Written answers

Wednesday, 8 September 2021

  • Department for Transport

    • Large Goods Vehicle Drivers: Driving Tests

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions officials in his Department have had with representatives of the DVSA on ensuring that HGV trainer qualification module tests are...

    • Driving Tests: Highlands of Scotland

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions his Department has had with the DVSA on increasing the number of driver theory tests available in the Scottish Highlands.

      Driving Licences: Foreign Nationals

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 2 February 2021 to Question 145054 on Driving Licences: Foreign Nationals, whether he has made an assessment of the...

      Railway Stations: Visual Impairment

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment he has made of the potential merits of ensuring provision of tactile paving across all Network Rail stations by 2025.

      Rotherhithe Tunnel: Repairs and Maintenance

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps the Government is taking to provide Transport for London with funding for urgent renovations to the Rotherhithe Tunnel in order to prevent...

      Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation: Hydrogen

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy on the potential merits of waiving grid fees for...

      Roads: Repairs and Maintenance

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much was spent per metre on roads in Herefordshire compared with other counties in each of the last three years for which figures are available.

      Large Goods Vehicle Drivers: Working Hours

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the potential impact on road safety of his decision to extend the temporary relaxation of the enforcement of the...

      Motorways: Accidents

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment his Department has made of the potential effect of Smart Motorways on the number of fatalities caused by a collision.

      Road Traffic: Cats

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans his Department has to give cats the same protections as dogs under the Road Traffic Act1988.

      Large Goods Vehicle Drivers: Qualifications

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of covering the fees for Driver Certificate of Professional Competence (CPC) cards to help to...

      Bus Services: Coronavirus

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much funding has been allocated from the £226.5 million covid-19 bus operator recovery grant (a) to each combined authority area and (b) in...

      Travel Restrictions: Pakistan

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what criteria Pakistan needs to meet to move to the amber list for covid-19 travel restrictions.

      Travel Restrictions: South Africa

      To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of moving South Africa from the red list for international covid-19 travel restrictions to the...

  • Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    • Trade Union Act 2016

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what plans the Government has to respond to the observation in June 2019 by the International Labour...

    • Post Offices: ICT

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many current and former postmasters were (a) contacted and (b) unable to be traced by the Post Office in response...

      Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme and Bounce Back Loan Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what guidance the Government has issued to (a) Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme and (b) Bounce Back Loan...

      Post Offices: ICT

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many applications have been received for the Post Office’s Historical Shortfall Scheme after that scheme...

      Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme and Bounce Back Loan Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 13 July 2021 to Question 29853 on Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme, what the...

      Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme and Bounce Back Loan Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what ongoing data his Department is collecting on repayment rates for the (a) Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan...

      Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the impact of Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS) borrowers asking...

  • Northern Ireland Office

    • Education: Northern Ireland

      To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what recent assessment he has made of the progress on the Independent Review of Education in Northern Ireland being undertaken by the...

    • Integrated Schools: Northern Ireland

      To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, with reference to the findings of the poll conducted by the Integrated Education Fund, published June 2021, what steps he is taking to increase...

      Northern Ireland Office: Ethnic Groups

      To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many Black and ethnic minority staff hold management positions in his Department.

      Northern Ireland Office: Ethnic Groups

      To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what recent estimate he has made of the number of Black and ethnic minority staff employed in his Department.

  • Department of Health and Social Care

    • Patients: Safety

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many of the 39 national patient safety recommendations made by the Healthcare Safety Investigation Branch in 2020-21 his Department...

    • Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with representatives of the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence on the time taken to publish...

      Cancer: Health Services

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Cancer Research UK Cancer Patient Survey 2021, what steps he is taking to ensure cancer services fully reopen to...

      Primary Health Care

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make it his policy to develop a national strategy to promote self-care for minor ailments.

      Department of Health and Social Care: Uniserve

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what payments have been made to Uniserve Ltd for (a) demurrage and (b) detention fees for each month in the last six months for which...

      Diabetes: Medical Equipment

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to increase the use of Freestyle Libra glucose monitoring equipment in the NHS to help monitor and control diabetes.

      Cancer: Health Services

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to increase the support available to cancer patients whose treatment has been delayed as a result of the covid-19...

