Written answers

Monday, 28 January 2013

  • Home Department

    • Asylum

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 8 January 2013, Official Report, column 238W, on the UK Border Agency, (1) if she will take steps to ensure that...

    • Asylum

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many asylum seekers are supported by the National Asylum Support Service; and what the equivalent number was in (a) 2009, (b) 2010 and...

      City of London Police

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) full-time equivalent police officers, (b) full-time police community support officers and (c) other full-time equivalent staff...

      Data Protection

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department on how many occasions each Minister in her Department carried classified documents on public transport in the last 12 months for which...

      Data Protection

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much her Department currently remunerates (a) telephone companies, (b) internet service providers and (c) others annually for data...

      Domestic Violence

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps her Department is taking to meet its objectives on reducing domestic violence.

      Domestic Violence: Males

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what steps her Department is taking to tackle domestic violence against men; (2) what steps her Department is taking to support...

      Drugs: Misuse

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how much her Department has spent on advertising the risks associated with Class (a) A, (b) B and (c) C drugs via the FRANK drug...

      Entry Clearances

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many applications for family dependent visas to non-EU citizens were (a) received and (b) fully processed by her Department in (i) August...

      Entry Clearances

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many applications by non-EU citizens for family dependent visas were (a) received and (b) fully processed in (i) October and (ii)...

      Entry Clearances: Married People

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many applications by non-EU citizens for marriage visas were (a) received and (b) fully processed in (i) October and (ii) November 2012.

      Homosexuality

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people who were convicted of gross indecency for homosexual acts and have not been convicted of any other crime have been asked to...

      Intelligence Services

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 10 January 2013, Official Report, column 419W, on intelligence services, whether the UK currently shares...

      Meetings

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many meetings she and officials of her Department had with Google in (a) 2010, (b) 2011 and (c) 2012; (2) how many meetings she...

      Metropolitan Police: Disclosure of Information

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what information her Department holds on the number of occasions the Metropolitan Police has declined to provide information under section 29...

      National Policing Improvement Agency

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department which responsibilities of the National Police Improvement Agency are being transferred to (a) the proposed National Crime Agency, (b) the...

      Police

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) Metropolitan Police and (b) other police force full-time equivalent police officers were working on (i) Operation Trident and...

      Police: Finance

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what advice she has given to Police and Crime Commissioners for the setting of (a) budgets and (b) precept to council taxpayers for the...

      Police: Vehicles

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what guidance her Department gives to police and crime commissioners and police and crime panels on the (a) fitting and (b) use of covert...

      UK Border Agency

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether all UK Border Agency recruits responsible for (a) casework decisions and (b) writing reports (i) are required to and (ii) have...

      Young Offenders

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many people under the age of 18 were arrested in each year from 1997 to 2012; (2) how many people aged (a) 17, (b) 16, (c) 15, (d)...

  • Attorney-General

    • Animal Welfare

      To ask the Attorney-General how many cases of (a) wildlife crime and (b) animal cruelty the Crown Prosecution Service has prosecuted in each of the last five years; and what the conviction rates...

    • Animal Welfare

      To ask the Attorney-General how many cases of (a) wildlife crime and (b) animal cruelty have been referred to the Crown Prosecution Service for a charging decision in each of the last five years.

      Autonomy

      To ask the Attorney-General whether the Serious Fraud Office is carrying out a criminal investigation into the company Autonomy.

      Birds: Eggs

      To ask the Attorney-General how many cases of egg stealing from the nests of wild birds have been prosecuted by the Crown Prosecution Service in each of the last five years.

      Burglary

      To ask the Attorney-General how many burglary prosecutions the Crown Prosecution Service has carried out in each of the last five years; and what the rate of conviction was.

      Burglary

      To ask the Attorney-General how many cases of burglary have been referred to the Crown Prosecution Service by the police for a charging decision in each of the last five years.

      Training

      To ask the Attorney-General how many away days the Law Officers' Departments have held since 2010; and what the cost was of each such event.

  • Prime Minister

    • G8

      To ask the Prime Minister which additional heads of government he proposes to invite to attend the forthcoming G8 summit hosted by the UK.

    • Iraq Committee of Inquiry

      To ask the Prime Minister when he expects Sir John Chilcot to publish his report on Iraq.

      Rescue Services: Glencoe

      To ask the Prime Minister if he will meet members of the Glencoe Mountain Rescue Team to convey his thanks for the action taken by that team on 21 January 2013.

      World War II: Military Decorations

      To ask the Prime Minister when the Arctic Convoy Star Medal will be awarded.

      Written Questions

      To ask the Prime Minister (1) how many and what proportion of questions for written answer on a named day by No. 10 Downing Street (a) received a substantive answer after the named day and (b)...

      Yemen

      To ask the Prime Minister when he last spoke with the President of Yemen.

  • Education

    • Boarding Schools

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will take steps to ensure the financial sustainability of state boarding schools.

    • Charities

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education how much funding his Department provided for (a) Action on Addiction, (b) Adoption UK, (c) Adoption and Fostering Information Line, (d) child...

      Free Schools

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education what steps he has taken to ensure that 16-18 free schools are funded to provide free meals.

      Metropolitan Police

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education how much funding his Department allocated to the Metropolitan police in (a) 2010-11, (b) 2011-12 and (c) 2012-13; how much he plans to allocate in...

      Schools: Finance

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education how much was spent in total on educating each child in the cohort of children in state education who completed a 14 year period of education in the...

      Special Educational Needs

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education what plans he has to improve outcomes for children with special educational needs in (a) Hexham constituency, (b) the North East and (c) England.

  • International Development

    • Developing Countries: Mental Health Services

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development which Minister in her Department is responsible for mental health issues in developing countries.

    • Plants

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much her Department has spent on indoor and outdoor plants and trees since her appointment.

  • Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs

    • Algeria

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent estimate he has made of the number of UK nationals currently working in Algeria; and what advice and information his...

    • British Indian Ocean Territory

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he plans to contest the ruling of the Information Commissioner on the application of Freedom of Information Act and...

      British Indian Ocean Territory

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the ceiling on the costs to his Department of litigation concerning the desire of the Chagos Islanders to return to the...

      Burma

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he has had discussions with his EU counterparts on the discovery of the use of Swedish-made weapons in Burma.

      Burma

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether the Minister of State raised the use of rape against ethnic minorities by the Burmese army with the Government of Burma...

      Burma

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has held with the Burmese Government on ensuring that the recent ceasefire between rebels in Kachin...

      Egypt

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make representations to the Egyptian government to facilitate independent, international observation of the...

      Egypt

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will assess the commitment of the Egyptian government to equal rights for women.

      Egypt

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of proposed legal steps taken by the Egyptian government against opponents of the Presidential...

      Kashmir

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will hold urgent discussions with the governments of both India and Pakistan to ensure that recent police messages in the...

