running each privately run prison in (a) 2010-11, (b) 2011-12 and (c) 2012-13; and how much is budgeted to...

      Prisons: Visits

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many staff were employed to perform security checks on inmates and visitors entering prisons in each prison in England and Wales, in each year from...

      Prisons: Wales

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice who will be responsible for making the application for planning permission for the North Wales prison.

      Probation

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) in the event of probation outsourcing in England and Wales, whether he expects a reduction in staff in the probation service as a result of the...

      Probation: Essex

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what information his Department holds on how many members of the public have attended each meeting of the Essex Probation Board in each of the last 12...

      Probation: Essex

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what directorate within his Department has policy responsibility for Essex probation trust; how many officials of each civil service grade are employed...

      Probation: Essex

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what steps Essex Probation Trust (EPT) (a) have taken and (b) plans to take in each of the next two years to increase its cost-effectiveness; what...

      Probation: Essex

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will place in the Library a copy of the response from Essex probation trust to each request under the Freedom of Information Act 2000, where the...

      Probation: Essex

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many staff employed by Essex probation trust were (a) suspended and (b) dismissed for misusing the Government procurement card in the last 12 months;...

      Probation: Essex

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will place in the Library a copy of Essex Probation Trust's government procurement card transaction data including (a) the date of transaction, (b)...

      Probation: Essex

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what recent reports he has received of the morale of probation officers in the Essex probation trust area; and if he will make a statement.

      Property

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the (a) location and (b) value is of any property his Department owns in Scotland.

      Reoffenders: Essex

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what recent steps Essex Probation Trust (a) has taken and (b) plans to take in each of the next two years to reduce reoffending in (i) Southend-on-Sea...

      Reparation by Offenders

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice whether consent is required before sentenced criminals undertake restorative justice processes.

      Rspca

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what representations he made to the RSPCA after paragraph 96 of the Adult Court Bench Book was amended in 2010.

      Schools

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will place in the Library a copy of any material his Department has distributed to schools in the last five years.

      Serco

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much his Department currently spends on contracts with Serco; and how much was spent in each year since 2008.

      Shoplifting

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many of those sentenced for retail theft as of 21 May 2013 had more than (a) one, (b) two, (c) five and (d) 10 prior convictions.

      Shoplifting

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many penalty notices were issued for retail theft of under £200 in each of the last five years; and how many notices were subsequently paid in full.

      Staff

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much his Department spent on (a) recruitment agency fees, (b) outplacement agency fees for displaced or redundant staff and (c) staff training in...

      Translation Services

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) how much his Department saved through the contract for interpreters and translation services in (a) February 2012 and (b) May 2013; (2) what the...

      Trials

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment he has made of the annual costs to the court system of litigants in person.

      Trials

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) how many cases in (a) magistrates courts and (b) Crown courts were awaiting trial on 1 January (i) 2010, (ii) 2011, (iii) 2012 and (iv) 2013; (2)...

      Young Offender Institutions

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many governors (a) Feltham, (b) Ashfield, (c) Cookham Wood, (d) Downview, (e) Eastwood Park, (f) Hindley, (g) New Hall, (h) Parc, (i) Warren Hill,...

      Young Offender Institutions

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many (a) staff and (b) young offenders there were in (i) Feltham, (ii) Ashfield, (iii) Cookham Wood, (iv) Downview, (v) Eastwood Park, (vi) Hindley,...

      Young Offender Institutions

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many (a) education and (b) work places were available to young people in (i) Feltham, (ii) Ashfield, (iii) Cookham Wood, (iv) Downview, (v) Eastwood...

      Young Offenders

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many people currently held in the secure children’s estate are of no fixed abode.

      Youth Custody

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice which secure youth establishments have (a) been closed, (b) been decommissioned and (c) had their use altered, by capacity of establishment, since 1997.

      Youth Custody

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the (a) capacity and (b) population of the secure youth estate was in each year since 1997.

  • Environment Food and Rural Affairs

    • Animal Welfare

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the Animal Welfare Act 2006 in dealing with cases of cruelty to or...

    • Animal Welfare

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if his Department will make an assessment of the effect the economic downturn has had on animal charities and sanctuaries.

      Animal Welfare

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) what information his Department holds on the number and type of animal sanctuaries in England; (2) what definition of...

      Biodiversity

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) how much his Department spent on biodiversity conservation in (a) England and (b) UK Overseas Territories in 2012-13;...

      Biofuels

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many microgrammes of small particulates (PM2.5) per cubic metre of air he expects emissions from biomass combustion to...