      Primary Health Care

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to (a) encourage people to self-care and (b) educate healthcare professionals to support people to self-care for...

      Travel: Coronavirus

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether the Covishield covid-19 vaccine will be recognised by the Government for the purposes of inbound international travel.

      Medical Equipment: Databases

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what (a) risk assessment has been carried out on and (b) regulations govern the use of mesh as a treatment for hernias; and what progress...

      NHS: Publications

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when a decision will be taken to reinstate the collection and publication of NHS data in currently paused publications or series.

      NHS: Motor Vehicles

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure that ambulances and fleets of NHS vehicles are fuelled and powered sustainably.

      NHS: Publications

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what NHS England publications and data collection have been paused or suspended from quarter 4 of 2020-21 to quarter 2 of 2021-22.

      Health Services: Asylum

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of exempting refused asylum seekers from NHS overseas charges.

      Coronavirus: Vaccination

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether people who normally receive a flu vaccination, including people with asthma and lung conditions, will receive a covid-19 booster...

      Coronavirus: Vaccination

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when the Government plans to publish the impact assessment on making covid-19 vaccination a condition of deployment in care homes; and...

      Influenza: Vaccination

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what criteria his Department will use to determine whether the temporary expansion of eligibility for flu vaccination to people aged over...

      Coronavirus: Vaccination

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the viability of a covid-19 booster jab for vulnerable groups who were vaccinated earlier in...

      Coronavirus: Vaccination

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when the covid-19 vaccine app will be changed to enable people of 17 years and 9 months to book a vaccine appointment.

      Coronavirus: Vaccination

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department plans to provide similar guidance to the temporary clinical authorisation granted by the Medicine and Healthcare...

      Mental Health Services: Sheffield

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of effect of funding allocated to early support hubs on trends in average waiting times for child...

      Cancer: Drugs

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the efficacy of Project Orbis.

      Coronavirus: Screening

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will publish (a) details of the MHRA's review into the Innova covid-19 lateral flow tests and (b) criteria applied to determine...

      Trodelvy

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent representations he has made to representatives of the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) on...

      Coronavirus: Screening

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, which organisations, sectors and businesses are involved in the Government's covid-19 daily contact testing study; and when each of those...

      Coronavirus: Contact Tracing

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the evidential basis is for the decision to change the NHS Covid App’s operational rules to reduce the time period to notify...

      Coronavirus: Screening

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of expanding the official list of covid-19 symptoms which trigger testing.

      Travel: Coronavirus

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure people's data collected by private companies providing covid-19 testing for travel is secure and only...

      Alcoholic Drinks: Misuse

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the 19.6 per cent annual increase in alcohol specific deaths; and...

      Air Pollution

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to support people with damaged lungs as a result of air pollution.

      Dental Services

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent estimate his Department has made of the number of dental practices in York accepting new NHS adult patients; and what recent...

      Schools: Coronavirus

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to protect clinically extremely vulnerable children in mainstream education from covid-19, including...

      Cancer: Screening

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the number of cancer screening tests that have taken place for each type of cancer in each of the last five...

      Functional Neurological Disorder

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent steps his Department has taken to help ensure that specific information on Functional Neurological Disorder (FND) is...

      Allergies: Health Services

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to increase funding for NHS allergy services.

      Supermarkets: Coronavirus

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will support supermarkets which continue to ask customers to wear face masks in their stores during the covid-19 outbreak.

      General Practitioners

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential effect on access to GPs of the transition to a telephone and online triage model...

      Sickle Cell Diseases: Drugs

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has plans to exempt medicines required to treat sickle cell disease from prescription charges.

      Travel Restrictions: Coronavirus

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will publish the (a) scientific and (b) medical basis for the decision to include Egypt on the covid-19 travel red list.

      Primary Health Care

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer on 27 July 2021 to Question 35950 on Primary Health Care, what steps his Department is taking to support people to...

      Primary Health Care

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answers on 27 July 2021 to Question 35950 on Primary Health Care and Question 35951 on Integrated Care Systems, what...

