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100606

registered interest
date	23/10/2014
answering body	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
answering dept id	16
answering dept short name	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
answering dept sort name	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
hansard heading	Azerbaijan
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to send observers to the imminent trials in Azerbaijan of (1) Mr Arif and Ms Leyla Yunus of the Peace and Democracy Institute, (2) Mr Intigam Aliyev, and (3) Mr Rasul Jafarov; and whether they will propose that their trials are fully covered by European Union diplomats.
tabling member printed	Lord Hylton
uin	HL2337
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/11/2014 answer text <p>The British Government has publicly expressed its concern surrounding the arrests of Mr Arif and Ms Leyla Yunus and Mr Rasul Jafarav amongst others, and supports the EU statement of 14 August 2014 regarding the recent deterioration of the human rights situation in Azerbaijan. As has been the case in recent high profile trials, the British Government expects to make representation in coordination with its EU partners.</p> answering member printed Baroness Anelay of St Johns question first answered 05/11/2014 15:49:52 answering member 3474 label Biography information for Baroness Anelay of St Johns
tabling member	2018 label Biography information for Lord Hylton

100608

registered interest
date	23/10/2014
answering body	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
answering dept id	16
answering dept short name	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
answering dept sort name	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
hansard heading	Civil Servants: Languages
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many diplomatic staff and civil servants from each department or government agency have received or are receiving language training at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Language School.
tabling member printed	Baroness Coussins
uin	HL2339
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 03/11/2014 answer text <p>Since the Language Centre opened on 19th September 2013 a total of 45 different languages have been studied there either full or part-time by 813 students. Of those students, 779 are Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) staff and 34 are from other government departments (OGDs) (including staff from the following departments: Ministry of Defence, Cabinet Office, the Department for Business, Innovation &amp; Skills, Home Office, Ministry of Justice, UK Trade and Investment, the Department for International Development, HM Revenue and Customs, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, the Department of Energy and Climate Change, and the House of Commons). An additional 60 FCO staff have trained at the Institut Francais. Staff across the Civil Service can also access the FCO Language Centre library to continue to develop their own language skills outside formal study and 58 OGD staff have taken advantage of this offer so far. <br><br>It is important to note that when more appropriate, staff from OGDs also receive language training outside of the FCO Language Centre through use of the Civil Service-wide contract with Language Services Direct (the company that run the FCO Language Centre) or at the Institut Francais if French is required. Since September 2014, 113 OGD students have received language training on their own premises via the FCO contract. <br><br>The table below provides a breakdown of the languages that have been taught at the FCO Language Centre :<br><br>Albanian 2 <br>Arabic 186 <br>Azeri 1 <br>Bosnian 1 <br>Bulgarian 3 <br>Burmese 1 <br>Cambodian 1 <br>Czech 1 <br>Danish 2 <br>Dari 5 <br>Dutch 5 <br>Farsi 33 <br>Finnish 1 <br>French 14 <br>Georgian 1 <br>German 40 <br>Greek 4 <br>Hebrew 1 <br>Hindi 20 <br>Indonesian 4 <br>Italian 23 <br>Japanese 33 <br>Korean 8 <br>Macedonian 1 <br>Mandarin 93 <br>Norwegian 1 <br>Pashto 5 <br>Polish 3 <br>Portuguese 47 <br>Romanian 3 <br>Russian 84 <br>Serbian 3 <br>Sinhalese 1 <br>Slovak 1 <br>Slovene 1 <br>Spanish 153 <br>Swedish 3 <br>Tajik 1 <br>Thai 2 <br>Tigrinya 1 <br>Turkish 11 <br>Turkmen 1 <br>Urdu 4 <br>Uzbek 2 <br>Vietnamese 2 <br>Total 813</p> answering member printed Baroness Anelay of St Johns question first answered 03/11/2014 15:37:02 answering member 3474 label Biography information for Baroness Anelay of St Johns
tabling member	3829 label Biography information for Baroness Coussins

