Asked by: Margaret Ferrier (Independent - Rutherglen and Hamilton West)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the impact of dog breeding regulations on breeders who breed two or fewer litters per year.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Under The Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (England) Regulations 2018 (the 2018 Regulations) anyone in the business of breeding and selling dogs and/or who breeds three or more litters in a twelve-month period needs to have a valid licence from their local authority.
The 2018 Regulations are targeted at businesses and individuals/operators which operate on a commercial basis. They are not intended to capture or regulate hobby breeders. We are currently conducting a post-implementation review of the 2018 Regulations which will consider the need for any refinements in light of evidence provided by stakeholders, licensed and unlicensed dog breeders, and local authorities.
Asked by: Margaret Ferrier (Independent - Rutherglen and Hamilton West)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the Petfished campaign in providing information to potential puppy buyers on sourcing a puppy responsibly; and whether she plans to run further education campaigns to help puppy buyers acquire dogs responsibly.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Our analysis of the Petfished campaign indicates that it has successfully delivered key messages about the responsible purchase or rehoming of cats and dogs. Those key messages remain available to the public on the Petfished website which can be found here: Petfished – Learn how to spot the signs of a deceitful pet seller (getyourpetsafely.campaign.gov.uk)
Defra keeps its public messaging campaigns under review and will consider conducting further campaigns to support the responsible purchasing of pets where there are clear benefits.
Asked by: Margaret Ferrier (Independent - Rutherglen and Hamilton West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of frontloading funding for the humanitarian crisis in East Africa.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
This financial year the UK has allocated at least £156 million in humanitarian support to East Africa. The FCDO coordinates with international partners across the region to ensure UK funded humanitarian aid is provided as promptly as possible and is prioritised to those in greatest need.
Throughout East Africa the UK also works to build resilience to crises to help limit the impact of shocks such as drought. The UK's resilience building investments have benefitted tens of millions of people in Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia.
Asked by: Margaret Ferrier (Independent - Rutherglen and Hamilton West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to help tackle malnutrition in East Africa, in the context of commitments made in the Integrated Review Refresh 2023, published in March 2023.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The 2023 Integrated Review (IR) Refresh builds on existing policy, including for East Africa as set out in the IR 2021. IR 2021 provided a comprehensive articulation of the UK's national security and international policy in the context of a world moving towards greater competition and multipolarity. The IR Refresh published in March 2023 sets out the continuing priority the UK places on engagement with Africa and elsewhere.
The UK's humanitarian support in East Africa, totalling at least £156 million this financial year, is providing millions of people with essential services and supplies to help tackle malnutrition and other concerns. The UK's work in East Africa will be a key part of the campaign referenced in the IR Refresh to improve global food security and nutrition. We will increase the availability, affordability and quality of malnutrition treatment and prevention products to do this. Efforts to develop anticipatory action on famine risk and resilience building are other components the IR Refresh that the UK will progress in Africa to help address undernutrition.
Asked by: Margaret Ferrier (Independent - Rutherglen and Hamilton West)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will make an estimate of the number of UK citizens that emigrated to (a) Australia, (b) New Zealand, (c) the US and (d) Canada in the last 12 months.
Answered by Alex Burghart - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority.
A response to the Hon. Member's Parliamentary Question of 16 March is attached and the completed answer will be deposited in the House of Commons Library.
Asked by: Margaret Ferrier (Independent - Rutherglen and Hamilton West)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people in receipt of a UK pension live in countries without a reciprocal social security agreement with the UK by (a) the country they live in and (b) their gender.
Answered by Laura Trott - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
This information is published on Stat-Xplore https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk and currently extends to November 2020.
The number of people in receipt of a UK State Pension living in countries without a reciprocal social security agreement with the UK is 298,294.
The breakdown by country and gender are shown in the tables below:
Country of State Pension receipt | Male | Female |
Antigua | 141 | 166 |
Albania | 8 | 7 |
Algeria | 13 | 5 |
Andorra | 91 | 74 |
Anguilla | 33 | 48 |
Antilles (Netherlands) | 20 | 19 |
Argentina | 128 | 132 |
Aruba | .. | 6 |
Ascension Island | 7 | .. |
Australia | 100,047 | 122,289 |
Bahamas | 116 | 139 |