      Blood Tests: Bottles

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure adequate supplies of blood bottles for use in routine blood tests; and if he will make a statement.

      Members: Correspondence

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans to respond to the correspondence of 25 February 2021 from the hon. Member for Rochdale on the legislative proposals for a...

      Coronavirus: Public Inquiries

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what preparations his Department has made for the holding of the public inquiry into the Government's handling of the covid-19 outbreak;...

      Department of Health and Social Care: Food

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he has taken to encourage procurement of British produce within meals available for (a) staff in his Department and (b)...

      Members: Correspondence

      To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans to respond to the letters of 19 March 2021 and 6 May 2021 from the hon Member for Weston-super-Mare, on behalf of a...

  • Department for Education

    • Schools: Repairs and Maintenance

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether emergency funding is available to local authority primary schools in the event that school buildings are found to be structurally unsafe.

    • Teachers: Training

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to page 4 of the Department's Realising the potential of technology in education: A summary report, published in April 2019, how many...

      Schools

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate he has made of the number of pupils whose choice of school is limited to a faith school; and what steps he will take to ensure pupils...

      Schools: Internet

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many schools lack full-fibre internet connectivity (a) nationally, (b) regionally and (c) by local authority.

      Schools: Discipline

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he plans to consult young people in addition to teachers and parents in the current call for evidence on behaviour in schools.

      English Language: Training

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether training organisations other than Further Education colleges offering English as an additional language (EAL) and LCL accredited...

      Vocational Education: Qualifications

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the effect on students from disadvantaged backgrounds of the Government's recent decision to remove funding for the...

      Schools: Coronavirus

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he plans to put in place to help protect clinically extremely vulnerable parents from covid-19 infection from the beginning of the autumn...

      Students: Mental Health Services

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of ending blended learning on the mental health of college-aged students who are accessing Child...

      National School Breakfast Programme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans his Department has to monitor and publish impact data on the effect of school breakfasts provided through the National School Breakfast...

  • Ministry of Justice

    • Remand in Custody: Crimes of Violence

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate he has made of the number of people aged (a) 13 to 18 and (b) 19 to 21 who have been remanded in custody for offences related to (i)...

    • Probation: Statistics

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the Official statistics announcement, Community Performance Quarterly, update to June 2021, as updated on the 26 October 2020, how he...

      Youth Custody

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the Action Plan: Outcomes for Young Adults in Custody, published on 20 January 2021, what progress has been made on the preparation of...

      Prisoners: Ethnic Groups

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent estimate he has made of the number of children in prison from Black and ethnic minority backgrounds.

      Prisoners: Gender Recognition

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what provisions are in place to prevent men claiming to identify as a woman to ensure their transfer to a female prison.

      Prison Officers: Ethnic Groups

      To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to Recruitment diversity statistics June 21, published on 19 August 2021, if he will make a statement on the Her Majesty's Prison and...

  • Treasury

    • Help to Buy Scheme: Individual Savings Accounts

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he has plans to review the help-to-buy ISA threshold in light of rising house prices.

    • Monetary Policy Committee: Scotland

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many persons appointed to the Bank of England Monetary Policy Committee by his Department in the last five years have been educated at a Scottish...

      Universal Credit

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions on the impact on the Exchequer of ending the £20 uplift to universal credit.

      Hospitality Industry: VAT

      To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of extending the reduced rate of VAT on hospitality goods and services.

  • Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office

    • Afghanistan: Home Country Nationals

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the ongoing security risk to those Afghan nationals whose details were...

    • Rwanda: Overseas Aid

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how much and what proportion of the overseas aid budget has been allocated to Rwanda; and in what years that...

      Afghanistan: British Nationals Abroad

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will publish an evaluation of his Department's repatriation programme of UK nationals following the 2021...

      Afghanistan: LGBT People

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he has taken to provide evacuation for LGBTQ+ people escaping persecution in Afghanistan.

      Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will provide a copy of the FCDO ministerial rota for each day in August 2021.

      Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, on what dates during the month of August 2021 he spoke with (a) US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, (b) NATO...

      Dominic Raab: Holidays

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what date his 2021 summer holiday commenced.

