Asked by: Alistair Burt (Conservative - North East Bedfordshire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions she has had with Norbert Dentressangle on the closure of the Border Inspection Post at Heathrow Airport.
Answered by George Eustice
Border Inspection Posts (BIPs) that handle imported product of animal origin at UK ports and airports are provided by commercial operators. The BIP at Heathrow Airport is comprised of three separately managed inspection centres including one that handles imports of live animals. Norbert Dentressangle operates one of two inspection centres that are approved to handle different types of product of animal origin.
Defra has received representations from and on behalf of businesses that currently rely on the inspection centre currently operated by Norbert Dentressangle. Officials have responded informally to understand better these concerns.
I understand that the operator of the second animal product inspection centre at Heathrow has expressed an interest in providing alternative inspection facilities. Their facility will require some structural and other changes and these will need to be checked by the Animal and Plant Health Agency. Any fundamental change to the existing facility will also need to be approved by the Food and Veterinary Office of the European Commission. This could require an inspection of any new facilities.
I also understand that the parties involved are also exploring contingency measures that could operate whilst any planning and building work is carried out. The aim is to ensure that there is a continuous Border Inspection capability for all types of product of animal origin at Heathrow.
I appreciate the importance that the bio-pharmaceutical industry and other importers attach to the maintenance of inspection facilities for animal product at Heathrow Airport. I welcome the discussions that are currently taking place between various interested parties. Defra will continue to follow developments closely and officials will provide any advice needed to assist the possible development the other animal product inspection centre at Heathrow Airport.
Asked by: Alistair Burt (Conservative - North East Bedfordshire)
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 has assessed the feasibility of options to ensure the Border Inspection Post at Heathrow Airport remains open.
Answered by George Eustice
Border Inspection Posts (BIPs) that handle imported product of animal origin at UK ports and airports are provided by commercial operators. The BIP at Heathrow Airport is comprised of three separately managed inspection centres including one that handles imports of live animals. Norbert Dentressangle operates one of two inspection centres that are approved to handle different types of product of animal origin.
Defra has received representations from and on behalf of businesses that currently rely on the inspection centre currently operated by Norbert Dentressangle. Officials have responded informally to understand better these concerns.
I understand that the operator of the second animal product inspection centre at Heathrow has expressed an interest in providing alternative inspection facilities. Their facility will require some structural and other changes and these will need to be checked by the Animal and Plant Health Agency. Any fundamental change to the existing facility will also need to be approved by the Food and Veterinary Office of the European Commission. This could require an inspection of any new facilities.
I also understand that the parties involved are also exploring contingency measures that could operate whilst any planning and building work is carried out. The aim is to ensure that there is a continuous Border Inspection capability for all types of product of animal origin at Heathrow.
I appreciate the importance that the bio-pharmaceutical industry and other importers attach to the maintenance of inspection facilities for animal product at Heathrow Airport. I welcome the discussions that are currently taking place between various interested parties. Defra will continue to follow developments closely and officials will provide any advice needed to assist the possible development the other animal product inspection centre at Heathrow Airport.
Asked by: Alistair Burt (Conservative - North East Bedfordshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she or a Minister in her Department will pay a visit to Sandy Upper School, Bedfordshire.
Answered by Nick Gibb
My Rt hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Education and my noble Friend the Lord Nash met the headteacher and chair of governors of Sandy Upper School, together with my hon. Friend in December 2014. They were pleased to note the rapid improvement in standards at the school.
Asked by: Alistair Burt (Conservative - North East Bedfordshire)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent representations he has made to his counterparts in the Lebanese government on the removal of restrictions placed on Syrian refugees seeking to enter Lebanon.
Answered by Tobias Ellwood
I discussed the issue of Syrian refugees with the Lebanese Prime Minister and the Speaker for Parliament when I visited Lebanon in December. I paid tribute to Lebanon’s generosity as they host nearly 1.2 million registered refugees and made clear that the UK’s support, which is now around £160 million since the start of the Syria crisis, will continue. Following the announcement of new border regulations by the Lebanese authorities, our Ambassador in Lebanon alongside EU partners, reiterated to the Lebanese Prime Minister the international community’s concern that the new border regulations should adequately provide for the most vulnerable humanitarian cases.
Asked by: Alistair Burt (Conservative - North East Bedfordshire)
Question
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, when he plans to publish draft legislation following the Government's response to the consultation on changes to financial support for solar PV.