      Birds of Prey

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer of 1 July 2013, Official Report, columns 445-6W, on birds of prey, (1) in which (a) regions and (b)...

      British Overseas Territories

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps his Department is taking to ensure that all Overseas Territories entrench the Convention on the Conservation of...

      British Overseas Territories

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps his Department takes if a UK Overseas Territory is in contravention of the Convention on the Conservation of...

      Devolution

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will place in the Library any concordats which his Department or the public bodies for which he is responsible have...

      Flood Control

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much funding his Department has allocated for flood defences in each of the next four years.

      Food: Waste

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps the Government is taking to encourage households to reduce food waste.

      Grant Thornton

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much his Department has spent on contracts with Grant Thornton in each year since 2008.

      Hydroelectric Power

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs for what reason the Environment Agency is continuing to pass applications for small-scale hydro schemes while it is still in...

      Recycling: Plastics

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps his Department is taking to boost the recycling of (a) plastic films and (b) black plastics.

      Recycling: Plastics

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what progress his Department is making in its efforts to meet plastics recycling targets.

      Recycling: Plastics

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when his Department will next review PRN/PERN policy.

      Recycling: Plastics

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps the Government is taking to increase public awareness of plastics recycling in the UK.

      Recycling: Plastics

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment he has made of the effect of the export of plastics recyclate from the UK on the domestic plastics recycling...

      Rural Areas: Affordable Housing

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent discussions he has had with ministerial colleagues in the Department for Communities and Local Government on the...

      Water Companies: Corporation Tax

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will have discussions with OFWAT about requiring water and sewerage companies to disclose their level of corporation...

      Written Questions

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) how many answers by his Department to Parliamentary Questions involving tables of statistics fewer than four pages in...

  • Cabinet Office

    • Apprentices

      To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office (1) how many apprenticeships his Department offered to people aged (a) 16 to 18, (b) 19 to 21 and (c) 22 to 26 years old in each year since 2010; (2)...

    • Arts: Staff

      To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what estimate he has made of the number of people employed in the creative industries in (a) each parliamentary constituency in Glasgow, (b) Glasgow,...

      Government Departments: Information

      To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what guidance his Department provides on the format of data published by Government.

      Immigration

      To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the level of immigration to the UK was from (a) other EU member states and (b) non-EU countries in (i) 2005, (ii) 2010 and (iii) 2012.

      Moira Wallace

      To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office pursuant to the answer of 11 July 2013, Official Report, column 403W, on Moira Wallace (1) what assessment has been made of how long it will take for...

      Music: Staff

      To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what estimate he has made of the number of people employed in the music industry in (a) each parliamentary constituency in Glasgow, (b) Glasgow, (c)...

  • Culture Media and Sport

    • Apprentices

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what strategies she has to create apprenticeships in her Department; and what plans she has to promote such strategies.

    • Buildings

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the total running costs were for each building used, owned or rented in central London by her Department, its agencies and...

      Legal Costs

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (1) how much her Department has spent in total on external legal advice from Queen's Counsels (a) between 7 May 2010 and 4 September...

      Legal Costs

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much her Department spent in total on external legal advice (a) between 7 May 2010 and 4 September 2012 and (b) since 4 September 2012.

      Members: Correspondence

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport when she plans to reply to the letter from the hon. Member for Bishop Auckland of 2 July 2013.

      Northcote House

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many (a) Ministers and (b) officials in her Department used the facilities at Northcote House, Sunningdale Park, Berkshire in (i)...

      Personnel Management

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many officials in her Department were employed in human resources functions in each of the last five years; at what grades such...

      Public Libraries

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the minimum statutory requirement is for a local authority library service; what the derivation is of that requirement; what...

      Redundancy Pay

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many senior civil servants left her Department and public bodies under voluntary exit and received a severance payment in each of...

      Regulation

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the title is of each regulation her Department (a) introduced and (b) revoked in (i) 2010, (ii) 2011, (iii) 2012 and (iv) 2013 to...

      Sick Leave

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many days on average staff of her Department in each pay grade were absent from work as a result of ill health in each of the last...

      Sports: Children

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (1) what discussions she has had with relevant bodies on increasing participation in under-subscribed sports for 5 to 16 year olds;...

      Travel

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what her Department's budget for ministerial travel for (a) the Government Car Service, (b) private hire vehicles, (c) taxis, (d) rail,...

      Welsh Language

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport whether her Department has a current Welsh Language scheme; when that scheme was adopted; and whether it has been reviewed since May 2011.

  • Health

    • Ambulance Services

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many ambulances based in Herefordshire responded to calls in (a) Herefordshire, (b) other counties in England and (c) Wales in each of the last...