      Mali

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent reports he has received of extra-judicial killings or human rights abuses by the Malian army; what recent...

      Middle East

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer of 18 December 2012, Official Report, columns 767-8W, on Middle East, what other actions the Government...

      North Africa

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he plans to take with governments in North Africa to help prevent that region becoming the next area where al-Qaeda...

      Refugees

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he is taking on the international stage to tackle the problem of statelessness.

      Senior Civil Servants

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many and what proportion of officials of the three most senior grades in his Department have (a) resigned, (b) taken...

      Sri Lanka

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent reports he has received on the effects of high security zones in Sri Lanka on residents and displaced civilians in...

      Sri Lanka

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment he has made of (a) the size of the Sri Lankan army's presence in Tamil-dominated areas and (b) the...

      Thailand

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received on the trial and conviction of Somyot Prueksakasemsuk in Thailand under that country's lèse...

      Thailand

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer of 21 May 2012, Official Report, column 454W, on Thailand, what recent representations he has made to the...

  • Defence

    • Afghanistan

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the name of the mission that will succeed ISAF in Afghanistan after 2014 is; and how many troops the UK will commit to it.

    • Afghanistan

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many attacks have taken place in Afghanistan during the last three years in (a) the ANA and (b) the ANP.

      Air Force

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the effect of reductions of the Royal Air Force and its pilot training programme on the UK's ability to (a) maintain...

      Armed Forces: Coeliac Disease

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many members of the (a) Army, (b) Navy and (c) Royal Air Force are known to have been diagnosed with Coeliac disease.

      Armed Forces: Housing

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) how many members of the (a) Army, (b) Royal Air Force and (c) Royal Navy are not living in service family accommodation; (2) how many members of...

      Armed Forces: Housing Benefit

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) how many discussions he has had with ministerial colleagues on changes to housing benefit in relation to the under-occupancy of social housing; (2)...

      Armed Forces: Redundancy

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) how many personnel reached their immediate pensions point in (a) 2005 and (b) 2006 and were made compulsorily redundant within one year; (2) how...

      Armed Forces: Redundancy

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the Written Ministerial Statement of 22 January 2013, on armed forces redundancy programme tranche 3, (1) what estimate he has made of the...

      Armed Forces: Redundancy

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the written ministerial statement of 22 January 2013, on armed forces redundancy programme tranche 3, how many of those redundancies will be...

      Army: Recruitment

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) which Army Careers Offices and Careers Clinics he proposes to close in each region in the next 12 months; (2) how many Army Careers Offices and...

      AWE Aldermaston

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) on what dates (a) his Department, (b) the Office for Nuclear Regulation and (c) the Defence Nuclear Safety Regulator were notified by Atomic...

      Defence: Procurement

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the contribution of the Niteworks organisation to improving defence acquisition; and if he will make a statement.

      European Fighter Aircraft

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the progress of the Meteor beyond visual range air-to-air missile integration project onto Typhoon aircraft.

      HMS Victory

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether his Department will only grant permission to raise artefacts from the wreck of HMS Victory if the applicant is compliant with the archaeological...

      Major Projects Review Board

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) who the members of the Major Projects Review Board are; (2) how regularly the Major Projects Review Board reports; (3) which projects the Major...

      Military Bases: Ripon

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what recent assessment he has made of the living conditions at Claro Barracks in Ripon; and what investment is planned at that site.

      Military Police: Early Retirement

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many Ministry of Defence Police working in each US base on UK soil have applied for the Voluntary Early Retirement Scheme.

      Navy

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the Order of Battle is of the fleet.

      RAF Lossiemouth

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when 6 Squadron and 1 Fighter Squadron will move to RAF Lossiemouth.

      Royal Engineers

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement about the (a) size and (b) skills sets of units capable of building and repairing railways in the Corps of Royal Engineers.

      Written Questions

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) how many and what proportion of questions for written answer on a named day by his Department (a) received a substantive answer after the named day...

  • Transport

    • British Transport Police

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many (a) full-time equivalent police officers, (b) full-time equivalent police community support officers and (c) other staff there were working...

    • Driving: Licensing

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what proportion of drivers in the UK currently hold Group 2 driving licences.

      Driving: Licensing

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the answer of 13 December 2012, Official Report, column 409W, on driver licensing, what information is kept on the age of the drivers whose...

      Driving: Licensing

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the answer of 13 December 2012, Official Report, column 409W, on driver licensing, what proportion of overall licences held were revoked or...

      Driving: Licensing

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the answer of 13 December 2012, Official Report, column 409W, on driver licensing, how many of the car and motorcycle licences revoked or...

      Great Western Railway Line

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether he expects the first electric services on the Great Western Main Line to start running in December 2016.

      Great Western Railway Line

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of whether his Department's proposed changes to the scope of the Great Western Main Line electrification project will...

      Great Western Railway Line

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether the project to electrify the Great Western Main Line is on schedule; and when he expects the project to be completed.

      Great Western Railway Line

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of whether the early design and development stages of the Great Western Main Line electrification project will be delivered...

      London Airports: Snow and Ice

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent discussions he has had with his ministerial colleagues on how best to ensure that London airports do all they can to avoid pre-emptively...

      Metals: Theft

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what funding his Department will provide for the British Transport Police metal theft task force in 2013.

      Metropolitan Police

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much funding his Department allocated to the Metropolitan police in (a) 2010-11, (b) 2011-12 and (c) 2012-13; how much he plans to allocate in...

      Railways: Franchises

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport with reference to the Brown Review of Rail Franchising, what work is being undertaken to extend the use of management contracts; and if he will make a...

      Railways: South West

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will bring forward proposals to improve the railways in the South West for the purposes of preventing severe flooding from affecting rail...

      Senior Civil Servants

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many and what proportion of officials of the three most senior grades in his Department have (a) resigned, (b) taken voluntary early retirement,...

      Thameslink Railway Line

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport with reference to the Brown Review of Rail Franchising, whether the Thameslink route will be considered for a management contract arrangement; and if...

      Thameslink Railway Line

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he last discussed the Thameslink rolling stock procurement with the European Commission.

      Thameslink Railway Line

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport for what reason the Thameslink rolling stock procurement process is being carried out under utilities regulations.

  • Wales

    • Paralympic Games 2012

      To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what recent discussions he has had with disability organisations in Wales on the legacy in Wales of the London 2012 Paralympics; and if he will make a...

    • Plants

      To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how much his Department has spent on indoor and outdoor plants and trees since his appointment.

      Recruitment

      To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how much his Department has spent on advertising job vacancies since May 2010.

      Senior Civil Servants

      To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many and what proportion of officials of the three most senior grades in his Department have (a) resigned, (b) taken voluntary early retirement, (c)...

