Asked by: Mhairi Black (Scottish National Party - Paisley and Renfrewshire South)
Question to the Home Office:
What plans she has to bring forward proposals to review the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971.
Answered by Kit Malthouse
This Government currently has no plans to review the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971. We keep drug controls under review, in consultation with the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs.
Drugs Legislation forms part of our wider approach to preventing drug misuse alongside prevention and education, supporting treatment and recovery, and tackling the supply of illicit drugs.
Asked by: Mhairi Black (Scottish National Party - Paisley and Renfrewshire South)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he has taken with Cabinet colleagues to help ensure the importation of medicines into the UK that are manufactured in the EU.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
We continue to work closely with other Government departments, including the Department for Transport, HM Revenue and Customs and the Cabinet Office’s Transition Task Force, the pharmaceutical industry, the National Health Service and others in the supply chain to deliver the shared goal of continuity of safe patient care under all circumstances.
The Department wrote to all suppliers of medicines and medical products coming to the United Kingdom from or via the European Union on 17 November 2020. The letter sets out how we are continuing to work across Government and with suppliers to deliver our multi-layered approach to mitigate any potential disruption to supply of medicines into the UK. The letter is available at the following link:
Asked by: Mhairi Black (Scottish National Party - Paisley and Renfrewshire South)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will publish any audience targeting information used by the (a) Union Unit and (b) Union Taskforce for (i) advertising, (ii) campaigning or (iii) promotional purposes in the last 12 months.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
In line with the practice of successive administrations, the Prime Minister’s Office is an integral part of the Cabinet Office. Details of expenditure are available in the Cabinet Office annual report and expenditure over £25,000 is published on gov.uk, in line with our transparency policy. Staff organograms are published periodically and available on gov.uk. Future details will be published in the usual way.
Asked by: Mhairi Black (Scottish National Party - Paisley and Renfrewshire South)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many individuals were employed by (a) the Union Unit and (b) the Union Taskforce in each financial year since 2008-09; and how many and what proportion of those people were employed in an (a) press or (b) communications capacity.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
In line with the practice of successive administrations, the Prime Minister’s Office is an integral part of the Cabinet Office. Details of expenditure are available in the Cabinet Office annual report and expenditure over £25,000 is published on gov.uk, in line with our transparency policy. Staff organograms are published periodically and available on gov.uk. Future details will be published in the usual way.
Asked by: Mhairi Black (Scottish National Party - Paisley and Renfrewshire South)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, how much the (a) Union Unit and (b) Union Taskforce spent on paid-for listing in search results in each financial year since 2010-11; and how much is budgeted for that purpose for each of those groups for 2021-22.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
In line with the practice of successive administrations, the Prime Minister’s Office is an integral part of the Cabinet Office. Details of expenditure are available in the Cabinet Office annual report and expenditure over £25,000 is published on gov.uk, in line with our transparency policy. Staff organograms are published periodically and available on gov.uk. Future details will be published in the usual way.
Asked by: Mhairi Black (Scottish National Party - Paisley and Renfrewshire South)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office, how much the (a) Union Unit and (b) Union Taskforce spent on paid-for social media advertising and promotion in each financial year since 2010-11; and how much is budgeted for that purpose for each of those groups for 2021-22.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
In line with the practice of successive administrations, the Prime Minister’s Office is an integral part of the Cabinet Office. Details of expenditure are available in the Cabinet Office annual report and expenditure over £25,000 is published on gov.uk, in line with our transparency policy. Staff organograms are published periodically and available on gov.uk. Future details will be published in the usual way.
Asked by: Mhairi Black (Scottish National Party - Paisley and Renfrewshire South)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the (a) total expenditure on and (b) cost to the public purse of the Union Unit was; what the cost to the public purse of the Union Taskforce was in each financial year since 2010-11; and what the budget for that taskforce will be in the financial year 2021-22.
Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
In line with the practice of successive administrations, the Prime Minister’s Office is an integral part of the Cabinet Office. Details of expenditure are available in the Cabinet Office annual report and expenditure over £25,000 is published on gov.uk, in line with our transparency policy. Staff organograms are published periodically and available on gov.uk. Future details will be published in the usual way.
Asked by: Mhairi Black (Scottish National Party - Paisley and Renfrewshire South)
Question to the Scotland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, how much the (a) Union Unit and (b) Union Taskforce spent on communications, including staffing costs, in each financial year since 2010-11; and how much is budgeted for that purpose for each of those groups for 2021-22.
Answered by Alister Jack - Secretary of State for Scotland
The Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland is not responsible for the funding of either a ‘Union Unit’ or ‘Union Taskforce’.
Asked by: Mhairi Black (Scottish National Party - Paisley and Renfrewshire South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing (a) a two year multi-entry touring visa, (b) a temporary cultural exemption for the transportation of instruments and equipment and (c) an expansion of the list of CITES-designated points of entry and exit to support the music industry's recovery after the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Kevin Foster
Currently, artists, entertainers and musicians visiting the UK can perform at events, take part in competitions and auditions, make personal appearances and take part in promotional activities for up to 6 months without the need for formal sponsorship or a work visa. They can also receive payment for appearances at permit free festivals for up to 6 months, or for up to one month for specific engagements, under the Visitor route.
HMRC advise ATA carnets are available for commercial goods, professional equipment or goods going to trade fairs or exhibitions in participating countries, which are moved on a temporary basis to a new customs territory.
In addition to using carnets, alternative options for transporting equipment on a temporary basis between the EU and the UK (without having to pay customs duties and VAT) are Temporary Admission and Returned Goods Relief.
The UK Government will keep the list of CITES Ports of Entry and Exit (PoEs), managed by DEFRA, under review and look to make additional designations where it is feasible and advantageous to do so.
Asked by: Mhairi Black (Scottish National Party - Paisley and Renfrewshire South)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what financial support he is providing to the music industry to help that industry recover from the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
The Government acknowledges the importance of the music industry to the UK economy and that it has been significantly affected by the impacts of COVID-19.
The £1.57 billion Culture Recovery Fund will benefit the music sector by providing support to venues and many other organisations. Over £1 billion of the fund has now been allocated to over 3,000 arts and culture organisations across the country, including over £54 million to over 300 music venues. A contingency element of £400 million of the Culture Recovery Fund was held back so that it could be most effectively used dependent on the state of the pandemic, with grant applications closing on 26 January 2021. This fund will support cultural organisations facing financial distress as a result of closure, as well as helping them transition back to fuller opening.
The Government’s broader economic measures have also supported the music industry. This support includes business rates relief; £1.1 billion existing discretionary funding for Local Authorities; the furlough scheme and Self-Employment Income Support Scheme, which have been extended to April; and the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme and Bounce Back Loan Scheme, which have been extended until March. In addition, the Treasury announced a temporary reduction in VAT for concert tickets from 20% to 5% to take effect from 15 July 2020 for ticket sales until 31 March.