    • Ambulance Services: Wales

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many Welsh ambulances responded to calls in England in each of the last five years for which figures are available.

      Apprentices

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many apprenticeships his Department offered to people aged (a) 16 to 18, (b) 19 to 21 and (c) 22 to 26 years old in each year since 2010; (2)...

      Cancer

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the most recent five-year cancer survival rates are in each primary care trust.

      Grant Thornton

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much his Department has spent on contracts with Grant Thornton in each year since 2008.

      Heart Diseases

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what steps he is taking to ensure that all advisers and decision-makers involved within the decision-making process are representative of all...

      Medical Equipment

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what estimate he has made of the cost of items of nursing equipment and aids to daily living provided for temporary use by discharged patients that...

      Members: Correspondence

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he plans to reply to the letter to him dated 16 May 2013 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Mr Simon Keppie.

      Multiple Sclerosis

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to improve treatment rates for multiple sclerosis.

      NHS

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what representations he has received since May 2010 from each of the 14 health trusts under investigation by Sir Bruce Keogh.

      NHS: Ict

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 12 July 2013, Official Report, column 473W, on NHS: ICT, and with reference to paragraph 7.53 of the Guide to Parliamentary Work...

      NHS: Private Sector

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what safeguards are in place to ensure that private healthcare providers operating NHS contracts carry sufficient insurance indemnity to meet any...

      NHS: Private Sector

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what financial stringency tests are applied to private healthcare providers bidding for NHS contracts.

      Obesity: Children

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health with reference to Healthy Lives, Healthy People: a call to action on obesity in England, published in October 2011, what progress has been made to date on...

      Out of Area Treatment

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients registered at an address in (a) Scotland, (b) Wales and (c) Northern Ireland received treatment at a hospital in England in each month...

      St Helens and Knowsley Hospitals NHS Trust

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will visit the hospitals within the St Helens and Knowsley Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust.

  • Transport

    • A14

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) what the development and financing proposals are for the new A14 road; (2) when proposals for tolling of the new A14 will be announced; (3)...

    • Bournemouth

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what plans he has to visit Bournemouth.

      Carbon Emissions: Aviation

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps he is taking to help secure an agreement at the forthcoming international Civil Aviation Agreement Organisation Assembly to reduce aviation...

      Diesel Vehicles

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport where guidance on the removal of factory-fitted particulate diesel filters from vehicles has been published on his Department's website.

      Driving Tests

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he has undertaken a review of the health and safety issues associated with the use of private commercial and retail properties as bases for driving...

      Driving: Licensing

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what plans he has to increase the age when driving licence holders have to reapply for a licence.

      Excise Duties: Motor Vehicles

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many untaxed vehicles have been recorded following online reporting in (a) 2012 and (b) 2013.

      Fuels: EU Law

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent discussions he has had on the implementation of measures arising from the Fuel Quality Directive.

      High Speed 2 Railway Line

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many miles of High Speed 2 within the Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty are not planned to be in a tunnel as of 16 July 2013.

      Motor Vehicle Type Approval: EU Law

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what his policy is on implementation of EU Directive 2007/46/EC; and if he will make a statement.

      Passenger Ships: Accidents

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the response of the Marine Accident Investigation Branch to the sinking of the leisure craft in Liverpool on 30 March...

      Public Transport: Disability

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much funding his Department has allocated to (a) train and (b) bus services to make them more accessible to disabled people in the last five years.

      Railways: Finance

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent estimate he has made of the amount of funding allocated for new railway infrastructure in (a) the North West and (b) the South East over...

      Wales

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether his Department provides services to people resident in Wales or usually resident in Wales.

      Welsh Language

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether his Department has a current Welsh language scheme; when that scheme was adopted; and whether it has been reviewed since May 2011.

  • International Development

    • Accountancy

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much her Department spent on contracts with (a) Deloitte, (b) PricewaterhouseCoopers, (c) KPMG and (d) Ernst and Young in each year...

    • Afghanistan

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much funding her Department has allocated to projects which support economic growth in Afghanistan in each year since 2010; and...

      Apprentices

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many apprenticeships her Department offered to people aged (a) 16 to 18, (b) 19 to 21 and (c) 22 to 26 years old in each year since...

      Apprentices

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what strategies she has to create apprenticeships in her Department; and what plans she has to promote such strategies.

      Billing

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many creditors to her Department owed more than £10,000 remained unpaid for more than (a) 30 days, (b) 45 days, (c) 60 days,...

      British Overseas Territories

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps her Department has taken to work with Overseas Territory governments to improve their standards of transparency.

