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1136048

	registered interest
	date	04/07/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Local Housing Allowance
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of increasing local housing allowance to the 30th percentile point for current market rents in each size category of dwelling.
	tabling member constituency	Newcastle-under-Lyme
	tabling member printed	Paul Farrelly
	uin	271443
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/07/2019 answer text <p>There are no current plans to extend or maintain the Benefit Freeze after March 2020. Specific decisions on how to uprate the Local Housing Allowance from April 2020 will form part of the discussions in support of fiscal events later this year.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 08/07/2019 16:40:08 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	1436 label Biography information for Paul Farrelly

1139355

	registered interest
	date	16/07/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Social Security Benefits: Forms
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent steps his Department has taken to simplify the forms used to claim benefits.
	tabling member constituency	Newcastle-under-Lyme
	tabling member printed	Paul Farrelly
	uin	277676
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/07/2019 answer text <p>The Department for Work and Pensions is committed to ensuring its claim forms are as simple and easy to use as possible. We have simplified over 180 forms in the last six months by making changes to the layout, style, wording and accessibility. We carry out usability testing on new and revised forms with claimants.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 23/07/2019 11:10:32 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	1436 label Biography information for Paul Farrelly

1141694

	registered interest
	date	24/07/2019
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Local Housing Allowance
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent assessment he has made of the potential merits of lifting the freeze on local housing allowance to ensure that it covers at least the cheapest third of rents to improve housing security.
	tabling member constituency	Newcastle-under-Lyme
	tabling member printed	Paul Farrelly
	uin	281640
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 03/09/2019 answer text <p>There are no current plans to extend or maintain the Benefit Freeze after March 2020. Specific decisions on how to uprate the Local Housing Allowance from April 2020 will form part of the discussions in support of fiscal events later this year.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 03/09/2019 14:34:01 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	1436 label Biography information for Paul Farrelly

1138423

	registered interest
	date	11/07/2019
	answering body	Women and Equalities
	answering dept id	31
	answering dept short name	Women and Equalities
	answering dept sort name	Women and Equalities
	hansard heading	Business: Equality
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what steps she is taking to increase diversity across all levels of FTSE 100 companies.
	tabling member constituency	Newcastle-under-Lyme
	tabling member printed	Paul Farrelly
	uin	276168
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 25/07/2019 answer text <p>The Government is working with the business community through the Business Diversity and Inclusion Group to coordinate action to increase diversity and inclusion in the workplace. The Government has commissioned and supports several business-led, independent reviews on promoting diversity. These include the Hampton-Alexander Review which has a 33% target for women on boards and in senior leadership positions across the FTSE 350 by 2020. Also the Parker Review to increase the ethnic diversity of FTSE 350 boards by 2024.</p><p>These reviews form part of the Government’s modern Industrial Strategy which aims to build an economy that works for all.</p><p>Women hold a higher percentage of senior leadership positions than ever before with 32.3% of women on FTSE 100 boards.</p> answering member constituency Louth and Horncastle answering member printed Victoria Atkins question first answered 25/07/2019 09:25:18 answering member 4399 label Biography information for Victoria Atkins
	tabling member	1436 label Biography information for Paul Farrelly

1141472

	registered interest
	date	23/07/2019
	answering body	Treasury
	answering dept id	14
	answering dept short name	Treasury
	answering dept sort name	Treasury
	hansard heading	Gift Aid
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of reforming Gift Aid so that the value of additional and higher-rate tax reliefs is automatically directed to charities, unless donors choose to opt out.
	tabling member constituency	Newcastle-under-Lyme
	tabling member printed	Paul Farrelly
	uin	280956
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 03/09/2019 answer text The Government recognises that charities are a vital part of our society and continues to provide support to the charitable sector worth over £5 billion per year, with Gift Aid being one of the most generous tax reliefs available – worth over £1.3 billion per year to charities and £520 million to their donors (through higher rate relief). The Government has made no assessment of the merits of reforming Gift Aid to allow the additional and higher rate tax reliefs to be automatically directed to charities unless donors opt out. answering member constituency Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland answering member printed Mr Simon Clarke question first answered 03/09/2019 08:04:42 answering member 4655 label Biography information for Sir Simon Clarke
	tabling member	1436 label Biography information for Paul Farrelly

1137557

	registered interest
	date	08/07/2019
	answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	answering dept id	13
	answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	hansard heading	Neonicotinoids
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of banning thiacloprid, which is harmful to (a) bees and (b) humans.
	tabling member constituency	Newcastle-under-Lyme
	tabling member printed	Paul Farrelly
	uin	274468
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 11/07/2019 answer text <p>The Government’s priority is to protect people and the environment. Pesticides are only authorised if scientific evidence shows that they will not harm human health and do not have unacceptable effects on the environment. All pesticides are subject to regular review to ensure that they meet the latest standards of safety for people and to the environment. Thiacloprid is currently under review and will be withdrawn or restricted if the scientific assessment finds that this is appropriate.</p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency Scarborough and Whitby answering member printed Mr Robert Goodwill question first answered 11/07/2019 13:16:29 answering member 1562 label Biography information for Sir Robert Goodwill
	tabling member	1436 label Biography information for Paul Farrelly

