Asked by: Suella Braverman (Conservative - Fareham)
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 effect of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps on regional stability.
Answered by Andrew Murrison - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
We have long expressed our deep concerns about the destabilising activities of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps both within and outside Iran, including its illicit economic activity and its role in Iran's ballistic missile development and support to militant and proscribed groups around the region. We call on Iran urgently to cease all forms of destabilising activity. As E3 leaders said in their 12 January statement, "We must address - through diplomacy and in a meaningful way - shared concerns about Iran's destabilizing regional activities, including those linked to its missile programme. We reiterate our readiness to continue our engagement for de-escalation and stability in the region."
Asked by: Suella Braverman (Conservative - Fareham)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of funding allocated to local councils for the provision of (a) support and (b) advice to families and young people in a financial crisis.
Answered by Luke Hall - Minister of State (Education)
It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.
Asked by: Suella Braverman (Conservative - Fareham)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will launch an independent inquiry into family courts in England and Wales to establish (a) how victims of domestic violence are treated, (b) whether the process under which parents convicted of domestic violence are given access to children is adequate and (c) whether the courts should be more transparent in their handling of domestic violence cases and the protection of children involved in such cases.
Answered by Paul Maynard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
On 21 May 2019 the Ministry of Justice announced a public call for evidence to develop our understanding of how the family courts protect children and parents in cases of domestic abuse and other serious offences. Specifically, the call for evidence will focus on the application of Practice Direction 12J, Practice Direction 3AA, The Family Procedure Rules Part 3A, and s.91(14) orders, and will build a more detailed understanding of any harm caused during or following proceedings in the family court where there are allegations of domestic abuse. The written call for evidence was launched on 19 July and will run for 6 weeks.
This call for evidence is coordinated by a panel of experts whose membership includes academics, members of the judiciary, and representatives from third sector bodies which represent or advocate for victims of domestic abuse, all of whom are independent of the Government. The panel will gather and interpret evidence from a full range of interested parties, to enable us to address appropriately any issues with the application of protections available in the family courts.
It is important that the Family Justice System strikes an appropriate balance between rightly protecting the confidentially of the individual children and family members, but also maintaining as open and transparent approach to court decisions as possible in these circumstances.
Asked by: Suella Braverman (Conservative - Fareham)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the merits of amending vehicle excise duty so that the duty applicable is based on the emissions recorded at MOT tests.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
MOT emissions tests are mainly used to check for dangerous levels of air quality pollutants, such as carbon monoxide and hydrocarbons.
To help meet our legally binding climate change targets, Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) is based on carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions which is not tested during MOTs.
A vehicle’s CO2 emissions are tested under laboratory conditions at the point of manufacture. This provides an accurate figure which determines the rate of VED paid, allows comparisons to be made between models and encourages motorists to choose low CO2 emitting options.
Asked by: Suella Braverman (Conservative - Fareham)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of extending the roll out of the HPV vaccine to boys over the age of 13.
Answered by Seema Kennedy
I refer the hon. Member to the answer the former Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Public Health and Primary Care (Steve Brine MP) gave to the hon. Member for Washington and Sunderland West (Sharon Hodgson MP) on 13 December 2018 to Question 199808.
Asked by: Suella Braverman (Conservative - Fareham)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much funding his Department has committed to research into Tinnitus.
Answered by Caroline Dinenage
The Department’s National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health, including tinnitus. Applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards being made on the basis of the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money and scientific quality. Information on individual projects funded by the NIHR can be found at the following link:
https://www.journalslibrary.nihr.ac.uk/programmes/
NIHR support for tinnitus research was over £1.4 million over the last five years. This included funding for research projects, and funding for The NIHR is managed infrastructure to support tinnitus research. For example, The NIHR is managed infrastructure is supporting a proof-of-concept trial using targeted acoustic stimulation to treat tinnitus and a feasibility study using eye movement desensitisation and reprocessing as a treatment for tinnitus.
Asked by: Suella Braverman (Conservative - Fareham)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what fiscal steps he is taking to encourage investment in innovative UK science and technology projects.
Answered by Simon Kirby
As my RHF the Prime Minister announced last Monday, the government is significantly increasing investment in R&D, rising to an extra £2 billion a year by 2020-21.
This includes an Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund, which will support collaborations between businesses and the UK’s world-leading science base.
This will ensure the UK remains an attractive place for businesses to invest in innovative research, and that the next generation of discoveries is made, developed and produced in Britain.
Asked by: Suella Braverman (Conservative - Fareham)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the distance is to the nearest selective school from the centre of each of the towns and cities in England with a population over 75,000; and for those such towns and cities in England for which that distance is less than 10 miles, how many selective schools are within 10 miles of that town or city centre.
