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174734

registered interest
date	20/01/2015
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	Russia
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 discussions he has had with his EU counterparts on expansion of the sanctions regime on Russia.
tabling member constituency	Hendon
tabling member printed	Dr Matthew Offord
uin	221358
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/01/2015 answer text <p>I refer my hon. Friend to the answer given by the Secretary of state for Foreign and Commowealth Affairs, my right hon. friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond), to the hon. Member for Washington and Sunderland West (Mrs Hodgson) on 20 January 2015 (PQ 907106) official report column 77. The UK and our EU partners have been very clear with Russia about what it needs to do for the easing of sanctions to be considered. Conversely, if it continues to ignore its obligations under the Minsk agreements, and continues to destabilise Ukraine, we will need to consider strengthening our sanctions.</p> answering member constituency Aylesbury answering member printed Mr David Lidington question first answered 26/01/2015 16:25:27 answering member 15 label Biography information for Sir David Lidington
tabling member	4006 label Biography information for Dr Matthew Offord

174735

registered interest
date	20/01/2015
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	Sri Lanka
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the election in Sri Lanka and the prospects for an independent war crime inquiry in that country.
tabling member constituency	Hendon
tabling member printed	Dr Matthew Offord
uin	221359
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/01/2015 answer text <p>The Sri Lankan Presidential Election was generally peaceful and well-managed with a high voter turnout. We commend Sri Lanka’s Election Commission for its conduct of the election, and all Sri Lanka’s political parties and people for accepting the final result and committing to the peaceful transfer of power. The result on the day reflected the will of the Sri Lankan people.</p><p> </p><p>However, we also note the view of Commonwealth Observers that an inadequate electoral and legal framework coupled with an unequal pre-electoral environment, meant the election contest fell short of key benchmarks for democratic elections. We hope that this is something Sri Lanka will now address, with the support of the international community.</p><p> </p><p>We are encouraging the new government to engage with the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, including over the UN Human Rights Council resolution agreed in March 2014. This is consistent with the Prime Minister's, my right hon. Friend the Member for Witney (Mr Cameron), statement after the elections that the UK “encourages President Sirisena to support the ongoing UN Office of the High Commission for Human rights investigation into human rights abuses so that the issues of the past can be addressed and the country can move forward to a brighter, peaceful future where all Sri Lankan’s can play a role.”</p> answering member constituency East Devon answering member printed Mr Hugo Swire question first answered 27/01/2015 14:48:10 answering member 1408 label Biography information for Lord Swire
tabling member	4006 label Biography information for Dr Matthew Offord

174736

registered interest
date	20/01/2015
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	Hamas
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 his Department has taken in response to the decision of the General Court of the European Union on Hamas.
tabling member constituency	Hendon
tabling member printed	Dr Matthew Offord
uin	221360
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/01/2015 answer text <p>The EU General Court judgment is procedural and does not mean the EU and UK have changed their position on Hamas. The effects of the EU Hamas listing, including asset freezes, remain in place. We are studying the detail of the judgment carefully, and will work with partners to ensure that the Hamas listing at the EU is maintained. Hamas’ military wing has been proscribed in the UK since 2001 under separate UK legislation. This is not affected by the EU General Court judgment.</p> answering member constituency Bournemouth East answering member printed Mr Tobias Ellwood question first answered 27/01/2015 14:43:18 answering member 1487 label Biography information for Mr Tobias Ellwood
tabling member	4006 label Biography information for Dr Matthew Offord

174737

registered interest
date	20/01/2015
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	Libya
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what support his Department is providing to help the Libyan government bring peace and stability to that country.
tabling member constituency	Hendon
tabling member printed	Dr Matthew Offord
uin	221361
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/01/2015 answer text <p>The UK Government, working closely with our international partners, continues to support the people of Libya and the efforts of the Special Representative of the UN Secretary General for Libya, Bernardino Leon, to resolve the political crisis. Since 2011, the UK has also funded much practical support to Libya. The current focus is on contributing to UN political settlement efforts through the Prime Minister's Special Envoy to the Libyan Political Transition, Jonathan Powell. The UK is also providing expert advice to the Constitutional Drafting Assembly; helping to enhance the quality and coverage of media reporting of events in Libya; providing support in the areas of border controls and humanitarian demining; and helping Libyan institutions to effectively manage their public finances.</p> answering member constituency Bournemouth East answering member printed Mr Tobias Ellwood question first answered 27/01/2015 14:52:47 answering member 1487 label Biography information for Mr Tobias Ellwood
tabling member	4006 label Biography information for Dr Matthew Offord

174738

registered interest
date	20/01/2015
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	Turkey
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 assessment his Department has made of the human rights situation in Turkey.
tabling member constituency	Hendon
tabling member printed	Dr Matthew Offord
uin	221362
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/01/2015 answer text <p>We and our EU partners monitor closely the human rights situation in Turkey. The UK supports the European Commission’s assessment of human rights in Turkey, set out in its 2014 Annual Progress Report on Turkey’s EU accession.</p><p>In 2014, Turkey made progress on its human rights reform agenda and adopted an Action Plan for the Prevention of Human Rights Violations. Turkey also continued to build the capacity of its human rights institutions. We welcome this progress and the continuing efforts of the Turkish government aimed at resolving the Kurdish issue.</p><p>However, as the EU’s report has underlined, there is still much to do to implement action plans, strengthen further the institutional framework, and bring Turkish human rights legislation into line with European and international standards, including on rights for minority religious and ethnic groups. The report also highlighted areas of concern over the independence and impartiality of the judiciary, the rule of law, and restrictions on the freedom of expression, including temporary bans on social media imposed by the Turkish government. We will continue to work with our EU partners and international institutions, such as the EU and Council of Europe, to support Turkey in its continuing reform agenda.</p> answering member constituency Aylesbury answering member printed Mr David Lidington question first answered 27/01/2015 16:15:06 answering member 15 label Biography information for Sir David Lidington
tabling member	4006 label Biography information for Dr Matthew Offord

