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1129514

	registered interest
	date	04/06/2019
	answering body	Cabinet Office
	answering dept id	53
	answering dept short name	Cabinet Office
	answering dept sort name	Cabinet Office
	hansard heading	Government Departments: Procurement
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment the Cabinet Office has made of the potential benefits of the application of ISO 44001 to their procurement policy, and the procurement policy of all Departments.
	tabling member printed	Lord Evans of Watford
	uin	HL15999
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 11/06/2019 answer text <p>The Government has a long-established approach to identifying, developing and managing collaborative business relationships. For example, the Government recognises the importance of managing its relationships with strategic suppliers, on a cross-government basis, by observing their performance in the delivery of public services and monitoring financial health.</p><p>This year, the Government introduced a new approach to the monitoring and management of strategic suppliers through a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the government and each of our strategic suppliers. The approach of using an MOU reflects the Government’s now well-developed relationships with, and understanding of, its strategic suppliers. Under this new approach, strategic suppliers will agree to provide the government with the information it needs to monitor and manage risks across its strategic supplier base, with the full cooperation of industry.</p> answering member printed Lord Young of Cookham question first answered 11/06/2019 17:01:16 answering member 57 label Biography information for Lord Young of Cookham
	tabling member	2766 label Biography information for Lord Evans of Watford

1129543

	registered interest
	date	04/06/2019
	answering body	Ministry of Defence
	answering dept id	11
	answering dept short name	Defence
	answering dept sort name	Defence
	hansard heading	Nuclear Weapons
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of reports that Renata Dwan, Director of the UN Institute for Disarmament Research, warned on 21 May that the risk of nuclear weapons being used is at its highest since World War Two, and that the world should take this threat more seriously.
	tabling member printed	The Marquess of Lothian
	uin	HL16028
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 11/06/2019 answer text <p>Today's security climate is challenging, with the threats faced by the United Kingdom increasing in scale, diversity and complexity. However, Her Majesty's Government does not believe that the risk of nuclear war is greater today than it was during the Cold War.</p><p>While the operation of an independent, minimum, credible nuclear deterrent continues to be necessary to protect the United Kingdom from the most extreme threats to our national security and way of life, the UK has taken a number of unilateral actions that build confidence and reduce international tensions. Our negative security assurances, as set out in the 2015 Strategic Defence and Security Review, are designed to give Non-Nuclear Weapons States in compliance with the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty confidence that nuclear weapons will not be used against them. Further, since 1994, UK Trident missiles have not been targeted at any State; our Vanguard class submarines are at several days' notice to fire; only the Prime Minister has the authority to launch nuclear weapons maintaining political control at all times; and the UK has been transparent about its nuclear capability, including missile and warhead numbers.</p><p>The Government is committed to the long-term goal of a world without nuclear weapons and continues to work internationally, within the framework of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, towards achieving the conditions in which all nuclear weapons possessor states are willing to relinquish their nuclear weapons.</p> answering member printed Earl Howe question first answered 11/06/2019 15:17:19 answering member 2000 label Biography information for Earl Howe
	tabling member	259 label Biography information for The Marquess of Lothian

1129489

	registered interest
	date	04/06/2019
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Free School Meals
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of changes to the criteria for free school meals eligibility in 2018; and how many students now receive free school meals compared to the number who received them before these changes took place.
	tabling member printed	Lord Bassam of Brighton
	uin	HL15974
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 11/06/2019 answer text <p>I refer the noble Lord to the answers I gave on 6 February 2019 to Question <a href="https://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Lords/2019-01-24/HL13093/" target="_blank">HL13093</a> and Question <a href="https://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Lords/2019-01-24/HL13094/" target="_blank">HL13094</a>. I will also refer the noble Lord to the answer I gave on 20 February 2019 to Question <a href="https://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Lords/2019-02-06/HL13492/" target="_blank">HL13492</a>.</p><p> </p><p>Under the new eligibility criteria that we introduced in April 2018, we estimate that more pupils will benefit from free school meals (FSM) by 2022, compared with the previous criteria. In addition, generous transitional protections were put in place to ensure no child will lose their eligibility for FSM during the change to the new criteria.</p><p> </p><p>Under the benefits-based criteria, to be eligible to receive FSM, a pupil or their parent must be in receipt of any one of the qualifying benefits and must make a claim to the school for FSM. The qualifying criteria includes benefits for both out of work and low-earning families. The full eligibility criteria is attached and also available here: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/apply-free-school-meals" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/apply-free-school-meals</a>.</p><p> </p> answering member printed Lord Agnew of Oulton question first answered 11/06/2019 13:21:03 answering member 4689 label Biography information for Lord Agnew of Oulton attachment 1 file name HL15974_webpage.pdf title HL15974_FSM_eligibility
	tabling member	3504 label Biography information for Lord Bassam of Brighton