Answered by Nick Gibb
The requested information can be found in the table below:
Distances from major towns and cities in England to the nearest state-funded selective school | ||||
Town / City | Distance to Nearest Grammar School (miles) | Number of Grammar Schools within 10 miles | ||
Barnsley | 13.3 | 0 | ||
Basildon | 7.9 | 3 | ||
Basingstoke | 13.9 | 0 | ||
Bath | 26.1 | 0 | ||
Bedford | 24.2 | 0 | ||
Birkenhead | 1.1 | 7 | ||
Birmingham | 1.2 | 10 | ||
Blackburn | 9.6 | 1 | ||
Blackpool | 18.4 | 0 | ||
Bolton | 9.2 | 1 | ||
Bournemouth | 2.3 | 4 | ||
Bracknell | 8.9 | 6 | ||
Bradford | 5.8 | 3 | ||
Brighton and Hove | 28.2 | 0 | ||
Bristol | 25.2 | 0 | ||
Burnley | 6.6 | 2 | ||
Burton upon Trent | 18.6 | 0 | ||
Bury | 7.2 | 1 | ||
Cambridge | 35.2 | 0 | ||
Carlisle | 17.6 | 0 | ||
Chatham | 0.4 | 14 | ||
Chelmsford | 0.4 | 2 | ||
Cheltenham | 1.7 | 5 | ||
Chester | 11.8 | 0 | ||
Chesterfield | 29.3 | 0 | ||
Colchester | 0.7 | 2 | ||
Coventry | 10.6 | 0 | ||
Crawley | 16.6 | 0 | ||
Darlington | 26.6 | 0 | ||
Derby | 28.5 | 0 | ||
Doncaster | 16.4 | 0 | ||
Dudley | 6.3 | 9 | ||
Eastbourne | 25.2 | 0 | ||
Exeter | 16.7 | 0 | ||
Gateshead | 50.4 | 0 | ||
Gillingham | 0.9 | 14 | ||
Gloucester | 0.6 | 7 | ||
Grimsby | 11.0 | 0 | ||
Guildford | 17.0 | 0 | ||
Halifax | 1.4 | 3 | ||
Harlow | 11.5 | 0 | ||
Harrogate | 10.2 | 0 | ||
Hartlepool | 40.4 | 0 | ||
Hastings | 16.8 | 0 | ||
Hemel Hempstead | 7.2 | 3 | ||
High Wycombe | 0.9 | 10 | ||
Huddersfield | 5.9 | 3 | ||
Ipswich | 16.2 | 0 | ||
Kingston upon Hull | 17.2 | 0 | ||
Leeds | 8.1 | 1 | ||
Leicester | 19.0 | 0 | ||
Lincoln | 15.9 | 0 | ||
Liverpool | 2.7 | 7 | ||
London | 5.7 | 7 | ||
Luton | 14.1 | 0 | ||
Maidstone | 0.5 | 10 | ||
Manchester | 3.4 | 7 | ||
Mansfield | 25.3 | 0 | ||
Middlesbrough | 32.5 | 0 | ||
Milton Keynes | 10.2 | 0 | ||
Newcastle upon Tyne | 50.6 | 0 | ||
Newcastle-under-Lyme | 2.1 | 1 | ||
Northampton | 17.4 | 0 | ||
Norwich | 53.9 | 0 | ||
Nottingham | 21.7 | 0 | ||
Nuneaton | 13.6 | 0 | ||
Oldham | 10.2 | 0 | ||
Oxford | 19.1 | 0 | ||
Peterborough | 14.5 | 0 | ||
Plymouth | 0.4 | 3 | ||
Poole | 2.1 | 4 | ||
Portsmouth | 33.8 | 0 | ||
Preston | 15.0 | 0 | ||
Reading | 0.6 | 2 | ||
Redditch | 6.9 | 4 | ||
Rochdale | 6.9 | 1 | ||
Rotherham | 22.8 | 0 | ||
Salford | 3.0 | 7 | ||
Scunthorpe | 13.2 | 0 | ||
Sheffield | 24.0 | 0 | ||
Shrewsbury | 16.2 | 0 | ||
Slough | 0.8 | 7 | ||
Solihull | 5.4 | 6 | ||
South Shields | 58.1 | 0 | ||
Southampton | 20.2 | 0 | ||
Southend-on-Sea | 0.8 | 4 | ||
Southport | 17.8 | 0 | ||
St Albans | 8.6 | 1 | ||
St Helens | 8.6 | 1 | ||
Stevenage | 17.2 | 0 | ||
Stockport | 6.2 | 7 | ||
Stockton-on-Tees | 31.0 | 0 | ||
Stoke-on-Trent | 1.3 | 1 | ||
Sunderland | 53.5 | 0 | ||
Sutton Coldfield | 0.1 | 7 | ||
Swindon | 23.5 | 0 | ||
Telford | 6.5 | 2 | ||
Wakefield | 6.9 | 1 | ||
Walsall | 0.4 | 8 | ||
Warrington | 9.8 | 2 | ||
Watford | 7.6 | 5 | ||
West Bromwich | 2.8 | 11 | ||
Weston-Super-Mare | 42.2 | 0 | ||
Wigan | 13.0 | 0 | ||
Woking | 12.6 | 0 | ||
Wolverhampton | 1.2 | 3 | ||
Worcester | 14.8 | 0 | ||
Worthing | 35.6 | 0 | ||
York | 22.2 | 0 | ||
Notes: | ||||
Distances are calculated based on the location of the town centre according to Google Maps | ||||
Major towns and cities are from the 2016 ONS list based on towns and cities in England with a resident or workday population of more than 75,000 in the 2011 census. | ||||
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Asked by: Suella Braverman (Conservative - Fareham)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to improve financial literacy among (a) young people and (b) people in receipt of benefits.
Answered by Simon Kirby
We are committed to improving financial literacy among young people and people in receipt of benefits. Financial education was put onto the national curriculum in England in 2014. Through Universal Support, the Department for Work and Pension is working with partners to help people claiming Universal Credit to manage their finances. The government is also bringing pensions and money guidance together in one place, creating a single public financial guidance body to enable consumers to access the help they need on financial matters more easily.
Asked by: Suella Braverman (Conservative - Fareham)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps the Government is taking to (a) stop firearms, drugs and other contraband from entering the UK and (b) tackle human trafficking in UK waters.
Answered by Theresa May
The United Kingdom’s border controls are among the toughest in the world. Border Force works closely with other law enforcement agencies, including the National Crime Agency and Police, to combat suspected human trafficking and to target and disrupt those who would attempt to smuggle prohibited and restricted goods such as firearms and illegal drugs in to the UK.