Written answers

Thursday, 26 June 2014

  • Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs

    • Bahrain

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment he has made of the prevalence of human rights abuse in Bahrain.

    • Bahrain

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if his Department will take steps to investigate reports of human rights abuses, torture and arrests of political prisoners in...

      Bahrain

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps the Government are taking to encourage civil rights and democracy in Bahrain.

      Bahrain

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he next plans to reassess whether Bahrain should be designated a country of concern.

      Bangladesh

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with his Bangladeshi counterpart on allegations of human rights abuses in that country since January...

      Bangladesh

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the operation and impartiality of the ongoing International Crimes Tribunal of Bangladesh.

      Bangladesh

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with his international counterparts on the International Crimes Tribunal of Bangladesh.

      British Indian Ocean Territory

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the contribution of the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs of 17 June 2014,...

      Burma

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1) what assessment he has made of whether there is a causal link between the census in Burma and the violence currently...

      Counter-terrorism

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what change there has been in the number of dedicated counter-terrorism officials employed by his Department since the end of...

      Counter-terrorism

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what his policy is on changes to funding for his Department's Counter Terrorism Directorate.

      Counter-terrorism

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what change there has been in overall resources available for counter-terrorism work in his Department in the last financial...

      Counter-terrorism

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much of its budget his Department spent on counter-terrorism in (a) 2014-15 and (b) 2013-14.

      Counter-terrorism

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many dedicated counter-terrorism officials were employed by his Department in the (a) 2014-15 and (b) 2013-14 financial year.

      Egypt

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to his Egyptian counterpart on allegations of brutality and torture of detainees in Azouli...

      Palestinians

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what most recent reports he has received on the three Israeli teenagers kidnapped on the West Bank on 12 June 2014; what recent...

  • Attorney-General

    • Apprentices

      To ask the Attorney-General how many apprentices have been hired under the Law Officers' Department's new contract for procurement.

  • Prime Minister

    • Northern Ireland

      To ask the Prime Minister how many times he has met with the Deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland in the last 12 months.

  • Northern Ireland

    • Civil Servants: Recruitment

      To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many apprentices the Northern Ireland Office accepted as part of the Civil Service Fast Track Apprenticeship Scheme in each year since the...

    • Civil Servants: Recruitment

      To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how the Northern Ireland Office promotes the Civil Service Fast Stream programme in Northern Ireland.

      Civil Servants: Recruitment

      To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many new fast streamers were placed in the Northern Ireland Office in each year since 2010.

      Educational Testing Service

      To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what current contracts (a) her Department and (b) each of her Department's non-departmental public bodies hold with the Educational Testing...

      Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission

      To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what her policy is on the future funding of the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission; and whether there has been any recent change in that...

      Parades

      To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland whether her Department has discussed the consideration of any specific parade application with any member of the Parades Commission since...

      Senior Civil Servants

      To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what proportion of staff in the Northern Ireland Office are senior civil servants.

      Trade Promotion

      To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs on how the UK's Embassies and High Commissions may...

      Trade Promotion

      To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland pursuant to the answer of 19 June 2014, Official Report, column 723, on business, whether the Minister of State for Northern Ireland plans to...

      World War I: Anniversaries

      To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what plans she has to commemorate the First World War in Northern Ireland.

  • Transport

    • Educational Testing Service

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what current contracts (a) his Department and (b) each of his Department's executive agencies or non-departmental public bodies hold with the...

    • Large Goods Vehicles

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what representations the UK has made at a European level on the introduction of more rounded front designs of HGV lorry cabs to increase fuel efficiency.

      M1

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many different stretches of road works are currently taking place on the M1 between London and junction 32 with the M18; and for what reasons such...

  • Defence

    • Armed Forces: Asperger's Syndrome

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what discussions he has had with the Defence Consultant Adviser for Psychiatry about Asperger's syndrome in the context of the Defence Medical Services...

    • Armed Forces: Cadets

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what change there was in the number of (a) sea cadets and (b) army cadets in Northern Ireland between January 2004 and 2014.