      Training

      To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many away days his Department has held since 2010; and what the cost was of each such event.

      Written Questions

      To ask the Secretary of State for Wales (1) how many and what proportion of questions for written answer on a named day by his Department (a) received a substantive answer after the named day...

  • Scotland

    • Conditions of Employment

      To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what proportion of staff in his Department currently work (a) part-time, (b) in a job-share or (c) in another flexible working arrangement.

    • Retail Trade

      To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland whether recent job losses in the retail sector will be discussed in the Employability Forum to be held between the UK and Scottish Governments on 31...

      Senior Civil Servants

      To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many and what proportion of officials of the three most senior grades in his Department have (a) resigned, (b) taken voluntary early retirement, (c)...

      Work Programme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland whether the operation of the Work programme and opportunities for training will be discussed at the Employability Forum to be held between the UK and...

      Written Questions

      To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland (1) how many and what proportion of questions for written answer on a named day by his Department (a) received a substantive answer after the named...

  • Communities and Local Government

    • Building Alterations: Planning Permission

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether his Department's proposed extension of permitted development rights will be limited to 50 per cent of a property's...

    • Community Infrastructure Levy

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (1) what estimate his Department has made of the number of community groups that will qualify to receive 25 per cent of...

      Community Infrastructure Levy

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate his Department has made of the number of affordable homes that will be built as a result of the policy to give 25...

      Council Tax

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if he will publish a table setting out the distribution between council tax bands A to H of (a) existing housing stock and (b)...

      Housing: Construction

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government which recent representations he has received on the potential harmful effects to self-build developments as a result of the...

      Housing: Construction

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate he has made of the number of housing developments which are no longer going ahead following the introduction of...

      Housing: Construction

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government which (a) builders, (b) self builders, (c) architects, (d) surveyors and (e) estate agents' organisations were consulted by his...

      Housing: Greater London

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much each London borough spent on housing capital in each year between 2005-06 and 2011-12; and how much was spent through...

      Listed Buildings

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment his Department has made of success in removing red tape and bureaucracy for owners of listed heritage buildings. [R]

      Local Government Finance

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer of 13 December 2012, Official Report, column 443W, on local government finance, what impact assessment...

      Local Government Finance

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many meetings each Minister in his Department has had with local authority leaders to discuss the Local Government Finance...

      Local Government Finance: Sefton

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what balances and reserves of each category have been registered with his Department by Sefton Council in the last three years...

      Pay

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many employees of his Department are not paid the living wage; and how many full-time equivalent posts this represents.

      Planning

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the total number is of designated neighbourhood areas.

      Planning Obligations

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government with reference to the speech made by the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Planning to Policy Exchange on 10 January...

      Planning Permission

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many people have made Freedom of Information requests to see the responses to the draft National Planning Policy Framework...

      Planning Permission

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many of the respondents to the draft National Planning Policy Framework Consultation asked not to be named.

      Planning Permission

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government with reference to page 1 of the Summary of Responses to the draft National Planning Policy Framework Consultation, (1) how...

      Planning Permission: Appeals

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what guidance is available for communities to provide them with assistance with the planning appeals process.

      Written Questions

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many and what proportion of questions for written answer on a named day by his Department (a) received a substantive answer...

  • Northern Ireland

    • Senior Civil Servants

      To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many and what proportion of officials of the three most senior grades in her Department have (a) resigned, (b) taken voluntary early...

    • Tobacco: Smuggling

      To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what recent discussions her Department has had with the Irish government on the issue of tobacco smuggling between the Republic of Ireland and...

      Written Questions

      To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (1) how many and what proportion of questions for written answer on a named day by her Department (a) received a substantive answer after the...

  • Environment Food and Rural Affairs

    • Beef: Horse Meat

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what checks are undertaken at point of entry for meat imports into the UK; who performs such checks; whether such checks have...

    • Beef: Horse Meat

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when (a) his Department, (b) Ministers and (c) the Food Standards Agency first heard of the recent cases of contaminated meat...

      Beef: Horse Meat

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) when Ministers in his Department were informed that horse meat had been detected in burgers being sold in the UK; (2)...

      Bees: Insecticides

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what research he has commissioned into the risks posed to bee colonies in this country from the use of neonicotinoid insecticides.

      Campaign to Protect Rural England

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what meetings Ministers in his Department have had with the Campaign to Protect Rural England and other environmental...

      Dangerous Dogs

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when he expects to make an announcement on the issue of irresponsible dog ownership and dangerous dogs; and what issues will...

      Dredging

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much the Environment Agency spent on dredging in (a) 2007-08, (b) 2008-09, (c) 2009-10, (d) 2010-11 and (e) 2011-12; and...

      Environmental Stewardship Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment he has made of the amount of land taken out of production by farmers entering entry level stewardship...

      Floods: Elmbridge

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer of 21 January 2013, Official Report, column 83W, on flood control, what proportion of the additional...

      Food Composition and Labelling

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many officials in his Department are working on food composition and labelling policy.

      Food: Labelling

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the annual budget allocated within his Department for food labelling was in (a) 2010-11, (b) 2011-12 and (c) 2012-13.

      Horse Meat: Exports

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much horsemeat was exported in each of the last four years.

      Horse Meat: Exports

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the value was of exported horsemeat in each of the last four years.

      Land Drainage

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent representations he has made to the Chancellor of the Exchequer on the non-eligibility of land drainage for...

      Livestock: Transport

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to his contribution to the debate of 13 December 2012, Official Report, column 429, on Animal Welfare (exports) and...

      National Wildlife Crime Unit

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on what date he plans to decide on future funding for the National Wildlife Crime Unit.

      Pate de Foie Gras: Imports

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he has any plans to ban the import of foie gras.

      Thames Tideway Tunnel

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment he has made of the benefits and costs to residents of Reading East constituency of the Thames Tideway Tunnel...

      Written Questions

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many and what proportion of questions for written answer on a named day by his Department (a) received a substantive...

      Written Questions

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many and what proportion of questions tabled for ordinary written answer by his Department (a) were answered after 30...

  • Leader of the House

    • Written Questions

      To ask the Leader of the House (1) how many and what proportion of questions for written answer on a named day by his Office (a) received a substantive answer after the named day and (b) have...

  • Deputy Prime Minister

    • Lobbying

      To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what discussions he has had on lobbying with lobbying organisations in the last 12 months.

    • Written Questions

      To ask the Deputy Prime Minister (1) how many and what proportion of questions for written answer on a named day by his Office (a) received a substantive answer after the named day and (b) have...

  • Business, Innovation and Skills

    • Business: Loans

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 16 October 2012, Official Report, column 245W, on business: loans, what estimate he has made of the...

    • Clothing: Fire Prevention

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment he has made of trading regulations relating to fire retardant clothing for children; and if he will make a statement.