      British Overseas Territories

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether her Department's input into the European Development Spending Agreements for the British Overseas Territories will take into...

      British Overseas Territories

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what response her Department has made to the recent commitment by the DG-Development Co-operation of the European Commission to release...

      Fairtrade Initiative

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment she has made of the role of fairtrade goods in development.

      Montserrat

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development (1) what her Department's policy is on the draft Conservation and Environmental Management Bill proposed by the Government of...

      Pitcairn Islands

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent discussions her Department has had with the Government of the Pitcairn Islands on her Department's funding of projects to...

      Redundancy

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many officials in her Department resident in Scotland have been made redundant through compulsory redundancy schemes since May...

      St Helena

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent assessment her Department has made of the effect of the airport construction on biodiversity conservation in St Helena.

      St Helena

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what (a) technical assistance her Department has provided and (b) representations her Department has made to the St Helena Government...

  • Communities and Local Government

    • Affordable Housing: Rural Areas

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many units of affordable housing were developed in rural areas in each of the last three years.

    • Assured Tenancies

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what plans he has to bring Crown tenants within the assured tenancy scheme.

      Housing

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment he has made of the potential of home purchase plans to provide alternative routes into home ownership.

      Housing

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what steps the Government is taking to promote innovation in the housing sector.

      Landlords: Urban Areas

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer of 10 July 2013, Official Report, column 284W, on landlords: urban areas, when he plans to publish...

      Local Government Finance

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if he will estimate the full cost to the Exchequer of restoring funding to local authorities to the level it would have been...

      Local Government Finance

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what proportion of the Environmental, Cultural and Protective Services block grant is distributed using indicators of (a) social...

      Local Government Finance: Barnsley

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much funding his Department has allocated to Barnsley metropolitan borough council for local authority supported capital...

      Non-domestic Rates

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the (a) average time was between business rates being levied and collected and (b) amount of uncollected business rates was...

      Private Rented Housing

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what progress has been made on the development of the private rented sector guarantee; and when he expects the private rented...

      Rented Housing: Electrical Safety

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what steps he is taking to review the current arrangements for electrical safety in the residential rental sector; and if he...

      Wind Power: Planning Permission

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government when he plans to issue further guidance to local planning authorities on onshore wind farms.

  • Home Department

    • Appropriate Adults

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what proportion of appropriate adults fell within the age range (a) 20 to 30, (b) 31 to 40, (c) 41 to 50, (d) 51 to 60, (e) 61 to 70...

    • Borders: Personal Records

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the cost to the public purse has been of legal fees for the binding arbitration process with Raytheon Systems Ltd relating to the...

      Cumbria Constabulary

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what costs were incurred to the public purse by the South Wales Police investigation into the conduct of the suspended Chief Constable...

      Europol

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what discussions she and her ministerial colleagues have had with representatives of Europol since May 2010.

      Human Trafficking

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment she has made of the long-term trends in co-operation and co-ordination on the issue of human trafficking by (a) Eurojust, (b)...

      Human Trafficking

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the European Arrest Warrant in combating human trafficking.

      Immigration

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what the average wait for in-country applicants waiting to be sent biometric enrolment invitations from the date their application is...

      Members: Correspondence

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will arrange for the hon. Member for Walsall North to received a reply to his letter of 10 June 2013 to the interim Director General,...

      Members: Correspondence

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will arrange for the hon. Member for Walsall North to received a reply to his letter of 10 June 2013 to the interim Director General,...

      Members: Correspondence

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the Minister for Immigration plans to reply to the letter from the hon. Member for Slough of 25 February 2013, regarding her constituent...

      National Security

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment she has made of the EU's role in promoting national resilience; and if she will make a statement.

      Offenders: Deportation

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many foreign national criminals were deported from the UK in each year since 2008.

      Police: Laboratories

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what her latest estimate is of the number of police laboratories that will be accredited to ISO17025 by November 2013.

      Police: Unmanned Air Vehicles

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many unmanned aerial vehicles were in use by police forces in (a) 2012 and (b) 2013. [R]

      Pornography: Internet

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps she is taking (a) to tackle breaches of the Obscene Publications Acts by non-UK websites which provide explicit hardcore...

      Recovery Orders

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many statutory recovery orders have been enforced in each police force area in (a) 2013, (b) 2012, (c) 2011 and (d) 2010.

      Sexual Offences

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people are currently on the sex offenders register; and what estimate she has made of the number of sex offenders in the UK who are...

      West Midlands Police

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment she has made of the effect of formula damping on the amount of national funding allocated to West Midlands Police in each of...

