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166951

registered interest
date	01/12/2014
answering body	Department for Communities and Local Government
answering dept id	7
answering dept short name	Communities and Local Government
answering dept sort name	Communities and Local Government
hansard heading	Green Belt
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what further steps his Department has taken to help local authorities execute their responsibilities in relation to plan-making and protection for the greenbelt.
tabling member constituency	Hendon
tabling member printed	Dr Matthew Offord
uin	216573
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 06/01/2015 answer text <p>The Coalition Government has ensured that strong protections for the Green Belt are in place. The National Planning Policy Framework is clear that most types of new building are inappropriate in Green Belt and by definition, harmful to it. Such development should not be approved except in very special circumstances. Green Belt boundaries can be altered only in exceptional circumstances following local consultation and independent scrutiny of the Local Plan. The total amount of Green Belt in England has remained constant at 13 per cent.<br><br>In October we issued additional guidance to help local authorities allocate land appropriately in Local Plans [http://planningguidance.planningportal.gov.uk/blog/guidance/housing-and-economic-land-availability-assessment/stage-5-final-evidence-base/]. This underlines the importance of Green Belt protection.<br><br><br>The Localism Act 2011 has strengthened the role of Local Plans and abolished the last Administration's top-down Regional Strategies which sought to delete the Green Belt in and around 30 towns and cities. Our streamlined Framework strongly encourages areas to get up-to-date Local Plans in place, and we have been actively supporting councils in doing so. We have recently seen a major improvement: 80 per cent of authorities now have a published Plan. To place this in context, six years after the Labour Government's 2004 Planning Act, by May 2010, only one in six local planning authorities had an adopted Core Strategy, reflecting how the tortuous regional planning process slowed down development and stymied local plan-making and local decision-making.</p> answering member constituency Great Yarmouth answering member printed Brandon Lewis question first answered 06/01/2015 17:22:49 answering member 4009 label Biography information for Sir Brandon Lewis
tabling member	4006 label Biography information for Dr Matthew Offord

166978

registered interest
date	01/12/2014
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Schools: Buildings
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when her Department expects to publish the data gathered through the Property Data Survey Programme.
tabling member constituency	Hendon
tabling member printed	Dr Matthew Offord
uin	216569
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/12/2014 answer text <p>The Property Data Survey Programme, which carried out high-level condition surveys of the school estate in England, completed its last survey in July 2014. To ensure that the data is sufficiently robust before it is put to any further use, I asked officials to share the data we had gathered with schools and responsible bodies and rectify any significant variances in the dataset.</p><p> </p><p>The deadline for feedback from schools and responsible bodies has recently passed and officials are presently considering where we need to update the survey information. Once this is completed, we will be giving further consideration to future publication of the data.</p> answering member constituency Yeovil answering member printed Mr David Laws question first answered 05/12/2014 14:50:14 answering member 1473 label Biography information for Mr David Laws
tabling member	4006 label Biography information for Dr Matthew Offord

166979

registered interest
date	01/12/2014
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Pre-school Education
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to assist high-quality and in-demand nurseries provide more places.
tabling member constituency	Hendon
tabling member printed	Dr Matthew Offord
uin	216570
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/12/2014 answer text <p>The Department for Education have taken a number of actions as part of the Government’s plan to increase the supply and affordability of childcare.</p><p> </p><p>The Department has extended free early learning places to around 260,000 two-year-olds from September 2014. Low income working parents can already benefit from support through the childcare element of working tax credit. Once Universal Credit is introduced this will rise to 85% of costs. From autumn 2015 almost 2 million families could benefit from a new tax free childcare scheme, worth up to £2,000 per child which will expand support for affordable childcare and stimulate demand. We are investing £50 million through a new Early Years Pupil Premium to support the early education of disadvantaged children.</p><p> </p><p>Our reforms to the role of local authorities have reduced unnecessary bureaucracy and improved consistency in accessing Government funding. All providers judged ‘good’ and ‘outstanding’ by Ofsted and providers newly registered with Ofsted are guaranteed early education funding making it easier for existing providers to expand their business and new providers to enter the market.</p><p> </p><p>We have relaxed planning rules so that non-domestic early years childcare providers can deliver additional and high quality places to meet increasing demand allowing premises previously used for offices, hotels, non-residential institutions, and leisure and assembly purposes to be able to change use to nurseries. We are exploring local authorities’ use of their discretionary rate relief powers to support business rates costs falling to childcare providers.</p><p>We have brought forward legislation to enable providers to register multiple premises in a single registration process so, for example, a nursery chain can notify Ofsted of its intention to open a number of new settings in a single registration process.</p><p> </p><p>We have also brought forward legislation to remove the requirement for schools to register separately with Ofsted to take two-year-olds and are supporting partnership working between schools and private and voluntary providers.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p>We know that high-quality childcare has a powerful impact on children’s outcomes, particularly the most disadvantaged children. That is why we are driving up standards through a stronger inspection framework, and focusing Local Authority support on weaker providers and improving the skills and status of the workforce.</p> answering member constituency East Surrey answering member printed Mr Sam Gyimah question first answered 08/12/2014 17:11:13 answering member 3980 label Biography information for Mr Sam Gyimah
tabling member	4006 label Biography information for Dr Matthew Offord