      Green Investment Bank

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 18 January 2013, Official Report, columns 989-90W, on investment, if any underspend of the £775...

      Metropolitan Police

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how much funding his Department allocated to the Metropolitan police in (a) 2010-11, (b) 2011-12 and (c) 2012-13; how much he...

      Science

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 11 December 2012, Official Report, column 400W, on science: finance, how much funding has been provided...

      Shipping: Foreign Workers

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what proportion of non-UK seafarer ratings and officers employed on UK-registered vessels in 2011 were entitled to the national...

      Training

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many away days his Department has held since 2010; and what the cost was of each such event.

      Written Questions

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many and what proportion of questions for written answer on a named day by his Department (a) received a substantive answer...

  • Energy and Climate Change

    • Affordable Warmth Programme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what the budget for the Affordable Warmth scheme is in (a) 2012-13, (b) 2013-14 and (c) 2014-15.

    • Affordable Warmth Programme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many households his Department expect to receive assistance under the Affordable Warmth scheme in (a) 2012-13, (b) 2013-14 and (c)...

      Climate Change Convention

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change which countries he expects to be (a) compliant and (b) non-compliant with the Kyoto Protocol.

      Electricity

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change whether his Department has given consideration to contingency plans in the event that (a) the assumption that there would be no...

      Energy Companies Obligation

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many (a) households and (b) fuel poor households his Department expects to receive assistance under (i) the Energy Company...

      Fuel Poverty

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to his contribution of 16 January 2013, Official Report, column 953, on fuel poverty and energy efficiency, what the...

      Fuel Poverty

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to his contribution of 16 January 2013, Official Report, column 954, on fuel poverty and energy efficiency, what the...

      Fuel Poverty

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate he has made of the number of households in fuel poverty in (a) Pendle constituency, (b) Lancashire and (c) the north-west.

      Fuels

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what steps he plans to take to ensure that all motorists have a ready and secure supply of fuel.

      Green Deal Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change whether Green Deal customers will be charged for making a complaint to the Green Deal ombudsman.

      Green Deal Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how much money his Department has given to the Green Deal finance company; and for what purpose such funding has been used.

      Green Deal Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many companies submitted tender applications for the Green Deal marketing contract; and if he will place in the Library a copy of...

      Green Deal Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent discussions his Department has had with housing associations on the Green Deal.

      Green Deal Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent discussions his Department has had with the insulation industry on the Green Deal.

      Green Deal Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what the £2.9 million allocated to the Green Deal marketing campaign has been spent on.

      Green Deal Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change whether complaints have been received by the Green Deal ombudsmen since October 2012.

      Insulation

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many times he has met representatives of the Insulation Industry Forum in the last (a) six and (b) 12 months.

      Natural Gas: Wales

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate he has made of the proportion of unconventional gas resources in Wales that are economical to recover.

      Pembroke Power Station

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what assessment he has made of the environmental effects of the RWE Pembroke Power Station arising from (a) temperature increases and...

      Pembroke Power Station

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent discussions he has had with RWE regarding formal notice of infringement for the RWE Pembroke Power Station issued by the...

      Pembroke Power Station

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change whether he has instructed his Department to carry out an investigation at the RWE Pembroke Power Station following the issuing of a...

      Pembroke Power Station

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent discussions he has had with the Welsh Government regarding formal notice of infringement from the European Commission for...

      Pembroke Power Station

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what steps he has taken since his Department received formal notice of infringement from the European Commission for the RWE Pembroke...

      Research

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate he has made of the amount spent on research contracts by his Department which were not subject to a tendering process in...

      Senior Civil Servants

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many and what proportion of officials of the three most senior grades in his Department have (a) resigned, (b) taken voluntary...

      Training

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many away days his Department has held since 2010; and what the cost was of each such event.

      Warm Front Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how much his Department spent on publicity for the Warm Front scheme in (a) 2012-13, (b) 2011-12, (c) 2010-11, (d) 2009-10, (e)...

      Warm Front Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what assessment his Department has made of the effect of the Warm Front scheme on the number of households in fuel poverty.

      Warm Front Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what his policy is on the eligibility criteria for (a) the Affordable Warmth scheme and (b) Warm Front; and if he will make a statement.

      Warm Front Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change with reference to his Department's press notice 2012/128 of 19 October 2012, on local energy bills, for what reason his Department did...

      Warm Front Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the contribution by the Secretary of State of 16 January 2013, Official Report, column 952, on fuel poverty and energy...

      Warm Front Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the contribution by the Secretary of State of 16 January 2013, Official Report, column 952, on fuel poverty and energy...

      Warm Front Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the contribution by the Secretary of State of 16 January 2013, Official Report, column 951, on fuel poverty and energy...

      Warm Front Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to his contribution of 16 January 2013, Official Report, column 957, on fuel poverty and energy efficiency, how many...

      Warm Front Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change with reference to the answer of 18 April 2012, Official Report, column 366W, on the Warm Front scheme, what his Department's accounting...

      Warm Front Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change with reference to the written answer of 18 April 2012, Official Report, column 366W and pursuant to the contribution of the Secretary...

      Wind Power

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will take steps to disqualify wind turbines which have been down-rated below their potential capacity from eligibility for the...

      Wind Power

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate his Department has made of the cost to consumers where wind turbines have been deliberately down-rated to a capacity of...

      Wind Power

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many wind turbines rated (a) at 500 kilowatts and (b) between 500 kilowatts and 1500 kilowatts were installed and accredited (i)...

  • Women and Equalities

    • Equal Pay

      To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities what steps she is taking to ensure employers in (a) Barnsley Central constituency, (b) South Yorkshire and (c) England implement equal pay for women.

  • Culture Media and Sport

    • Arts

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what her Department's projected expenditure on the arts is for (a) 2013-14, (b) 2014-15, (c) 2015-16 and (d) 2016-17.

    • Arts Council England

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what proportion of Government spending is allocated to the Arts Council England.

      Broadband

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the constitution is of her Department's broadband portfolio board.

      Dell

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many meetings she and officials of her Department had with Dell CSC in (a) 2010, (b) 2011 and (c) 2012.

      Football: Sports Grounds

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport which Premier League football stadia have not had real time, real people safety evacuation tests before receiving their ground safety...

      Internet: Access

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (1) what recent discussions she has had with charities on help for pensioners and people from low-income backgrounds to get online;...

      Olympic Games 2012: Tickets

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport who authorised any further expenditure on free Olympic and Paralympic Games tickets in addition to the initial spend on tickets in...

      Recruitment

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much her Department has spent on advertising job vacancies since May 2010.

      Sports: Public Participation

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (1) what estimate she has made of the number of people who were new participants (a) in each sport listed in the recent Active People...

      Sports: West Midlands

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps her Department is taking to ensure that local authorities in (a) the West Midlands and (b) Dudley maintain adequate sports...