      Written Questions

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many answers by her Department to Parliamentary Questions involving tables of statistics fewer than four pages in length were (a) printed...

      Written Questions

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what guidance her Department follows in determining whether statistics in answers to Parliamentary Questions are (a) provided in full, (b)...

  • Business, Innovation and Skills

    • Apprentices

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many apprenticeships his Department offered to people aged (a) 16 to 18, (b) 19 to 21 and (c) 22 to 26 years old in each year...

    • Business: EU Law

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment he has made on the effect of directive 2007/46/EC on small and medium-sized businesses in the UK; and if he will...

      Business: Government Assistance

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what processes his Department has put in place to ensure that ongoing support is given to UK companies seeking to develop...

      Business: Northern Ireland

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what his policy is on extending the provision of the Business Bank to Northern Ireland.

      Cybercrime: Higher Education

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many undergraduate degree courses in cyber security are available in UK universities.

      EU Grants and Loans

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what methodology his Department used to determine the distribution of EU transition zone funding for 2014 to 2020.

      Exports

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what processes his Department uses to monitor the increase in UK exports following trade missions and delegations.

      Grant Thornton

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how much his Department has spent on contracts with Grant Thornton in each year since 2008.

      Green Construction Board

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what plans his Department has for the Green Construction Board after November 2013.

      Green Investment Bank

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment he has made of the role of the Green Investment Bank in the Green Deal.

      Higher Education: Admissions

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment he has made of the number of applications made by young people for higher education places in 2013-14.

      Higher Education: Admissions

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment he has made of higher education applications for entrance in 2014 among young people in England; and if he will...

      Interest Rate Swap Transactions

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the Answer of 8 July 2013, Official Report, columns 49-50W, on Interest Rate Swap Transactions, how many customers of...

      Manufacturing Advisory Service

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the Manufacturing Advisory Service (MAS) in providing services regarded as...

      Medicine: Research

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what proportion of his Department's ring-fenced budget for science will be used to support charity-funded medical research in the...

      Overseas Investment: Mozambique

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assistance the Government provides to UK firms that wish to invest in Mozambique.

      Postal Services: Wales

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what quantifiable benefits the privatisation of Royal Mail will bring to postal services in North West Wales.

      Recycling: Job Creation

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the number of jobs created by recycling between 2013 and 2020.

      Regulation

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what the title is of each regulation his Department (a) introduced and (b) revoked in (i) 2010, (ii) 2011, (iii) 2012 and (iv)...

      Science of Cyber Security Research Institute

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what the timescale is for funding of the Institute for Science of Cyber Security.

      Shipbuilding: Industry

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps his Department is taking to support the shipbuilding industry.

      Supermarkets: Competition

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what plans the Competition and Markets Authority has to assess market features restricting, preventing or distorting competition...

      Trade Missions

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what information his Department records on the (a) the levels of satisfaction of businesses participating in trade missions and...

      UK Trade and Investment

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what training UK Trade and Investment staff receive to ensure they identify potential markets and specific business opportunities...

      UK Trade and Investment

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether UK Trade and Investment staff are remunerated through bonuses based on the increase in UK exports following trade...

      Wales

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether his Department provides services to people resident in Wales or usually resident in Wales.

      Welsh Language

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether his Department has a current Welsh language scheme; when that scheme was adopted; and whether it has been reviewed since...

  • Women and Equalities

    • Castes

      To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities if she will take steps to launch the proposed public consultation on caste discrimination before the summer recess in order to enable the necessary...

    • Castes

      To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities what the exceptions are mentioned in the letter from the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Women and Equalities to Lord Avebury of 25 June...

      Castes

      To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities whether the Government plans to run the Equality and Human Rights Commission research on caste in parallel with the Caste Discrimination consultation...

      Equalities Ministerial Group

      To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities when the inter-ministerial group on equalities last met.

      Females

      To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities what recent steps she has taken to ensure that women fulfil their potential.

      Staff

      To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities what the Government Equalities Office's staffing levels were in May (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012 and (d) 2013; and what these levels will be at the...

      Women’s National Commission

      To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities what arrangements she has put in place to enable her to engage directly with women on issues affecting them following the winding-up of the Women's...

      Youth Work

      To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities how much funding the Government Equalities Office allocated for youth work in (a) 2010-11, (b) 2011-12 and (c) 2012-13; and if she will make a statement.

  • Education

    • Apprentices

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education what strategies he has to create apprenticeships in his Department; and what plans he has to promote such strategies.

    • Culture: Education

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education what steps he has taken to promote the Government's Cultural Education Plan; and if he will make a statement.

