Asked by: Julian Lewis (Conservative - New Forest East)
Question to the Leader of the House:
To ask the Leader of the House, what criteria he will apply when giving advice to the (a) Privy Council and (b) Department for Education on whether an Oxford University college should be given permission by the Privy Council to rename itself after the Chairwoman of a company in order to secure a donation; and whether the human rights record of the Vietnamese Government, with which the Chairwoman has close links, will be included in the assessment of whether to permit that name change.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Any chartered body seeking to change its name will need to apply for a Supplemental Charter which takes the form of a petition to The Queen. No such petition has been received by the Privy Council from an Oxford University College, in the terms described. Should such a petition be submitted, it will be dealt with in accordance with the process and set criteria as published on the Privy Council website (https://privycouncil.independent.gov.uk/royal-charters/applying-for-a-royal-charter/). Formal applications for Royal Charters and Supplemental Charters are published and gazetted to allow other interested individuals or organisations to comment or to lodge counter-petitions within a set period of time. Each petition is considered on its own merits and it would not be appropriate for me to make a policy statement concerning current or future individual Charter petitions.
Asked by: Julian Lewis (Conservative - New Forest East)
Question to the Leader of the House:
To ask the Leader of the House, what steps the Government will take to safeguard (a) hon. Members of both Houses from being impeded from entering and leaving the Parliamentary estate and (b) police and other security personnel from being distracted from their duties by incessant noise disturbances over prolonged periods.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government takes the safety and security of all Members of Parliament extremely seriously. Security measures for Members are continuously kept under review, including through the Consultative Panel on Parliamentary Security and the police work with the Parliamentary Security Department (PSD) to make sure that appropriate measures are in place to ensure that Members can continue with their jobs. Security and other measures in place on the Parliamentary estate are ultimately a matter for the House authorities and PSD. Regulation of noise disturbance is a matter for the police and local authorities and the House authorities have made representations to the relevant authorities.
Asked by: Julian Lewis (Conservative - New Forest East)
Question to the Leader of the House:
To ask the Leader of the House, with reference to his oral contribution of 21 January 2016, Official Report, column 1556, whether he has since been advised of the date on which the House will hold its debate on the maingate for the successor to the Trident programme.
Answered by Chris Grayling
Future business of the House will be announced in the usual way.