  • Treasury

    • Business: Loans

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what progress he has made on his redress scheme for businesses that may have been mis-sold interest rate swap products by banks; and if he will make a statement.

    • Child Benefit

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people in (a) Scotland and (b) each local authority area opted out of receiving child benefit by the deadline on 6 January 2013.

      Child Benefit

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what the cost was to the public purse in (a) 2010, (b) 2011 and (c) 2012 of child benefit paid to people residing outside the UK; (2) what level of...

      Child Benefit

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many non-UK EEA nationals have dependants eligible to receive child benefit under EC Regulation 883/2004 where the dependant is outside the UK; and what...

      Conditions of Employment

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people are employed on zero-hour contracts in his Department.

      Contracts and Meetings

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) how many contracts were awarded by his Department to Oracle in (a) 2010, (b) 2011 and (c) 2012; (2) how many contracts were awarded by his Department...

      Debts

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the level of individual household debt in each of the last 30 years.

      EU Economic and Financial Affairs Council

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the written ministerial statement of 11 December 2012, Official Report, columns 18-20WS, on Ecofin, relating to economic governance, for what...

      Gamma International

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if HM Revenue and Customs is (a) planning or (b) conducting an investigation into whether (i) Bahraini pro-democracy activists received emails containing...

      Immigrants: Social Security Benefits

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the number of migrants residing in the UK who claim benefits on behalf of children living abroad, broken down by country of...

      Income Tax

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people in each of the smallest geographical units for which information is available will no longer pay income tax as a result of changes to the...

      Infrastructure

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent steps he has taken to increase the levels of infrastructure investment.

      Listed Buildings

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of (a) the effect on the maintenance and renewal of listed buildings of changes in taxation since May 2010 and (b) the potential...

      Multinational Companies: Taxation

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the use of internal trademark payments by international companies to reduce their tax liabilities.

      Multinational Companies: Taxation

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the potential effect of measures in his draft Finance Bill on profit-shifting.

      Paye

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many hashes have been received by HM Revenue and Customs during the current PAYE real time information pilot; and how many such hashes were received by...

      Press: Subscriptions

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 31 October 2012, Official Report, column 220W, on press subscriptions, how much his Department has spent on subscriptions since...

      Redundancy Pay

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the total amount of redundancy pay paid to civil servants in his Department was in each month from July to December 2012.

      Revenue and Customs

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for South West Hertfordshire of 16 January 2013, Official Report, column 763W, on Revenue and Customs: telephone...

      Revenue and Customs

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 17 January 2013, Official Report, column 923W, on revenue and customs, if he will set out details of how and when the evaluation...

      Revenue and Customs: Training

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for South West Hertfordshire of 16 January 2013, Official Report, column 764W, on Revenue and Customs: training,...

      Self-employed: Child Tax Credit

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) how many people who are self-employed claimed child tax credit in (a) the UK, (b) Scotland and (c) each parliamentary constituency in the last year...

      Senior Civil Servants

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many and what proportion of officials of the three most senior grades in his Department have (a) resigned, (b) taken voluntary early retirement, (c)...

      Shipping: Industry

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) with reference to the Oxford Economics report for Maritime UK on the economic impact of the UK Maritime Services Sector published in December 2012,...

      Tax Allowances: Charities

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer on how many occasions registered charities have been (a) denied tax relief and (b) subject to the recovery of tax relief in each of the last five years; and...

      Tax Allowances: Charities

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 12 December 2012, Official Report, column 323W, on charities: Israel, whether HM Revenue and Customs has taken any additional...

      Welfare Tax Credits

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) how many people in households likely to be affected by the one per cent increase in working age benefits and tax credits for the three years from...

      Welfare Tax Credits: Appeals

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the average length of time taken to conclude tax credit appeals is; and if he will make a statement.

      Written Questions

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) how many and what proportion of questions for written answer on a named day by his Department (a) received a substantive answer after the named day...

  • Justice

    • Cannabis: Wales

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) how many penalty notices of disorder for the offence of possession of cannabis have been issued in North Wales since 2009 to (a) adults and (b)...

    • Community Orders

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice whether he has considered introducing powers for offender managers to issue fixed penalty notices if an offender fails to comply with a community order.

      Confiscation Orders

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment he has made of the effects of the seizure of offenders' assets on public confidence in the criminal justice system.

      Criminal Proceedings

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what progress his Department has made in reviewing the criminal justice process from end-to-end with a view to improving services for victims and witnesses.

      Crown Courts: Greater Manchester

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment he has made of the adequacy of resources available to Manchester Crown court to ensure that undue delays in the conduct of trials at that...

      Ford Prison

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment he has made of the most recent report of HMP Ford's Independent Monitoring Board.

      Ford Prison

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what steps he will take to address the finding of HMP Ford's Independent Monitoring Board that 85 per cent of Ford's prisoners are currently involved in...

      Legal Aid Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer of 26 November 2012, Official Report, columns 56-7W, on the legal aid scheme, how many and what proportion of the total number of...

      Legal Aid Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many people have received assistance through the legal aid programme (a) once, (b) twice and (c) three or more times in each of the last five years.

      Personal Injury: Compensation

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) what plans he has to meet representatives of the insurance industry to discuss his proposals to reduce the recoverable fixed fee in personal injury...

      Prisoners: British Nationals Abroad

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the average length of time is between an agreement by the National Offender Management Service and the repatriation of UK citizens jailed in the US.

      Prisons: Merseyside

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what plans he has to build prisons in Sefton in the next five years.

      Probation: Social Security Benefits

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what proportion of individuals being supervised in the community by the Probation Service in England and Wales are in receipt of state benefits.

      Reparation by Offenders

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what evidence his Department has evaluated on the effects of restorative justice models on (a) costs, (b) reoffending, (c) victim satisfaction and (d)...

      Senior Civil Servants

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many and what proportion of officials of the three most senior grades in his Department have (a) resigned, (b) taken voluntary early retirement, (c)...

      Staff

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many full-time equivalent staff were employed by (a) HM Courts and Tribunals Service and (b) the Probation Service in London in (i) 2010-11, (ii)...

      Terrorism

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what arrangements he has put in place for the monitoring of people held in prison for offences under the Terrorism Act 2000 or Terrorism Act 2006.

      Terrorism

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many prisoners being held for offences under the (a) Terrorism Act 2000 or (b) Terrorism Act 2006 are (i) currently in custody and (ii) due to be...

      Trials: Greater London

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what progress he has made on reducing delays in trials in magistrates courts and Crown courts in London; and if he will make a statement.

      Victims' Champion

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice when the Victims' Champion will take up her role.

  • Work and Pensions

    • Enterprise Allowance: Business Mentors

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in (a) England and (b) Stafford constituency have been supported towards self-employment by a business mentor through the new...

