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1232087

registered interest
date	07/09/2020
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	Universal Credit: Cancer
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what discussions her Department has had with representatives of (a) Macmillan Cancer Support and (b) other similar charities on the potential merits of retaining (i) remote identity verification, (ii) flexible assessments and (iii) other such recently introduced measures to help universal credit claimants living with cancer.
tabling member constituency	Crawley
tabling member printed	Henry Smith
uin	86019
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/09/2020 answer text <p>The Department and its Ministers work in partnership with a variety of stakeholders, including local authorities, charities and employer groups, and listens directly to their feedback about Universal Credit. At its core, Universal Credit is about ensuring we deliver a service which is tailored to individual claimant circumstances and abilities. Following the outbreak of COVID-19, we adapted many of our services to be delivered remotely, and we will consider if changes can be retained longer term. But, many claimants benefit from having face to face contact with Work Coaches to overcome barriers and we will ensure this method of contact continues to be used where appropriate.</p><p> </p><p>Measures, such as identity verification, are key components of the Universal Credit claim process to confirm the accuracy of information supplied, allowing us to make timely and accurate decisions. In addition to our usual online verification, since early June we have been trialling the online identity service, Confirm Your Identity. This has enabled a higher number of claimants to verify their identity online, and we are continually monitoring and testing the impact this has on a claimant’s ability to verify remotely.</p><p><strong> </strong></p> answering member constituency North Swindon answering member printed Justin Tomlinson question first answered 14/09/2020 15:36:33 answering member 4105 label Biography information for Justin Tomlinson
tabling member	3960 label Biography information for Henry Smith

1230176

registered interest
date	01/09/2020
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	Livestock Industry: Zoonoses
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 assessment his Department has made of potential effect of intensive animal farming on the prevalence of zoonotic diseases.
tabling member constituency	Crawley
tabling member printed	Henry Smith
uin	83755
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/09/2020 answer text <p>We know that potential zoonotic pathogens transfer from the environment, wildlife and livestock to humans. Research so far indicates that global changes in land use are disrupting the balance of wild animal communities and the beneficiaries appear to be species that carry diseases known to infect humans. It is estimated that 60% of all human diseases originate in animals. More intensive farming may expedite the spread of the pathogens.</p><p> </p><p>The Department's Veterinary Risk Group and the Human Animal Infections Risk and Surveillance Group carry out horizon scanning and risk assessment for emerging threats associated with livestock farming and wildlife, internationally and domestically.</p><p> </p><p>The Defra agency Cefas is currently working on a review of risks of zoonotic pathogens arising from aquaculture settings globally.</p><p> </p><p>We routinely carry out surveillance on farms for zoonotic pathogens. We have significant surveillance programmes testing for TB, avian influenza, salmonella, AMR and brucelloses. We work closely with the Food Standards Agency on detecting food borne pathogens and with local health protection teams and environmental health officers to control any outbreaks of zoonotic disease associated with livestock farming, consumption of products of animal origin or exposure to livestock.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Banbury answering member printed Victoria Prentis question first answered 08/09/2020 16:23:12 answering member 4401 label Biography information for Victoria Prentis
tabling member	3960 label Biography information for Henry Smith

1230177

registered interest
date	01/09/2020
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	Livestock: Transport
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 bring forward legislative proposals to ban the long-distance transportation of live animals; and if he will make a statement.
tabling member constituency	Crawley
tabling member printed	Henry Smith
uin	83756
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/09/2020 answer text <p>I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the Rt Hon Member for Chipping Barnet on 11 June 2020, PQ UIN 55899.</p><p> </p><p><a href="https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-questions/detail/2020-06-08/55899" target="_blank">https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-questions/detail/2020-06-08/55899</a></p> answering member constituency Banbury answering member printed Victoria Prentis question first answered 09/09/2020 13:13:20 answering member 4401 label Biography information for Victoria Prentis
tabling member	3960 label Biography information for Henry Smith

1230178

registered interest
date	01/09/2020
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	Seals
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 his Department has to ban seal shooting in UK waters before the US Marine Mammal Protection Act Import Provision Rule deadline of 1 January 2022.
tabling member constituency	Crawley
tabling member printed	Henry Smith
uin	83757
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/09/2020 answer text <p>The Government is taking action to prevent the killing of seals in English, Welsh and Northern Irish waters as a result of commercial fishing. The Marine Management Organisation has not issued licences to kill or take seals in the last ten years under the Conservation of Seals Act for the purpose of preventing damage to fisheries. However, the ‘netsman’s defence’ provision in the Act allows the unlicensed shooting of seals to prevent damage to equipment, or fish within it, and where specific firearms and ammunition are used. We have tabled amendments to the Fisheries Bill that will, if passed, make it illegal to kill seals intentionally or recklessly. These amendments aim to ensure that UK fisheries exports are compliant with the US Marine Mammal Protection Act. The Scottish Parliament recently passed similar legislative changes via the Animals and Wildlife (Penalties, Protections and Powers) (Scotland) Act 2020.</p> answering member constituency Banbury answering member printed Victoria Prentis question first answered 09/09/2020 15:31:32 answering member 4401 label Biography information for Victoria Prentis
tabling member	3960 label Biography information for Henry Smith