      Joint Strike Fighter Aircraft

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what assessment he has made of the Lightning II's combat capability against the (a) Chinese J-20, (b) Russian Sukhoi PAK FA and (c) Russian Su-35S...

      Navy

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many current suitably qualified and experienced personnel positions are (a) required and (b) vacant in (i) Type 23 and (ii) Type 45 ship crews.

      Type 26 Frigates

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many variants of the Type 26 global combat ship are being planned.

      Type 26 Frigates

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many countries have expressed an interest in operating the Type 26 global combat ship.

  • Electoral Commission Committee

    • Electoral Commission

      To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, what recent assessment the Electoral Commission has made of (a) its successes and...

    • Electoral Register

      To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, what recent assessment the Electoral Commission has made of the potential benefits...

      Electoral Register

      To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission if the Electoral Commission will revise its Key Success Measures, Target Performance...

      Electoral Register: British Nationals Abroad

      To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission what steps the Electoral Commission is taking to increase the number of British...

      Electoral Register: Northern Ireland

      To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission what the electoral registration rates were in Northern Ireland in each of the last 15...

      Electoral Register: Northern Ireland

      To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, which 100 wards in which town, county and constituency in Northern Ireland had (a)...

      Electoral Register: Northern Ireland

      To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, with reference to the answer of 12 May 2014, Official Report, columns 375-7W, on...

      General Election 2010

      To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, which 100 wards in which town, county and constituency had the lowest turnout for...

      General Election 2010

      To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, which wards, in which town, county and constituency had a postal vote turnout...

      Written Questions

      To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, how many and what proportion of questions answered by the Electoral Commission...

  • Communities and Local Government

    • Affordable Housing: Nottinghamshire

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many affordable homes have been built in (a) Ashfield constituency and (b) each borough in Nottinghamshire in each of the...

    • Homelessness

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what recent estimate he has made of the number of (a) homeless people and (b) rough sleepers in (i) Coventry, (ii) the West...

      Housing: Harlow

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many new homes have been built in Harlow constituency in each of the last 15 years.

      Non-domestic Rates: Warrington

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many businesses in Warrington North constituency have qualified for the full business rate discount to date.

      Private Rented Housing: Children

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment he has made of the number of households with children in the private rented sector in England.

      Public Buildings: Disability

      To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what targets his Department has on access to public buildings by physically disabled people.

  • Health

    • Abortion

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what mechanisms his Department has put in place to ensure that terminating doctors fulfil their statutory obligation to fill in HSA4 forms correctly.

    • Abortion

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health at which gestations the proportion of selective terminations performed under ground E were performed in 2013.

      Alcoholic Drinks: Misuse

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what steps his Department plans to take to address the health effects of alcohol on the population in the next year; (2) with reference to the...

      Alcoholic Drinks: Misuse

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health with reference to his Department's First Interim Report on the Responsibility Deal on Alcohol, published in April 2014, what evidence his Department holds...

      Autism

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will take steps to include specialist autism training for community care assessors as a requirement in the Care Act 2014 Part 1 regulations.

      Breast Cancer

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what guidance his Department gives to clinical commissioning groups on commissioning breast cancer services; (2) how clinical commissioning groups...

      Cancer

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what responsibilities for cancer policy that were previously within the remit of his Department are now held by Public Health England staff; (2)...

      Cancer

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what proportion of hospitals in England have implemented a multidisciplinary team for cancer of unknown primary (CUP) as stated in the National...

      Cancer

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what focus Genomics England plans to give in its selection of cancer types for genetic sequencing to (a) cases of unknown primary and (b) other less...

      Chlamydia

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of 16 to 25-year-olds in England had a Chlamydia test in 2012-13.

      Chlamydia

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department is taking to encourage re-testing of all young adults who test positive for Chlamydia; and how many young adults are being...

      Chlamydia

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many 16 to 25 year olds in each local authority area (a) were tested for Chlamydia and (b) tested positive for Chlamydia in 2012-13.

      Chlamydia

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many Chlamydia tests were supplied by (a) pharmacies, (b) GPs, (c) sexual health clinics and (d) an online service in 2012-13.

