Asked by: Chris Williamson (Independent - Derby North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether his Department has made any payments to The Bulldog Trust in each financial year since 2015-16.
Answered by Alistair Burt
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has not made any payments to The Bulldog Trust in any financial year since 2015-16.
Asked by: Chris Williamson (Independent - Derby North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the (a) content and (b) level of disinformation spread by (a) the Russian state,(b) agents of the Russian state, (c) Russian, non-state actors in the UK.
Answered by Alan Duncan
The UK is at the forefront of a growing international consensus on the need to take action against disinformation, regardless of source or intent. The Government continues to monitor the nature and level of the threat posed by Russian state-sponsored disinformation. As the Prime Minister said in her Mansion House speech in November 2017, Russia is seeking to weaponise information, deploying its state-run media organisations to plant fake stories and photo-shopped images in an attempt to sow discord in the West and undermine our institutions. Following the Salisbury attack in March 2018, the Russian state and Russian state media pushed out a deluge of disinformation with over 40 different narratives to confuse audiences and distract from Russian culpability.
Asked by: Chris Williamson (Independent - Derby North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how much funding his Department allocated to each recipient under the Russian Language Programme since financial year 2013-14.
Answered by Alan Duncan
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office's Russian Language Programme was launched in 2014 following Russia's illegal annexation of Crimea. The Programme was funded from the Cross-Government Conflict, Stability, and Security Fund (CSSF). In April 2016 we launched a new four year strategic communications and media development programme, called the Counter Disinformation and Media Development Programme, designed to protect national security by countering disinformation directed at the UK and its Allies from Russia. The former Russian Language Programme was amalgamated into this. Documents and correspondence about projects within the Programme will not be published, as this information could then be used actively to attempt to disrupt and undermine the Programme's effectiveness.
Asked by: Chris Williamson (Independent - Derby North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will list (a) the recipients of funding allocated from the public purse under the Counter Disinformation and Media Development Programme and (b) the amounts allocated to each recipient under the Programme in each financial year since 2015-16.
Answered by Alan Duncan
The FCO's Counter Disinformation and Media Development Programme is designed to protect national security by countering disinformation directed at the UK and its Allies from Russia. Russia persistently uses disinformation to target its perceived enemies. An example was the Russian disinformation campaign that followed the attack in Salisbury, which was intended to distract from Russian culpability. Documents and correspondence about projects within the Programme will not be published, as this information could then be used actively to attempt to disrupt and undermine the Programme's effectiveness.
Asked by: Chris Williamson (Independent - Derby North)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what funding his Department has allocated to the Active Change Foundation in each financial year since 2008-09.
Answered by Ben Wallace
Prevent funding is prioritised based on threat and risk across England and Wales. Priority areas receive funding for people and projects delivered by civil society organisations that counter terrorist narratives and build resilience in communities against radicalisation.
The Home Office does not provide information regarding individual funding allocations of local Prevent projects
Asked by: Chris Williamson (Independent - Derby North)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will publish the amount of funding each recipient has received under the Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust's Local Grants Programme in each financial year since 2015-16.
Answered by Tobias Ellwood
This information is published online at:
http://www.covenantfund.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/Local-grants-2015-16.pdf
http://www.covenantfund.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/Local-grants-2016-17.pdf
http://www.covenantfund.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/Local-grants-2017-18.pdf
Asked by: Chris Williamson (Independent - Derby North)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the risks to human and animals of trail hunts encroaching on roads and railway lines.
Answered by Thérèse Coffey
I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to the hon. Member for Newport West, Paul Flynn, on 26 February 2018, PQ UIN 128304.
Asked by: Chris Williamson (Independent - Derby North)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether his Department has (a) funded, (b) awarded contracts to and (c) procured the services of the Integrity Initiative in each financial year since 2015-16.
Answered by David Lidington
The Cabinet Office has provided no funding, contracts or procured services from the Integrity Initiative.
Asked by: Chris Williamson (Independent - Derby North)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, many convictions have been secured under the 2004 Hunting Act in each year since 2010.
Answered by Thérèse Coffey
The number of convictions under the Hunting Act 2004 in England and Wales, from 2010 to 2017, can be viewed in the table below. This information was provided by the Ministry of Justice.
The number of convictions under the Hunting Act 2004 in England and Wales from 2010 to 2017(1)(2)
| |||||||
2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 |
36 | 56 | 48 | 56 | 35 | 45 | 31 | 22 |
Notes:
(1) The figures given in the table relate to defendants for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences it is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. (2) Includes males, females, persons where sex "Not Stated" and other offenders, i.e. companies, public bodies, etc. | |||||||
Asked by: Chris Williamson (Independent - Derby North)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether his Department (a) leases (b) provides in kind any (i) office space and (ii) other resources to the Institute for Statecraft.
Answered by Tobias Ellwood
The Ministry of Defence has no centrally-held record of any provision of office space to the Institute for Statecraft.
In Financial Years 2016-17 and 2017-18, the Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust's Local Grants Programme awarded a total of £177,650 to 12 separate small projects run by the Shared Outcomes Programme, an initiative of the Institute for Statecraft which works with young people (aged 14 - 18) from minority communities in areas facing economic and social challenge and aims to increase participants' life opportunities and support them in fulfilling their potential. The Shared Outcomes projects enable young people to take part in challenging activities such as assault courses, night navigation exercises and camping while visiting an Army base, and other activities designed to improve community cohesion. In addition, in 2017 the Army made a single payment of £6,800 to the Institute for Statecraft for specialist training.