    • Housing Benefit: Foster Carers

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the effect on foster carers of changes to housing benefit; and if he will make a statement.

      Business Start-ups: Government Support

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps his Department is taking to support people who want to start their own business.

      Child Maintenance System

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will take steps to ensure that any arrears are carried forward into the new child maintenance system.

      Youth Contract

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps he is taking to make businesses aware of the Youth Contract.

      Atos Healthcare

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will place a copy of the contracts signed by his Department with Atos in the Library.

      Child Benefit and Child Maintenance

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps (a) his Department and (b) the Child Support Agency and Child Maintenance Enforcement Commission took prior to December 2012 to...

      Cold Weather Payments

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in (a) Glasgow North West constituency, (b) Glasgow, (c) Scotland and (d) the UK were allocated cold weather payments in (i)...

      Cold Weather Payments

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in (a) Glasgow North West constituency, (b) Glasgow, (c) Scotland and (d) the UK will be allocated cold weather payments in (i)...

      Cold Weather Payments

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much his Department has spent on cold weather payments in (a) 2010, (b) 2011 and (c) 2012.

      Council Tax: Wales

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many households (a) in each local authority area in Wales and (b) in Wales will have to pay council tax from April as a result of benefit...

      Departmental Responsibilities

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what his Department's top three policy implementation (a) successes and (b) failures have been since May 2010.

      Disability Living Allowance: Tees Valley

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many claimants of disability living allowance are resident in each parliamentary constituency in the Tees Valley region.

      Employment and Support Allowance

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) what estimate he has made of the number of people who as a result of being transferred from severe disablement allowance and incapacity...

      Employment Schemes: Disability

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many disabled people accessed employment support through Jobcentre Plus programmes in the most recent period for which data is available.

      Housing Benefit

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what impact assessment he has made of the under-occupancy penalty.

      Housing Benefit: Disability

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent discussions the Minister for Disabled People has had with social housing representatives on the effects of the new housing benefit...

      Housing Benefit: Reserve Forces

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many members of the reserve forces are claimants of housing benefit.

      Ict

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what representations he has received from local authorities on the integration of council tax and universal credit IT systems.

      Independent Living Fund

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the number of people who will be affected by the closure of the Independent Living Fund.

      Independent Living Fund

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether his Department conducted an impact assessment before announcing the closure of the independent living fund.

      Local Government Finance

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what additional support he plans to put in place to assist local authorities during the introduction of universal credit and crisis support schemes.

      Pension Protection Fund

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps he has taken to ensure that charges incurred by small pension schemes when challenging risk scores are proportionate to the fund's...

      Personal Independence Payment

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate his Department has made of the annual cost of the armed forces independence payment.

      Personal Independence Payment

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what support his Department makes available for blind and partially-sighted people to help complete application forms for the new personal...

      Poverty: Children

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate his Department has made of the number of children living in (a) absolute poverty, (b) persistent poverty and (c) low-income and...

      Procurement

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what proportion of procurement contracts offered by his Department has been advertised on the Contracts Finder website since that website's...

      Social Fund: Denbighshire

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what consideration his Department is giving to the request from Denbighshire county council for an additional £250,000 from its Community...

      Social Fund: Staffordshire

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will publish the Discretionary Social Fund (a) data, (b) awards and (c) spend for East Staffordshire local authority for (i) 2006-07,...

      Social Security Benefits

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government on protocols for sharing data with local...

      Social Security Benefits

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the potential effect of levels of (a) literacy and (b) access to computer terminals on implementation of (i)...

      Social Security Benefits: EU Nationals

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the number of additional benefit claimants there may be by 2016 as a result of the end of transitional immigration...

      Social Security Benefits: Uprating

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the (a) proportion of the work force and (b) number of people in work to be affected by the proposed one per cent...

      Unemployment: Bolton

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people have been unemployed in Bolton South East constituency for (a) six, (ii) 12 and (iii) 24 months by (i) ward and (ii) ethnicity.

      Universal Credit

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the number of monthly amendments required to be made to the IT system supporting universal credit; what estimate...

      Universal Credit

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the ease of use of the universal credit IT system by benefit claimants.

      Universal Credit

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what additional funding his Department is making available to local authorities to assist the introduction of universal credit and other...

      Universal Credit

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether a parent with a dependent child aged 13 or over is at risk of sanction under universal credit rules if there are no jobs available...

      Welfare State: Northern Ireland

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of progress in his ongoing discussions with the Minister for Social Development in Northern Ireland on the...

      Welfare Tax Credits

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what change there has been in the average amount of tax credits claimed by individuals over the last five years.

      Work Capability Assessment

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 12 December 2012, Official Report, column 388W, on work capability assessment, how many work capability assessment...

      Work Capability Assessment

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 12 December 2012, Official Report, column 388W, on work capability assessment, how many claimants in each category...

      Work Capability Assessment

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people have undertaken a work capability assessment to date; and how many such people secured a positive score on (a) physical...

      Work Capability Assessment: Sunderland

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in Sunderland Central constituency have undergone a work capability assessment; how many such people appealed against the...

      Work Programme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in the Work programme have been placed on zero-hour contracts in (a) the UK, (b) the north-east and (c) Sunderland.

      Work Programme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many and what proportion of those who have found work through the Work programme (a) had been unemployed for (i) over three years, (ii)...

      Work Programme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) with reference to the report by the National Institute of Adult Continuing Education (NIACE) entitled The Work Programme: What is the...

      Xerox Corporation

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many contracts were awarded by his Department to Xerox in (a) 2010, (b) 2011 and (c) 2012.

  • Health

    • Ambulance Services

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent assessment he has made of the performance of the Hull and East Yorkshire Ambulance Service.

    • Beef: Horse Meat

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of the recently discovered products contaminated with horse meat were (a) frozen and (b) fresh.

      Cancer

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what estimate his Department has made of the funding that will be available for the National Cancer Peer Review Programme in each year up to 2016;...

      Depression: Young People

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will assess the work and research of Dr Martin Seligman on depression in pubescent teenagers.

      Health Services: North West

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment his Department has made of the potential effect on survival rates of implementation of the Vascular Services review in Lancashire and Cumbria.

      Health: Debts

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent discussions he has had with Ministerial colleagues on the potential effect on the (a) physical and (b) mental health of individuals of higher...

      Homeopathy

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of (a) the appropriateness of NHS funding of homeopathy and (b) scientific evidence that homeopathy is a placebo.

      Hospitals: Waiting Lists

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what the longest waiting time in days for patients in (a) England and (b) London was for each of the following hospital procedures in (i) 2010-11...

      Lancaster Hospital

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether there are any plans to close the accident and emergency department at Lancaster Hospital.

      Mental Illness

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) pursuant to the answer of 21 November 2012, Official Report, column 511W, what assessment he has made of trends in the incidence of one or more...