      Dementia

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he has taken to encourage and support research into non-drug dementia therapies; and if he will make a statement.

      Dementia

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health with reference to his Department's corporate plan 2014-15, what steps he is taking to meet the priority of improving treatment and care of people with...

      General Practitioners

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many general practitioner practices were (a) refurbished and (b) replaced in each of the last 10 years.

      Genito-urinary Medicine: Scotland

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the decision of the Scottish Government to suspend the use of transvaginal mesh for pelvic organ prolapse and stress...

      Haemolytic Uraemic Syndrome

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health with reference to the answer of 6 May 2014, Official Report, column 129W, on haemolytic uraemic syndrome, if he will place in the Library copies of the...

      Haemolytic Uraemic Syndrome

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health with reference to the answer of 6 May 2014, Official Report, column 128W, on haemolytic uraemic syndrome, whether the National Institute for Health and...

      Health Professions: Crimes of Violence

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many attacks on healthcare professionals there have been in the last three years.

      Heart Diseases

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) on what date NHS England intends to start patient recruitment into each of the complex invasive cardiology Commissioning through Evaluation...

      Hepatitis

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) if he will make an assessment of the implications for his Department's policy of the conclusion of the report by HCV Action, entitled Health and...

      Medical Records: Databases

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 16 June 2014, Official Report, column 492W, on medical records: databases, whether the What about Youth? trial survey had...

      Medical Treatments

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment (a) his Department and (b) the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) have made of the effectiveness of NICE's approach...

      Medical Treatments

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) with reference to the answer of 6 May 2014, Official Report, column 152W, on prescriptions, what the most plausible cost per quality adjusted...

      Medical Treatments

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health with reference to the answer of 6 May 2014, Official Report, column 152W, on prescriptions, above what period of time the costs of providing the...

      Medical Treatments

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he has taken to ensure that non-pharmacological treatments are subject to the same level of scrutiny as medicinal treatments.

      Mental Illness

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 10 June 2014, Official Report, column 102W, on mental illness, when the National Centre for Social Research will report on its...

      Pancreatic Cancer

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what funding his Department allocated for the treatment of pancreatic cancer in each of the last five years.

      Pancreatic Cancer

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health what funding his Department has allocated for research into pancreatic cancer in the most recent period for which figures are available.

      Valuation of Life and Health Interdepartmental Group

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will place in the Library a copy of his Department's submission to the Inter-departmental Group for the Valuation of Life and Health review and the...

  • Business, Innovation and Skills

    • Adult Education: Harrogate

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many people in Harrogate and Knaresborough constituency were enrolled in adult skills training in each of the last 10 years.

    • Agriculture: Government Assistance

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how much his Department spent on business support to farmers, excluding Common Agricultural Policy payments, in each financial...

      Apprentices

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many apprentices have been hired under his Department's new contract for procurement.

      Apprentices

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many apprenticeships his Department has created during the last four years.

      Apprentices: Greater London

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many apprenticeships have been started in (a) London, (b) the London Borough of Hounslow and (c) Brentford and Isleworth...

      Bankruptcy: Harlow

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many businesses in Harlow constituency have been declared bankrupt in each of the last 10 years.

      Comet Group

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of the collapse of Comet arising from (a) former employees' redundancy...

      Companies: Ownership

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps his Department plans to take to ensure that the proposed beneficial ownership registry will properly identify the real...

      Conditions of Employment

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment he has made of the effect of the use of zero hour contracts on workers' wellbeing.

      Disabled Students' Allowances

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what funds his Department will make available to universities as a result of transferring responsibility for the disabled...

      Disabled Students' Allowances: Warrington

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many people in (a) Warrington and (b) Warrington North constituency are in receipt of disabled students' allowance.

      EU External Trade: Kenya

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment he has made of the potential effects on access of Kenyan products to the UK of (a) ratification and (b)...

      Groceries Code Adjudicator

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many complaints to the Groceries Code Adjudicator by farmers have been (a) made and (b) upheld to date.

