Every parliamentary written question tabled by Andrew Rosindell this session, with the full answer and department. See how every department answers, or back to the MP page.
Showing 1,541–1,560 of 1,630 · this parliament
Pursuant to the Answer of 14 October 2024 to Question 5919 on Financial Services: Liechtenstein, whether he has had any meetings with his Liechtenstein counterpart.
The Secretary of State for Business and Trade has not met with his Liechtenstein counterpart.
Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has had discussions with his counterparts in the Pacific region on the potential merits of upgrading Honorary Consulates in (a) the Solomon Islands, (b) Vanuatu and (c) Tuvalu to High Commissions.
The UK has High Commissions with accredited resident High Commissioners in the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu, the latter of which was opened in 2019. The UK High Commissioner to Fiji is also the accredited non-resident High Commissioner to Tuvalu. The UK does not have Honorary Consulates in the Solomon Islands, Vanuatu or Tuvalu.
Whether he has met with his New Zealand counterpart.
The Secretary of State has met the Defence Minister for New Zealand, and looks forward to our countries working together on a range of defence and security issues.
Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has had recent discussions with the Chief Executive of the Environment Agency on closures to parts of the Thames Path.
No such discussions have taken place.
What recent discussions she has had with her US counterpart on establishing US pre-clearance facilities at London Heathrow Airport.
A decision to explore US pre-clearance is primarily a commercial decision for airport operators. An outline commercial agreement between the airport operator and US authorities would be required before any formal discussions between the UK and US government could take place.
Food and Rural Affairs, if he will bring forward the start date of the proposed bottle deposit and return scheme.
This Government is committed to creating a circular economy that: uses our resources as efficiently and productively as possible, minimises environmental impacts, accelerates our progress on Net Zero, supports economic growth, and creates new jobs. This Government is also committed to delivering the Deposit Return Scheme for drinks containers in October 2027, as agreed with the devolved Governments of the UK, and in accordance with the Joint Policy Statement published in April 2024.
What steps his Department is taking to ensure that Royal Mail adheres to the universal service obligation.
As the independent regulator for the postal sector, it is for Ofcom to monitor Royal Mail’s delivery of the universal service obligation and decide how to respond should Royal Mail fail to meet its obligations.Ofcom is currently investigating Royal Mail’s service standards in 2023-24 following its failure to meet its delivery obligations.
Whether she plans to lift the restriction on carrying liquids over 100ml in hand luggage on flights departing from UK airports; and if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of bringing forward legislative proposals to require all airports to introduce CT security scanners within the next six months.
The UK already has some of the most robust aviation security measures in the world, and the implementation of new cutting-edge technology enhances security and will boost the passenger experience. Restrictions on the carriage of liquids to up to 100ml need to remain in place for security reasons but the Department is moving at pace to enable larger volume of liquids to be carried when it is appropriate to do so. The department keeps aviation security regulatory requirements under constant review. All airports have been required by regulation to upgrade cabin baggage screening technology and processes to meet enhanced standards.
Whether he has taken steps to help tackle medicine shortages in Northern Ireland.
Medicines supply in Northern Ireland remains stable. UK-wide supply issues may arise from time to time due to manufacturing problems or access to raw materials. The overwhelming majority of medicines are in good supply and we have well-established processes to manage supply issues.
What steps she is taking to help improve (a) access and (b) transport links to the Falkland Islands.
The DfT is working closely with the Falkland Islands Government, aviation stakeholders and the Maritime & Coastguard Agency to improve access and transport links. Flights to and from the Falkland Islands are a devolved decision for the Falkland Islands Government. The announcement on 24 September 2024 between the Foreign Secretary and the Argentine Foreign Minister Mondino on South Atlantic cooperation included an intention to resume the weekly commercial flight between Sao Paulo (Brazil) and the Falkland Islands which stopped once a month in Cordoba, Argentina. We are working with the Falkland Islands Government and the Argentine Government to put into effect the resumption of the flight. The UK has a large number of bilateral air services agreements (ASAs) that grant traffic rights for the operation of flights from countries around the world to the UK. The majority of these ASAs include the ability to fly to the UK Overseas Territories. The DfT works closely with the Falkland Islands Civil Aviation Department to ensure they are aware of the traffic rights available to airlines operating to the Falklands.
