Asked by: Bob Seely (Conservative - Isle of Wight)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what information his Department holds on the level of Russian Central Bank reserves held in the UK; and in what form those reserves are held.
Answered by Andrew Griffith - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
In conjunction with our partners, we have blocked access to £275 billion of the Russian Central Bank’s foreign currency reserves globally. Under the Russia sanctions regime, the Russian Central Bank’s assets have been immobilised in the UK as a result of a prohibition on the provision of financial services in respect of these assets. We continue to work with relevant stakeholders on the implementation of this sanction.
Asked by: Bob Seely (Conservative - Isle of Wight)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what plans his Department has to increase the Government’s strategic resilience in relation to matters of national importance.
Answered by Jeremy Quin
With the increasing volatility and interconnectedness of risks, strong national resilience is more important than ever. The UK Government’s Resilience Framework, published in December 2022, sets out a strategic approach to strengthening the systems and capabilities that underpin our collective resilience to all risks.
Work is already underway across Government to deliver on the principles and approach in the Framework and to act on lessons from recent crises. We have already refreshed the National Security Risk Assessment and will be updating the public National Risk Register later in the year. The Prime Minister has approved a new sub-committee of the National Security Council dedicated to resilience, led by the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster. We have also strengthened Cabinet Office crisis and resilience structures. The new Resilience Directorate leads on longer-term resilience planning, alongside the COBR Unit which leads on national crisis response and contingency planning.
Asked by: Bob Seely (Conservative - Isle of Wight)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what assessment his Department has made with Cabinet colleagues of the effectiveness of Government incentives for companies to invest in Offshore wind innovation.
Answered by Graham Stuart
The Government is supporting research and development in offshore wind technology via the Net Zero Innovation Programme (NZIP), which will provide £60 million of funding for technologies including floating offshore wind and radar mitigation. Each of these programmes includes an element of matched funding from the private sector. The effectiveness of these programmes will be considered as part of the wider benefits evaluation work of the NZIP.
The Government also awarded £3.12 million to the innovative ERM-Dolphin project in 2020, which will develop a floating wind farm to produce green hydrogen at scale with a target capacity of 4GW by 2032.
Asked by: Bob Seely (Conservative - Isle of Wight)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to help prevent (a) petty crimes and (b) anti-social behaviour in (i) rural and (ii) isolated communities.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Beating Crime Plan published on 27 July 2021 laid out the Government’s commitment to drive down levels of crime and anti-social behaviour.
We are giving the police the resources they need by recruiting an additional 20,000 officers by March 2023. The deployment of all officers remains an operational decision for Chief Constables.
The Government is committed to tackling all forms of anti-social behaviour (ASB) wherever it may be taking place. We provided the police, local authorities, and other local agencies with a range of tools and powers that they can flexibly use to respond quickly and effectively to ASB through the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014.
Asked by: Bob Seely (Conservative - Isle of Wight)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to help (a) protect and (b) expand England's protected landscapes.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
We have recently set out in our Environmental Improvement Plan that we will protect our protected landscapes by investing in a new National Landscapes Partnership, developing a Protected Landscapes outcomes framework, providing guidance to strengthen Protected Landscapes’ management plans and issuing guidance on the strengthened biodiversity duty. We will extend our protected landscapes by continuing assessments to designate two new AONBs and two AONB extensions and using the All-England mapping tool to identify landscapes to improve nature and access.
Asked by: Bob Seely (Conservative - Isle of Wight)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans his Department has on prioritisation of (a) heart disease and (b) diabetes in this Parliament.
Answered by Helen Whately - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government announced on 24 January that it will publish a Major Conditions Strategy.
The Strategy will focus on conditions that contribute most to morbidity and mortality across the population in England: cancers; cardiovascular disease, including stroke and diabetes; chronic respiratory diseases; dementia; mental ill health; and musculoskeletal conditions.
Asked by: Bob Seely (Conservative - Isle of Wight)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department plans to take steps to (a) ensure dangerous dogs are safe for other dogs to be around and (b) control breeding practices to prevent the breeding of dogs of a dangerous and aggressive temperament.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Under section 3 of the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991, it is an offence to allow any dog to be dangerously out of control.
In December 2021, Defra published research in collaboration with Middlesex University investigating measures to reduce dog attacks and promote responsible dog ownership across all breeds of dog. In response to this research, we have established a Responsible Dog Ownership working group involving police, local authorities and animal welfare organisations. Conclusions and policy reform recommendations are expected later this year.
Under the Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (England) Regulations 2018, licensed dog breeders must take all reasonable steps to check that the dogs used for breeding have a good temperament, and must implement and be able to demonstrate the use of a socialisation and habituation programme for the puppies.
Asked by: Bob Seely (Conservative - Isle of Wight)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many Covid-19 vaccinations in total have been delivered in community pharmacies in England up to 20 December 2022.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
As of 20 December 2022, approximately 33 million COVID-19 vaccinations have been delivered by community pharmacies in England.
Asked by: Bob Seely (Conservative - Isle of Wight)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether his Department is taking steps to ensure that funding provided by the UK Infrastructure Bank is targeted to small and medium-sized enterprises in (a) rural, (b) isolated and (c) deprived communities.
Answered by Andrew Griffith - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The UK Infrastructure Bank (UKIB) was launched in June 2021 and is a government-owned lending institution headquartered in Leeds.
UKIB has a mandate to tackle climate change and support regional and local economic growth across the UK by investing in economic infrastructure including clean energy, transport, digital, water and waste. As of 10th November, the UKIB has announced 10 deals worth over £1 billion covering all areas of the UK.
Within its remit, UKIB is able to support small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) indirectly through its financing of infrastructure projects.
Over the past two years, the Government has taken unprecedented action to protect millions of SMEs, including the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme and Government-guaranteed loans. This year we are extending the Recovery Loan Scheme until June 2024.
Asked by: Bob Seely (Conservative - Isle of Wight)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of Solent Freeport conversion into an Investment Area on international trade opportunities in the region, including for the Isle of Wight.
Answered by Andrew Bowie - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Government is committed to levelling up areas across the country. UK Freeports, like Solent, are fantastic places for businesses to grow, innovate and collaborate. They are capitalising on Freeport tax, customs, and planning benefits, and the region’s clean energy and maritime opportunities, to develop as national hubs for trade and global investment. These benefits remain unchanged by Investment Zones.
While the Government is still considering our approach to Investment Zones, we are grateful for the Expressions of Interest submitted, which officials are assessing. The Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities will confirm next steps in due course.