100609

registered interest
date	23/10/2014
answering body	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
answering dept id	16
answering dept short name	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
answering dept sort name	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
hansard heading	Civil Servants: Languages
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government which languages have been studied by civil servants and diplomatic staff at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Language School; and how many civil servants and diplomatic staff have studied each language.
tabling member printed	Baroness Coussins
uin	HL2340
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/11/2014 answer text <p>Since the Language Centre opened on 19th September 2013 a total of 45 different languages have been studied there either full or part-time by 813 students. Of those students, 779 are Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) staff and 34 are from other government departments (OGDs) (including staff from the following departments: Ministry of Defence, Cabinet Office, the Department for Business, Innovation &amp; Skills, Home Office, Ministry of Justice, UK Trade and Investment, the Department for International Development, HM Revenue and Customs, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, the Department of Energy and Climate Change, and the House of Commons). An additional 60 FCO staff have trained at the Institut Francais. Staff across the Civil Service can also access the FCO Language Centre library to continue to develop their own language skills outside formal study and 58 OGD staff have taken advantage of this offer so far.</p><p>It is important to note that when more appropriate, staff from OGDs also receive language training outside of the FCO Language Centre through use of the Civil Service-wide contract with Language Services Direct (the company that run the FCO Language Centre) or at the Institut Francais if French is required. Since September 2014, 113 OGD students have received language training on their own premises via the FCO contract.</p><p>The table below provides a breakdown of the languages that have been taught at the FCO Language Centre:</p><table><tbody><tr><td><p>Albanian</p></td><td><p>2</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Arabic</p></td><td><p>186</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Azeri</p></td><td><p>1</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Bosnian</p></td><td><p>1</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Bulgarian</p></td><td><p>3</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Burmese</p></td><td><p>1</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Cambodian</p></td><td><p>1</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Czech</p></td><td><p>1</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Danish</p></td><td><p>2</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Dari</p></td><td><p>5</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Dutch</p></td><td><p>5</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Farsi</p></td><td><p>33</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Finnish</p></td><td><p>1</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>French</p></td><td><p>14</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Georgian</p></td><td><p>1</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>German</p></td><td><p>40</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Greek</p></td><td><p>4</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Hebrew</p></td><td><p>1</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Hindi</p></td><td><p>20</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Indonesian</p></td><td><p>4</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Italian</p></td><td><p>23</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Japanese</p></td><td><p>33</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Korean</p></td><td><p>8</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Macedonian</p></td><td><p>1</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Mandarin</p></td><td><p>93</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Norwegian</p></td><td><p>1</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Pashto</p></td><td><p>5</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Polish</p></td><td><p>3</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Portuguese</p></td><td><p>47</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Romanian</p></td><td><p>3</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Russian</p></td><td><p>84</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Serbian</p></td><td><p>3</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Sinhalese</p></td><td><p>1</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Slovak</p></td><td><p>1</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Slovene</p></td><td><p>1</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Spanish</p></td><td><p>153</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Swedish</p></td><td><p>3</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Tajik</p></td><td><p>1</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Thai</p></td><td><p>2</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Tigrinya</p></td><td><p>1</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Turkish</p></td><td><p>11</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Turkmen</p></td><td><p>1</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Urdu</p></td><td><p>4</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Uzbek</p></td><td><p>2</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Vietnamese</p></td><td><p>2</p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>Total</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>813</strong></p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p> answering member printed Baroness Anelay of St Johns question first answered 05/11/2014 15:51:51 answering member 3474 label Biography information for Baroness Anelay of St Johns
tabling member	3829 label Biography information for Baroness Coussins

100612

registered interest
date	23/10/2014
answering body	Cabinet Office
answering dept id	53
answering dept short name	Cabinet Office
answering dept sort name	Cabinet Office
hansard heading	Civil Servants: Languages
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to conduct a comprehensive audit of the foreign language skills currently possessed by civil servants across all departments and government agencies.
tabling member printed	Baroness Coussins
uin	HL2343
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/11/2014 answer text <p>I refer my noble friend to the answer provided by The Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office on 3 November, <em>Official Report</em>, Column WA188.</p><p>There are currently no plans for a formal audit across Government to measure the foreign language skills currently possessed by civil servants.</p><p> </p> answering member printed Lord Wallace of Saltaire question first answered 04/11/2014 16:55:00 answering member 1816 label Biography information for Lord Wallace of Saltaire
tabling member	3829 label Biography information for Baroness Coussins

100549

registered interest
date	22/10/2014
answering body	Department of Health
answering dept id	17
answering dept short name	Health
answering dept sort name	Health
hansard heading	Tobacco: Packaging
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether ministerial agreement has been reached on whether the United Kingdom is to proceed with standardised tobacco packaging; and whether it had been reached when they notified the European Commission on the draft regulations.
tabling member printed	Lord Palmer
uin	HL2286
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/11/2014 answer text <p>The Government has not yet made a final decision on whether to introduce standardised packaging of tobacco products.</p><p> </p> answering member printed Earl Howe question first answered 04/11/2014 15:43:17 answering member 2000 label Biography information for Earl Howe
tabling member	3192 label Biography information for Lord Palmer