What steps she is taking to increase the (a) recruitment and (b) retention of teachers in the London Borough of Havering.
High quality teaching is the factor that makes the biggest difference to a child’s education. There are now 468,693 full-time equivalent teachers in state-funded schools in England, but more must be done to ensure we have the workforce needed to provide the best possible education for every child in all parts of the country. This is why the government has set out the ambition to recruit 6,500 new expert teachers.The first crucial step towards achieving this is to ensure teaching is once again an attractive and respected profession, and to reset the relationship with the teaching profession. As part of this, it is important that teachers receive the pay they deserve, which is why this government has accepted in full the School Teachers’ Review Body’s recommendation of a 5.5% pay award for teachers and leaders in maintained schools from September 2024. Additionally, from 1 September 2024, schools are no longer required to use performance related pay as the basis for appraisals and decisions related to pay progression. This government is providing schools with almost £1.1 billion in additional funding in the 2024/25 financial year to support schools with overall costs.Alongside teacher pay, the department is continuing to support teacher trainees with tax-free bursaries of up to £29,000 and scholarships of up to £31,000 in shortage subjects. To help with retention, new teachers of mathematics, physics, chemistry and computing in the first five years of their careers can also receive a Targeted Retention Incentive of up to £6,000 after-tax if working in disadvantaged schools. 13 schools in Havering are eligible for Targeted Retention Incentives.The department has made available a range of resources to help address teacher workload and wellbeing, including its ‘Improve workload and wellbeing for school staff’ service and the ‘education staff wellbeing charter’. Additionally, effective use of technology can automate tasks and help manage workload for teachers. For example, high quality AI tools have the potential to reduce the amount of time that teachers spend marking, whilst supporting effective feedback and tailored teaching which drive pupil progress.In August 2024, we announced a £1 million fund to support innovators to develop proof of concept AI tools to support teachers with marking and providing feedback. Oak National Academy has also recently launched a sector-leading AI lesson planning assistant which enables teachers who choose to use it to create personalised and tailored lesson plans and resources in minutes. 40% of Oak users save around four hours per week.The department is committed to supporting schools to implement flexible working practices including taking planning, preparation and assessment time remotely, to improve recruitment and retention of teachers. The department is also funding bespoke support provided by flexible working ambassador schools and multi-academy trusts. The named flexible working ambassador for schools in Havering is Charles Dickens Primary School.The department has established Teaching School Hubs across the country, which provide approved high quality professional development to teachers at all stages of their careers. They play a significant role in delivering Initial Teacher Training, the Early Career Framework, National Professional Qualifications and Appropriate Body services. London District East Teaching School Hub is a centre of excellence supporting teacher training and development across Havering.
How many (a) officials from her Department and (b) police officers have visited Pitcairn Island in each of the last 12 months.
I can confirm that no officials from the Home Office or UK police officers have visited Pitcairn Island in the last 12 months.
Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how many officials of his Department have visited Pitcairn Island in each of the last 12 months.
The current resident Administrator is recruited by the FCDO. There have been two visits by FCDO officials within the last 12 months. The Deputy Governor (based in Auckland, New Zealand) visited the island in October 2023 and there was a visit by a Technical Works Officer in December 2023. The Governor visited in 2023. FCDO officials are in regular contact with their counterparts on Pitcairn Island. FCDO sponsored programmes are providing support virtually on matters such as healthcare and through visiting teams on issues such as environmental protection. I recently spoke to the Mayor and look forward to welcoming him to the JMC this month.
What assessment she has made of the economic impact of the 20mph speed limit on Welsh roads.
The Welsh Government has been clear that the primary objective of this policy is to save lives and reduce casualties.From April-June 2024, both collisions and casualties on 20mph and 30mph roads have fallen by almost a quarter compared to the same period of 2023.
Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how many criminal (a) prosecutions and (b) convictions have taken place on the Pitcairn Islands in each of the last 10 years.
Government of Pitcairn hold the data on criminal prosecutions and convictions in the Pitcairn Islands.
What steps his Department is taking to improve dementia (a) diagnosis, (b) research and (c) treatment.
