Asked by: Lord Greaves (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, for each of the last five years, (1) how many instances of infestation by Japanese Knotweed were recorded on Network Rail land and property, (2) how many complaints were received, and what was the cost to Network Rail of action taken to eradicate the species; (3) what action Network Rail takes in response to infestations and complaints about Japanese Knotweed; and (4) what action Network Rail takes in the event of this plant spreading from Network Rail land on to adjoining land and property.
Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
Network Rail are currently in the process of gathering data about historical Japanese knotweed instances, however there are currently 5138 distinct sites with active treatment of Japanese knotweed.
The breakdown of complaints is as follows: 2019 – 25; 2018 – 62; 2017 – 42; 2016 – 72; 2015 – 73, not accounting for cases where a legal claim is made without a complaint. Some of these complaints developed into claims, with 170 claims made over the last 5 years. The total sum of these claim settlements amounts to £3.73m; this covers treatment costs as well as damages, investigation costs and legal costs. It was not possible to obtain figures for the overall expenditure on treatment, however it costs approximately £18-30 per metre square of knotweed to successfully treat it, over a period of 3 – 5 years.
In instances where Japanese knotweed is discovered, the location of knotweed is recorded and mapped, followed by treatment activity tailored to whether it is affecting safe operation of the railway and/or creating biosecurity issues. Measures such as boot and tool cleaning are undertaken to prevent further spreading of the knotweed. In carrying out these actions, Network Rail complies with the Lineside Vegetation Management Manual and relevant legislation.
Asked by: Nic Dakin (Labour - Scunthorpe)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of the Association of Accounting Technicians' proposal for the Government to abolish Entrepreneurs Relief and invest the £3 billion saving in initiatives or reliefs that encourage business start-ups or scale-up activity.
Answered by Jesse Norman
The objective of Entrepreneurs’ Relief (ER) is to promote enterprise by offering a reduced rate of tax to individuals who have contributed to the creation and growth of a business.
The Government continues to monitor the effectiveness of ER. HMRC’s most recent evaluation was published in December 2017, and is available here. The Government has no current plans to abolish ER, but keeps all taxes and reliefs under review.
Asked by: Barry Sheerman (Labour (Co-op) - Huddersfield)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he is taking increase the number of Indian students studying at UK universities; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Sam Gyimah
The target of increasing the value of education exports to £30 billion by 2020 was set in 2015 under the coalition government. The target is rightly ambitious and the department remains committed to working with the rest of government and the sector to drive progress towards it.
The latest statistics, which were published by the department earlier this year, estimated that the total value of UK education exports and transnational education activity was £19.3 billion in 2015, marking an increase of 22% since 2010.
Growing education exports is an important priority, and the government supports this through the work of the Department for International Trade (DIT)’s team dedicated to education exports. In addition, DIT’s Education Sector Advisory Group, which was chaired by my hon. Friend, the Member for Beverley and Holderness, and which I attended, supports the international aspirations and activity of the UK education sector and explores the ways in which growth can be increased.
The department’s international team supports this work and leads on a number of formal bilateral agreements, underpinned by memorandums of understanding and ministerial dialogues and visits. The team is also a key partner in a number of regular high-level international events, such as the Education World Forum, which is held annually in the UK.
Accounting for approximately 60% of all education exports, international students are of course an important part of this work.
The UK continues to be very successful in attracting international students. There is no cap on the number who can study here and we are second only to the USA in terms of our market share. Numbers remain at record high levels, with over 170,000 non-EU entrants to UK higher education institutions for the seventh year running.
India is an important partner in education, and the UK’s fourth largest source country for international students. The government actively promotes study in the UK through the GREAT Campaign and through the British Council, which promotes the UK in over 100 countries, including India. I am pleased to say that we have seen recent increases in student numbers from India and, since 2011, student visas granted to Indian nationals have increased by 28%.
To help inform decisions on the future migration system, the government commissioned the independent Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) to provide an objective assessment of the impact of EU and non-EU international students at all levels of education. The MAC has now published its report, and the government is carefully considering its conclusions and recommendations. We intend to publish a white paper on the UK’s future immigration system later this year.
