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63016

registered interest
date	17/06/2014
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	Employment and Support Allowance
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what progress his Department has made on improving the employment and support allowance appeals process.
tabling member constituency	Congleton
tabling member printed	Fiona Bruce
uin	904380
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/06/2014 answer text <p /> <p /> <p>Appeals against Employment and Support Allowance decisions decreased by just under 90% in the first quarter of this year compared with the same period in 2013.</p><p> </p><p>Our reforms to the appeals process mean claimants are now contacted much earlier, with the decision explained to them, and – through Mandatory Reconsideration – they are given the opportunity to provide further evidence. This is helping to resolve disputes as early as possible, and avoids the need for costly and protracted appeals.</p><p>We are using feedback from the First tier Tribunal to improve our approach to decision-making as part of the Department's continuous improvement work, and where we identify improvements, we will make them.</p> answering member constituency Hemel Hempstead answering member printed Mike Penning question first answered 23/06/2014 16:30:49 answering member 1528 label Biography information for Sir Mike Penning
tabling member	3958 label Biography information for Fiona Bruce

60753

registered interest
date	09/06/2014
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	North Korea
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 bring forward legislative proposals to prevent UK companies profiting from North Korean labour; and what steps he is taking to ensure that UK companies are compliant with international law on human trafficking, slavery and forced labour in their contracts in North Korea.
tabling member constituency	Congleton
tabling member printed	Fiona Bruce
uin	199758
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/06/2014 answer text <p>The UK is the first country to publish the Implementation Plan of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, which states the Government's expectation of business behaviour both in the UK and overseas. In October 2013, the Department for Business Innovation and Skills amended the Companies Act 2006 to introduce mandatory reporting requirements for all UK listed companies to publish information on human rights issues. At the EU level, the UK in April this year secured agreement to impose further reporting requirements on companies across Europe. In particular, all large listed and public interest undertakings will be required to disclose policies, outcomes and risks relating to areas such as respect for human rights and, if relevant, linked to their supply and subcontracting chain.</p><p>Current trade between the UK and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) is minimal and covered by an overarching provision that any activities should satisfy existing UN and EU sanctions. These refer to restriction in the export of goods and financial assistance, which may contribute to the development of the DPRK's nuclear and ballistic missile programmes. There are currently no plans to introduce a general restriction on trade, as such a broad measure could adversely affect ordinary North Koreans.</p> answering member constituency East Devon answering member printed Mr Hugo Swire question first answered 16/06/2014 13:37:54 answering member 1408 label Biography information for Lord Swire
tabling member	3958 label Biography information for Fiona Bruce

60754

registered interest
date	09/06/2014
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	North Korea
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he has taken to implement the recommendations on supporting the broadcasting of accessible information in to the Democratic People's Republic of North Korea in paragraph 1224 of the report of the UN Commission of Inquiry on Human Rights in that country.
tabling member constituency	Congleton
tabling member printed	Fiona Bruce
uin	199759
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/06/2014 answer text <p>We have taken note of the UN Commission of Inquiry recommendation that civil society be supported to broadcast accessible information. We have helped to facilitate contact between BBC Worldwide and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) broadcasting authorities, to explore the possibility of the BBC supplying a range of programmes to the DPRK.</p><p>Through our Embassy in Pyongyang, the UK is also one of the few countries which is able to engage directly with the DPRK. This complements the efforts of others who are already broadcasting into North Korea. The recent report of the UN Commission of Inquiry into human rights in North Korea recognised the importance of both approaches.</p> answering member constituency East Devon answering member printed Mr Hugo Swire question first answered 16/06/2014 13:42:59 answering member 1408 label Biography information for Lord Swire
tabling member	3958 label Biography information for Fiona Bruce

60755

registered interest
date	09/06/2014
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	North Korea
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions his Department has had with the UN on the report of the UN Commission of Inquiry on Human Rights in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.
tabling member constituency	Congleton
tabling member printed	Fiona Bruce
uin	199760
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/06/2014 answer text <p>In October 2013, I met members of the Commission of Inquiry team on a visit we organised for them to the UK. I travelled to the Human Rights Council in Geneva in March to urge action following their report, and I was pleased with the strong resolution which passed later that month.</p><p>In April the UK raised the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) human rights concerns during closed consultations between the High Commissioner for Human Rights and the UN Security Council. The same month the UK's Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN in New York met with members of the Commission of Inquiry and expressed our strong support for the work of the Commission. The UK also took part in a public ‘Arria' briefing with other Security Council members to consider DPRK human rights. In May, we raised the need for continued focus on the situation during a UN Security Council Sanctions Committee meeting. I will travel to the UN in Geneva this week in order to meet the DPRK Special Rapporteur, Marzuki Darusman, and to set out the UK's concerns to the Council. The meeting of the UN General Assembly in September presents a further opportunity to hold discussions.</p> answering member constituency East Devon answering member printed Mr Hugo Swire question first answered 16/06/2014 13:46:48 answering member 1408 label Biography information for Lord Swire
tabling member	3958 label Biography information for Fiona Bruce

60756

registered interest
date	09/06/2014
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	North Korea
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he has taken to increase the flow of impartial information into the Democratic People's Republic of Korea following the report of the UN Commission of Inquiry on Human Rights in that country.
tabling member constituency	Congleton
tabling member printed	Fiona Bruce
uin	199761
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/06/2014 answer text <p>The British Embassy in Pyongyang has arranged for the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) officials to attend education programmes in the UK with a human rights element, and also to attend economics workshops in Pyongyang aiming to deepen their understanding of international standards and norms. The British Council English language teaching programme in Pyongyang provides another area of extensive engagement. The Embassy also delivers strong messages directly to DPRK interlocutors about the UK's human rights concerns, including concerns arising from the UN Commission of Inquiry.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency East Devon answering member printed Mr Hugo Swire question first answered 16/06/2014 13:52:11 answering member 1408 label Biography information for Lord Swire
tabling member	3958 label Biography information for Fiona Bruce

58420

registered interest
date	05/06/2014
answering body	Department of Health
answering dept id	17
answering dept short name	Health
answering dept sort name	Health
hansard heading	Abortion
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many abortions were performed for foetal abnormality in each of the last five years which were reported to a foetal abnormality register but were not notified through the submission of an HSA4 abortion notification form to the Chief Medical Officer.
tabling member constituency	Congleton
tabling member printed	Fiona Bruce
uin	199204
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/06/2014 answer text <p>Results from a matching exercise undertaken on the 2011 and 2012 data between the abortion notification forms and NDSCR records were published on 23 May 2014 entitled <em>Matching Department of Health abortion notifications and data from the National Down's Syndrome Cytogenetic Register and recommendations for improving notification compliance. </em> No matching exercise was undertaken for the years 2008, 2009 and 2010. A copy of the report has been placed in the Library. It is also available at:</p><p> </p><p>www.gov.uk/government/publications/under-reporting-of-abortions-for-fetal-abnormalities</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Battersea answering member printed Jane Ellison question first answered 12/06/2014 16:24:08 answering member 3918 label Biography information for Jane Ellison attachment 1 file name PQ199204 - Library Doc - Report.pdf title Notification Compliance
tabling member	3958 label Biography information for Fiona Bruce