Asked by: Imran Hussain (Labour - Bradford East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, what discussions (a) he, (b) his Ministers and (c) officials from his Department have had with their counterparts in Israel on the (i) airstrike at Al Mawasi on 18 January 2024, (ii) killings of World Central Kitchen workers in Gaza on 1 April 2024 and (iii) discovery of mass graves at al-Nasser hospital in Khan Younis.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The Foreign Secretary has underlined the need for Israel to ensure effective deconfliction in Gaza and ensure effective systems to guarantee the safety of humanitarian operations. It must take all possible measures to ensure the safety of medical personnel and facilities. The Foreign Secretary has made our position clear to his Israeli counterparts, including during his visit to the region on 17 April, and we continue to raise this with Israel at the highest levels.
Reports of the discovery of mass graves in Gaza, including within medical facilities, are deeply concerning. We continue to call on all parties to respect International Humanitarian Law and ensure the protection of civilians.
Asked by: Imran Hussain (Labour - Bradford East)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people received (a) less than £10,000, (b) £10,000-£20,000, (c) £20,000-£50,000, (d) £50,000-£100,000 and (e) more than £100,000 in each quarter since the Windrush Compensation scheme was launched.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
Information on the breakdown of full and final offers and payments made to Windrush Compensation Scheme claimants is published as part of the monthly Windrush Schemes Factsheet. The latest set of data on the schemes, which covers the period to the end of March 2024, is available here: Windrush Compensation Schemes Factsheet.
The Windrush Compensation Scheme does not publish compensation award data in the payment or date range requested.
Asked by: Imran Hussain (Labour - Bradford East)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he has (a) made an assessment of the potential impact of proposed reforms to Personal Independence Payment on the mental wellbeing of people who become ineligible as a result of those changes and (b) had recent discussions with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on the adequacy of availability of Government-funded mental health services.
Answered by Mims Davies - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Modernising Support for Independent Living: The Health and Disability Green Paper looks at different options to reshape the current welfare system so that we can provide better targeted support to those who need it most. We are considering these options through our 12-week consultation which was published on Monday 29 April and will close on Monday 22 July at 11:59pm. Further analysis of these options will consider potential impacts on claimants with different health conditions.
There will be no immediate changes to PIP, or to health assessments. All scheduled PIP assessments and payments will proceed as normal, and claimants should continue to engage as usual and provide any necessary information or updates regarding their circumstances.
The Government is committed to continuing to expand and transform NHS mental health care so that more people can access the support they need. The NHS forecasts that, between 2018/19 and 2023/24, spending on mental health services has increased by £4.7 billion in cash terms, compared to the target of £3.4 billion set out at the time of the NHS Long Term Plan. Of the key mental health commitments for the first 5-year period of the Plan, over half have been met, are on track to be met, or have exceeded their original target.
We encourage everyone to respond to the consultation which can be found here, so that we are able to hear from as many disabled people, people with health conditions, their representatives, and local stakeholders as possible on these important issues.
Asked by: Imran Hussain (Labour - Bradford East)
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 potential impact of the proposals in the Health and Disability Green Paper on the finances of people with complex disabilities.
Answered by Mims Davies - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
We are looking at different options to reshape the current welfare system so that we can provide better targeted support to those who need it most. We are considering some of these options through our 12-week consultation which was published on Monday 29 April and will close on Monday 22 July at 11:59pm. Further analysis of these options will consider any potential financial impacts on claimants.
There will be no immediate changes to PIP, or to health assessments. All scheduled PIP assessments and payments will proceed as normal, and claimants should continue to engage as usual and provide any necessary information or updates regarding their circumstances.
We encourage everyone to respond to the consultation which can be found here, so that we are able to hear from as many disabled people, people with health conditions, their representatives, and local stakeholders as possible on these important issues
Asked by: Imran Hussain (Labour - Bradford East)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent estimate he has made of the proportion of disabled people who experience one-off extra costs as a result of their disability.