      Higher Education: Student Wastage

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of retention rates at learning providers with designated course status.

      Insolvency

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps he is taking to improve competition in the Insolvency Practitioner market.

      Insolvency

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how he plans to measure the insolvency industry's success in voluntarily implementing the recommendations of the Graham Review.

      Insolvency

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what discussions he has held with the Insolvency Service on the implementation of the recommendations made in the Graham Review...

      Low Pay

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps he is taking to safeguard the economic position of people on low pay.

      Minimum Wage

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will carry out an assessment of the positive and negative effects of setting the minimum wage at £10 per hour.

      Minimum Wage

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what resources have been allocated for enforcement action against employers who do not pay the national minimum wage.

      Overseas Students: EU Nationals

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the value of loans issued to students from other EU member states in the latest period for which...

      Postal Services

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will estimate the proportion of UK addresses end-to-end postal delivery companies would need to cover before there is a...

      Postal Services

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will estimate the time it would take for Ofcom to undertake a review of the effects of end-to-end competition on the...

      Postal Services

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment he has made of the change in mail volumes to the universal service provider in the NW postcode area as a result...

      Students: Loans

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what his latest estimate is of the RAB charge for (a) student loans after 2012, (b) loans issued to part-time students, (c) loans...

      Trade Promotion: Northern Ireland

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps UK Trade & Investment took to promote Northern Ireland businesses at the International Festival for Business in...

      Voluntary Work: Schools

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps he is taking to encourage businesses to free up their staff to volunteer in local schools.

  • Home Department

    • Asylum

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will ensure that all asylum interviews are routinely audio and video recorded.

    • Asylum: Housing

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps her Department takes to ensure that accommodation provided by the COMPASS contracts meets the Decent Homes Standards.

      Asylum: Housing

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps her Department takes to ensure that asylum seekers in COMPASS accommodation are able to register complaints quickly and easily.

      Domestic Violence

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what plans her Department has to bring forward proposals to criminalise coercive control and psychological abuse for the purpose of...

      Domestic Violence

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent steps her Department is taking to help end domestic abuse and violence against women.

      Marriage Certificates

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will bring forward legislative proposals to allow mothers' names to be recorded on marriage certificates; if she will bring forward...

      Marriage Certificates

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment she has made of the potential cost to her Department of including mothers' names on marriage certificates.

  • Energy and Climate Change

    • Energy

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate he has made of the support cost over 15 years of (a) 1gw of field solar generating capacity procured with renewable...

    • Energy

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change which levy control framework constraints have required him to move an early administrative allocation model for Contract for Difference...

      Energy: Prices

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate he has made of how much renewables subsidies (a) added to industrial electricity bills in 2012-13 and (b) affected the...

      Energy: Prices

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what steps he has taken to assess whether the whole of the reduction in costs levied for investment in renewables has been passed on to...

      Fracking

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what assessment he has made of (a) the extent to which the future use of shale gas could reduce carbon emissions and (b) how this could...

      Housing: Energy

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what proportion of off-grid households in (a) the UK, (b) England, (c) Scotland, (d) Wales and (e) Northern Ireland are located within...

      Radioactive Waste

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what research his Department has co-sponsored with its US, French and German counterparts at the Sandia National Laboratory into the...

      Renewable Energy

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how much was spent on subsidies for renewable energy over the last three years; and what proportion of that amount was paid for by (a)...

      Renewables Obligation

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change with reference to the answer of 4 March 2014, Official Report, columns 763-64, on the renewables obligation, when he intends to...

      Renewables Obligation

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change with reference to the answer of 4 March 2014, Official Report, column 764W, on wind power, whether the Government's decision that there...

      Secondment

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many employees of the big six energy companies are currently seconded to his Department.

      Wind Power

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 11 June 2014, Official Report, column 167W, on wind power: electrical substations, what constitutes a...

      Wind Power

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change with reference to the answer of 5 March 2014, Official Report, column 841W, on wind power, what the equivalent figures for spending on...

      Wind Power

      To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what the average proportion of time is that (a) onshore and (b) offshore wind turbines produce energy.