1129545

	registered interest
	date	04/06/2019
	answering body	Ministry of Defence
	answering dept id	11
	answering dept short name	Defence
	answering dept sort name	Defence
	hansard heading	F-35 Aircraft
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their latest estimate of the cost per flight hour of the F35-B aircraft; and what is their expected in service flight hours.
	tabling member printed	Lord Moonie
	uin	HL16030
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 11/06/2019 answer text <p>The Ministry of Defence does not yet have its own figure for the hourly flying cost for an F-35B Lightning as the aircraft has not been in service long enough to generate the required data. However, information would in any case be withheld as its disclosure would or would be likely to prejudice commercial interests.</p><p>The expected service life of an F-35B Lightning is 8,000 or more flying hours.</p> answering member printed Earl Howe question first answered 11/06/2019 15:13:43 answering member 2000 label Biography information for Earl Howe
	tabling member	621 label Biography information for Lord Moonie

1130232

	registered interest
	date	05/06/2019
	answering body	Department for Transport
	answering dept id	27
	answering dept short name	Transport
	answering dept sort name	Transport
	hansard heading	Aviation: Scotland
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Vere of Norbiton on 3 June (HL15919), what evidence they have for the competitiveness of airfares between London and Scotland; whether they will provide the figures for the cost of such flights which informed their assessment that “Scotland is well-served by air services into London”; whether they have conducted a comparative analysis of the costs of flights from Scotland to all London airports; and if not, why not.
	tabling member printed	Lord Forsyth of Drumlean
	uin	HL16093
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 11/06/2019 answer text <p>I refer to the answer of 3 June (HL15919), which states that the aviation sector operates in a competitive, commercial environment, investing to attract passengers and responding to demand when determining routes to operate. It is therefore not for the Department to carry out this type of assessment, nor to comment on whether there is sufficient competition.</p><p> </p><p>I can, however, confirm that CAA data for 2018 shows that the four largest airports in Scotland (Aberdeen, Edinburgh, Inverness and Glasgow) have flights to two or more airports in the London system, with flights operated by multiple airlines.</p><p> </p><p>In addition, the UK Government, in partnership with the Scottish Government and Dundee City Council, provide financial support for an air route from Dundee to <del class="ministerial">Stanstead,</del> <ins class="ministerial">Stansted</ins> through a public service obligation. Scotland will also benefit from an expanded Heathrow, where there will be further opportunity to enhance connections to the country’s biggest hub airport.</p><p> </p><p>This information, which is already in the public domain, shows that there is sufficient competition for air routes between London and Scotland.</p> answering member printed Baroness Vere of Norbiton question first answered 11/06/2019 11:00:43 question first ministerially corrected 13/06/2019 11:22:31 answering member 4580 label Biography information for Baroness Vere of Norbiton previous answer version 121687 answering member printed Baroness Vere of Norbiton answering member 4580 label Biography information for Baroness Vere of Norbiton
	tabling member	1141 label Biography information for Lord Forsyth of Drumlean

1130231

	registered interest
	date	05/06/2019
	answering body	Department for Transport
	answering dept id	27
	answering dept short name	Transport
	answering dept sort name	Transport
	hansard heading	Aviation: Scotland
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Vere of Norbiton on 3 June (HL15919), whether they will now answer the question put.
	tabling member printed	Lord Forsyth of Drumlean
	uin	HL16092
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 11/06/2019 answer text <p>I refer to the answer of 3 June (HL15919), which states that the aviation sector operates in a competitive, commercial environment, investing to attract passengers and responding to demand when determining routes to operate. It is therefore not for the Department to carry out this type of assessment, nor to comment on whether there is sufficient competition.</p><p> </p><p>I can, however, confirm that CAA data for 2018 shows that the four largest airports in Scotland (Aberdeen, Edinburgh, Inverness and Glasgow) have flights to two or more airports in the London system, with flights operated by multiple airlines.</p><p> </p><p>In addition, the UK Government, in partnership with the Scottish Government and Dundee City Council, provide financial support for an air route from Dundee to Stanstead, through a public service obligation. Scotland will also benefit from an expanded Heathrow, where there will be further opportunity to enhance connections to the country’s biggest hub airport.</p><p> </p><p>This information, which is already in the public domain, shows that there is sufficient competition for air routes between London and Scotland.</p> answering member printed Baroness Vere of Norbiton grouped question UIN HL16093 question first answered 11/06/2019 11:00:43 answering member 4580 label Biography information for Baroness Vere of Norbiton
	tabling member	1141 label Biography information for Lord Forsyth of Drumlean