      Education: Finance

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education which capital projects for the development of academies, schools and colleges his Department has supported with what level of funding in (a) Barnsley...

      Financial Services: Education

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education (1) what steps his Department is taking to signpost teachers to existing resources, advice and support available for delivering financial education...

      Financial Services: Education

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will take steps to extend financial education into the National Colleges for Teaching and Leadership and in teaching school clusters.

      Financial Services: Education

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education what assessment he has made of the value of extending financial education to the primary school curriculum; and if he will make a statement.

      Free School Meals

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education what proportion of pupils attending (a) Church of England, (b) Catholic, (c) other denominational or faith and (d) other maintained (i) secondary and...

      Primary Education

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many state-funded primary schools there are; and how many such schools there are with (a) up to 100, (b) between 101 and 200, (c) between 201 and...

      Pupils: Ethnic Groups

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education with reference to the answer of 17 March 2011, Official Report, columns 606-10W, what proportion of pupils attending (a) Church of England, (b)...

      School Meals

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education what steps his Department has taken to address the needs of children who require gluten-free meals in schools that do not allow their pupils to bring...

      Schools: Construction

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many new schools have been built in each (a) local education authority area and (b) parliamentary constituency in England since May 2010; and if he...

      Secondary Education

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many state-funded secondary schools there are; and how many such schools there are with (a) up to 100, (b) between 101 and 200, (c) between 201 and...

      Teachers

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many teacher training entrants did not gain qualified teacher status within 12 months of beginning initial teacher training in each year since 2010.

      Work Experience

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many schools have withdrawn provision for work experience for 14 to 16-year-olds in each year since 2010.

  • Treasury

    • Apprentices

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) how many apprenticeships his Department offered to people aged (a) 16 to 18, (b) 19 to 21 and (c) 22 to 26 years old in each year since 2010; (2)...

    • Bank of England: Public Appointments

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many women are on the shortlist of candidates for deputy governor of the Bank of England; and how many women are on the selection panel.

      Bank Services

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) how many people do not have a bank current account; (2) how many people who have been discharged from bankruptcy in the last 12 months do not have a...

      Cash Dispensing

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) if he will make an assessment of the number of automatic free-of-charge money dispensing machines which have been removed from communities in (a)...

      Child Benefit: EU Nationals

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what evidence nationals of other EEA states are required to show in order to demonstrate proof of entitlement to child benefit in respect of a child...

      Children: Day Care

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the cost to the Exchequer of extending free childcare for all three and four year olds to 17.5 hours a week in 2015-16.

      Credit Unions

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent discussions his Department has had with the Association of British Credit Unions to broaden the range of financial services provided by them to...

      Financial Services

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent assessment he has made of the progress of the Financial Conduct Authority redress scheme for businesses mis-sold interest rate hedging products.

      Future Jobs Fund

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the cost to the Exchequer of restoring the Future Jobs Fund in 2015-16.

      Grant Thornton

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much his Department has spent on contracts with Grant Thornton in each year since 2008.

      Green Construction Board

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much he plans to make available for the Green Construction Board in 2015-16.

      Income Tax

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer with reference to the answer to the hon. Member for Harlow of 14 January 2013, Official Report, columns 556-7W on income tax, what estimate he has made of...

      Mortgages

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the (a) number of households in mortgage arrears, (b) number of repossessions and (c) number of households benefiting from the...

      NHS: Redundancy Pay

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) on how many occasions he has approved special severance payments for NHS employees based in the North West of England since taking office; (2) on how...

      Ofgem

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will estimate the full cost to the Exchequer of abolishing Ofgem and replacing it with a new regulator in the fiscal year 2015-16.

      Overseas Aid

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer to which Departments the UK's official development assistance (ODA) budget will be allocated in 2015-16; and how much each Department will administer.

      Public Expenditure

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the cost to his Department was of the commissioning, production and dissemination of the cartoon video published on his Department's website setting...

      Public Expenditure

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the cost to the Exchequer in 2015-16 of restoring police funding to the level it would have been without the decisions made in...

      Railways: Finance

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer Pursuant to the oral answer from the Chief Secretary to the Treasury to the hon. Member for Bristol West of 25 June 2013, Official Report, column 151, on...

      Revenue and Customs: Scotland

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) how many employees of HM Revenue and Customs resident in Scotland have been made redundant through compulsory redundancy schemes since May 2010; and...

      Tax Allowances: Social Enterprises

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what progress he has made on confirming the outcome of consultation on a new tax relief to encourage investment in social enterprises, at the autumn...

      Taxation: Construction

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the number of subcontractors operating within the Construction Industry scheme who did not claim any deduction for the costs of...

