Show Search Form

Search Results

registered interest	true false
date	exactly: or between: and
answering body
answering dept id
answering dept short name
answering dept sort name
hansard heading
house id
legislature	pref label
question text
tabling member constituency
tabling member printed
uin
answer	is ministerial correction true false date of answer exactly: or between: and answer text answering member constituency answering member printed grouped question UIN question first answered answering member label
tabling member	label

Search

882177

registered interest
date	13/04/2018
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	Plastic Bags: Charities
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 discussions the Government has had with the charity sector on reducing the use of single-use plastic bags in door-to-door collections.
tabling member constituency	Cheltenham
tabling member printed	Alex Chalk
uin	135291
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/04/2018 answer text <p>The Government has not had any discussions with the charity sector on reducing the use of single use plastic bags in door to door collections.</p><p> </p><p>Following a public consultation last year, the Fundraising Regulator has strengthened its Code of Practice, which requires charitable house to house collectors not to post collection bags to properties that indicate they do not wish to receive them, thus reducing the distribution of unwanted charity collection bags.</p><p>Charity textile collections offer a convenient way for people to reduce their environmental impact and contribute to the 650,000 tonnes of clothing reused or recycled which might otherwise be sent to landfill, while also benefiting charitable causes.</p> answering member constituency Suffolk Coastal answering member printed Dr Thérèse Coffey question first answered 20/04/2018 10:13:40 answering member 4098 label Biography information for Dr Thérèse Coffey
tabling member	4481 label Biography information for Alex Chalk

882275

registered interest
date	13/04/2018
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	Working Hours
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether the Government has made an assessment of whether statutory minimum breaks remain sufficient for people working long shifts, including care workers.
tabling member constituency	Cheltenham
tabling member printed	Alex Chalk
uin	135403
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/04/2018 answer text <p>The Government has not made such an assessment.</p> answering member constituency Burton answering member printed Andrew Griffiths question first answered 23/04/2018 16:29:01 answering member 3936 label Biography information for Andrew Griffiths
tabling member	4481 label Biography information for Alex Chalk

882358

registered interest
date	13/04/2018
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	Medicines and Medical Devices Safety Independent Review: Surgical Mesh Implants
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if the Government will make an assessment of the potential merits of including laparoscopic ventral mesh rectopexy within the ongoing review into medicines and medical devices safety.
tabling member constituency	Cheltenham
tabling member printed	Alex Chalk
uin	135347
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/04/2018 answer text <p>We anticipate that the Independent Medicines and Medical Devices Safety Review will wish to examine, among other things, the concerns that have been raised about the use of mesh, including ventral mesh rectopexy surgery. The Review is, however, independent of the Department, and such decisions are a matter for its Chair, Baroness Cumberlege.</p> answering member constituency Thurrock answering member printed Jackie Doyle-Price question first answered 23/04/2018 13:35:54 answering member 4065 label Biography information for Dame Jackie Doyle-Price
tabling member	4481 label Biography information for Alex Chalk

882648

registered interest
date	13/04/2018
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	Council Tax: Empty Property
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 steps the Government has taken to tackle owners of empty residential properties relabelling those properties as second homes to avoid the empty home Council Tax surcharge.
tabling member constituency	Cheltenham
tabling member printed	Alex Chalk
uin	135710
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/04/2018 answer text <p>The administration of council tax, including the premium on long-term empty properties, is the responsibility of local government. Local authorities have their own inspection and enforcement regimes in order to satisfy themselves as to whether a property should be subject to a premium.</p> answering member constituency Richmond (Yorks) answering member printed Rishi Sunak question first answered 23/04/2018 15:24:14 answering member 4483 label Biography information for Rishi Sunak
tabling member	4481 label Biography information for Alex Chalk

882656

registered interest
date	13/04/2018
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	Derelict Land
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many Section 215 (Town and Country Planning Act 1990) notices have been issued by local authorities in the past year; and what proportion of those notices resulted in successful (a) remedial action and (b) direct action for non-compliance.
tabling member constituency	Cheltenham
tabling member printed	Alex Chalk
uin	135718
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/04/2018 answer text <p>Local authorities have a discretionary power under Section 215 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1980 to deal with derelict land and buildings. This information is not collected centrally.</p> answering member constituency South Derbyshire answering member printed Mrs Heather Wheeler question first answered 18/04/2018 10:53:16 answering member 4053 label Biography information for Mrs Heather Wheeler
tabling member	4481 label Biography information for Alex Chalk

882658

registered interest
date	13/04/2018
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	Council Tax: Empty Property
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 steps the Government is taking to ensure that local authorities are able to use Council Tax data effectively for the enforcement of (a) the empty home Council Tax surcharge, (b) Empty Dwelling Management Orders and (c) other enforcement measures.
tabling member constituency	Cheltenham
tabling member printed	Alex Chalk
uin	135720
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/04/2018 answer text <p>Local authorities have powers to tackle empty homes through the council tax empty homes premium and Empty Dwelling Management Orders. Local authorities can already use data collected for the purposes of council tax administration to assist with making effective use of these powers.</p> answering member constituency Richmond (Yorks) answering member printed Rishi Sunak question first answered 23/04/2018 15:24:43 answering member 4483 label Biography information for Rishi Sunak
tabling member	4481 label Biography information for Alex Chalk