1129082

	registered interest
	date	03/06/2019
	answering body	Treasury
	answering dept id	14
	answering dept short name	Treasury
	answering dept sort name	Treasury
	hansard heading	Solar Power: VAT
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, for what reason the Government plans to increase VAT on domestic solar panels and batteries from 5 per cent to 20 per cent in Autumn 2019.
	tabling member constituency	Stroud
	tabling member printed	Dr David Drew
	uin	258958
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 11/06/2019 answer text <p>The Government is currently amending VAT rules regarding the installation of certain energy saving materials in order to comply with a ruling of the Court of Justice of the European Union while maintaining as much of the relief as possible. The VAT treatment of the vast majority of solar panel installations is expected to be unaffected by the changes.</p><p> </p><p>Under UK law, battery storage systems have always been subject to VAT at the standard rate of 20%.</p> answering member constituency Hereford and South Herefordshire answering member printed Jesse Norman question first answered 11/06/2019 14:42:26 answering member 3991 label Biography information for Jesse Norman
	tabling member	252 label Biography information for Dr David Drew

1129352

	registered interest
	date	03/06/2019
	answering body	Treasury
	answering dept id	14
	answering dept short name	Treasury
	answering dept sort name	Treasury
	hansard heading	Audiobooks and Electronic Publishing: VAT
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, for what reasons consumers pay 20 per cent VAT on (a) e-publications, (b) audio-books and (c) online newspapers; if he will make it his policy to implement a zero rating on such e-publications; what assessment he has made of the effect of that 20 per cent VAT rate on access to knowledge for (i) young people and (ii) other groups; and if he will make a statement.
	tabling member constituency	Brighton, Pavilion
	tabling member printed	Caroline Lucas
	uin	259170
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 11/06/2019 answer text <p>Until December 2018, a zero rate has only been available under agreed EU law for physical publications. The Government keeps all taxes under review, including Value Added Tax (VAT).</p><p>Any amendments to the VAT regime as it applies to physical publications and publications by other means must be carefully assessed against policy, economic and fiscal considerations.</p> answering member constituency Hereford and South Herefordshire answering member printed Jesse Norman question first answered 11/06/2019 14:34:24 answering member 3991 label Biography information for Jesse Norman
	tabling member	3930 label Biography information for Caroline Lucas

1129620

	registered interest
	date	04/06/2019
	answering body	Treasury
	answering dept id	14
	answering dept short name	Treasury
	answering dept sort name	Treasury
	hansard heading	Children: Day Care
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many complaints relating to the tax-free childcare scheme have been received by HMRC as of 31 May 2019.
	tabling member constituency	Newcastle upon Tyne North
	tabling member printed	Catherine McKinnell
	uin	259995
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 11/06/2019 answer text <p>More than half a million parents have successfully opened a childcare account, and the vast majority of parents use the childcare service without issues. Since Tax-Free Childcare (TFC) was fully rolled out in February 2018, the rate of new complaints received by HMRC in relation to the childcare service has decreased substantially, while the number of users of TFC has more than trebled.</p><p> </p><p>However, it is not possible to break down complaints received about the childcare service between TFC and 30 hours free childcare complaints, as many parents receive both TFC and 30 hours free childcare.</p><p> </p><p>I refer the honorable member to my answer on 28 November 2018 (193504) <a href="https://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2018-11-20/193504/" target="_blank">https://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2018-11-20/193504/</a>, which sets out that to 31 October 2018, HMRC received 4,560 complaints from parents who experienced technical issues with the childcare service.</p><p> </p><p>From 1 November 2018 to 31 March 2019, HMRC received 943 new complaints from customers in relation to TFC and 30 hours free childcare (known as Tier 1). This includes complaints due to technical issues and customer service issues.</p><p> </p><p>From 1 November 2018 to 31 March 2019, HMRC received 205 complaints from customers in relation to TFC and 30 hours free childcare where a customer was dissatisfied with our decision on their initial complaint and they have asked us to look at their concerns again (known as Tier 2).</p><p> </p><p>As set out in HMRC’s monthly reports available for the 2018-19 period at: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/hmrc-monthly-performance-reports#reporting-year-2018-to-2019" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/hmrc-monthly-performance-reports#reporting-year-2018-to-2019</a>, complaints are not always logged on HMRC’s live system during the month they are received and the numbers can, therefore, be revised upwards for subsequent monthly reports. The current month will be subject to greatest revision. The information to 31 May is therefore not yet available to a robust enough standard.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency South West Norfolk answering member printed Elizabeth Truss question first answered 11/06/2019 14:06:35 answering member 4097 label Biography information for Elizabeth Truss
	tabling member	4125 label Biography information for Catherine McKinnell

1130342

	registered interest
	date	06/06/2019
	answering body	Treasury
	answering dept id	14
	answering dept short name	Treasury
	answering dept sort name	Treasury
	hansard heading	Business: Exports
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many firms registered under the Registered Exporter system in (a) 2017 and (b) 2018.
	tabling member constituency	East Londonderry
	tabling member printed	Mr Gregory Campbell
	uin	261120
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 11/06/2019 answer text 12,161 exporters registered under the Registered Exporter system in 2017. 28 exporters registered under the Registered Exporter system in 2018. answering member constituency Hereford and South Herefordshire answering member printed Jesse Norman question first answered 11/06/2019 14:34:03 answering member 3991 label Biography information for Jesse Norman
	tabling member	1409 label Biography information for Mr Gregory Campbell