Asked by: Douglas Carswell (Independent - Clacton)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what consideration was given to including punishment as a purpose of prisons in clause 1(2) of the Prisons and Courts Bill.
Answered by Sam Gyimah
The Prisons and Courts Bill is clear that prisons are there to deliver the sentences of the court – depriving people of their liberty to punish them for their crimes. This reflects and underlines the existing principles set out in the Criminal Justice Act 2003, which states that one of the purposes of sentencing is the punishment of offenders.
Asked by: Douglas Carswell (Independent - Clacton)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the oral contribution of the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health of 15 March 2017, Official Report, column 144WH, if the proposed creation of super-hubs in rural areas means the closure of local practice buildings to be replaced with new larger buildings.
Answered by David Mowat
Hubs are not about surgery closures — that has never been this Government's policy intention and we are supporting general practice with a 14% real terms increase in funding. Many general practices are already working together to support larger populations and in the future there will be even more opportunities for collaboration so that practices can work at scale when necessary, while maintaining their location within communities and relationships with patients.
Asked by: Douglas Carswell (Independent - Clacton)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of Clause 4, Part 2 of the Social Security (Personal Independence Payment) Regulations 2013.
Answered by Penny Mordaunt - Lord President of the Council and Leader of the House of Commons
The assessment for Personal Independence Payment (PIP) is designed to treat people as individuals, considering the impact of their impairment or health condition on their everyday life and how each claimant has personally adapted to living with a disability. Since its inception, the system of assessing claimants’ eligibility for PIP has been continually reviewed and refined in order to improve its efficiency and effectiveness. We continue to work extensively with PIP assessment providers and disability representatives to make improvements to guidance, training and audit procedures in order to ensure a quality service is maintained.
Asked by: Douglas Carswell (Independent - Clacton)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the Chinese DF-21D missile.
Answered by Mike Penning
The Department regularly updates its assessments of such programmes, but these are not made public.
Asked by: Douglas Carswell (Independent - Clacton)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps he is taking to support small and medium-sized enterprises in accessing extended credit terms.
Answered by Margot James
Extended credit terms from suppliers can help businesses to meet their working capital needs, as can prompt payment from customers. While payment terms are a matter for each business to negotiate with their trading partners, the Government is committed to ensuring that all businesses and entrepreneurs across the UK are able to access the finance and support they need to grow and have the right conditions to invest long-term, as set out in the Industrial Strategy Green Paper.
Asked by: Douglas Carswell (Independent - Clacton)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to ensure that Abellio Greater Anglia meets its franchise commitments related to performance; and if he will make it his policy to use his enforcement powers as the franchising authority in the event that those commitments are not met.
Answered by Paul Maynard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department monitors each train operator’s overall performance and there are clear actions set out in the franchise agreement should performance drop below what is expected. This regular monitoring includes monthly meetings between my officials and their senior management where performance figures are scrutinised and challenged.
There are a range of enforcement mechanisms available to the Department in the event of non-compliance.
Asked by: Douglas Carswell (Independent - Clacton)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make it her policy to introduce new powers for police forces in England and Wales to tackle anti-social behaviour.
Answered by Brandon Lewis
The Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 gives the police and their local partners a range of flexible powers to enable them to respond quickly and efficiently to different forms of anti-social behaviour.
These powers give the police and other local agencies the powers they need to protect victims and to stop anti-social behaviour in public which can spoil the community’s quality of life.
Asked by: Douglas Carswell (Independent - Clacton)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of the potential cost savings arising from the cessation of benefit payments to EU nationals after the UK has left the EU.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
We're currently preparing for a smooth and orderly exit from the EU and by working together with our European neighbours we are confident we will be able to secure a deal that works in the mutual interests of both the UK and the rest of the European Union. We are considering various policy options and it would be wrong to set out further positions at this stage.
Asked by: Douglas Carswell (Independent - Clacton)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make it her policy to delay the UK's participation in the European Investigation Order until after the UK's departure from the EU.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
The Government is taking the necessary measures to comply with this Directive by 22 May 2017.
Asked by: Douglas Carswell (Independent - Clacton)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many prosecutions have been brought under the Female Genital Mutilation Act 2003 since the introduction of that legislation.
Answered by Sarah Newton
Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) is a crime and it is child abuse. The Government will not tolerate a practice that can cause extreme and lifelong physical and psychological suffering to women and girls.
There has been one prosecution brought under the Female Genital Mutilation Act 2003, which was unsuccessful. The police and Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) have highlighted that one reason for the lack of investigations and prosecutions is a lack of referrals. In addition, cultural taboo and the age and vulnerability of the victims may prevent them coming forward.
In 2015 we significantly changed the law to breakdown these barriers. We introduced: extended extra-territorial jurisdiction, lifelong anonymity for victims, a new offence of failure to protect a girl from FGM and a mandatory reporting duty. We have also introduced FGM Protection Orders and latest figures show that 79 have been made to protect girls.