Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether the BBC World Service has a role on the Soft Power Council; and what progress that Council has made since its establishment.
Answered by Catherine West - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Harnessing all of our soft power assets in a more purposeful manner is crucial if we are to maximise growth, security, and global impact for the UK. That is why the Foreign Secretary has established the UK Soft Power Council and commissioned a Soft Power Strategy. The BBC is a key part of this, represented on the Council by Tom Fussell from BBC Studios. The BBC World Service is contributing in various ways, including through the Director of the World Service, Jonathan Munro, acting as a member of the Council's working group on Hinge Markets.
The Council is now fully operational, bringing together expertise from various sectors and shaping enhanced delivery through its working groups. We are producing a long-term shared Strategy between Government and soft power sectors to deliver tangible impact for the UK's objectives. That will be reviewed at the Council's next Ministerial meeting on 23 July.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of changes to the level of funding for BBC (a) Arabic and (b) Persian services on his Department's strategy in those regions; and whether he plans to maintain levels of funding for those services in the next funding cycle.
Answered by Catherine West - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office received its funding settlement for financial year (FY) 26-27 to FY 28-29 on 11 June. The Department is now starting work to determine future allocations for all spend, including the World Service language services such as Arabic and Persian, which are part funded by BBC Licence Fee and Grant in Aid. We expect this process to conclude and final allocations to be announced in the Autumn.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he plans to increase Parliamentary oversight of the BBC World Service.
Answered by Catherine West - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office holds the BBC World Service to account through published Objectives, Priorities and Targets which include targets for reach, quality, impact and value. In addition, there are regular meetings - quarterly, annual and ad hoc between the Foreign Secretary, Ministers, BBC Seniors and officials to monitor performance. The forthcoming Charter Review, led by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), will provide an essential opportunity for the Government to consider a range of issues relating to the BBC, including how the BBC is accountable to those who fund it.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of funding English-language BBC World Service (a) content through the licence fee and (b) language services through direct Government grant-in-aid.
Answered by Catherine West - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The World Service English service is part funded by BBC Licence Fee and the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office Grant-in-Aid. Any changes to that funding model will be explored through the Charter Review process, led by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. Ahead of this the Government will keep an open mind about the future of the licence fee and how the World Service is funded. The Charter Review is the right moment to look at potential future World Service funding mechanisms for the longer-term.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department has received representations from representatives of Pacific Island nations on the prohibition of Kava in the UK.
Answered by Catherine West - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK prohibition is raised occasionally with our High Commissioners in the Pacific and by some Pacific Island High Commissions in London.
In each case, we remind our Pacific partners about the evidence and procedures that are required to review the ban.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
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 has considered reforming the Licensing of Activities Involving Animals Regulations 2018 to introduce a tiered system that distinguishes between (a) low and (b) high volume breeders.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (England) Regulations 2018 require anyone in the business of breeding and selling dogs and/or who breeds three or more litters in a twelve-month period to hold a valid licence.
Defra has completed a post-implementation review of the Regulations which can be found here. The Government is considering the findings and will be outlining more detail on next steps in due course.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of the scientific evidence underpinning the prohibition of kava-kava under the Medicines for Human Use (Kava-kava) (Prohibition) Order 2002.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The UK Statutory Instrument 2002 No. 3170 The Medicines for Human use (Kava-kava) (Prohibition) Order 2002 prohibits the sale, supply, and importation of Kava-kava for use in unlicensed medicines in the United Kingdom.
The Prohibition Order was reviewed after it had been in force for two years by an Expert Working Group of the Committee on Safety of Medicines, which announced in February 2006 that the prohibition was justified and proportionate and should remain in place. No further review of the prohibition order has been made.
The 2002 Prohibition Order does not exclude applicants applying for a traditional herbal registration or a marketing authorisation under Regulation 125 or Regulation 49, respectively, of the Human Medicines Regulations 2012. Should a traditional herbal registration or a marketing authorisation application for a Kava-kava medicinal product be submitted to the Medicines Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, its safety would be reviewed on an application-specific basis and based on the currently available evidence.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she has taken to support the (a) safety and (b) financial viability of black taxi drivers in London.
Answered by Simon Lightwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The taxi industry in London is the direct responsibility of Transport for London, including considering the safety and costs to drivers as part of their regulatory regime. The Department for Transport has supported the work of TfL and other licensing bodies by providing the “Taxis and private hire vehicles licensing best practice guidance for licensing authorities” which is clear that licensing authorities must consider ways to protect those working in the trade as well as those that use its services.
In addition, DfT has provided funding of over £75m to support with the cost of purchasing over 10,500 zero emission capable taxis through the Plug in Taxi Grant.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what discussions he has had with his Irish counterpart on illegal immigration to the United Kingdom via that country.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)
The UK and Ireland have a close and collaborative working relationship on a range of issues, including migration and border security. That collaboration includes a joint commitment to protect the Common Travel Area (CTA) from abuse while preserving the rights of British and Irish citizens.
Everyone entering the UK, regardless of where they enter from, is required to meet UK’s immigration requirements. Anyone identified attempting to circumvent UK border controls is liable to be detained and, if they are not lawfully present within the UK, removed.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she has taken to help reduce illegal immigration to the United Kingdom via the Republic of Ireland.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)
The UK and Ireland have a close and collaborative working relationship on a range of issues, including migration and border security. That collaboration includes a joint commitment to protect the Common Travel Area (CTA) from abuse while preserving the rights of British and Irish citizens.
Everyone entering the UK, regardless of where they enter from, is required to meet UK’s immigration requirements. Anyone identified attempting to circumvent UK border controls is liable to be detained and, if they are not lawfully present within the UK, removed.