      Afghanistan: Armed Conflict

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will make it his policy to support resistance to the Taliban in the Panjshir Valley.

      Afghanistan: LGBT People

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to protect LGBTQ+ people from persecution, arrest and potential execution in Afghanistan.

      Afghanistan: LGBT People

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he has taken to provide evacuation for LGBTQ+ people escaping persecution in Afghanistan.

      Zimbabwe

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on the (a) security, (b) human rights and (c) economic...

      Sri Lanka: Conflict, Stability and Security Fund

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department plans to conduct a new Joint Analysis of Conflict and Stability on Sri Lanka, as...

      Prisoners: Torture

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 8 July 2021 to Question 27271 on Prisoners: Torture, whether he has (a) publicly...

      Ahnaf Jazeem

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with his counterpart in the Government of Sri Lanka on the ongoing detention of young...

      Members: Correspondence

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, when he plans to respond to the letter from the hon. Member for West Lancashire of 9 June 2021 on religious...

      Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office: Directors

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, which of his Department's non executive directors were appointed through open competition.

      Vietnam: Visits Abroad

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he recently travelled to Vietnam on an A321 aircraft leased from CMT; and whether the costs of that flight...

      Sri Lanka: Human Rights

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to UN Resolution 46/1, what steps he is taking to protect human rights in Sri Lanka.

      International Monetary System

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 19 July 2021 to Question 33300, whether the value of any Special Drawing Rights...

      Afghanistan: Armed Conflict

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the implications of the takeover of Kabul by the Taliban for the security of the UK...

      Afghanistan: USA

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he made a request to his US counterpart for an orderly and gradual US withdrawal from Afghanistan.

      Afghanistan: Armed Conflict

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has had discussions with his NATO counterparts on the potential to support forces resisting the Taliban...

      Chevening Scholarships Programme: Coronavirus

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will liaise with Cabinet colleagues and issue guidance to universities on the advice they should give to...

      Overseas Aid

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with organisations taking part in the UK Aid Match programme on the impact of...

      Travel: Quarantine

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, which Government Department is responsible for conveying the latest covid-19 quarantine policies to UK citizens...

      Jamaica: Foreign Relations

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, when he last had discussions with the Prime Minister of Jamaica.

      Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office: Accountancy

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what the timeframe is for the publication of his Department's annual accounts.

      Barbados: Foreign Relations

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, when he last had discussions with the Prime Minister of Barbados; and if he will make a statement.

      Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office: Ethnic Groups

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent estimate he has made of the number of Black and ethnic minority staff employed in his Department.

      Sri Lanka: Conflict, Stability and Security Fund

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, when he plans to review the Overseas Security and Justice Assessment related to Conflict, Security and Stability...

      British Indian Ocean Territory

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 15 July 2021 to Question 31362 on the British Indian Ocean Territory, whether the UK's...

      South Africa: Civil Disorder

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with his South African counterpart on supporting South African access to food and...

      Mali: Politics and Government

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the (a) political and (b) security situation in Mali.

      South Africa: Security

      To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent (a) assessment he has made of the domestic security situation in South Africa in light of civil unrest...

  • Ministry of Defence

    • Afghanistan: Armed Conflict

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many of the 166 round trip evacuation flights recently conducted to and from Kabul by the Royal Air Force as part of Operation Pitting were...

    • Cobham: Sales

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether the sale of over half of the value of Cobham by the US private equity firm, Advent, adheres to the agreement made by the Government and Advent.

      Afghanistan: Immigration

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether any special housing arrangements will be made for the family of Afghans currently studying at Royal Military Academy Sandhurst to ensure that...

      Defence: Procurement

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many of his Department's 36 procurement programmes recently audited by the Infrastructure Projects Authority (IPA) in its 2020-2021 Annual Report...

      Afghanistan: British Council

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether all British Council staff were among those successfully evacuated from Afghanistan as part of Operation Pitting.

      Afghanistan: British Nationals Abroad

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether all British nationals wishing to leave Afghanistan were successfully evacuated as part of Operation Pitting.

      Navy and Royal Fleet Auxiliary: Shipping

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what proportion of maintenance periods were completed later than originally scheduled for all (a) Royal Navy and (b) Royal Fleet Auxiliary vessels that...

