Asked by: Hugh Robertson (Conservative - Faversham and Mid Kent)
Question
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what UK Trade and Industry's most recent (a) estimate and (b) target is for business generated for UK companies as a result of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Answered by Matt Hancock
UK Trade & Investment was tasked with delivering £11bn of UK-wide economic legacy from the London 2012 Games by 2016.
This target was achieved 14 months after the Games; £11.6bn reported in October 2013.
The latest figures show that the figure of economic benefit achieved through export growth and attracting new investment now stands at £14.2bn.
Asked by: Hugh Robertson (Conservative - Faversham and Mid Kent)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many foreign HGV lorries entered the UK in the last period for which figures are available; and how much revenue has been raised through the HGV Road Levy User since its introduction.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
In the 12 month period ending June 2014, 1.79 million foreign registered road goods vehicles travelled from Great Britain to mainland Europe. This was a 15 per cent increase on the previous 12 month period. Statistics are available for outward traffic only to minimise reporting burdens as inbound data would be so similar.
The HGV Road User Levy was introduced on 1 April 2014 for goods vehicles over 12 tonnes. After five calendar months to 31 August 2014, £20.1m revenue had been collected through the foreign operator payment system from vehicles registered in 80 different countries. This revenue came from the purchase of 752,000 levies ranging from daily to annual time restrictions. In Great Britain, the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency have issued 978 fixed penalty notices for £295k to vehicles from 44 different countries and indicate a compliance rate of over 95% from vehicles stopped.
Asked by: Hugh Robertson (Conservative - Faversham and Mid Kent)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 8 September 2014, UIN 208084, on Army Reserve, what the current size of the Regular Army Reserve of Officers (RARO) is; if he will encourage RARO to join the Army Reserve as part of the plans to increase the strength of the reserve; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Julian Brazier
At 1 April 2014, there were 8,970 members of the Regular Army Reserve of Officers.
The Army encourages those who are eligible when leaving the Service to consider joining the Army Reserve. This includes an attachment or visit to a Reserve unit to provide awareness of the reserve opportunities in the area where they have chosen to live. Reserve service is also promoted at employment fairs for service leavers, Career Transition Workshops and as part of interviews by Regimental Careers Management Officers.
Following discharge from the Regular Army, both officers (Captain and below) and soldiers are actively encouraged to join the Army Reserve as part of the annual reporting letter which they receive on the anniversary of their discharge from the Army. This includes advice on the financial incentives available to individuals who may wish to join the Army Reserve including up to £10,000 for ex-regular officers and soldiers who undertake a full reservist commitment of a minimum of 27 days training per annum and the tax-free bounty available to those undertaking a reduced commitment of 19 days annual training.
Between 1 April 2013 and 30 June 2014, 265 ex-regular officers have joined the trained strength of the Army Reserve.
Asked by: Hugh Robertson (Conservative - Faversham and Mid Kent)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what his most recent estimate is for tourist (a) numbers and (b) spend delivered as a result of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Answered by Helen Grant
The most recent estimate for tourism numbers and spend delivered as a result of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games was set out in VisitBritain’s ‘Shifting the Dial Report (July 2013). This showed there were 685,000 visits from overseas to the UK in July, August and September 2012 primarily due to, or involved attending an official ticketed event at the London 2012 Olympic or Paralympic Games. This rose to 871,000 visits if you include live free to view or cultural events such as the London 2012 Festival. These visits resulted in spend of £925 million. Overall for 2012, there was an increase in visits from overseas to the UK of 0.9% on 2011 to 31.1 million.
Supported by VisitBritain’s GREAT Britain campaign, established as a means of promoting Britain as a great place to visit, study and do business with on the back of London 2012, there was a record 32.8 million inbound visits in 2013, up 5.6% on 2012. This also resulted in record spend (in nominal terms) up 12.7% on 2012 to £21 billion.
Asked by: Hugh Robertson (Conservative - Faversham and Mid Kent)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether the Regular Army Reserve of Officers will play any role in his plans for an expanded Territorial Army; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Julian Brazier
The Regular Army Reserve of Officers allows the Army to recall individuals who have previously served in the Army to assist in the nation’s defence and provide a national strategic Reserve capability. Under Army 2020 the Regular Army Reserve of Officers will, as now, provide a valuable pool of skills and expertise that can be called upon as and when a situation of national crisis demands it. There are no plans to change the role of the Regular Army Reserve of Officers as part of the plans to increase the size of the Army Reserve to 30,000 as the two are constituted for different roles and capabilities.
Asked by: Hugh Robertson (Conservative - Faversham and Mid Kent)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many members the Regular Army Reserve of Officers has.
Answered by Julian Brazier
The Regular Army Reserve of Officers allows the Army to recall individuals who have previously served in the Army to assist in the nation’s defence and provide a national strategic Reserve capability. Under Army 2020 the Regular Army Reserve of Officers will, as now, provide a valuable pool of skills and expertise that can be called upon as and when a situation of national crisis demands it. There are no plans to change the role of the Regular Army Reserve of Officers as part of the plans to increase the size of the Army Reserve to 30,000 as the two are constituted for different roles and capabilities.