Asked by: Chris Heaton-Harris (Conservative - Daventry)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what notification he has received on whether there are (a) constitutional requirements and (b) potential legal proceedings in other EU member states related to the Decision of the Heads of State or Government, meeting within the European Council, on 18 and 19 February 2016.
Answered by David Lidington
It is for the relevant national authorities in other Member States to determine their constitutional requirements and potential legal proceedings.
The Decision of the Heads of State or Government, meeting within the European Council, on 18 and 19 February 2016 was agreed to by all Member States and is now a legally binding document that has been registered with the United Nations as an international treaty.
Asked by: Chris Heaton-Harris (Conservative - Daventry)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the compliance of the Decision of the Heads of State or Government, meeting within the European Council, on 18 and 19 February 2016 with Part 2 of the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act 2010; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by David Lidington
The Decision of the Heads of State or Government, meeting within the European Council, on 18 and 19 February 2016 is not subject to the provisions of the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act 2010.Asked by: Chris Heaton-Harris (Conservative - Daventry)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether the Decision of the Heads of State or Government, meeting within the European Council, on 18 and 19 February 2016, meets the definition of a treaty under Article 2 of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties.
Answered by David Lidington
The Decision of the Heads of State or Government, meeting within the European Council, on 18 and 19 February 2016, meets the definition of a treaty under Article 2 of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties. The Decision was registered at the United Nations Treaty Office on 24 February 2016.
Asked by: Chris Heaton-Harris (Conservative - Daventry)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to create a fiscal surplus by the end of this Parliament.
Answered by Greg Hands - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
The government has made significant progress on deficit reduction to date – the deficit has more than halved as a share of GDP from the post-war peak we inherited in 2009-10. The government will reduce public sector net borrowing at the same average rate as the previous Parliament. But with warnings of a weaker outlook for the economy, we cannot be complacent in thinking the job is done and we must continue with the plan to return the public finances to a more sustainable position.
Asked by: Chris Heaton-Harris (Conservative - Daventry)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what progress has been made on the options circulated by the President of the European Council on the UK's relationship with the EU.
Answered by Lord Hammond of Runnymede
As The Prime Minister, my right hon. Friend the Member for Witney (Mr Cameron) made clear in his statement to the House yesterday, the renegotiation deal delivers on the Government’s commitment to fix the problems with the EU that have frustrated people in the UK. It is legally binding, irreversible and delivers for the UK. The deal gives the UK the best of both worlds: in to the parts of Europe that work for us and out of those parts which don’t.Asked by: Chris Heaton-Harris (Conservative - Daventry)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what information his Department has provided to the European Commission on whether criteria for triggering the proposed emergency brake on EEA welfare payments have been met.
Answered by David Lidington
The Government has had detailed technical talks with the European Institutions, during which information was shared across a range of issues including the nature of the United Kingdom's welfare system.Asked by: Chris Heaton-Harris (Conservative - Daventry)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, for what reasons the age at which the death of people with learning disabilities is classified as premature has been set at 60 in the draft NHS Outcomes Framework.
Answered by Alistair Burt
The Department worked with Public Health England (PHE) and the confidential inquiry into premature deaths of people with learning disabilities (CIPOLD) team at the Norah Fry Centre, University of Bristol to define the learning disability mortality indicator in the NHS Outcomes Framework. The placeholder indicator was set at age 60 based on the findings of the CIPOLD at the time which identified the mean age of death in people with learning disability as 60 years old.
The Department, NHS England, PHE and the Norah Fry Centre are currently reviewing the definition of the indicator to establish if there is evidence to support it being redefined and to establish a robust and stable data source in order for the indicator to be reported and measured.
Asked by: Chris Heaton-Harris (Conservative - Daventry)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the total number is of national insurance numbers registered to EEA nationals and linked to (a) an active claim for benefits, (b) an active claim for tax credits and (c) active payments under PAYE; and how many in each such category are for EEA nationals who received national insurance numbers in the last four years.
Answered by David Gauke
The Department for Work and Pensions has published statistics on National Insurance number (NINo) allocations, including nationality at point of NINo registration, of those of working age who were in receipt of a Department for Work and Pensions administered benefits. This is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/national-insurance-number-allocations-to-adult-overseas-nationals-entering-the-uk
HM Revenue and Customs are planning to publish further information early in 2016 once it has been properly collated.
Asked by: Chris Heaton-Harris (Conservative - Daventry)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent diplomatic steps he has taken to promote peace in Somalia.
Answered by James Duddridge
Earlier this month, my Rt Hon Friend the Foreign Secretary chaired a UN Security Council meeting to rally international support on Somalia. This included adoption of the UK drafted resolution to strengthen the UN’s logistical support to AMISOM and the need for progress on an electoral process in 2016.
Asked by: Chris Heaton-Harris (Conservative - Daventry)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many Typhoon aircraft are unable to fly because parts of them have been removed for use in other aircraft.
Answered by Philip Dunne
It is routine practice to move parts between aircraft within the RAF Typhoon fleet to ensure optimum aircraft availability. Four Typhoon aircraft held in the sustainment fleet are currently being used as donor aircraft and consequently are unable to fly.