Asked by: Will Quince (Conservative - Colchester)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that a commitment to reducing inequalities in (a) pregnancy loss and (b) baby deaths is included in the next Three year delivery plan for maternity and neonatal services.
Answered by Maria Caulfield - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
The Government is committed to tackling and reducing disparities in health outcomes, and works closely with NHS England to improve equity for mothers and babies, and race equality for staff. A central ambition of the National Health Services’ three-year delivery plan for maternity and neonatal services is to reduce inequalities in access, experience, and outcomes for women and babies. This plan is available at the following link:
https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/three-year-delivery-plan-for-maternity-and-neonatal-services/
There are no current plans to revise the three-year plan, and NHS England are focused on delivering the existing commitments, including those relating to inequalities in still birth and neonatal death.
Asked by: Will Quince (Conservative - Colchester)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he has made an estimate of the proportion of VAT that was collected on gym memberships in each of the last five years.
Answered by Nigel Huddleston - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
The information is not available. HM Revenue and Customs does not hold information on VAT revenue from specific products or services, including VAT on gym memberships. This is because businesses are not required to provide figures at a product level within their VAT returns, as this would impose an excessive administrative burden.
Asked by: Will Quince (Conservative - Colchester)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what estimate his Department has made of the number of offences involving a firearm in the last 12 months.
Answered by Chloe Smith
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply
Asked by: Will Quince (Conservative - Colchester)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate his Department has made of number of offences involving an imitation firearm in the latest period for which figures are available.
Answered by Nick Hurd
In the year ending September 2018, the police forces of England and Wales recorded 1,342 offences involving an imitation firearm, a 20% fall compared with the previous year (1,668 offences). Statistics about imitation firearms which have been seized by police forces are not recorded by the Home Office.
Existing legislation ensures that there are controls in place relating to imitation firearms. The Policing and Crime Act 2017 introduced a new offence to prevent the unlawful conversion of imitation firearms, and other controls include specifications on the manufacture of blank firing imitation firearms, and legislation to ensure that readily convertible imitation firearms must be held on a firearms certificate.
It is an offence to possess an imitation firearm with the intent to cause someone to fear that unlawful violence will be used against them or another person. Imitation firearms which are difficult to distinguish from real firearms are subject to specific controls. The Violent Crime Reduction Act 2006 specifies that the size, shape and principal colour are to be taken into account in determining whether an imitation firearm is to be considered a realistic imitation firearm. There are a number of legitimate activities in relation to the possession of realistic imitation firearms, including for the purposes of historical re-enactment and airsoft skirmishing.
Firearms legislation and controls, including in relation to imitation firearms, are kept under review to ensure we have the right intelligence, detection and enforcement capabilities and policies in place to prevent the misuse of firearms.
Asked by: Will Quince (Conservative - Colchester)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many imitation firearms have been seized by police forces in the latest period for which figures are available.
Answered by Nick Hurd
In the year ending September 2018, the police forces of England and Wales recorded 1,342 offences involving an imitation firearm, a 20% fall compared with the previous year (1,668 offences). Statistics about imitation firearms which have been seized by police forces are not recorded by the Home Office.
Existing legislation ensures that there are controls in place relating to imitation firearms. The Policing and Crime Act 2017 introduced a new offence to prevent the unlawful conversion of imitation firearms, and other controls include specifications on the manufacture of blank firing imitation firearms, and legislation to ensure that readily convertible imitation firearms must be held on a firearms certificate.
It is an offence to possess an imitation firearm with the intent to cause someone to fear that unlawful violence will be used against them or another person. Imitation firearms which are difficult to distinguish from real firearms are subject to specific controls. The Violent Crime Reduction Act 2006 specifies that the size, shape and principal colour are to be taken into account in determining whether an imitation firearm is to be considered a realistic imitation firearm. There are a number of legitimate activities in relation to the possession of realistic imitation firearms, including for the purposes of historical re-enactment and airsoft skirmishing.