      Unemployment: Young People

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the number of young people unemployed for over a year in financial year 2015-16 according to (a) official claimant count and...

      Vat

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what revenue accrued to the Exchequer from VAT in 2012-13; and what estimate he has made of the likely level of revenue accruing in 2013-14 and 2014-15.

      Welfare Tax Credits

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) how many families in (a) Jarrow constituency, (b) South Tyneside, (c) the North East and (d) the UK have received working tax credits in each year...

      Welfare Tax Credits

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many individuals resident in (a) Scotland and (b) England have had tax credit overpayments written off in the last 10 financial years.

      Welfare Tax Credits: Woking

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many (a) people, (b) people in work and (c) families in Woking constituency are in receipt of tax credits.

  • Defence

    • Air Force: Reserve Forces

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether there are any plans to use reserve officers as combat pilots in the RAF along the lines of the US National Guard.

    • Armed Forces: Discharges

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many members of a) the Army, (b) the Royal Navy, (c) the RAF and (d) the Royal Marines were medically discharged for reasons relating to alcohol in...

      Armed Forces: Suicide

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence with reference to his Department’s publication, A study of deaths among UK Armed Forces personnel deployed to the 1982 Falklands Campaign: 1982 to...

      Armed Forces: Wales

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many serving members of the (a) Royal Air Force, (b) Royal Navy and (c) Army have asked for voluntary early release, at each base located in Wales;...

      Armed Forces: Wimbledon

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether and by whom the military personnel on duty in uniform at the lawn tennis championships at Wimbledon in 2013 were paid for their attendance.

      Army: Germany

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will set out the building and renovation timetable for the sites earmarked for use as part of the re-basing requirements for forces returning from...

      Army: Injuries

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many soldiers including trainees were (a) treated for and (b) discharged as a result of overuse and stress injuries including Achilles tendinitis,...

      Army: Training

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when the guidance for soldiers conducting UK-based training in hot conditions was last reviewed; and if he will make a statement.

      Business Services Association

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence on what occasions (a) he, (b) Ministers and (c) officials in his Department have met representatives of the Business Services Association. [Official...

      Defence Estates

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence with reference to Spending Round 2013, Cm 8639, how reducing costs of construction in the Defence estate will be implemented; and what estimate he has...

      Defence Infrastructure Organisation

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what estimate he has made of the total cost of the redundancy programme at the Defence Infrastructure Organisation in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012 and...

      Defence Vetting Agency: Foreign and Commonwealth Office

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has for the merger of vetting functions of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office with the Defence Vetting Agency; and if he will make a statement.

      Domestic Visits

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many visits Ministers in his Department have made to (a) Northern Ireland, (b) Scotland and (c) Wales in an official capacity in each year since 2010.

      Domestic Visits

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many times he has visited (a) Scotland, (b) Northern Ireland and (c) Wales in an official capacity since his appointment; and if he will make a statement.

      Ict

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many (a) computers, (b) mobile telephones, (c) BlackBerrys and (d) other pieces of IT equipment were lost or stolen from his Department in (i)...

      Katrice Lee

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his latest estimate is of when the latest Ministry of Defence Police investigation into the disappearance of Katrice Lee will be concluded; and if...

      Mercian Regiment

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the cost of the presentation of new colours to the four battalions of the Mercian Regiment was.

      Military Bases: Poole

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his policy is on the future of the Royal Marine Commando Base in Poole; and if he will make a statement.

      Military Decorations: World War II

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many of those who are eligible have applied for the Bomber Command clasp to date; how many of those applications have been (a) rejected and (b)...

      Navy: Greenock

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the current status of the Royal Naval buildings in Greenock is; and what future plans he has for these buildings.

      Press: Subscriptions

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much his Department spent on newspapers, periodicals and trade publications in the last 12 months.

      Redundancy

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) how many officials in his Department resident in Scotland have been made redundant through compulsory redundancy schemes since May 2010; and how...

      Reserve Forces

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many full-time volunteer mobilised reservists were subject to a deduction of earnings request from the Department for Work and Pensions in financial...

      Reserve Forces: Mental Health Services

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what proposals he has to improve mental health services for current and former Reserve forces personnel.

      Senior Civil Servants

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many senior civil servants left his Department and public bodies under voluntary exit and received a severance payment in each of the last three...

      Territorial Army: Scotland

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence which sites are used by the Territorial Army (TA) in Scotland; and how many TA personnel are based at each such site.

      Unmanned Air Vehicles

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assistance UK personnel provide to the US operation of drones from the Combined Air Operation Centre at Al-Udeid. [R]

      Unmanned Air Vehicles

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Gillingham and Rainham of 15 May 2013, Official Report, column 221W, on unmanned aerial vehicles, on how...

