Asked by: Lindsay Roy (Labour - Glenrothes)
Question
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many (a) internal and (b) external complaints have been received by his Department about alleged breaches of the Civil Service Code of Conduct since 2010; and what steps his Department has taken in response to each such complaint.
Answered by Jo Swinson
There have been no internal or external complaints about alleged breaches of the Civil Service Code of Conduct received by the Departmental Complaints Officer since 2010.
Asked by: Lindsay Roy (Labour - Glenrothes)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many (a) internal and (b) external complaints have been received by his Department about alleged breaches of the Civil Service Code of Conduct since 2010; and what actions his Department has taken in response to each such complaint.
Answered by Mike Penning
The requirements of the Civil Service Code are incorporated within the Department's Standards of Behaviour Policy which sets out the Department's high expectations of employees. Breaches of the Civil Service Code are not specifically identified; the Department records disciplinary incidents under its Standards of Behaviour policy.
Asked by: Lindsay Roy (Labour - Glenrothes)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent assessment he has made of the level of bank lending to small and medium-sized businesses since May 2010.
Answered by Andrea Leadsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government has introduced measures to improve both bank and non-bank lending to businesses, such as the Funding for Lending Scheme, the British Business Bank and the Appeals Process.
Against this backdrop, gross lending to small and medium sized businesses in 2014 Q1 was almost 15% higher than in the same quarter a year earlier; and 32% of SMEs that have been through the Appeals Process have had their initial loan rejection overturned.
Asked by: Lindsay Roy (Labour - Glenrothes)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what recent discussions she has had with the Israeli government on its plans to liaise with the new Palestinian government to bring about improvements in the humanitarian situation in the border areas; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Alan Duncan
British officials from the Embassy in Tel Aviv have regular discussions with the Israeli authorities.
Asked by: Lindsay Roy (Labour - Glenrothes)
Question to the Scotland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what discussions he has had with the Scottish Government on NHS Scotland; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by David Mundell
NHS is an almost devolved matter; the Secretary of State and I have had no such discussions.
Asked by: Lindsay Roy (Labour - Glenrothes)
Question to the Scotland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what estimate he has made of the number of homeless (a) single people and (b) families in Scotland.
Answered by David Mundell
Homelessness statistics in Scotland are published by the Scottish Government who gather the information from local authorities.
The last such publication was on 25 March 2014 and is available at:
Asked by: Lindsay Roy (Labour - Glenrothes)
Question to the Scotland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what estimate he has made of the number of jobs in Scotland that depend on the UK's membership of the EU.
Answered by David Mundell
The Single Market gives UK businesses access to the world's largest trading bloc with 500 million people and 21 million companies generating £11 trillion in economic activity.
Since 1992, the UK's bilateral trade with EU member states has more than trebled and trade with Europe accounts for roughly 3.5 million jobs in the UK, around 11% of the workforce.
In 2012, Scottish exports to the EU are estimated to have amounted to approximately 45% of Scotland's total international exports (excluding oil and gas). The Government does not collate figures for the number of jobs in Scotland that depend on UK membership of the EU. However, independent analysis published by the Centre for Economics and Business Research in March 2014 suggested that, in 2011, approximately 335,000 jobs in Scotland were associated with Scottish exports to the EU.
Asked by: Lindsay Roy (Labour - Glenrothes)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what recent estimate he has made of the number of (a) women and (b) men employed on zero-hours contracts in the UK.
Answered by Nick Hurd
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.
Asked by: Lindsay Roy (Labour - Glenrothes)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the political situation in Egypt; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Hugh Robertson
Egypt has been going through a difficult political transition for over three years. In July 2013, the interim Egyptian Government set out a new roadmap towards Presidential and Parliamentary elections. A referendum on a new constitution was held in January 2014 and was an important milestone. We welcomed the provisions in the new constitution for the protection of the rights of minorities and women and the transition to democracy in Egypt. However, we were concerned by the closure of political space for opposition groups in the run-up to the referendum and the arrest and sentencing of human rights activists. Egypt is now preparing for Presidential elections to be held from 26 – 27 May, which will be observed by an EU Election Observation Mission. Parliamentary elections are due to take place later in the year and are an important step.
We continue to monitor closely political developments in Egypt. We are concerned about the Protest Law; the prison sentences handed down to three democracy and human rights activists; restrictions on freedom of the press; and the sentencing to death of a large number of people without proper legal process in an Egyptian court in Minya. These cases undermine international confidence in the progress towards reform and democratisation in Egypt. We are also concerned at the rising number of terrorist attacks in Egypt. Our thoughts are with the families of those killed and wounded and all those affected.
The UK continues to believe that the only sustainable way for Egypt to address its current challenges is through an inclusive political process which allows all Egyptians a voice in the country's future. The UK stands ready to support the Egyptian people in achieving this.
Asked by: Lindsay Roy (Labour - Glenrothes)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what arrangements his Department plans to leave in place in Afghanistan to protect education for female children.
Answered by Justine Greening
The UK Government supports girls' education in Afghanistan through DFID's Girls' Education Challenge programmes and our financial support to the Afghan Reconstruction Trust Fund - a multi-donor fund that supports the provision of primary education across Afghanistan. We are committed to Afghanistan for the long term, including supporting education for girls.