1138392

	registered interest
	date	11/07/2019
	answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	answering dept id	13
	answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
	hansard heading	Beef: South America
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans he has to ban the import of beef from South America if it does not meet UK standards for sustainable farming after the UK leaves the EU.
	tabling member constituency	Newcastle-under-Lyme
	tabling member printed	Paul Farrelly
	uin	276166
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/07/2019 answer text <p>Our current high standards, including import requirements, will apply when we leave the EU. High standards and high quality are what our domestic and global customers demand, and that is what we will provide. We have been clear across Government, from the Prime Minister down, that we will not lower our standards in pursuit of trade deals.</p> answering member constituency Scarborough and Whitby answering member printed Mr Robert Goodwill question first answered 16/07/2019 13:45:06 answering member 1562 label Biography information for Sir Robert Goodwill
	tabling member	1436 label Biography information for Paul Farrelly

1135991

	registered interest
	date	01/07/2019
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Animal Welfare: Prosecutions
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate his Department has made of the number of people prosecuted under the Animal Welfare Act 2006 in each of the last 12 months.
	tabling member constituency	Newcastle-under-Lyme
	tabling member printed	Paul Farrelly
	uin	271433
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/07/2019 answer text <p>The Ministry of Justice has published data up to December 2018. The number of prosecutions for offences under the Animal Welfare Act 2006 in each of the 12 months of 2018 can be found in the accompanying table.</p> answering member constituency South Swindon answering member printed Robert Buckland question first answered 09/07/2019 15:55:43 answering member 4106 label Biography information for Sir Robert Buckland attachment 1 file name PQ 271433 table.xlsx title Table
	tabling member	1436 label Biography information for Paul Farrelly

1137847

	registered interest
	date	09/07/2019
	answering body	Ministry of Justice
	answering dept id	54
	answering dept short name	Justice
	answering dept sort name	Justice
	hansard heading	Prisons
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the findings of HM Chief Inspector of Prisons for England and Wales Annual Report 2018-19, what steps he is taking to tackle (a) increased violence, (b) mental health problems and (c) drugs problems in prisons.
	tabling member constituency	Newcastle-under-Lyme
	tabling member printed	Paul Farrelly
	uin	275135
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/07/2019 answer text <p>We are taking urgent action to tackle violence in prisons, alongside reforms to overhaul the system to focus on the rehabilitation of offenders. Investment in additional prison officers and the introduction of Keyworkers enables prison officers to mentor, challenge and support a small caseload of prisoners away from violence and reoffending. The Challenge, Support and Intervention Plan (CSIP) has, since November 2018, been mandated for use in all establishments. CSIP provides a case management model to help staff to manage violent prisoners and those identified as posing a raised risk of being violent. Violence against our staff is unacceptable. The Assaults on Emergency Workers (Offences) Act came into force on 13 November which has increased the penalty – from 6 to 12 months - for those who assault emergency workers including prison officers.</p><p> </p><p>In order to improve support for prisoners with mental health needs, we have rolled out improved suicide and self-harm prevention training and over 25,000 new and existing prison staff have completed some of this training. We have also awarded the Samaritans a grant of £500,000 each year for the next three years, to continue to support the Listeners’ scheme. For those prisoners requiring transfer to secure hospitals for mental health treatment, we are working collaboratively with Her Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS), Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) and NHS England (NHSE) to improve the transfer process. On 20<sup>th</sup> June we also announced the development of a Health and Justice Plan which will bring together a coherent, holistic picture of the full offender health journey, from the point of arrest through to release.</p><p> </p><p>Our Drugs Taskforce is working with law enforcement and health partners across government to restrict the supply of drugs, reduce demand and build recovery from substance misuse through the national Prison Drugs Strategy. We have invested £70 million to improve safety, security and decency, allowing us to fund new security scanners, improve searching techniques, and introduce phone-blocking technology. We have made it a criminal offence to possess psychoactive substances in prison and trained more than 300 sniffer dogs to detect these drugs. Additionally, our £9 million joint-funded Ministry of Justice, HMPPS, DHSC and NHSE Drug Recovery Prison pilot at HMP Holme House is testing and evaluating innovative approaches to tackle drugs in prison and help prisoners improve their chances of recovery.</p> answering member constituency South Swindon answering member printed Robert Buckland question first answered 15/07/2019 16:46:22 answering member 4106 label Biography information for Sir Robert Buckland
	tabling member	1436 label Biography information for Paul Farrelly

1137561

	registered interest
	date	08/07/2019
	answering body	Department for Transport
	answering dept id	27
	answering dept short name	Transport
	answering dept sort name	Transport
	hansard heading	Cycling and Walking
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether the Government remains on track to achieve its walking and cycling targets.
	tabling member constituency	Newcastle-under-Lyme
	tabling member printed	Paul Farrelly
	uin	274469
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/07/2019 answer text <p>The Government’s aims, objectives and targets for walking and cycling are set out in the statutory 2017 Cycling and Walking Investment Strategy. The Department will be reporting to Parliament later this year on the progress that has been made towards meeting each of these, once the latest official statistics on rates of cycling and walking are published in the summer.</p> answering member constituency Northampton North answering member printed Michael Ellis question first answered 15/07/2019 15:22:16 answering member 4116 label Biography information for Sir Michael Ellis
	tabling member	1436 label Biography information for Paul Farrelly