      Afghanistan: Armed Forces

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether the intelligence used by his Department to assess the strength and capacity of the Afghan Armed Forces was (a) collected by the UK Government's...

      Ministry of Defence: Ethnic Groups

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent estimate he has made of the number of Black and ethnic minority staff employed in his Department.

      Armoured Fighting Vehicles

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many CVRT platforms his Department declared to be in its inventory under the requirements of the Conventional Armed Forces in Europe Treaty (CFE).

      Air Force: Work Experience

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of the Royal Air Force (RAF) offering a work experience opportunity for those declined...

      Ministry of Defence: Housing

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many units of living accommodation for MOD staff and families are currently unoccupied.

      Armed Forces: Post-traumatic Stress Disorder

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether his Department has undertaken research in the last five years on the potential correlation between PTSD suffered by serving personnel and...

      Ajax Vehicles

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when (a) his Department, (b) Defence Equipment and Support and (c) the Army were first made aware of quality assurance defects in respect of the Ajax...

      Ajax Vehicles: Ammunition

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when the air burst munition will be incorporated into the Ajax CT40 system.

      Ajax Vehicles: Procurement

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, by what date he expects to appoint a Senior Responsible Owner for the Ajax Armoured Fighting Vehicle programme.

      Armed Forces: Radio

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether the new BATCIS UK tactical radios are planned to be ITAR-regulated.

      Armed Forces: Radio

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to paragraph II.1.5 of the Invitation to Tender for Multi-Mode Radio, for what reason his Department has a requirement for National...

      BOWMAN Combat Radio System

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the out-of-service date is for the Bowman ComBAT Infrastructure and Platform (BCIP) 5.6.

      BOWMAN Combat Radio System

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the baseline in-service date is for the Bowman ComBAT Infrastructure and Platform (BCIP) 5.6.

      BOWMAN Combat Radio System

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent forecast he has made of the in-service date for Bowman ComBAT Infrastructure and Platform (BCIP) 5.6.

      BOWMAN Combat Radio System

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what estimate he has made of the (a) forecasted cost and (b) actual cost to date of the Bowman ComBAT Infrastructure and Platform (BCIP) 5.6.

      Ajax Vehicles: Procurement

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what estimate he has made of the profit margin for General Dynamics on the Ajax AFV production contract.

      Ajax Vehicles: Procurement

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what type of steroids, including the product name were administered to armed forces personnel who experienced hearing problems after participating in...

      Afghanistan: Immigration

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what estimate his Department has made of the number of Afghan nationals eligible for the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy that were not...

      Afghanistan: Special Forces

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps the Government has taken to provide safe passage to the UK for Afghan special forces.

      Afghanistan: Armed Conflict

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he has made an estimate of the strength of military forces resisting the Taliban in the Panjshir Valley.

      Ajax Vehicles: Testing

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the oral evidence of the Minister of State for Defence Procurement to the Defence Committee on 20 July 2021, when he expects to...

      Ajax Vehicles: Ammunition

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, which contractor produces the 40mm ammunition planned for use in the Ajax armoured fighting vehicle.

      Ajax Vehicles: Testing

      To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the Chief Executive of the Defence Equipment and Support's oral evidence to the Committee of Public Accounts on 12 July 2021, whether...

  • Department for Work and Pensions

    • Children: Maintenance

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what provisions are in place to ensure continued receipt of child maintenance payments from a parent who is imprisoned but still in receipt of...

    • Universal Credit: Newport West

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will meet the hon. Member for Newport West, representatives of the Welsh Government and Newport City Council to discuss the effect on...

      Children: Maintenance

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what criteria the Child Maintenance Service uses to determine whether pensions contributions made by non-resident parents are reasonable when...

      Self-employed: Mothers

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate she has made of the number of self-employed mothers who have had a child through a surrogacy arrangement who have not been...

      Access to Work Programme: Electronic Government

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the National Disability Strategy, published in July 2021, whether her Department plans to make Access to Work a digital service.

      Maternity Allowance

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the reasons for the change in the number of maternity allowance starts between 2016-17 and the second half of...