Asked by: Barry Sheerman (Labour (Co-op) - Huddersfield)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether he plans to set a growth target for international student numbers studying at UK universities; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Sam Gyimah
The target of increasing the value of education exports to £30 billion by 2020 was set in 2015 under the coalition government. The target is rightly ambitious and the department remains committed to working with the rest of government and the sector to drive progress towards it.
The latest statistics, which were published by the department earlier this year, estimated that the total value of UK education exports and transnational education activity was £19.3 billion in 2015, marking an increase of 22% since 2010.
Growing education exports is an important priority, and the government supports this through the work of the Department for International Trade (DIT)’s team dedicated to education exports. In addition, DIT’s Education Sector Advisory Group, which was chaired by my hon. Friend, the Member for Beverley and Holderness, and which I attended, supports the international aspirations and activity of the UK education sector and explores the ways in which growth can be increased.
The department’s international team supports this work and leads on a number of formal bilateral agreements, underpinned by memorandums of understanding and ministerial dialogues and visits. The team is also a key partner in a number of regular high-level international events, such as the Education World Forum, which is held annually in the UK.
Accounting for approximately 60% of all education exports, international students are of course an important part of this work.
The UK continues to be very successful in attracting international students. There is no cap on the number who can study here and we are second only to the USA in terms of our market share. Numbers remain at record high levels, with over 170,000 non-EU entrants to UK higher education institutions for the seventh year running.
India is an important partner in education, and the UK’s fourth largest source country for international students. The government actively promotes study in the UK through the GREAT Campaign and through the British Council, which promotes the UK in over 100 countries, including India. I am pleased to say that we have seen recent increases in student numbers from India and, since 2011, student visas granted to Indian nationals have increased by 28%.
To help inform decisions on the future migration system, the government commissioned the independent Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) to provide an objective assessment of the impact of EU and non-EU international students at all levels of education. The MAC has now published its report, and the government is carefully considering its conclusions and recommendations. We intend to publish a white paper on the UK’s future immigration system later this year.
Asked by: Barry Sheerman (Labour (Co-op) - Huddersfield)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what progress his Department has made on its 2015 target of increasing the value of educational exports to £30 billion by 2020; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Sam Gyimah
The target of increasing the value of education exports to £30 billion by 2020 was set in 2015 under the coalition government. The target is rightly ambitious and the department remains committed to working with the rest of government and the sector to drive progress towards it.
The latest statistics, which were published by the department earlier this year, estimated that the total value of UK education exports and transnational education activity was £19.3 billion in 2015, marking an increase of 22% since 2010.
Growing education exports is an important priority, and the government supports this through the work of the Department for International Trade (DIT)’s team dedicated to education exports. In addition, DIT’s Education Sector Advisory Group, which was chaired by my hon. Friend, the Member for Beverley and Holderness, and which I attended, supports the international aspirations and activity of the UK education sector and explores the ways in which growth can be increased.
The department’s international team supports this work and leads on a number of formal bilateral agreements, underpinned by memorandums of understanding and ministerial dialogues and visits. The team is also a key partner in a number of regular high-level international events, such as the Education World Forum, which is held annually in the UK.
Accounting for approximately 60% of all education exports, international students are of course an important part of this work.
The UK continues to be very successful in attracting international students. There is no cap on the number who can study here and we are second only to the USA in terms of our market share. Numbers remain at record high levels, with over 170,000 non-EU entrants to UK higher education institutions for the seventh year running.
India is an important partner in education, and the UK’s fourth largest source country for international students. The government actively promotes study in the UK through the GREAT Campaign and through the British Council, which promotes the UK in over 100 countries, including India. I am pleased to say that we have seen recent increases in student numbers from India and, since 2011, student visas granted to Indian nationals have increased by 28%.
To help inform decisions on the future migration system, the government commissioned the independent Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) to provide an objective assessment of the impact of EU and non-EU international students at all levels of education. The MAC has now published its report, and the government is carefully considering its conclusions and recommendations. We intend to publish a white paper on the UK’s future immigration system later this year.
Asked by: Rehman Chishti (Conservative - Gillingham and Rainham)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps his Department is taking to support the self-employed in (a) Kent, (b) Medway and (c) England.
Answered by Kelly Tolhurst
Our Industrial Strategy sets out our long-term plan to support entrepreneurs starting and growing a business.