Firearms legislation and controls, including in relation to imitation firearms, are kept under review to ensure we have the right intelligence, detection and enforcement capabilities and policies in place to prevent the misuse of firearms.
Asked by: Will Quince (Conservative - Colchester)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment his Department has made of the availability of imitation firearms.
Answered by Nick Hurd
In the year ending September 2018, the police forces of England and Wales recorded 1,342 offences involving an imitation firearm, a 20% fall compared with the previous year (1,668 offences). Statistics about imitation firearms which have been seized by police forces are not recorded by the Home Office.
Existing legislation ensures that there are controls in place relating to imitation firearms. The Policing and Crime Act 2017 introduced a new offence to prevent the unlawful conversion of imitation firearms, and other controls include specifications on the manufacture of blank firing imitation firearms, and legislation to ensure that readily convertible imitation firearms must be held on a firearms certificate.
It is an offence to possess an imitation firearm with the intent to cause someone to fear that unlawful violence will be used against them or another person. Imitation firearms which are difficult to distinguish from real firearms are subject to specific controls. The Violent Crime Reduction Act 2006 specifies that the size, shape and principal colour are to be taken into account in determining whether an imitation firearm is to be considered a realistic imitation firearm. There are a number of legitimate activities in relation to the possession of realistic imitation firearms, including for the purposes of historical re-enactment and airsoft skirmishing.
Firearms legislation and controls, including in relation to imitation firearms, are kept under review to ensure we have the right intelligence, detection and enforcement capabilities and policies in place to prevent the misuse of firearms.
Asked by: Will Quince (Conservative - Colchester)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps his Department is taking to tackle the use of imitation firearms in criminal offences.
Answered by Nick Hurd
In the year ending September 2018, the police forces of England and Wales recorded 1,342 offences involving an imitation firearm, a 20% fall compared with the previous year (1,668 offences). Statistics about imitation firearms which have been seized by police forces are not recorded by the Home Office.
Existing legislation ensures that there are controls in place relating to imitation firearms. The Policing and Crime Act 2017 introduced a new offence to prevent the unlawful conversion of imitation firearms, and other controls include specifications on the manufacture of blank firing imitation firearms, and legislation to ensure that readily convertible imitation firearms must be held on a firearms certificate.
It is an offence to possess an imitation firearm with the intent to cause someone to fear that unlawful violence will be used against them or another person. Imitation firearms which are difficult to distinguish from real firearms are subject to specific controls. The Violent Crime Reduction Act 2006 specifies that the size, shape and principal colour are to be taken into account in determining whether an imitation firearm is to be considered a realistic imitation firearm. There are a number of legitimate activities in relation to the possession of realistic imitation firearms, including for the purposes of historical re-enactment and airsoft skirmishing.
Firearms legislation and controls, including in relation to imitation firearms, are kept under review to ensure we have the right intelligence, detection and enforcement capabilities and policies in place to prevent the misuse of firearms.
Asked by: Will Quince (Conservative - Colchester)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when Delay Repay 15 will be introduced on the Great Eastern Mainline.
Answered by Andrew Jones
As announced on 12 March, Commercial terms have now been agreed and Delay Repay 15 will go live on Greater Anglia on 1st April.
Asked by: Will Quince (Conservative - Colchester)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he is taking to ensure that universities do not charge tuition fees to students undertaking industry placements in the UK or abroad as part of their studies.
Answered by Chris Skidmore
Maximum tuition fees for students undertaking an Erasmus work placement year are 15% of the maximum applicable full-time fees and fee loans for Approved (Fee Cap) providers in 2019/20. Maximum tuition fees for students undertaking a work placement year of a sandwich course in the UK or a work placement year abroad that is not an Erasmus Year are 20% of the maximum applicable full-time fees and fee loans for Approved (Fee Cap) providers in 2019/20.
Asked by: Will Quince (Conservative - Colchester)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to promote open access to waterways for canoeists.
Answered by Thérèse Coffey
Access to waterways, including for recreational purposes, remains subject to licence by the relevant navigation authority or to agreement with the riparian landowner where there is no navigation authority in place.