      Kickstart Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many participants in the Kickstart scheme are single claimants and have declared that they are looking after a child under the age of 16.

      Social Security Benefits: Terminal Illnesses

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will amend the severe conditions criteria so that people who have already been diagnosed with a terminal condition do not need to go...

      Social Security Benefits: Vulnerable Adults

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether her Department accepts a statutory safeguarding duty of care to vulnerable benefits claimants.

      Social Security Benefits: Terminal Illnesses

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what plans she has to extend awards under the special rules for terminal illness in line with changes made for claimants with severe lifelong...

      State Retirement Pensions: Administrative Delays

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether there have been any reported delays in processing initial payments for those who have reached state pension age.

      Coronavirus: Disease Control

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment has she undertaken of the effect biological cleaning systems can have on (a) personal sensitisation, (b) sanitising work and...

      Kickstart Scheme: Job Creation

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many jobs have been created in third sector organisations through the Kickstart scheme in (a) Glasgow, (b) Scotland and (c) the UK as at 2...

      Social Security Benefits: Terminal Illnesses

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will end the practice of Departmental assessors rejecting the clinical judgment of a medical professional that a patient is terminally...

      Restart Programme: Food Supply

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people have successfully moved into work in food distribution after participation in the Restart scheme.

      Vacancies

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps she is taking to help tackle labour shortages in food distribution.

      Kickstart Scheme: Food Supply

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many Kickstart placements have been created in food distribution industries.

      Social Security Benefits: Artificial Intelligence

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment her Department has made of the potential effect of using algorithms, such as for fraud risk scoring, on benefits claimants'...

      Department for Work and Pensions: Assessments Policy Forum

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will place in the Library a list of the members of her Department’s Assessments Policy Forum; and whether that the Forum will...

      Social Security Benefits: EU Nationals

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate she has made of the number of claimants granted pre-settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme who will lose access to...

      AEA Group: Pensions

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of establishing an independent savings and pension commission to better ensure...

      Post Office Card Account

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent assessment he has made of the potential merits of introducing a secure alternative to the Post Office Card Account (POca) card for...

      Post Office Card Account

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the potential effect of security and fraud risks posed by Post Office Card Account (POca) voucher alternatives...

      State Retirement Pensions: British Nationals Abroad

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether her Department has made a recent estimate of the number of British nationals resident in Peru who are (a) in receipt of a UK state...

      State Retirement Pensions: Females

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department plans to take in response to the findings of the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman's report, Women's State...

      State Retirement Pensions: Age

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of reducing the state pension age to 60.

      State Retirement Pensions: British Nationals Abroad

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent discussions she has had with her counterparts in (a) Canada, (b) Australia and (c) other governments on the uprating of the UK...

      State Retirement Pensions: Windrush Generation

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of the Government’s frozen pensions policy on members of the Windrush generation.

      State Retirement Pensions: British Nationals Abroad

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether her Department has taken recent steps to pursue a reciprocal agreement with the Peruvian Government to allow British nationals who are...

      State Retirement Pensions: British Nationals Abroad

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether the Government has plans to form new reciprocal agreements to uprate the state pensions of British pensioners overseas.

      AEA Group: Pensions

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps she is taking to help people affected by the collapse of the AEA Technology pension scheme.

      State Retirement Pensions: Females

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the oral contribution of the Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury on 22 June 2021, Official Report, col 748, whether it is her...

      AEA Group: Pensions

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what discussions officials in her Department have had with representatives of the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman on a potential...

      State Retirement Pensions: Ipswich

      To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the (a) total, (b) annual and (c) monthly basic state pension payment has been in (a) Suffolk and (b) the Central Suffolk and North...

  • Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    • Theft: Pets

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the press release of 3 September 2021, Pet abduction to be made new criminal offence in crackdown on pet...

    • Birds of Prey

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions his Department has had with Natural England on steps taken in response to the High Court judgement of 13...

      Housing: Sewers

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of ending housing developers right to connect to the sewer system; and...

      Poultry Meat: Labelling

      To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will require all poultry which is intended for human consumption and which has been injected with water and/or salt,...