166986

registered interest
date	01/12/2014
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Social Work
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when her Department plans to finalise its draft Knowledge and Skills Statement for child and family social work.
tabling member constituency	Hendon
tabling member printed	Dr Matthew Offord
uin	216566
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/12/2014 answer text <p>We published the statement of the knowledge and skills for child and family social work on 28 November 2014. The statement, along with the Government’s response to the consultation, can be accessed via the following link:</p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/knowledge-and-skills-for-child-and-family-social-work" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/knowledge-and-skills-for-child-and-family-social-work</a></p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency Crewe and Nantwich answering member printed Mr Edward Timpson question first answered 04/12/2014 18:17:13 answering member 1605 label Biography information for Edward Timpson
tabling member	4006 label Biography information for Dr Matthew Offord

167108

registered interest
date	01/12/2014
answering body	Home Office
answering dept id	1
answering dept short name	Home Office
answering dept sort name	Home Office
hansard heading	Terrorism
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what progress her Department has made on working with internet companies to restrict access to terrorist material which is hosted overseas but is illegal under UK law.
tabling member constituency	Hendon
tabling member printed	Dr Matthew Offord
uin	216571
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/12/2014 answer text <p>We have made considerable progress in restricting online access to terrorist related material, the majority of which is hosted overseas. Since February 2010, the police Counter Terrorism Internet Referral Unit (CTIRU) has secured the removal of more than 65,000 pieces of unlawful terrorist-related content, with over 46,000 of these removed since the start of this year.</p><p>Where the police cannot remove terrorist content, we are working with Internet Service Providers to further restrict access to this material and identify other legal but harmful extremist content to be included in family-friendly filters.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Old Bexley and Sidcup answering member printed James Brokenshire question first answered 05/12/2014 17:14:22 answering member 1530 label Biography information for James Brokenshire
tabling member	4006 label Biography information for Dr Matthew Offord

167109

registered interest
date	01/12/2014
answering body	Home Office
answering dept id	1
answering dept short name	Home Office
answering dept sort name	Home Office
hansard heading	Radicalism
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what progress her Department has made with the internet industry on improving the process for members of the public to report extremist content online.
tabling member constituency	Hendon
tabling member printed	Dr Matthew Offord
uin	216572
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/12/2014 answer text <p>There is a clear role for the internet industry to ensure there are simple and easy flagging mechanisms for the public to report terrorist and extremist content. Some companies have these already, but we are encouraging other platforms to reach the standards of the best. We have also improved the process for public reporting of terrorist and extremist content to the police.</p><p><br>Members of the public can report content of concern to the Counter Terrorism Internet Referral Unit (CTIRU) via an online tool on the Gov.uk website which was updated in March 2014.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency Old Bexley and Sidcup answering member printed James Brokenshire question first answered 05/12/2014 17:18:10 answering member 1530 label Biography information for James Brokenshire
tabling member	4006 label Biography information for Dr Matthew Offord

166733

registered interest
date	28/11/2014
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	Bivalve Molluscs: Non-native Species
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when the Contingency Invasive Species Action Plan for the Quagga mussel will be published and considered for implementation.
tabling member constituency	Hendon
tabling member printed	Dr Matthew Offord
uin	216378
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/12/2014 answer text <p>A Contingency Invasive Species Action Plan was being developed prior to the arrival of the quagga mussel in Great Britain. However, once the mussel was detected, immediate contingency measures were considered and put in place. These included communicating its presence to water sport users and Thames Water to help prevent further spread of the species via the ‘Check, Clean, Dry ‘campaign. All involved have been working constructively together. The Environment Agency continues to monitor for further quagga mussel populations. The development of an Invasive Species Action Plan to manage this and other similar species will now be considered for development.</p><p><br></p><p> </p> answering member constituency Camborne and Redruth answering member printed George Eustice question first answered 04/12/2014 11:01:50 answering member 3934 label Biography information for George Eustice
tabling member	4006 label Biography information for Dr Matthew Offord