874731

registered interest
date	29/03/2018
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	Water Charges
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 estimate his Department has made of the number of water companies that require consumers to pay bills up to a year in advance; and how that practice compares to other utility markets.
tabling member constituency	Cheltenham
tabling member printed	Alex Chalk
uin	135032
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/04/2018 answer text <p>We have not made an estimate of the number of water companies that require consumers to pay bills up to a year in advance. We have also not compared such a practice to other utility markets.</p><p> </p><p>Water companies use a variety of billing, payment and collection methods and can be flexible in their billing arrangements. However, they must be set within Ofwat’s (the independent water regulator) charging rules and guidelines. These rules include a requirement that companies give customers a reasonable choice as to the times and methods of payment of their charges. Customers should contact their water company to discuss their payment plan and the billing options they have.</p><p> </p><p>All companies offer a range of support to those household customers who may be struggling to pay their bill, including social tariffs, customer assistance funds, payment plans and information about water efficiency advice and products. Information is available on their websites or from the Consumer Council for Water.</p><p> </p><p>For business and other non-household customers who receive their water and wastewater services from a retailer, it is for individual retailers to decide which billing and collection methods they use. Retailers must comply with codes set by Ofwat and must inform customers of the type, frequency of bills and payment methods available. Business customers can discuss payment plans with their retail provider and can explore switching to another provider who may be more flexible with their billing arrangements. Not all retail providers will require payment in advance. Information about the business retail market can be found at <a href="https://www.open-water.org.uk/" target="_blank">https://www.open-water.org.uk/</a></p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency Suffolk Coastal answering member printed Dr Thérèse Coffey question first answered 16/04/2018 11:45:58 answering member 4098 label Biography information for Dr Thérèse Coffey
tabling member	4481 label Biography information for Alex Chalk

872562

registered interest
date	27/03/2018
answering body	Treasury
answering dept id	14
answering dept short name	Treasury
answering dept sort name	Treasury
hansard heading	Retail Trade: Fraud
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps the Government is taking to ensure (a) retailers and (b) consumers are aware of (i) the ITunes HMRC and (ii) other scams.
tabling member constituency	Cheltenham
tabling member printed	Alex Chalk
uin	134376
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/03/2018 answer text <p>HMRC has a dedicated Customer Protection team which targets scams. On iTunes, HMRC has:</p><p> </p><ul><li><p>Worked with Apple to introduce warnings on vouchers</p></li><li><p>Joined up with gov.uk, Action Fraud, &amp; Financial Fraud Action to increase awareness</p></li><li><p>Written to retailers encouraging staff training around i-tunes scams</p><p> </p><p>To reduce other scams, HMRC has:</p><p> </p></li><li><p>Worked with the mobile industry, delivering a 90% reduction in reported abuse of HMRC branded SMS texts</p></li><li><p>Challenged ownership of misleading domains, and diverted over 2m visits to gov.uk educational pages</p></li><li><p>Had over 1m visits to gov.uk scam-education pages</p></li><li><p>Requested removal of over 12,000 malicious websites since April</p></li></ul> answering member constituency Central Devon answering member printed Mel Stride question first answered 29/03/2018 16:07:06 answering member 3935 label Biography information for Mel Stride
tabling member	4481 label Biography information for Alex Chalk

872567

registered interest
date	27/03/2018
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Civil Proceedings: Legal Costs
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment the Government has made of the potential merits of introducing qualified one-way costs shifting for claims against non-medical professionals in line with claims against medical professionals.
tabling member constituency	Cheltenham
tabling member printed	Alex Chalk
uin	134381
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/04/2018 answer text <p>The Government is this year carrying out a post-implementation review of the costs and funding reforms introduced by Part 2 of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012. The review will consider costs protection arrangements (including qualified one way costs shifting) in personal injury and other cases.</p><p> </p><p>The Government is supportive of alternatives to costly litigation, such as adjudication. A voluntary pilot scheme of adjudication in professional negligence claims was commenced in February 2015. Proposals are now being considered to add the scheme to the Pre-Action Protocol for Professional Negligence Disputes.</p> answering member constituency South East Cambridgeshire answering member printed Lucy Frazer grouped question UIN 134382 question first answered 05/04/2018 14:19:19 answering member 4517 label Biography information for Lucy Frazer
tabling member	4481 label Biography information for Alex Chalk

872568

registered interest
date	27/03/2018
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Civil Proceedings: Legal Costs
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether the Government has made an assessment of the potential merits of making adjudication compulsory for claims against non-medical professionals similar to adjudication for construction disputes under the Housing Grants, Construction and Regeneration Act 1996.
tabling member constituency	Cheltenham
tabling member printed	Alex Chalk
uin	134382
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/04/2018 answer text <p>The Government is this year carrying out a post-implementation review of the costs and funding reforms introduced by Part 2 of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012. The review will consider costs protection arrangements (including qualified one way costs shifting) in personal injury and other cases.</p><p> </p><p>The Government is supportive of alternatives to costly litigation, such as adjudication. A voluntary pilot scheme of adjudication in professional negligence claims was commenced in February 2015. Proposals are now being considered to add the scheme to the Pre-Action Protocol for Professional Negligence Disputes.</p> answering member constituency South East Cambridgeshire answering member printed Lucy Frazer grouped question UIN 134381 question first answered 05/04/2018 14:19:19 answering member 4517 label Biography information for Lucy Frazer
tabling member	4481 label Biography information for Alex Chalk