Answered by Mims Davies - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
No such estimates have been made
As of April 2024, the rate of inflation has slowed, and the Government has also implemented uprating to benefits to reflect increased costs. We also increased extra costs disability benefits by 10.1 per cent from April 2023 and by 6.7% from April 2024 in line with the Consumer Price Index.
For 2023/24 we estimate that nearly 60 per cent of individuals who received an extra costs disability benefit would have received the means-tested benefit Cost of Living Payments, worth up to £900. Over 85 per cent would have received either or both of the means-tested and the £300 Pensioner Cost of Living Payment.
An evaluation of the Cost of Living Payments is underway. This will seek to understand their effectiveness as a means of support for low-income and vulnerable household.
Asked by: Imran Hussain (Labour - Bradford East)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how his Department calculates the estimated cost of living for disabled people.
Answered by Mims Davies - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
No such estimates have been made
As of April 2024, the rate of inflation has slowed, and the Government has also implemented uprating to benefits to reflect increased costs. We also increased extra costs disability benefits by 10.1 per cent from April 2023 and by 6.7% from April 2024 in line with the Consumer Price Index.
For 2023/24 we estimate that nearly 60 per cent of individuals who received an extra costs disability benefit would have received the means-tested benefit Cost of Living Payments, worth up to £900. Over 85 per cent would have received either or both of the means-tested and the £300 Pensioner Cost of Living Payment.
An evaluation of the Cost of Living Payments is underway. This will seek to understand their effectiveness as a means of support for low-income and vulnerable household.
Asked by: Imran Hussain (Labour - Bradford East)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether there are any extant export licenses for the supply of (a) R902W engines and (b) related components for use on (i) Hermes 450, (ii) Hermes 900 and (iii) IAI Heron unmanned aerial vehicles by (A) the Israeli military and (B) other entitles controlled by the Israeli government.
Answered by Alan Mak - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade) (jointly with the Cabinet Office)
There are no extant licences which meet these criteria.
Asked by: Imran Hussain (Labour - Bradford East)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what the model numbers were of drone engines that were authorised for export in the last 12 months; what the end (a) uses and (b) users were of each drone (i) aero-engine and (ii) other component; and what (A) Export Control Joint Unit and (B) other criteria were used to assess those applications.
Answered by Alan Mak - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade) (jointly with the Cabinet Office)
We do not release confidential or commercially sensitive information provided by exporters as part of their export licence application. However, we do publish data on export licensing decisions on a quarterly basis in the Official Statistics, including data on outcome, end user destination, overall value, type (e.g. military, other) and a summary of the items covered by these licences.
All export licence applications are assessed on a case-by-case basis against the Strategic Export Licensing Criteria.
Asked by: Imran Hussain (Labour - Bradford East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what information his Department holds on whether UK-manufactured (a) arms and (b) weapons components have been used in (i) Israel and (ii) the Palestinian Occupied Territories.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The export of strategic goods is controlled by export licensing and the government publishes data on its export licensing decisions: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/strategic-export-controls-licensing-dataLicences. We continue to monitor closely the situation in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories. All export licence applications are assessed on a case-by-case basis against the Strategic Export Licensing Criteria. We will not issue an export licence to any destination where to do so would be inconsistent with the Criteria. Licences are kept under careful review and we are able to amend, suspend or revoke extant licences, or refuse new licence applications, as circumstances require.
Asked by: Imran Hussain (Labour - Bradford East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what information his Department holds on whether UK-manufactured (a) weapons and (b) components of weapons have been used in countries it has assessed as being in potential breach of (i) the Genocide Convention and (ii) Article 8 of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Government operates a robust and thorough assessment of licence applications against the Strategic Export Licensing Criteria, and we will not grant an export licence if to do so would be inconsistent with that Criteria including where there is a clear risk that the items might be used to commit or facilitate a serious violation of International Humanitarian Law.