  • Home Office

    • Refugees: Afghanistan

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of the roll out and implementation of the Afghanistan resettlement scheme; and...

    • Refugees: Afghanistan

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when the Afghan Citizens’ Resettlement Scheme will open for applications; for what reasons that scheme was not prepared and available...

      Entry Clearances: Afghanistan

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to accelerate the provision of visas to the 35 Afghan Chevening scholarship students.

      Asylum

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the average period of time is that asylum seekers have been on Section 95 support by the time of case resolution in each of the last...

      Deportation: Afghanistan

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether the Government’s immigration returns agreement with Afghanistan is no longer valid.

      Deportation: Jamaica and Zimbabwe

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether any of those people deported on the charter flight to (a) Zimbabwe on 21 July 2021 and (b) Jamaica on 11 August 2021 or any of...

      Refugees

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people were granted refugee status in each year since 2010 broken down by local authority allocation.

      Hamas

      To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will add the political wing of Hamas to the list of proscribed terrorist groups.

  • Scotland Office

    • Question

      What recent progress the Government has made on establishing the UK Shared Prosperity Fund.

    • Question

      What steps the Government is taking to help students attending Scottish universities to study and work overseas.

      Question

      What recent discussions he has had with the Scottish Government on the implementation of the Government's new Hydrogen Strategy.

      Ports: Scotland

      To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on resources deployed at Scottish ports to help manage the movement of goods since the Northern...

  • Cabinet Office

    • Coronavirus: Public Inquiries

      To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, which Minister is responsible for the covid-19 public inquiry.

  • Department for International Trade

    • Department for International Trade: China

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, how many meetings her Department has had with representatives of the People's Republic of China since 12 January 2021; what was discussed at...

    • Iron and Steel: India

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what steps she is taking to support increased UK steel exports to India.

      Trade Agreements: Consumers

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, if she will publish a copy of the presentation discussed by her Strategic Trade Advisory Group on 19 July 2021 on the consumer interest in...

      Generalised System of Preferences: Afghanistan

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, whether she plans to suspend Afghanistan's access to the tariff preferences available under the Least Developed Countries framework of the...

      Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership: Dispute Resolution

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, whether her Government's proposed 2022 ban on the promotion of unhealthy foods will fall under the scope of the ISDS provisions in CPTPP...

      Developing Countries Trading Scheme

      To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 22 July 2021 to Question 35571 on Trade: Developing Countries, whether genocide against religious minorities will...

  • Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

    • Gambling: Licensing

      To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, if he will commit to supporting the introduction of a registration and licensing regime for gambling affiliates.

    • Local Broadcasting and Local Press: Internet

      To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure that (a) local news providers on digital and social platforms are on a...

      Mobile Phones: Fees and Charges

      To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, if he will ask Ofcom to (a) make an assessment of the cost orientation of the EU roaming charges introduced by (i) EE and (ii)...

      Gambling: Disclosure of Information

      To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions the Gambling commission has had with the information commissioner's office on the legality of requesting...

      Members: Correspondence

      To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, when he plans to respond to the letter from the hon. Member for West Lancashire, of 21 May 2021, on fan ownership of football...

      Rugby: Australia and New Zealand

      To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment he has made of the effect of Australia and New Zealand withdrawing from the Rugby League World Cup.

      Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport: Staff

      To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, how many and what proportion of the staff of his Department are politically restricted.

      Parks: Tennis

      To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what recent assessment his Department has made of the condition of park tennis courts in England.

  • Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

    • Members: Correspondence

      To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, when he plans to respond to the letter from the hon. Member for West Lancashire of 21 May 2021 on Government grants...

    • Right to Buy Scheme: Housing Associations

      To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what plans he has to extend right to buy to housing association tenants after the completion of the 2017 pilot scheme.

      Waking Watch Relief Fund: Leeds

      To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will provide details of all the buildings in (a) LS1, (b) LS2, (c) LS6, (d) LS7, (e) LS9, (f) LS10 and (g) LS11...

  • Home Office

    • Afghanistan: Taliban

      To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan, what steps they intend to take to increase the scrutiny of UK citizens entering and returning from that country...

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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