      Wales

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether his Department provides services to people resident in Wales or usually resident in Wales.

      Welsh Language

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether his Department has a current Welsh Language scheme; when that scheme was adopted; and whether it has been reviewed since May 2011.

  • House of Lords

    • Crime: Domestic Violence

      To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether, under the terms of the reducing bureaucracy pilot on domestic violence in Hampshire, it is intended that police officers be given discretion to...

    • Cycling

      To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment have they made of the success of their Cycling City Ambition programme; and whether they will consider expanding the programme in order to...

      Cycling

      To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will review their guidance on cycle-friendly planning and design, in conjunction with local authorities and other partners, to ensure that...

      Cycling

      To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions have taken place between the Department for Transport and the Department for Communities and Local Government on ensuring that cycle...

      Cycling

      To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have any plans to allocate funding for the Highways Agency to initiate a programme to improve the convenience and safety of cycle movement along...

      Embryology

      To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of research by the Institute of Psychiatry, at King’s College London, and published in the Journal of the American...

      Employment: Work Capability Assessments

      To ask Her Majesty’s Government what was the cost to the Department for Work and Pensions of appeals against work capability assessments undertaken by Atos in (1) 2010, (2) 2011, (3) 2012,...

      Energy: Carbon Dioxide Emissions

      To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the mean residential time of anthropogenically emitted carbon dioxide in the simulated atmospheres of the general circulation models that are run by...

      Energy: Carbon Dioxide Emissions

      To ask Her Majesty’s Government what proportion of the carbon dioxide entering the atmosphere over the globe in the most recent year for which figures are available is anthropogenic.

      Energy: Research

      To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have made to the European Commission to exclude research grants into renewable energy research in the United Kingdom from state aid...

      Energy: Research

      To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether there have been any cases where they have been prevented from assisting research into renewable energy sources in the United Kingdom because of...

      Energy: Research

      To ask Her Majesty’s Government how much aid they have paid, in the last three years for which figures are available, to companies or public bodies conducting research into tidal and wave...

      Government Departments: Staff

      To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the comment by the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, Vince Cable, in the Financial Times of 10 July that “half of our...

      Guantanamo Bay

      To ask Her Majesty’s Government what progress has been made on the release of Shaker Aamer from Guantanamo Bay.

      Health: Cancer Drugs Fund

      To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Earl Howe on 25 June (WA 110), whether their commitment to protect patients receiving treatment through the Cancer Drugs...

      Health: Diabetes

      To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the current rate of increase per year in children suffering from type 1 diabetes.

      Health: Osteoporosis

      To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Earl Howe on 12 July (WA 203), what assessment they have made of the model recommended by the International Osteoporosis...

      NHS Leadership Academy

      To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to promote diversity on (1) the NHS Leadership Board, and (2) the Advisory Board of Public Health England.

      Office for National Statistics

      To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have plans to halt or reduce the collection or publication by the Office of National Statistics of data on smoking, drinking, teenage pregnancy...

      Public Bodies

      To ask Her Majesty’s Government what are the barriers they are experiencing in ensuring diversity of appointments to public bodies, as reported in the Commissioner for Public Appointments'...

      Railways: Franchises

      To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether in the forthcoming franchise competition for the East Coast Main Line they will set a reserve price below which no bid will be accepted; and what...

      Railways: Non-tilting Trains

      To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the estimated journey time from Euston to Glasgow using non-tilting trains to Birmingham and then on the non-high speed line northwards; and what is...

      Railways: Pendolino Trains

      To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans there are to improve the track and signalling on the West Coast Main Line to allow the Pendolino trains to travel at a speed of 135 miles per hour.

      SS Richard Montgomery

      To ask Her Majesty’s Government what role or responsibility (1) the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, (2) the Department for Transport, (3) the Ministry of Defence, (4) the Environment...

      Stephen Lawrence Inquiry

      To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Taylor of Holbeach on 3 July (WA 233) and new allegations of smear campaign by different police constabularies around...

      Taxation: Avoidance

      To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will consider re-examining their procurement policy to avoid doing business with companies that pay minimal amounts of United Kingdom tax.

      Trade Unions

      To ask Her Majesty’s Government how much was paid to the trade union Unite and its predecessor unions in relation to the Union Modernisation Fund and the Union Learning Fund in each year...

      Turks and Caicos Islands

      To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they are taking steps to ensure that commercial flights to the Turks and Caicos Islands will be maintained at the current levels; and what impact...

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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