  • Justice

    • Acklington Prison

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many hours per week prisoners in HM Prison Acklington spent (a) in cells and (b) working in each of the last three years; and what proportion of such...

    • Blakenhurst Prison

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many hours per week prisoners in HM Prison Blakenhurst spent (a) in cells and (b) working in each of the last three years; and what proportion of...

      Community Orders: Ashfield

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many people in Ashfield constituency convicted of each category of offence received community sentences in each of the last five years.

      Crime

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many people were (a) cautioned, (b) proceeded against and (c) convicted of an offence under the provisions of the (i) Game Act 1831, (ii) Deer Act...

      Driving Offences: Insurance

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what representations his Department has received on increasing penalties for uninsured drivers since May 2010.

      Family Law

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of the recent increase in the number of parties representing themselves in court in...

      Homicide: Victim Support Schemes

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many victims bereaved by homicide have received support from the National Homicide Service in England and Wales since May 2010.

      Homicide: Victim Support Schemes

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what estimate he has made of the number of peer support groups supporting victims bereaved by homicide in each year since May 2010.

      Homicide: Victim Support Schemes

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice whether the Grant for Coordination and Delivery of Support to those Bereaved by Homicide advertised by his Department on Contract Finder on 12 February...

      Homicide: Victim Support Schemes

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what bids were submitted for the Grant for Coordination and Delivery of Support to those Bereaved by Homicide advertised by his Department on Contract...

      Homicide: Victim Support Schemes

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what criteria were used to determine the winning bidder for the Grant for Coordination and Delivery of Support to those Bereaved by Homicide advertised...

      Mediation

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the role of the professional not-for-profit mediation sector in increasing the take-up of...

      Mediation

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) what steps he is taking to inform the public of the availability of legal aid for family mediation; (2) what steps he is taking to inform the...

      Mediation

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) what steps he is taking to ensure that family mediation fees remain affordable; (2) how much has been spent on legally aided family mediation in...

      Prisoners

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) how many hours per week prisoners in HMP Kirkham spent (a) in cells and (b) working in each of the last three years; and what proportion of such...

      Prisons: Crimes of Violence

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) how many incidents of assault there were against prison staff at HM Prison Oakwood in (a) 2011-12, (b) 2012-13 and (c) 2013-14; (2) how many...

      Prisons: Employment

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many hours per week prisoners in HM Prison (a) Hull, (b) Holloway, (c) Hollesley Bay and (d) Hindley spent (i) in cells and (ii) working in each of...

      Probation Trusts

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much has been spent on non-disclosure or compromise agreements for former employees of probation trusts since 1 January 2014.

      Wellingborough Prison

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) if he will meet the hon. Member for Wellingborough to discuss HMP Wellingborough; (2) if he will reopen HMP Wellingborough to increase prison...

  • Treasury

    • Carbon Emissions

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate his Department has made of the savings to the public purse of reductions in carbon emissions leading to a low carbon economy.

    • Child Benefit

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether hours of care during overnight stays and holidays are included in calculations of payments to recipients of child benefit.

      Child Benefit: Warrington

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many families in Warrington North constituency are in receipt of child benefit at the most recent date for which figures are available.

      Children: Day Care

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer with reference to paragraph 5.43 of Delivering Tax-Free Childcare: the Government's response to the consultation on design and operation, published in March...

      Dover Priory Station

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what representations HM Revenue and Customs has made to Mapeley regarding the sale of a portion of land on the western perimeter of the Priory Court site,...

      Dover Priory Station

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much the Mapeley Group paid for the estate at Proxy Court, Dover; and where the company which paid for the estate is based.

      Infrastructure

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much the Government have invested in national infrastructure as a percentage share of gross domestic product in each year since 2000.

      Interest Rate Swap Transactions

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether all participating banks completed all customer review assessments for the sale of interest rate hedging products by the deadline set by the...

      Unemployment: Young People

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the effect on the level of youth unemployment in the UK of the tourism VAT rate.

