Asked by: Alicia Kearns (Conservative - Rutland and Melton)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what his Department's planned timescale is for issuing guidance to local authorities on allocating funding for the Local Transport Fund.
Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Department is working with His Majesty’s Treasury to agree the funding profile for the Local Transport Fund as well as the split between capital and revenue funding. The Department will provide advice for local transport authorities shortly on the scope, process and accountability framework for the new funding, to ensure that local authorities can develop delivery plans to make the most of it.
Asked by: Alicia Kearns (Conservative - Rutland and Melton)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether Captogan has been found in the UK; and whether his Department is taking steps to prevent it becoming available.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
In December 2021, the Government launched its ten-year drugs strategy, to cut crime and save lives. As part of this, £300 million has been allocated to fund activity to break drug supply chains from end-to-end, This includes restricting upstream flow, securing the UK border, and ensuring we remain agile in the face of changing threats.
The National Crime Agency (NCA) regularly assess the threat posed to the UK by the trafficking of illicit drugs. At this time, we are not aware of any captagon on UK streets and to date, no instances of captagon being seized at a UK border have been recorded; however, shipments have been seized in Europe.
As such, the UK will continue to seek coordinated global action to address the effects of the captagon trade, in close cooperation with our regional partners.
Beyond this, the UK Government and its law enforcement partners are leveraging our extensive international networks to maximise cooperation with other governments to tackle drug trafficking upstream. This includes identifying and disrupting organised crime groups aiming to exploit the UK, and seizing drugs before and during their journey to the UK.
Additionally, we are also funding Border Force and the NCA to develop and deliver innovative intelligence-led approaches to securing our border which keeps pace with changes to routes and methods used by criminals.
Asked by: Alicia Kearns (Conservative - Rutland and Melton)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether the UK has imported fertiliser from Russia since its invasion of Ukraine.
Answered by Alan Mak - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade) (jointly with the Cabinet Office)
In March 2022, the UK introduced additional duties of 35% on Russian fertilisers, excluding urea which is subject to a tariff of 6%. In July 2022, the UK also introduced bans on certain kinds of fertiliser.
HMRC data shows that UK imports of fertiliser from Russia in 2023 were down 80% compared to 2022 import values, demonstrating the impact of sanctions and additional tariffs.
We will continue to apply pressure, and coordinate with our international partners to do so, until Ukraine prevails or Putin ends his war of choice.
Asked by: Alicia Kearns (Conservative - Rutland and Melton)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether UK Research and Innovation have (a) staff and (b) offices in China.
Answered by Andrew Griffith - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
UK Research Innovation (UKRI) has one overseas office in China with seven staff, co-located in the British Embassy Beijing.
Asked by: Alicia Kearns (Conservative - Rutland and Melton)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, whether he plans to support the draft UN resolution tabled by Rwanda, Germany and Bosnia and Herzegovina on declaring 11 July as an international day of reflection and remembrance of the Srebrenica genocide.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani - Minister of State (Minister for Europe)
The UK is proud to support the draft resolution. The atrocities that took place at Srebrenica were a genocide, as confirmed by the International Courts. We must never forget the victims of the Srebrenica genocide.
Asked by: Alicia Kearns (Conservative - Rutland and Melton)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department plans to introduce a national monitoring system to track agricultural land being developed for ground mounted solar.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
As the Prime Minister said at PMQs last week, we must protect our nation’s food security and therefore our most valuable agricultural land.
As per planning policy, local planning authorities should consider all the benefits of the best and most versatile agricultural land, when making plans or taking decisions on new development proposals. Where significant development of agricultural land is shown to be necessary, planning authorities should seek to use poorer quality land in preference to that of a higher quality. Planning Practice Guidance also sets out a preference for the use of lower quality agricultural land.
I agree that monitoring of the impacts of solar on agricultural land is important and am in discussions with my counterparts in DLUHC and DESNZ.
Asked by: Alicia Kearns (Conservative - Rutland and Melton)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, which assessment methods his Department's hearing loss compensation scheme uses; and whether he plans to update them.
Answered by Andrew Murrison - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
There is no individual compensation scheme for hearing loss. The Armed Forces Compensation Scheme (AFCS) compensates for any injury (including Noise-Induced Sensorineural Hearing Loss), illness or death which was caused by or worsened by service on or after 6 April 2005. The older War Pension Scheme (WPS) compensates for any injury, illness or death which was caused by or aggravated by service before 6 April 2005.
Medical evidence is carefully considered, and hearing loss is assessed initially for attributability to service, based on the burden of proof associated with the scheme rules set by Parliament.
In making a determination on a claim, decision makers take into consideration a wide variety of evidence. In a hearing loss claim this is likely to include but is not limited to the service medical records, audiograms, hospital case notes and GP records (if they have left service). The evidence is carefully considered in accordance with the scheme rules.
If injury is found to be attributable to service, under the AFCS, hearing loss is assessed against Tariff Table 7 (senses), which details the type and level of hearing loss required to meet the criteria for the specific descriptors. Under the WPS, a percentage assessment is derived based on audiometric values.
There has recently been a review of the AFCS in the form of the quinquennial review (QQR). The purpose of which is to ensure AFCS remains fit for purpose, providing appropriate recognition and financial support to those members of the Armed Forces who are injured, become ill or die as a result of service, I announced the publication of the Government response to the AFCS Quinquennial Review on 21 March 2024.
Asked by: Alicia Kearns (Conservative - Rutland and Melton)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, how many and what proportion of PhDs funded (a) in whole and (b) in part by UKRI are allocated to Chinese nationals.
Answered by Andrew Griffith - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
Rounded to the nearest 5, in Financial Year 2022-23, 28,190 doctoral students received full or partial funding through UKRI training grants. 560 of these students were recorded as Chinese nationals.
Asked by: Alicia Kearns (Conservative - Rutland and Melton)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has made a recent assessment of the adequacy of allergy guidance in schools.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
It is vital children with allergies are safe in schools.
Statutory guidance makes clear schools should ensure they are aware of pupils with medical conditions, including allergies, and have policies in place to ensure these are well-managed.
The department recently reminded schools of legal duties and highlighted the Schools Allergy Code, which is available online at: http://www.schoolsallergycode.com/?utm_medium=email&utm_source=govdelivery.
Asked by: Alicia Kearns (Conservative - Rutland and Melton)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps she is taking to help encourage the development of onshore wind projects.
Answered by Andrew Bowie - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Since 2010 there has been an almost fourfold increase in the volume of onshore wind, and the Government continues to incentivise and promote deployment. We have announced that there will be up to £120 million of funding available to support established renewable technologies such as onshore wind in the next Contracts for Difference auction. In England, the Government has also made changes to national planning policy to ensure local authorities can respond more flexibly to suitable opportunities for onshore wind while respecting the views of their local communities.