Bahrain | 79 | 48 |
Bangladesh | 175 | 795 |
Belize | 57 | 38 |
Bolivia | 17 | 12 |
Botswana | 89 | 55 |
Brazil | 485 | 284 |
Brunei | 16 | 8 |
Burkina Faso | .. | .. |
Burma (Myanmar) | .. | .. |
Cameroon | 6 | 5 |
Cape Verde Islands | .. | 6 |
Cayman Islands | 111 | 78 |
Chile | 168 | 141 |
China People's Republic | 249 | 74 |
Colombia | 128 | 127 |
Cook Islands | 9 | .. |
Costa Rica | 65 | 38 |
Dom Commonwealth (Dominica) | 217 | 244 |
Dominican Republic | 26 | 17 |
Country of State Pension receipt | Male | Female |
Ecuador | 54 | 33 |
Egypt | 189 | 116 |
El Salvador | 8 | 5 |
Equatorial Guinea | .. | .. |
Ethiopia | 22 | 7 |
Falkland Islands & Dep | 47 | 26 |
Faroe Islands | 5 | 7 |
Fiji | 63 | 28 |
French Polynesia | .. | .. |
Gambia | 44 | 23 |
Ghana | 451 | 388 |
Greenland | .. | .. |
Grenada | 402 | 500 |
Guatemala | 7 | 5 |
Guyana | 110 | 101 |
Honduras | 6 | 8 |
Hong Kong | 1,510 | 904 |
India | 2,145 | 2,113 |
Indonesia | 314 | 42 |
Iran | 21 | 11 |
Iraq | 5 | .. |
Japan | 4,644 | 2,158 |
Jordan | 72 | 46 |
Kampuchea | 40 | .. |
Kenya | 345 | 305 |
Kuwait | 10 | 5 |
Laos | 19 | .. |
Lebanon | 73 | 49 |
Lesotho | 6 | 7 |
Macau | 7 | .. |
Country of State Pension receipt | Male | Female |
Malagasy Republic | 6 | 5 |
Malawi | 39 | 31 |
Malaysia | 1,072 | 1,159 |
Mexico | 241 | 228 |
Monaco | 246 | 143 |
Montserrat | 29 | 40 |
Morocco | 112 | 70 |
Mozambique | 9 | .. |
Namibia | 49 | 42 |
Nepal | 29 | 13 |
Nevis, St Kitts-Nevis | 131 | 148 |
New Caledonia | 8 | 10 |
Nicaragua | 15 | 6 |
Nigeria | 1,090 | 804 |
Norfolk Island | .. | .. |
Oman | 71 | 29 |
Pakistan | 1,103 | 1,579 |
Panama | 23 | 14 |
Papua New Guinea | 8 | 5 |
Paraguay | 14 | 8 |
Peru | 66 | 64 |
Qatar | 41 | 15 |
Republic of Azerbaijan | 11 | .. |
Republic of Belarus | 13 | 12 |
Republic of Georgia | 19 | .. |
Republic of Kazakhstan | 12 | .. |
Republic of Kyrgyzstan | 5 | .. |
Republic of Moldova | 5 | .. |
Republic of Yemen | 172 | 501 |
Russian Federation | 95 | 41 |
San Marino | .. | .. |
Saudi Arabia | 75 | 20 |
Senegal | .. | 8 |
Seychelles | 73 | 78 |
Sierra Leone | 18 | 27 |
Singapore | 514 | 359 |
Country of State Pension receipt | Male | Female |
Solomon Islands | .. | .. |
Somalia | 9 | 13 |
South Africa | 12,932 | 17,411 |
South Korea | 288 | 91 |
Sri Lanka | 557 | 572 |
St Helena & Deps | 56 | 48 |
St Lucia | 376 | 454 |
St Vincents & Grenadines | 221 | 229 |
Sudan | 5 | .. |
Surinam | 5 | .. |
Swaziland | 42 | 37 |
Syria | 5 | .. |
Tahiti | 7 | .. |
Taiwan | 88 | 20 |
Tanzania | 54 | 23 |
Thailand | 4,777 | 586 |
Togo | .. | .. |
Tonga | 8 | 6 |
Trinidad & Tobago | 456 | 843 |
Tunisia | 62 | 53 |
Turks & Caicos Islands | 17 | 6 |
Uganda | 47 | 26 |
Ukraine | 59 | 33 |
United Arab Emirates | 431 | 180 |
United States Minor Outlying Islands | .. | 5 |
Uruguay | 35 | 27 |
Vanuatu | 24 | 13 |
Venezuela | 24 | 16 |
Vietnam | 105 | 14 |
Virgin Islands (British) | 28 | 19 |
Western Samoa | .. | .. |
Zambia | 79 | 86 |
Zimbabwe | 311 | 546 |
Please note:
1. The ".." denotes a nil or negligible number of claimants or award amount based on a nil or negligible number of claimants.
Asked by: Margaret Ferrier (Independent - Rutherglen and Hamilton West)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what progress has been made in updating the Energy National Policy statements which have been under review since November 2021.
Answered by Graham Stuart
To enable delivery of the commitments in April’s British Energy Security Strategy, the Department has reviewed and strengthened these NPSs. This includes the EN-1 Overarching need case for energy infrastructure, EN-3 Renewable electricity infrastructure and EN-5 Electricity networks infrastructure. The review is to ensure they fully reflect the strategic importance of new energy infrastructure for delivering the UK’s energy security and affordability and to deliver on Net Zero. The importance of this has been underlined by global events in the last 12 months since the end of the previous consultation. DESNZ will re-consult on these documents.
Asked by: Margaret Ferrier (Independent - Rutherglen and Hamilton West)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what steps he is taking with Cabinet colleagues to tackle barriers around planning and consent in developing the transmission network required to support a net zero grid.
Answered by Graham Stuart
In the British Energy Security Strategy the Government committed to accelerating the delivery of electricity transmission infrastructure. The network blueprint, the Holistic Network Design for onshore-offshore transmission, will be referenced in the energy National Policy Statements (NPS) for England and Wales, supporting the needs case for transmission projects.
Asked by: Margaret Ferrier (Independent - Rutherglen and Hamilton West)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether his Department plans to include measures for meeting the Government's net zero targets within the planning regime.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
The Government has made clear in the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) that the planning system should support the transition to a low carbon future in a changing climate.
Asked by: Margaret Ferrier (Independent - Rutherglen and Hamilton West)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many and what proportion of unpaid carers in receipt of Universal Credit and the carer element also have earnings from paid employment.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
The information requested for Universal Credit is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.