  • Cabinet Office

    • Civil Servants: Qualifications

      To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many civil servants have been sponsored to undertake an MBA or other business qualifications in the last five years; and how many such people passed...

    • Government Departments: Trade Unions

      To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office if he will retract his request to Government Departments to end check-off payroll deductions for trades union subscriptions.

      Pancreatic Cancer

      To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the recent trends have been in survival rates for pancreatic cancer.

      Performance Appraisal

      To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what proportion of (a) disabled and (b) all other staff employed by his Department received each level of performance rating in their end of year...

  • International Development

    • Developing Countries: National Income

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make it her policy to support the adoption of a target that by 2030 countries progressively introduce broader measures of...

    • Sustainable Development

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make it her policy to support the adoption of a target to substantially strengthen capacities for data collection and...

      Sustainable Development

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make it her policy to support the adoption of a target to ensure that adequate policy space is given to developing...

  • Work and Pensions

    • Child Support

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether hours of care during overnight stays and holidays are included in calculations of payments to recipients of child support.

    • Children: Day Care

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 16 June 2014, Official Report, column 344W, on children: day care, what assumptions on the number of families...

      Children: Maintenance

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when he expects his Department to have closed all outstanding Child Support Agency cases.

      Council Tax Benefits

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in (a) Ashfield constituency, (b) Nottinghamshire, (c) East Midlands and (d) the UK received council tax benefit in each of the...

      Employment

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent assessment he has made of the comparative employment outcomes of people in receipt of (a) employment and support allowance and (b)...

      Employment and Support Allowance

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 18 June 2014, Official Report, column 628W, on the employment and support allowance, what assessment he has made of...

      Employment and Support Allowance

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent discussions he has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on the costs of administering employment and support allowance between...

      Home Visits

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) how many home visits his Department made in (a) 2009, (b) 2010, (c) 2011, (d) 2012 and (e) 2013; and for which purposes; (2) how many...

      Housing Benefit

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) what the value of the average claim for housing benefit made by those (a) out of work, (b) self-employed and (c) employed was in each of...

      Independent Living Fund

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps he is taking to ensure that adequate support exists for those affected by the abolition of the Independent Living Fund beyond the...

      Jobseeker's Allowance

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what guidance he has issued to jobcentre staff on information to provide to jobseeker's allowance claimants whose claim has been stopped on the...

      Jobseeker's Allowance

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what penalties are incurred by jobcentre staff who fail to inform jobseeker's allowance claimants whose claim has been stopped of the other...

      National Insurance Contributions Office: Newcastle Upon Tyne

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps he has taken to ensure that the centralisation in Newcastle of national insurance services for the North East does not have a...

      Personal Independence Payment

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what his policy is on offering interim payments to claimants of the personal independence payment while the backlog of applications is cleared.

      Personal Independence Payment

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the current waiting time for an Atos Healthcare-provided assessment for a personal independence payment claim is in (a) Hull and (b)...

      Personal Independence Payment

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent evaluation he has undertaken of the performance of the firms undertaking personal independence payment evaluations on behalf of his...

      Universal Credit

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the effect of universal credit on landlords who have claimants as tenants; what the results were of the direct...

      Universal Credit: South East

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when universal credit will be rolled out to (a) Brighton, Kemptown constituency and (b) the South East; and if he will make a statement.

      Written Questions

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many parliamentary questions tabled to his Department in the last parliamentary Session did not receive a substantive answer by the time of...

  • Deputy Prime Minister

    • Official Hospitality

      To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how much the recent reception at Admiralty House to celebrate the Tour de France cost; how this cost was met; and who provided the staff for this event.

    • Official Hospitality

      To ask the Deputy Prime Minister which parliamentarians were invited to the reception held to celebrate the Tour de France at Admiralty House on 18 June 2014; and on what basis they were selected.

      Official Hospitality

      To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will publish the invitation list for the reception held to celebrate the Tour de France at Admiralty House on 18 June 2014; and on what basis each such...

      Voting Behaviour

      To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what assessment he has made of the proportion of people that voted in the most recent nationwide elections; and what steps he is taking to encourage more people...