1224393

registered interest
date	14/07/2020
answering body	Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
answering dept id	201
answering dept short name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
answering dept sort name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
hansard heading	Coronavirus Local Authority Discretionary Grants Fund
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 13 July 2020 to Question 68687, what formula was used to determine how much funding local authorities received from the Coronavirus Discretionary Grant Fund.
tabling member constituency	Crawley
tabling member printed	Henry Smith
uin	73790
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 22/07/2020 answer text <p>Each of the 314 billing authorities currently involved in the delivery of the Small Business Grants Fund and Retail, Hospitality &amp; Leisure Fund will receive a fixed minimum allocation for the Local Authority Discretionary Grant Fund as a 5% uplift of the value of its in-scope hereditaments as identified at 3 May 2020. Individual letters were issued to all 314 Local Authorities on 20 May 2020 with a detailed explanation of their allocation.</p> answering member constituency Sutton and Cheam answering member printed Paul Scully question first answered 22/07/2020 15:57:22 answering member 4414 label Biography information for Paul Scully
tabling member	3960 label Biography information for Henry Smith

1224068

registered interest
date	13/07/2020
answering body	Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
answering dept id	7
answering dept short name	Housing, Communities and Local Government
answering dept sort name	Housing, Communities and Local Government
hansard heading	Local Government Finance: Coronavirus
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what recent discussions he has had with the (a) Chancellor of the Exchequer (b) District Councils’ Network on the Government’s plan to tackle the financial challenges faced by (i) borough and (ii) district local authorities.
tabling member constituency	Crawley
tabling member printed	Henry Smith
uin	72871
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 21/07/2020 answer text <p>On 2 July the Secretary of State announced a further £500 million in unringfenced grant funding for councils to meet pressures they are facing in response to the coronavirus pandemic. Our unprecedented package includes £4.3 billion for councils’ spending pressures, comprising £3.7 billion of unringfenced grants and the £600 million Infection Control Fund, bringing the total amount of additional support for councils, businesses and local communities to almost £28 billion.</p><p>The Government is also meeting 75p in the pound of lost income such as parking fees and museum entry charges, where that loss of income is more than a council could have been expected to plan for. For many councils, this will be a significant portion of the income lost as result of the pandemic, particularly where these income streams make up a disproportionate portion of income relative to the size of the authority.</p><p>I regularly speak to the District Councils’ Network and individual councils. I can offer the reassurance that our aim is that all councils will be funded for their Covid-19 pressures and placed on a stable financial footing.</p> answering member constituency Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland answering member printed Mr Simon Clarke question first answered 21/07/2020 15:03:33 answering member 4655 label Biography information for Sir Simon Clarke
tabling member	3960 label Biography information for Henry Smith

1220634

registered interest
date	03/07/2020
answering body	Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
answering dept id	201
answering dept short name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
answering dept sort name	Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
hansard heading	Coronavirus Local Authority Discretionary Grants Fund
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will take steps to review the criteria for distributing and allocating funding through the Discretionary Grant Fund to local councils for supporting businesses during the covid-19 outbreak.
tabling member constituency	Crawley
tabling member printed	Henry Smith
uin	68687
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/07/2020 answer text <p>The Local Authority Discretionary Grants Fund is aimed at small businesses with ongoing fixed property-related costs that are not liable for business rates or rates reliefs.</p><p> </p><p>Local authorities are responsible for defining the precise eligibility for this Fund and may choose to make payments to other businesses based on local economic need, subject to those businesses meeting the specific eligibility criteria.</p><p> </p><p>We are asking local authorities to prioritise the following types of businesses for grants from within this funding pot:</p><ul><li>Small businesses in shared offices or other flexible workspaces. Examples could include units in industrial parks, science parks, and incubators which do not have their own business rates assessment.</li><li>Regular market traders with fixed building costs, such as rent, who do not have their own business rates assessment.</li><li>Bed &amp; breakfasts which pay Council Tax instead of business rates.</li><li>Charity properties in receipt of Charitable Rate Relief, which would otherwise have been eligible for Small Business Rates Relief or Rural Rate Relief.</li></ul><p> </p><p>Businesses already in receipt of the Small Business grant or a Retail, Hospitality and Leisure grant are not eligible for this fund. Businesses who are eligible for or in receipt of the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme are now eligible to apply for this scheme.</p><p> </p><p>There is currently no plan to change eligibility criteria for this scheme. Officials are keeping in close contact with local authorities to monitor the progress of the scheme.</p><p> </p><p>Guidance for Local Authorities was published 13 May: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-on-business-support-grant-funding" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-on-business-support-grant-funding</a>.</p> answering member constituency Sutton and Cheam answering member printed Paul Scully question first answered 13/07/2020 17:05:08 answering member 4414 label Biography information for Paul Scully
tabling member	3960 label Biography information for Henry Smith