      Mental Illness: Drugs

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to reduce the number of people diagnosed with mental health problems who are prescribed drugs; what steps he is taking to reduce...

      NHS Commissioning Board

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health when the NHS Commissioning Board will publish details of how service specifications and commissioning policies will be reviewed in future years.

      NHS Commissioning Board

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he has received any assurances from the National Commissioning Board that all responses to the specialised service specifications consultation...

      NHS Commissioning Board

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what consideration has been given to indicators in the National Outcomes Framework in the development of commissioning policies and service specifications...

      Physiotherapy

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average waiting time is for muscular-skeletal physiotherapy in each region.

      Radiotherapy

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health with reference to his Department's document Interventional radiology: guidance for service delivery—a report from the National Imaging Board,...

      Radiotherapy

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health with reference to his Department's document Interventional radiology: guidance for service delivery—a report from the National Imaging Board,...

      Rare Diseases

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress he has made on ensuring that the NHS Commissioning Board will provide more consistent and better access to services for people with (a) rare...

      Senior Civil Servants

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many and what proportion of officials of the three most senior grades in his Department have (a) resigned, (b) taken voluntary early retirement, (c)...

  • Cabinet Office

    • Business: Brigg

      To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many (a) small and (b) medium-sized businesses there were in Brigg and Goole constituency in each of the last five years.

    • Conditions of Employment

      To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many people are employed on zero-hour contracts in his Department.

      Crime

      To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many cases of (a) drug offences and (b) domestic burglary were reported in (i) Brigg and Goole constituency and (ii) Yorkshire and the Humber in...

      Directors

      To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office (1) if he will publish the code of conduct for government non-executive directors; (2) if he will publish the duties and responsibilities of...

      Employment: Brigg

      To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what proportion of people in Brigg and Goole constituency were employed in the (a) private, (b) public and (c) third sector from 1997 to 2012.

      Pay: North East

      To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the average salary was in (a) Sunderland Central constituency and (b) the north-east for (i) women and (ii) men in each of the last three years for...

      Senior Civil Servants

      To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office (1) how many and what proportion of officials of the three most senior grades in his Department have (a) resigned, (b) taken voluntary early...

  • House of Lords

    • Abortion

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what progress they are making with their investigation of allegations that gender abortions are taking place in England and Wales.

    • Advisory Committee on Business Appointments

      To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the Advisory Committee on Business Appointments (ACOBA) followed proper practice in reviewing the application made by Lord Sassoon to become an executive...

      Animals and Plants: Endangered Species and Extinction

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the number of animal and plant species which will become critically endangered or extinct if the global human population reaches...

      Armed Conflict: Rape

      To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have taken steps to ensure that women raped in war are given access to appropriate and necessary medical care by means of safe abortions by the...

      Armed Conflict: Rape

      To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will encourage the International Committee of the Red Cross to separate its United States funding from that of the United Kingdom, to ensure safe...

      Armed Conflict: Rape

      To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they plan to make representations to the Government of the United States regarding the ban on United States aid being used for abortions for women raped in...

      Aviation: Baggage Charges

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their assessment of the proposal by the chairman of the European Parliament's Transport and Tourism Committee, Mr Brian Simpson MEP, to standardise airline...

      Aviation: Helicopters

      To ask Her Majesty's Government when they expect to issue new guidelines for helicopter flights over Greater London once the Air Accident Investigation Branch's findings relating to the incident...

      Banks: HBOS

      To ask Her Majesty's Government when they expect the Financial Services Authority to publish their report into the causes of the failure of HBOS in 2008.

      Banks: Iceland

      To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Sassoon on 8 January (WA 9-10), what are the penalties the European Free Trade Association Surveillance Authority can impose...

      Banks: Royal Bank of Scotland

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that any out-of-court settlement by the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) with the United States' and United Kingdom authorities is...

      BBC: Royal Charter

      To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Viscount Younger of Leckie on 11 December (WA 207-8), whether they have made representations to the BBC Trust about balance in...

      Benefits

      To ask Her Majesty's Government how many students aged 19 and over in further education receive (1) jobseeker's allowance, (2) employment and support allowance, and (3) income support; and for...

      Burma

      To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will consider providing further humanitarian assistance to internally displaced people in Kachin State through local community organisations.

      Community First

      To ask Her Majesty's Government how many applications have been made to the Community First matching fund in the United Kingdom. To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the total cost to date of...

      Deaf People: Benefits

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what support will be available to deaf people who need communication support if they are unable to follow complex information when communicating verbally,...

      Debt: Debt Management Companies

      To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have any plans to regulate the debt management industry.

      Deportation

      To ask Her Majesty's Government how many people have been returned from the United Kingdom to (1) Romania, and (2) Bulgaria, in each year since those countries acceded to the European Union, by...

      Economy

      To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have plans to protect the United Kingdom economy in general, and the financial sector in particular, if the number of European Union nations using the...

      Egypt

      To ask Her Majesty's Government when in 2011 they received 17 Mutual Legal Assistance requests from the Egyptian authorities; and whether those requests are being processed by the United Kingdom...

      Egypt

      To ask Her Majesty's Government whether copies of the 17 Mutual Legal Assistance requests received from the Egyptian authorities in 2011 were forwarded to the Serious Fraud Office or to any other...

      Embryology

      To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Marland on 5 December 2012 (WA 158-9), what examples there have been in which technical challenges associated with somatic...

      Embryology

      To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Marland on 5 December 2012 (WA 158-9), why the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority used the term "mitochondria...

      Embryology

      To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answers by Lord Marland on 19 November (WA 311-2) and 5 December 2012 (WA 158-9), to what extent they consider that differential...

      Embryology

      To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answers by Lord Marland on 19 November (WA 311-2) and 5 December 2012 (WA 158-9), by what methods they assess any increase in the mutation...

      Embryology

      To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Marland on 5 December 2012 (WA 158-9), whether the pronuclei are the nuclei of the gametes within the embryo and are...

      Employment: Public Sector

      To ask Her Majesty's Government how many new private sector jobs have been created since May 2010 in each region and country of the United Kingdom; and what has been the change in the number of...

      EU: Budget

      To ask Her Majesty's Government how the €26.98 billion proposed by the European Council in recent budget negotiations for the 11th European Development Fund (EDF) compares with the current...

      EU: Food

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the European Commission's evaluation report for the 2009-11 European Union Food Facility; whether the facility has been...

      EU: Science and Technology

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of their proposals to renegotiate the United Kingdom's relationship with the European Union on participation in, and...

      Extradition

      To ask Her Majesty's Government whether, in the light of the decisions on the applications by Jordan for the extradition of Abu Qatada and that by Thailand for the extradition of Lee Aldhouse,...