  • Education

    • Chemistry: Teachers

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many chemistry teachers undertook a chemistry subject knowledge enhancement course in each of the last five years.

    • Colleges of Education: Greater London

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many years the longest serving head teacher on the panel which assessed the Institute of Education proposal to establish a university training...

      Music: Education

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education what criteria underlay his Department's decision that the Arts Council will in future be responsible for the funding of music in schools; and what...

      Pupil Numbers

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many schoolchildren graduated from (a) a comprehensive, (b) a grammar, (c) a secondary and (d) an independent school in the last academic year.

      Pupils: Safety

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education what steps he is taking to ensure that primary school children are safe inside the school building and in the surrounding area.

  • Environment Food and Rural Affairs

    • Animal Welfare: Circuses

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when he plans to bring forward legislative proposals on the use of wild animals in circuses.

    • Beavers: Devon

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps his Department plans to take to control the population of wild beavers in Devon; and whether such plans include an...

      Beavers: Devon

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what discussions his Department has had with Natural England on the control of the population of wild beavers in Devon.

      Common Agricultural Policy

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment has been made of the regulatory impact of the changes to the CAP on farmers.

      Educational Testing Service

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what current contracts (a) his Department and (b) each of his Department's executive agencies or non-departmental public...

      Flood Control: Thames Gateway

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment he has made of the level of flood protection in the Thames Gateway.

      Floods

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the contribution by the Prime Minister of 18 June 2014, Official Report, column 1116W, what assessment he has...

      Horses: Animal Welfare

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps his Department plans to take to address the problem of horse abandonment.

      Members: Correspondence

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when he intends to reply to the letter of 3 June 2014 from the hon. Member for Bishop Auckland.

  • Culture Media and Sport

    • Battle of Waterloo: Anniversaries

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans the Government have to commemorate the bicentenary of the Battle of Waterloo.

    • Billing

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many creditors had remained unpaid by his Department on 1 June 2014 for (a) 45, (b) 60, (c) 75 and (d) 76 days and over.

      Civil Partnerships

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport when the Government plans to publish its report on its consultation on the future of civil partnership in England and Wales.

      Direct Selling

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many companies were fined more than once for making nuisance calls by (a) the Information Commissioner's Office and (b) Ofcom in...

      Direct Selling

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many companies were fined for making nuisance calls by (a) the Information Commissioner's Office and (b) Ofcom in each of the last...

      Direct Selling

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps his Department has taken to tackle unsolicited marketing telephone calls originating from outside the UK.

      Film

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what estimate he has made of investment from overseas sources in film production in the UK in each year since 2010.

      Floods

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport pursuant to the contribution by the Prime Minister of 18 June 2014, Official Report, column 1116W, what assessment he has made of the...

      Floods

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport pursuant to the contribution made by the Prime Minister of 18 June 2014, Official Report, column 1116W, what extra resource his...

      Public Libraries

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assessment he has made of the adequacy of local authority funding for the staffing of libraries.

      Public Libraries: Lincolnshire

      To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if he will make representation to Lincolnshire county council on its decision to invite volunteers to run some local libraries in...

  • Women and Equalities

    • Written Questions

      To ask the Ministers for Women and Equalities how many parliamentary questions tabled to the Government Equalities Office in the last parliamentary session did not receive a substantive answer by...

  • House of Lords

    • Absent Voting: Northern Ireland

      To ask her Majesty’s Government whether they have any plans to review electoral law in Northern Ireland in relation to postal voting; what are the major differences from the law in England;...

    • Armed Forces: Deployment

      To ask her Majesty’s Government how many members of the armed forces are currently posted overseas.

      Armed Forces: Elections

      To ask her Majesty’s Government what procedures are in place to ensure that members of the armed forces posted overseas receive, and are able to post, postal ballot papers; and whether any...

      Asylum: Finance

      To ask her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Taylor of Holbeach on 6 May (WA 322), what form the review of asylum support rates will take; and which stakeholders...