NHS England is committed to improving diagnosis rates and recovering them to the national ambition for two thirds of people with dementia to have a formal diagnosis.NHS England publishes a monthly report detailing the number of people with a recorded dementia diagnosis nationally and in each locality. They also measure the of quality of care such as the proportion of patients who have had a care plan review in the previous 12 months.To reduce variation in diagnosis rates, the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities’ Dementia Intelligence Network has developed a tool for local systems, which includes an assessment of population characteristics such as rurality and socio-economic deprivation. This enables systems to investigate local variation in diagnosis and take informed action to enhance their diagnosis rates. The tool has been released and is available via the NHS Futures Collaboration platform.The United Kingdom has established a rich ecosystem for dementia research, including through the UK Dementia Research Institute and related initiatives such as the Dementia Trials Accelerator which is supported by the Government’s Dame Barbara Windsor Dementia Goals programme, with £120 million of Fovernment funding committed to it. This aims to speed up the development of new treatments for dementia and neurodegenerative conditions by accelerating innovations in biomarkers, clinical trials and implementation.The £49.9 million National Institute for Health and Care Research Dementia Trials Network will deliver a coordinated network of early phase dementia trial sites to test for potential treatments.To prepare for the new generation of dementia treatments, NHS England is working closely with regulators to ensure that arrangements are in place to support the adoption of any new licensed and National Institute for Health and Care Excellence recommended treatments as soon as possible.
If he will take steps to commission a report on paramilitary influence in Northern Ireland.
The ‘Paramilitary Groups in Northern Ireland’ report was published in 2015 by the UK Government in order to provide a one-off factual assessment from the UK security agencies and the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) on the structure, role and purpose of paramilitary organisations in Northern Ireland. This public assessment, which was intended to inform the then ongoing cross-party talks, has not been repeated.This Government is committed to making streets across the United Kingdom safer, and we want to see a safer Northern Ireland, where terrorist and paramilitary groups are no longer able to cause harm to communities. Where any criminality exists, it should be dealt with fully by the police.The effort to tackle paramilitarism is led by the NI Executive in particular through its Programme on Paramilitarism and Organised Crime (EPPOC), which was established after the Fresh Start Agreement. The Programme is working to tackle the presence of paramilitaries through evidence-based early interventions, targeted law enforcement measures and initiatives that provide direct support to help build safer communities resilient to paramilitarism. The UK Government provides 50% of the funding for the Programme - currently £8m per year through to March 2026.The Programme has tracked changes in public perceptions of paramilitary influence since 2017 through the Northern Ireland Life & Times (NILT) Survey. This information can be accessed here: https://www.justice-ni.gov.uk/publications/perceptions-paramilitarism-northern-ireland-findings-northern-ireland-life-and-times-survey-2017The Independent Reporting Commission (IRC) which was established in 2017 reports annually on progress towards ending paramilitary activity connected with Northern Ireland. The IRC’s most recent report, the Sixth Report, was published in December 2023, with the latest report due to be published in Winter 2024.
If he will (a) make it his policy to (i) update the statutes of the Most Illustrious Order of Saint Patrick and (ii) make the Order available to residents of the whole island of Ireland and (b) make an assessment of the potential impact of that policy on the state of the Union.
The Most Illustrious Order of Saint Patrick is in the personal gift of The Sovereign. The UK Government is not considering the restoration of The Order of St Patrick. Nominations for existing honours are open to all citizens within the four nations of the United Kingdom.
How many Type 45 destroyers are (a) operationally available and (b) capable of being deployed simultaneously.
As of 31 October 2024, two Type 45 destroyers were immediately available, or deployed. The normal operating cycle of every ship involves them entering different readiness levels depending on their programmes, periods of refit and Departmental planning requirements. This is carefully managed to ensure the Royal Navy has sufficient assets available to deliver concurrent operational outputs, both in the UK and around the globe, whilst sustaining longer term availability, to meet changing defence demands in an uncertain world. Readiness is a priority for this Government. Options to improve the readiness and availability of the Royal Navy Surface Fleet forms a key part of the ongoing Strategic Defence Review.
What recent steps he has taken to ensure the security of Gibraltar.
The UK Government is committed to safeguarding the security of all our Overseas Territories, including Gibraltar. The Ministry of Defence undertakes regular assessments of the requirements for Defence support to Gibraltar.