100551

registered interest
date	22/10/2014
answering body	Department of Health
answering dept id	17
answering dept short name	Health
answering dept sort name	Health
hansard heading	Alcoholic Drinks: Misuse
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking in respect of Britain's drinking culture in order to reduce liver disease deaths.
tabling member printed	Lord Taylor of Warwick
uin	HL2288
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/11/2014 answer text <p>The Government is taking a number of steps to tackle alcohol problems and reduce alcohol-related liver disease. These are being led by Public Health England (PHE), working with partners across government and local authorities. Through the Responsibility Deal the Government is also working with industry partners to tackle alcohol problems.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>On 23 October 2014, PHE published its priorities for protecting and improving the nation’s health and one of the seven issues they will be focusing on is preventing and reducing the harmful effects of alcohol. This priority includes two actions relating to liver disease:</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>- producing a framework on liver disease outlining public health actions to tackle liver disease, including alcohol; and</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>- launching liver disease profiles to support local authority health and wellbeing boards to understand liver disease and its risk factors in their area and, in turn, design effective local population level interventions.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>Other key actions from PHE on alcohol and liver disease include:</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>- developing the evidence base for what works in preventing alcoholic liver disease and increasing awareness of the harmful effects of alcohol and the impact of interventions, to support policy development nationally and locally;</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>- supporting and promoting effective use of licensing legislation and local powers to create a safer drinking environment that encourages people who drink to do so at a lower risk levels. Part of this is improving the effectiveness of the powers directors of public health have on alcohol licencing;</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>- encouraging and supporting people who drink to do so within the lower risk levels;</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>- reducing the harmful impact of alcohol on individuals who already experience harm. PHE will be supporting a widespread roll-out of interventions and brief advice; and</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>- supporting improvements in treatment provision in line with National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidance. Locally, PHE is supporting the development of effective alcohol specialist services in secondary care and accessible, evidence-based specialist treatment for dependent drinkers.</p><p> </p> answering member printed Earl Howe question first answered 04/11/2014 15:43:53 answering member 2000 label Biography information for Earl Howe
tabling member	1796 label Biography information for Lord Taylor of Warwick

100554

registered interest
date	22/10/2014
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Pre-school Education: Basic Skills
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they will take to reduce attainment gaps in literacy and numeracy between boys and girls in pre-school education in the short and long term.
tabling member printed	Lord Storey
uin	HL2291
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 03/11/2014 answer text <p>The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) is the statutory framework for all early years providers [1]. The EYFS seeks to provide quality and consistency in all early years settings, so that every child makes good progress, attainment gaps are reduced and no child gets left behind. The EYFS specifies areas in which early years providers must support children to develop, including literacy and numeracy. It is the responsibility of early years providers to identify and meet the learning and development needs of the children attending their setting. The EYFS requires providers to carry out ongoing assessment of children’s development and needs and should address any learning and development needs in partnership with parents and/or carers, and any relevant professionals.</p><p> </p><p>The Department for Education is increasing the level of required English and maths qualifications for members of the early years workforce. This will ensure that all those working with young children have the right skills to support all children to achieve appropriate levels of literacy and numeracy.</p><p> </p><p>1. We have published guidance on Teacher’s Standards (Early Years) which includes a requirement for Early Years Teachers to demonstrate a clear understanding of synthetic phonics and strategies for teaching early mathematics. The standards also require Early Years Teachers to plan and adapt education to cater for the needs of individual children, to make accurate assessments to inform children’s learning and development and to promote equality of opportunity and anti-discriminatory practice.</p><p> </p><p>2. Early Years Teachers must pass the same professional skills tests as trainee school teachers and must have GCSE English and maths at grade C or above on entry to training courses.</p><p> </p><p>3. NCTL published new, more robust, criteria for level 3 qualifications in July 2013 – the “Early Years Educator” criteria. They set out the minimum requirements for the knowledge, understanding and skills which learners must demonstrate during assessment for their qualification to be considered qualified at level 3. The criteria include a requirement for qualifications to include a focus on recognising and meeting the individual learning and development needs of children.</p><p> </p><p>4. From 1 August 2014, Government funding of Level 3 Early Years Educator training courses through the Skills Funding Agency will require trainees to have GCSEs in English and maths, at grade C or above, on entry. The EYFS has been amended to require staff holding a new Early Years Educator qualification to have achieved GCSEs in English/English Language and maths, at grade C or above, in order to count in the staff ratios at level 3. From September 2014, GCSE English and maths, at grade C or above, will be required on exit from a level 3 early years apprenticeship. This is an interim measure to support the sector in reaching the higher standards required. From August 2015, the GCSEs in English and maths, at grade C or above, will be required on entry to an early years apprenticeship.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p>The Department is also working with experts in the voluntary sector and charitable organisations to support work in these key areas. We have funded English and Maths Champions programmes through the National Day Nurseries Association to spread good practice in teaching literacy and numeracy in the early years.</p><p> </p><p>We are investing £1.4m in the Early Language Development Programme – which has so far helped well over 100,000 parents and family members to spot problems and get support with their children’s speech and language. This work is being led by I CAN, the children’s communications charity. We are also investing almost £1m in the work of the Literacy Trust to develop a model to improve targeting and engagement of the most vulnerable families by staff in Children’s Centres and support volunteers to improve children's early literacy and language skills.</p><p> </p><p>[1] <a href="http://www.gov.uk/government/publications/early-years-foundation-stage-framework--2" target="_blank">www.gov.uk/government/publications/early-years-foundation-stage-framework--2</a></p> answering member printed Lord Nash question first answered 03/11/2014 17:12:51 answering member 4270 label Biography information for Lord Nash
tabling member	4238 label Biography information for Lord Storey