      Asylum: Gender Recognition

      To ask her Majesty’s Government how many people seeking asylum in the United Kingdom on the grounds of trans-related issues have been refused asylum and deported to their countries of...

      Debts

      To ask her Majesty’s Government what figures for household debt in the United Kingdom were provided by the Office for Budget Responsibility in each year from 2010–11 to 2013–14...

      Defamation

      To ask her Majesty’s Government what are the reasons for the delay in implementing cost protection measures in defamation reform.

      Deportation: LGBT People

      To ask her Majesty’s Government how many lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender asylum seekers have been deported from the United Kingdom over the last five years.

      Domestic Violence

      To ask her Majesty’s Government what discussions they have had with police forces in England and Wales and with the Football Association of England in order to counter any rise in domestic...

      Egypt

      To ask her Majesty’s Government what funds are available via the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and Department for International Development to help the people of Egypt to promote good...

      Employment: Young People

      To ask her Majesty’s Government how many 18–21 year olds and 22–24 year olds in England are (1) employed, (2) employed and claiming housing benefit, and (3) employed and...

      Energy: Prices

      To ask her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Verma on 16 June (WA 23–24) on energy prices, what assessment they have made of the time needed for...

      Energy: Prices

      To ask her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Verma on 16 June (WA 23–24) on energy prices, what evidence there is to suggest that smaller suppliers will...

      Homelessness

      To ask her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Stowell of Beeston on 10 March (WA 351) on homelessness, how much was awarded to each of the 47 local authorities...

      Learning Disability: Health Services

      To ask her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to ensure that people with learning disabilities are not excluded from NHS England’s five- year strategic plan for National Health...

      Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust

      To ask her Majesty’s Government what is the detailed breakdown of the £7,250,000 so far incurred by the special administration process in relation to Mid Staffordshire NHS Trust. To...

      North York Moors National Park

      To ask her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of (1) the reasons for the decision of the North York Moors National Park Authority to cease to maintain the footpaths and...

      Prison Accommodation

      To ask her Majesty’s Government how many category A and category B prisoners are currently being held in category C or category D prisons.

      Prisoners on Remand: Females

      To ask her Majesty’s Government what proportion of women remanded in custody are subsequently convicted and receive an immediate custodial sentence in (1) each magistrates' court, and (2)...

      Pupils: Disadvantaged

      To ask her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to extend summer school initiatives to help disadvantaged children improve their levels of attainment after the summer of 2014.

      Social Security Benefits: Medical Examinations

      To ask her Majesty’s Government what is the estimated current backlog of persons waiting to be assessed by Atos Healthcare for (1) Employment Support Allowance, and (2) Disability Living...

      South Sudan

      To ask her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the adequacy of pledges of humanitarian aid to South Sudan made so far.

      Spencer Perceval

      To ask the Chairman of Committees whether there are plans to mark the assassination of Prime Minister Spencer Perceval in 1812; if so, what those plans are; and if not, why not.

      Succession

      To ask her Majesty’s Government whether there is any regulation of heir hunters in the way they operate or the fees they charge beneficiaries; if not, whether they have plans to introduce...

      Taxis: Wheelchairs

      To ask her Majesty’s Government what progress has been made in implementing section 165 of the Equality Act 2010 which places a duty on taxi drivers to assist passengers who are wheelchair...

      Television Channels: Northern Ireland

      To ask her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Warsi on 25 January 2011 (WA 132), what were the final overall installation costs of the Divis transmitter which...

      Ulster Defence Regiment

      To ask her Majesty’s Government whether they intend to review pensions currently paid to former members of the Ulster Defence Regiment.

      Unpaid Fines

      To ask her Majesty’s Government what value of fines remained unpaid at the end of financial years 2009–10, 2010–11 and 2011–12 (1) in total, and (2) with respect to fines...

      Welfare Assistance Schemes

      To ask her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Freud on 19 March (WA 32), whether they will make a Written Ministerial Statement when they place in the Library of...

      Welfare Assistance Schemes

      To ask her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by the Minister of State for Pensions, Steve Webb, on 13 March (HC Deb, 317W) and the Written Answer by Baroness Stowell of...

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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