The Kent and Medway Growth Hub provides a range of support for people looking to start and grow their business. Through the 38 local Growth Hubs, self-employed business people can access tailored advice and support - including learning about improving business planning, accounting, marketing and procurement. For example, Medway Council fund a free three-day workshop that provides people with the key things you need to know about starting their own business.
Access to finance is also important. Since March 2012, the Start Up Loans Company, part of the Government-owned British Business Bank, has provided over 1,000 loans worth just under £7 million to start-up businesses in Kent and over £800,000 to businesses in Medway.
Government are supporting the self employed more broadly, such as self-employed mothers who qualify for Maternity Allowance are also now able to share parental leave and pay with an employed father or partner. In addition, the Government has increased the personal allowance from £11,500 to £11,850 (benefiting employed and self-employed taxpayers) and self-employed people are now able to build their entitlement to the new State Pension at the same rate as employed people.
Asked by: Lord Freyberg (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how much income they have received from the profit cap in the Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme since 2014; and to which department the rebate is paid.
Answered by Lord O'Shaughnessy
Under the 2014 Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme (PPRS), scheme members make payments to the Department based on the difference between allowed percentage growth rate and actual percentage growth rate in National Health Service expenditure on branded medicines.
The 2014 PPRS has now delivered over £2.1 billion of PPRS payments.
Year | Aggregate PPRS Payments |
2014 | £311 million |
2015 | £846 million |
2016 | £628 million |
2017 Q1 | £95 million |
2017 Q2 | £95 million |
2017 Q3 | £97 million |
2017 Q4 | £99 million |
The Department receives the income on behalf of the United Kingdom, and then apportions the monies between the four countries. All funds are reinvested in health services for patient benefit.
Following normal Government accounting rules, there is no separately identified or ring-fenced funding stream associated with PPRS payments.
Asked by: Justin Madders (Labour - Ellesmere Port and Neston)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will publish the performance assessments of Local Enterprise Partnerships.
Answered by Jake Berry
The Accounting Officer Systems Statement sets out the Department’s performance management process for Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs):
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/655188/Review_of_local_enterprise_partnership_governance_and_transparency.pdf
The Government is currently undertaking steps to further strengthen LEPs. In October 2017 the Department published the review of LEP governance and transparency conducted by Mary Ney. Since then MHCLG has issued best practice guidance for LEPs, followed up with intense LEP spot checks. This has strengthened the annual performance conversation process and introduced deep dives to review LEP governance, transparency and accountability in more detail.
LEPs are a valued part of the local institutional framework and play an important role in delivering our ambition for growth in all parts of England. Through the LEP Review we will continue to strengthen LEPs, so that they can continue to drive sustainable private sector-led growth, job creation and make the most of the opportunities available as we leave the European Union.
Asked by: Ivan Lewis (Independent - Bury South)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the IMF's revision of the UK's growth outlook from 1.6 to 1.5 per cent for 2019.
Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is an independent international organisation. The official economy and fiscal forecasts produced by the Office for Budget Responsibility are used to inform policy decisions.
The IMF recently concluded their Article IV assessment of the UK economy and judge that “The fiscal framework adopted by the authorities prudently aims to reduce the deficit (after accounting for the impact of the economic cycle) to below 2 percent of GDP by 2020/21, and to balance the budget by the middle of the next decade.”
Asked by: Chris Ruane (Labour - Vale of Clwyd)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps his Department has taken to improve social mobility in each of the last seven years.
Answered by Elizabeth Truss
Improving social mobility is at the heart of the government’s ambition to make Britain a country that works for everyone. A strong economy means there are more job opportunities and that wages are higher, both of which are vital to improve social mobility. The Autumn Budget committed to tackling poverty, improving skills, and ensuring that every generation can look forward to a better standard of living than the one before.
Since 2010 there are 600,000 fewer people, including 200,000 fewer children, in absolute poverty (before housing costs), and employment has risen to near record levels in the UK, accounting for the bulk of GDP growth over the last seven years. The Autumn Budget announced further action to raise living standards by increasing the National Living Wage and to make progress on delivering the manifesto commitment to raise the personal allowance to £12,500. Furthermore, the Budget announced £406m of investment in skills, with a focus of mathematics and digital skills, thereby helping people obtain the abilities they need to secure better paid and highly skilled jobs.