Written Statements
(5 years, 6 months ago)
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Armed Forces Pay Review Body
(5 years, 6 months ago)
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The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Defence (Mr Tobias Ellwood)
I am pleased to announce that I have invited Lesley Mercer to continue to serve as a member of the Armed Forces Pay Review Body for a further three-year term of office, commencing on 1 March 2019. This appointment has been conducted in accordance with the guidance of the Office of the Commissioner for Public Appointments.
[HCWS1013]
Domestic Farm Support Funding
(5 years, 6 months ago)
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The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Michael Gove)
Today I am announcing that the Government are launching an independent review into the allocation of domestic farm support from 2020 to the end of this Parliament. The review will make sure that fair funding is delivered to all four parts of the UK when we leave the EU.
The review will provide recommendations to the Government on factors to take into account in the split of agricultural funding between the four countries of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, once the UK has left the common agricultural policy.
In forming its recommendations, the review will look at what factors should influence the distribution of agricultural funding, while ensuring the effective use of public funds. Each country’s unique circumstances will be considered, including its environmental, agricultural and socioeconomic make-up. Both the number of farms and the size of farms in each country could also be considered, to make sure that each part of the UK gets a fair deal. The review will be informed by historical CAP decisions but will not revisit these, or redistribute money that has already been committed.
We have already confirmed that we will continue to commit the same cash total in funds for UK farm support until the end of the Parliament, expected in 2022, providing British farmers with more certainty than farmers across the EU, where funding is only guaranteed until 2020.
This review will be led and overseen by an independent external reviewer. I am delighted that Lord Bew of Donegore has agreed to chair the review. Lord Bew has been the Chair of the Committee on Standards in Public Life for five years, held esteemed positions in government and contributed to a number of Bills, reviews and reports during his time as a non-party political peer.
Lord Bew will be joined on the panel by representatives from each devolved Administration to ensure that their voices are heard. Membership of this group will be confirmed in due course.
The terms of reference for the review have been published on the gov.uk website today. The review will report in March 2019 and the findings of the review will be published on gov.uk in due course.
[HCWS1016]
G6 Lyon
(5 years, 6 months ago)
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The Secretary of State for the Home Department (Sajid Javid)
The informal G6 group of Interior Ministers held its most recent meeting in Lyon on 8 and 9 October 2017. Representatives from the USA, Morocco and the European Commission also attended the meeting.
The summit was chaired by the French Prime Minister and Interim Interior Minister, Édouard Philippe. I represented the United Kingdom. The other participating States were represented by Dr Joachim Brudzinski (Minister of the Interior, Poland), Dr Stephan Mayer (State Secretary, Germany), Matteo Salvini (Minister of the Interior, Italy) and Fernando Grande-Marlaska (Minister of the Interior, Spain).
Morocco was represented by Interior Minister Abdelouafi Laftit. The European Commission was represented by Dimitris Avramopoulos (Commissioner for Migration, Home Affairs and Citizenship) and Sir Julian King (Commissioner for the Security Union). The United States was represented by Jeff Sessions (Attorney General USA) and Claire Grady (acting Deputy Secretary, Department of Homeland Security). Gilles de Kerchove, the EU’s counter-terrorism co-ordinator, also attended.
The G6 commenced with a working dinner focused on managing illegal migration flows. During the discussion I promoted the UK’s efforts to tackle people smuggling and human trafficking, and highlighted the UK’s work upstream and our commitment to work with EU partners on this after we leave the EU. I also stressed the importance of recognising that organised crime is a key threat we need to address.
The second plenary session was on combatting the threat of returning foreign terrorist fighters. During this session I referred to the UK’s cross-governmental approach to managing returnees and the need for an end-to-end holistic approach to the issue.
The third session was a working lunch which focused on security co-operation with Sahel countries. During this session I highlighted the UK’s commitment to the region and discussed our support on security and stabilisation. I also encouraged partners to share information to develop shared understanding of local issues and highlighted the problem of the use of kidnap for ransom as a source of terrorist funding.
The final session considered terrorist use of the internet. I highlighted the fact that the UK is leading the way on preventing terrorist use of the internet, encouraged the G6 to support the UK’s strategic approach of engaging directly with content service providers and sought their support for action to combat child sexual exploitation online.
The next G6 will take place in Germany in 2019.
[HCWS1014]
Security Industry Authority
(5 years, 6 months ago)
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The Minister for Policing and the Fire Service (Mr Nick Hurd)
The 2017-18 annual report and accounts for the Security Industry Authority (HC 1643) is being laid before the House today and will published on www.gov.uk. Copies will be available in the Vote Office.
[HCWS1015]
Informal Trade Foreign Affairs Council: 5 October 2018
(5 years, 6 months ago)
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The Minister for Trade Policy (George Hollingbery)
The Informal EU Foreign Affairs Council (Trade) took place in Innsbruck on 5 October 2018. The agenda covered the WTO, EU-US trade and EU trade agreements. I represented the UK at the meeting. A summary of the discussions follow.
On WTO modernisation, the discussion confirmed that the most urgent issue was unblocking appointments to the WTO Appellate Body. Many WTO members were looking to the EU for leadership on this matter. I reaffirmed the UK’s support for the rules-based trading system, commended the Commission’s concept paper on WTO modernisation, and called for engagement with the wider WTO membership.
On EU-US trade, discussion was on the agreement set out in the EU-US joint statement following President Juncker’s visit to the White House and progress since July, noting that the near-term focus was on voluntary regulatory co-operation with full respect for domestic legislation. A limited tariff liberalisation was on offer from the EU, provided it focused only on industrial goods. I expressed opposition to US measures on steel and aluminium and threatened measures on autos, offered support to the Commission’s approach of prioritising regulatory co-operation, and agreed with others that there should be no lowering of standards.
On ongoing FTA negotiations, the priority for the Japan EPA to be approved by the European Parliament was highlighted. Attendees also expressed continued support for the range of other EU trade agreements.
[HCWS1012]