100557

registered interest
date	22/10/2014
answering body	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
answering dept id	16
answering dept short name	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
answering dept sort name	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
hansard heading	Syria
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they intend to propose to Parliament that the United Kingdom join the United States in air attacks on the Daesh besiegers of Kobani.
tabling member printed	Lord Avebury
uin	HL2294
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/11/2014 answer text <p>Reports from Kobane continue to be deeply concerning and we are monitoring the situation closely. We strongly support the coalition airstrikes against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) and al-Qaeda affiliates in Syria by the US, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Jordan. As the Prime Minister, my right hon. Friend the Member for Witney (Mr Cameron), has said, the Government will return to Parliament for a separate decision if we propose to take military action against ISIL in Syria. As the Prime Minister has made clear, if there were a critical British national interest at stake or there were the need to act to prevent a humanitarian catastrophe, we would act immediately and explain to Parliament afterwards.</p> answering member printed Baroness Anelay of St Johns question first answered 05/11/2014 15:45:27 answering member 3474 label Biography information for Baroness Anelay of St Johns
tabling member	1665 label Biography information for Lord Avebury

100559

registered interest
date	22/10/2014
answering body	Ministry of Defence
answering dept id	11
answering dept short name	Defence
answering dept sort name	Defence
hansard heading	Armoured Fighting Vehicles
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government in what ways they expect the Scout SV to prove superior in capabilities to VBCI and CV90 vehicles.
tabling member printed	Lord Moonie
uin	HL2296
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/11/2014 answer text <p>The Scout vehicle was chosen by the Army after an extensive assessment period and a competitive process which examined a number of different vehicle options. Scout was selected because it delivered the optimum value for money and the overall balance of capability required to provide a genuine multi-role platform for the Army against a demanding set of requirements. Scout is a fully digitised armoured vehicle which will deliver a step change in versatility and agility for the Army. Scout will be able to conduct both close combat and reconnaissance tasks and will be equipped with a sensor suite and sighting system that will double the range at which all types of target can be detected from the ground, providing a genuine force multiplier to the Army.</p> answering member printed Lord Astor of Hever question first answered 04/11/2014 17:32:46 answering member 3428 label Biography information for Lord Astor of Hever
tabling member	621 label Biography information for Lord Moonie

100560

registered interest
date	22/10/2014
answering body	Ministry of Defence
answering dept id	11
answering dept short name	Defence
answering dept sort name	Defence
hansard heading	Armoured Fighting Vehicles
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government why there is to be no assembly or production line for the Scout SV vehicle in the United Kingdom; and what, if any cost savings they anticipate as a result of that arrangement.
tabling member printed	Lord Moonie
uin	HL2297
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/11/2014 answer text <p>The contract let is in accordance with the Armoured Fighting Vehicle Sector Strategy, announced by the Ministry of Defence (MOD) on 23 June 2009. The strategy made clear that it is not necessary to retain industrial capabilities in the UK in order to achieve appropriate operational sovereignty. The strategy was intended to make greater use of the global market, particularly within the EU and NATO. This remains the case for Scout Specialist Vehicle. General Dynamics United Kingdom was selected on the basis of the best value for money for the MOD and has decided to use the production facilities at General Dynamics European Land Systems in Spain. Neither of the final competition bidders planned to assemble the entire vehicle in the UK; both planned to make best use of their established international facilities and supply chains. Following production of the first 100 vehicles, an option does exist to transfer vehicle assembly to the UK subject to an economic case being accepted.</p> answering member printed Lord Astor of Hever question first answered 04/11/2014 17:11:48 answering member 3428 label Biography information for Lord Astor of Hever
tabling member	621 label Biography information for Lord Moonie