      Government Departments: e-mail

      To ask Her Majesty's Government how many private email accounts are used by Ministers, special advisers and officials in the Department for Transport to communicate with each other and other...

      Government Departments: Ministerial Meetings

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what meetings took place between HM Treasury ministers and officials and directors and executives of Jardine Matheson over the last year, including in connection...

      Government Departments: Ministerial Meetings

      To ask Her Majesty's Government how many meetings of (1) the Multinational Chairman's Group, and (2) the Business Advisory Group, took place at 10 Downing Street in 2012.

      Government of Ireland Bill

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what arrangements they have made to mark the opposition to the Government of Ireland Bill in session 1912-13 in a similar fashion to the reception they are...

      Greece: Financial Support

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the reported comment by Angela Merkel that governments are likely to take a loss on Greek debt; and whether, and to what extent,...

      Health: Diabetes

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that all adults and children with diabetes type 1 and 2 get their recommended annual tests.

      Health: Electronic Patient Record Systems

      To ask Her Majesty's Government how many NHS trusts and foundation trusts currently have fully operational electronic patient record (EPR) systems; and how progress will be monitored to ensure...

      Health: Melanomas

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to reduce melanoma cases in the United Kingdom, including safety regulation for the sunbed industry.

      Health: Organ Donation

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what means they have to facilitate and assist members of the public who launch their own local campaigns aimed at increasing organ donor registration.

      Health: Urology

      To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will make an assessment of the impact of access to appropriate urology and stoma devices on (1) incidence of infection, (2) product wastage, and (3)...

      Health: Urology

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the importance of specialist nurses in improving outcomes for stoma and continence patients.

      House of Lords: Catering

      To ask the Chairman of Committees whether the Refreshment Committee of the House of Lords factored into calculations on the levels of House of Lords catering subsidy the decision by the House of...

      House of Lords: Catering

      To ask the Chairman of Committees whether any review of catering services in the House of Lords will take into account the implications of the full amalgamation of catering services throughout...

      House of Lords: Catering and Retail

      To ask the Chairman of Committees what was the total net cost of House of Lords catering and retail services in (1) 2009-10, (2) 2010-11, and (3) 2011-12; and what is that sum as a proportion of...

      House of Lords: Catering and Retail

      To ask the Chairman of Committees what are the end of year House of Lords catering and retail services outturn figures on (1) turnover, (2) profit, and (3) cost of subsidy, for (a) the Peers'...

      Housing: New Towns

      To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to comments by the Deputy Prime Minister on 22 November in a speech at the National House Building Council, whether they plan to enable development of a...

      Human Trafficking

      To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they are strengthening the measures they are taking against the trafficking of women; and, if so, how.

      Israel

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what representations they have made to the Government of Israel concerning the use of live ammunition, following reports of the shooting of Samir Ahmad...

      Israel and Palestine

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what replies they have received from the Government of Israel to representations made about the release of withheld Palestinian tax and customs revenues; and what...

      Israel and Palestine

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what representations they have made to the Government of Israel concerning the welfare of the prisoner Samer Al-Issawi, currently on hunger strike.

      Israel and Palestine

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the steps taken to establish a system to monitor the treatment of Palestinian children in custody, following the recommendations...

      Japanese Knotweed

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what progress is being made in the pilot schemes for the control of Japanese knotweed.

      Jeena International

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what recent representations they have received from the Jeena International organisation in relation to sex selection abortions; and whether either Ministers or...

      Manufacturing

      To ask Her Majesty's Government how they are addressing the deterioration in the balance in international trade in manufactured goods.

      Museums: Loaned Artefacts

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what advice they have received on whether the Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007 provides a complete guarantee that artefacts from the National Palace...

      National Parks

      To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord De Mauley on 15 October 2012 (WA 449), in which he stated that an announcement of a public inquiry into the proposals to...

      Omagh Bombing

      To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Taylor of Holbeach on 9 January (WA 100), whether they intend to review the matter of publication of the information...

      Overseas Aid

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what humanitarian aid funding they allocated to the International Committee of the Red Cross in (1) 2009, (2) 2010, (3) 2011, and (4) 2012.

      Overseas Aid

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what percentage of their international aid budget funds voluntary schemes independent of non-governmental organisations in the Department for International...

      Police and Crime Commissioners

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what are the procedures for (1) disciplinary action against, (2) unseating, and (3) replacement of, an elected police and crime commissioner.

      Population Growth

      To ask Her Majesty's Government with which international bodies they have held discussions concerning the growth in global human population; what were the outcomes of those discussions; and what...

      Religious Faith

      To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Warsi on 17 January (WA 151-2), on what evidence they base the statement that the voice of people of faith has not...

      Retail: Jessops

      To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will investigate the role of private equity ownership in the collapse of the retailer Jessops.

      Roads: Congestion Charge

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what proportion of the 5,416 congestion charge penalty appeals, both postal and personal hearings, cited as "refused" in Annex 2 of the Road User Charging...

      Roads: Congestion Charge

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what was the total cost for the Parking and Traffic Appeals Service adjudicators' time in reaching their refusal decisions for the 5,416 postal and personal...

      Roads: Congestion Charge

      To ask Her Majesty's Government why the Parking and Traffic Appeals Service (PATAS) is allocating congestion charge penalty appeal hearings for appellants whose appeal grounds are solely...

      Roads: Congestion Charge

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what independent and impartial adjudication is available to recipients of a congestion charge penalty whose initial representations, where based solely on...

      Schools: Teachers

      To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Hill of Oareford on 18 December 2012 (WA 297) concerning the rate of turnover of teachers in the state sector, how those...

      Taxation: Corporation Tax

      To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have any plans to review or limit the deductibility for corporation tax purposes of interest paid by United Kingdom companies to offshore owners and...

      Transport: Heavy Goods Vehicles

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their assessment of the risk to cyclists and pedestrians of increasing the permitted speed of heavy goods vehicles on single carriageway roads.

      UK Border Agency: Staff

      To ask Her Majesty's Government for how long the UK Border Force has been headed by an interim appointee; who is currently filling that post; and when they expect to make a permanent appointment...

      Vehicles: Number Plates

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to review their policy in respect of number plates for vehicles.

      Vietnam

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what representations they have made to the Government of Vietnam about the trial on 8 January of 14 Catholic activists charged with subversion; whether they have...

      Visas

      To ask Her Majesty's Government how many applications for visas from overseas students currently studying in the United Kingdom have been received during the past 12 months; how long it takes on...

      Visas

      To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Earl Howe on 16 January (WA 134-5), how many non-European Union doctors were given United Kingdom work visas in each of the past...

      Welfare Reform Act 2012

      To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their assessment of the impact of the Welfare Reform Act 2012 on refuges in the United Kingdom with regard to support services for adult and child victims...

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.

January 2013
Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun
 123456
78910111213
14151617181920
21222324252627
28293031