166792

registered interest
date	28/11/2014
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Harassment: Social Media
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will bring forward legislative proposals to prevent people who have been convicted for online harassment or hate crime accessing any other social media internet platforms.
tabling member constituency	Hendon
tabling member printed	Dr Matthew Offord
uin	216377
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/12/2014 answer text <p /> <p>The Government is absolutely clear that abusive or threatening behaviour, or harassment, online or offline, is totally unacceptable. A number of offences may be committed by such behaviour, in particular under section 1 of the Malicious Communications Act 1988 or section 127 of the Communications Act 2003. Changes to the law being taken forward in the Criminal Justice and Courts Bill will help to ensure that people who commit those offences are prosecuted and properly punished. Online harassment could also amount to an offence under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 if it is carried out as part of a ‘course of conduct’ which amounts to harassment or puts someone in fear of violence. Where any crime is motivated by or demonstrates hatred based on certain characteristics (such as sexual orientation) of the victim, the courts must take this into account in passing sentence.</p><p> </p><p>The Government expects social media companies to have robust processes in place to respond promptly when abuse is reported; including acting quickly to assess the report, removing content which does not comply with the acceptable use policies or terms and conditions in place and, where appropriate, suspending or terminating the accounts of those breaching the rules in place.</p><p> </p><p>Where a convicted offender receives a community order or a suspended sentence order the court may impose requirements, including a prohibited activity requirement, which could be used to restrict use of the internet or social media.</p><p> </p><p>Where a convicted offender receives an immediate custodial sentence and is released on licence a condition could be imposed to limit the offender’s access and use of the internet. Licence conditions are set by the prison governor or Parole Board.</p><p> </p><p>We have no plans for further legislation to inhibit convicted offenders from accessing social media.</p> answering member constituency North West Cambridgeshire answering member printed Mr Shailesh Vara question first answered 05/12/2014 14:58:06 answering member 1496 label Biography information for Shailesh Vara
tabling member	4006 label Biography information for Dr Matthew Offord

166795

registered interest
date	28/11/2014
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Administration of Estates
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to enable the executors of an estate to access the funds held in an executor's bank account prior to obtaining grant of probate to allow them to better manage that estate.
tabling member constituency	Hendon
tabling member printed	Dr Matthew Offord
uin	216376
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/12/2014 answer text <p /> <p>A bank may permit an executor to withdraw money from the deceased’s bank account before probate is granted. However, the bank in question will be liable to the deceased’s estate if it releases funds to the wrong person. The bank may therefore insist on production of proof of the executor’s right to administer the deceased’s estate, namely the grant of probate, before releasing the money.</p><p> </p><p>The Government considers that this strikes a fair balance between the parties and has no plans to change the law at present.</p><p> </p><p>Information about the role of executors and the significance of the grant of probate is available from various sources including <a href="https://www.gov.uk/wills-probate-inheritance/overview" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/wills-probate-inheritance/overview</a> and <a href="http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/manuals/ihtmanual/ihtm05101.htm" target="_blank">http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/manuals/ihtmanual/ihtm05101.htm</a>.</p> answering member constituency North West Cambridgeshire answering member printed Mr Shailesh Vara question first answered 05/12/2014 14:52:34 answering member 1496 label Biography information for Shailesh Vara
tabling member	4006 label Biography information for Dr Matthew Offord

166556

registered interest
date	27/11/2014
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	Palestinians
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent reports his Department has received on the efforts of the Palestinian Authority to access water from the Eastern Mountain Aquifer.
tabling member constituency	Hendon
tabling member printed	Dr Matthew Offord
uin	216257
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 03/12/2014 answer text <p>The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has not received any reports on the efforts of the Palestinian Authority to access water from the Eastern Mountain Aquifer. However, the UK regularly raises issues of water in the Occupied Palestinian Territories with the Israeli authorities, including stressing the urgent need for Israel to take immediate and practical measures to improve the current unacceptable situation and ensure fair distribution of water in the West Bank and Gaza.</p> answering member constituency Bournemouth East answering member printed Mr Tobias Ellwood question first answered 03/12/2014 12:48:25 answering member 1487 label Biography information for Mr Tobias Ellwood
tabling member	4006 label Biography information for Dr Matthew Offord