Answered by Amber Rudd
My rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State expects to lay draft regulations for the early closure of the Renewables Obligation to large solar PV before Parliament early in the new year. An illustrative draft was published alongside the Government Response and is available on the government website:
The amendments to the Feed-in Tariff (FIT) were laid in October and are due to come into effect by 1st January 2015. The Government has finished consulting on a further question arising from that consultation (defining what is meant by “other-than-standalone”) and the Secretary of State expects to lay a further amendment to the FITS Order and necessary modifications to the licence conditions early in the new year.
Asked by: Alistair Burt (Conservative - North East Bedfordshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the expected (a) start date and (b) end date is of the recently announced improvement to the Black Cat roundabout.
Answered by John Hayes
The A428 Black Cat to Caxton Gibbet scheme is likely to enter construction towards the end of the first Road Period.
Asked by: Alistair Burt (Conservative - North East Bedfordshire)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what information her Department holds on current investigations by the National Audit Office into the work of Serco at Yarl's Wood detention centre.
Answered by James Brokenshire
The Home Office holds no information on any investigations by the National Audit Office (NAO) into the work of Serco at Yarl's Wood detention centre. We have had no formal correspondence with NAO on this subject.
Asked by: Alistair Burt (Conservative - North East Bedfordshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what change there has been in the salary of the Chief Executive of the Macfarlane Trust and Caxton Foundation since her appointment in 2013.
Answered by Jane Ellison
The amount of time that each member of staff spends working on either Macfarlane Trust business or Caxton Foundation business is given in the following table:
| % of time spent on Caxton Foundation | % of time spent on Macfarlane Trust |
Chief Executive | 48 | 48 |
Director of Finance | 27 | 27 |
Finance Assistant | 32 | 32 |
Director of Operations | 47 | 47 |
Support Services Officer | 0 | 100 |
Welfare Assistant | 100 | 0 |
Office Manager | 50 | 50 |
IT Manager | 13 | 13 |
The Caxton Foundation cannot provide details of the salaries of these individuals because salaries are personal information under section 1 of the Data Protection Act 1998. However, as with all charities, the pay bands of the highest paid members of staff are a matter of public record. The Caxton Foundation’s annual report and accounts for 2013-14, state that one member of staff received a salary in the pay band of £70,001 - £80,000. That salary was paid in respect of work for both the Caxton Foundation and the Macfarlane Trust. All employees of who were employed at 1 April 2014 received a 1% salary increase. That is the only pay increase that the Chief Executive has received since her appointment in 2013.
Asked by: Alistair Burt (Conservative - North East Bedfordshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many staff are employed by the (a) Macfarlane Trust and (b) Caxton Foundation; and what their (i) posts and (ii) current salaries are.
Answered by Jane Ellison
The amount of time that each member of staff spends working on either Macfarlane Trust business or Caxton Foundation business is given in the following table:
| % of time spent on Caxton Foundation | % of time spent on Macfarlane Trust |
Chief Executive | 48 | 48 |
Director of Finance | 27 | 27 |
Finance Assistant | 32 | 32 |
Director of Operations | 47 | 47 |
Support Services Officer | 0 | 100 |
Welfare Assistant | 100 | 0 |
Office Manager | 50 | 50 |
IT Manager | 13 | 13 |
The Caxton Foundation cannot provide details of the salaries of these individuals because salaries are personal information under section 1 of the Data Protection Act 1998. However, as with all charities, the pay bands of the highest paid members of staff are a matter of public record. The Caxton Foundation’s annual report and accounts for 2013-14, state that one member of staff received a salary in the pay band of £70,001 - £80,000. That salary was paid in respect of work for both the Caxton Foundation and the Macfarlane Trust. All employees of who were employed at 1 April 2014 received a 1% salary increase. That is the only pay increase that the Chief Executive has received since her appointment in 2013.
Asked by: Alistair Burt (Conservative - North East Bedfordshire)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many people were registered with (a) the Macfarlane Trust, (b) the Skipton Fund and (c) the Caxton Foundation in each year since 2011.
Answered by Jane Ellison
The number of people registered with the Macfarlane Trust, the Skipton Fund and the Caxton Foundation, from 2011-12 to the most recent full year for which the Department has figures are as follows:
| 2011-12 | 2012-13 | 2013-14 |
Skipton Fund | 4,908 | 5,038 | 5,132 |
Caxton Foundation | 505 | 555 | 695 |
Macfarlane Trust | 549 | 608 | 599 |
The Skipton Fund figures relate to successful stage 1 applications in respect of infected claimants, but it is not known how many of these people are currently still alive. The Caxton Foundation and Macfarlane Fund figures are the number of living beneficiaries at 31 March in each of the specified years, and includes both infected and uninfected beneficiaries.