1218758

registered interest
date	29/06/2020
answering body	Home Office
answering dept id	1
answering dept short name	Home Office
answering dept sort name	Home Office
hansard heading	Visas: China
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make it her policy to introduce a visa ban on officials from the Peoples Republic of China entering the UK in response to the Chinese Government's policies in relation to human rights in Hong Kong.
tabling member constituency	Crawley
tabling member printed	Henry Smith
uin	66017
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 07/07/2020 answer text <p>All those coming to the UK are assessed against the immigration rules and must meet the suitability and eligibility requirements. All UK visa applications are considered on their individual merits.</p> answering member constituency Torbay answering member printed Kevin Foster question first answered 07/07/2020 16:14:48 answering member 4451 label Biography information for Kevin Foster
tabling member	3960 label Biography information for Henry Smith

1219228

registered interest
date	29/06/2020
answering body	Department of Health and Social Care
answering dept id	17
answering dept short name	Health and Social Care
answering dept sort name	Health and Social Care
hansard heading	Protective Clothing: Manufacturing Industries
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he is taking steps with UK manufacturers to ensure that the country is self-sufficient in PPE production and supporting British enterprises; and if he will make a statement.
tabling member constituency	Crawley
tabling member printed	Henry Smith
uin	66848
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/07/2020 answer text <p>Lord Deighton is leading the Government effort to unleash the potential of British industry to manufacture personal protective equipment (PPE) for the health and social care sectors to create self-sufficient production of PPE for the United Kingdom. We are building up UK manufacturing with signed contracts to manufacture over 2 billion items of PPE through UK-based manufacturers, including facemasks, visors, gowns and aprons.</p><p>This includes Survitec, a survival technology company, who began producing gowns at the beginning of June; Bolle, who manufacture protective eyewear, will make 6.5 million visors over the course of the pandemic; Jaguar Land Rover are now manufacturing 14,000 visors/week for healthcare staff; Don &amp; Low will be manufacturing 12 million metres squared of fabric for gowns over the next six months, with the first delivery expected later this month; Burberry is manufacturing non-surgical gowns at its factory in Castleford and sourcing masks through its supply chain. To date, the company has donated over 100,000 pieces of PPE to the National Health Service and healthcare charities.</p> answering member constituency Bury St Edmunds answering member printed Jo Churchill question first answered 17/07/2020 11:25:01 answering member 4380 label Biography information for Jo Churchill
tabling member	3960 label Biography information for Henry Smith

1216893

registered interest
date	23/06/2020
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	Myanmar: Children
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will take diplomatic steps to hold the Myanmar military to account for the killing, maiming sexual violence against children identified in the UN Secretary-General's Annual Report on Children and Armed Conflict, published on 9 June 2020.
tabling member constituency	Crawley
tabling member printed	Henry Smith
uin	63306
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 30/06/2020 answer text <p>The UK is clear that the Myanmar Military is responsible for gross human rights violations across the country. This includes grave violations against children. On 23 June, I [Minister Adams] spoke to the Myanmar Minister for International Cooperation. I [Minister Adams] encouraged Myanmar to continue to engage with the International Court of Justice process, and highlighted the need for dialogue to deescalate the conflict in Rakhine which has seen a significant increase in crimes against children in the first half of this year. The UK has already imposed sanctions, through the EU, on members of the Myanmar military responsible for serious human rights violations. The UK led the international effort to establish the UN Independent Investigative Mechanism on Myanmar (IIMM), which will collect and preserve evidence for us in future domestic or international accountability processes.</p> answering member constituency Selby and Ainsty answering member printed Nigel Adams question first answered 30/06/2020 16:00:45 answering member 4057 label Biography information for Nigel Adams
tabling member	3960 label Biography information for Henry Smith