171665

registered interest
date	18/12/2014
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Young Offenders
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate his Department has made of changes in the numbers of young offenders in each of the last five years; and what assessment he has made of the causes of those changes.
tabling member constituency	Hendon
tabling member printed	Dr Matthew Offord
uin	219491
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/01/2015 answer text <p>Reducing offending by young people is a key priority for the Ministry of Justice and the Government routinely publishes data on the number of cautioning and sentencing occasions for young people as part of the Criminal Justice Statistics Quarterly report: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/criminal-justice-statistics-quarterly" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/criminal-justice-statistics-quarterly</a> (see Table Q6.1).</p><p> </p><p>Table 1 below shows the numbers of cautioning and sentencing occasions for 10-17 year olds residing in England and Wales in each of the last five years, for the 12 months ending June.</p><p> </p><p><strong>Table 1</strong></p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td><p> </p></td><td><p><strong>First Occasion</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Further Occasions</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Total</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p> </p></td><td><p><strong> </strong></p></td><td><p><strong> </strong></p></td><td><p><strong> </strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2010</p></td><td><p>56,742</p></td><td><p>87,859</p></td><td><p>144,601</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2011</p></td><td><p>43,170</p></td><td><p>74,602</p></td><td><p>117,772</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2012</p></td><td><p>34,136</p></td><td><p>59,581</p></td><td><p>93,716</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2013</p></td><td><p>26,267</p></td><td><p>44,018</p></td><td><p>70,285</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2014</p></td><td><p>22,080</p></td><td><p>37,132</p></td><td><p>59,213</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p> </p><p>The reduction in the numbers of cautions and sentences has been largely driven by the fall in First Time Entrants (FTEs) to the Youth Justice System (see First Occasion column in Table 1).</p><p> </p><p>The Ministry of Justice, in partnership with the Youth Justice Board and other Government Departments, keeps under review the effectiveness of all elements of the youth justice system, and associated services for young people and their families at risk of developing offending behaviour. [1]</p><br /><p>Notes to Table 1</p><p>(1) The first occasion on which offenders received a caution or conviction for offences committed in England and Wales. Where there were multiple offences on the same occasion, the primary offence as recorded on the Police National Computer would be counted.</p><p> </p><p>(2) Subsequent occasions on which offenders received a further youth caution, caution or conviction for offences committed in England and Wales. Where there were multiple offences on the same occasion, the primary offence as recorded on the Police National Computer would be counted.</p><p>(3) Cautions include juveniles receiving reprimands and warnings or youth cautions. Youth Cautions were introduced on April 8th 2013 replacing reprimands and warnings for young offenders. The guidance is published at the link http://www.justice gov.uk/out-of-court-disposals</p><p>(4) Includes offenders whose gender is not recorded on the Police National Computer.</p><p> </p><p>(5) Figures include offenders residing only in England and Wales at the time of their caution or conviction.</p> answering member constituency South West Bedfordshire answering member printed Andrew Selous question first answered 05/01/2015 17:04:49 answering member 1453 label Biography information for Andrew Selous
tabling member	4006 label Biography information for Dr Matthew Offord

171667

registered interest
date	18/12/2014
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Prison Accommodation
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps his Department is taking to ensure the availability of places in the prison estate to safely accommodate those sentenced to custodial sentences by the courts.
tabling member constituency	Hendon
tabling member printed	Dr Matthew Offord
uin	219492
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/01/2015 answer text <p>This Government will always ensure that we have enough prison places for those sent to us by the courts and we continue to modernise the prison estate so that it delivers best value for the taxpayer.</p><p> </p><p>We have a long term strategy for managing the prison estate which will provide more adult male prison capacity than we inherited from the previous Government. We also have a range of contingencies available to manage temporary or unexpected increases in the population.</p><p> </p><p>We are expecting to open over 2,000 adult male prison places in the coming months, which include 1,250 new places at four new house-blocks. We are also building a new prison in Wrexham that will increase capacity by a further 2,100 places by 2017.</p><p> </p><p>Taken together, these measures will enable us to accommodate safely those sentenced to custody by the courts.</p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency South West Bedfordshire answering member printed Andrew Selous question first answered 05/01/2015 17:31:02 answering member 1453 label Biography information for Andrew Selous
tabling member	4006 label Biography information for Dr Matthew Offord

171668

registered interest
date	18/12/2014
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Kidnapping: Children
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many UK parents have applied for the return of their child from another country under the 1980 Hague Convention in each of the last five years.
tabling member constituency	Hendon
tabling member printed	Dr Matthew Offord
uin	219489
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/01/2015 answer text <p>We take every case of international parental child abduction very seriously and the Government works with other countries to help resolve cases in the best interests of the children involved as quickly as possible.</p><p>The table below shows the number of applications for return received from parents by the Central Authorities for England and Wales, Northern Ireland, and Scotland in each of the last five years. The Central Authorities do not record the nationality of the applicant. Figures for 2014 have not yet been finalised.</p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td><p>Calendar year</p></td><td><p>England and Wales</p></td><td><p>Northern Ireland</p></td><td><p>Scotland</p></td><td><p>Total</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2009</p></td><td><p>214</p></td><td><p>7</p></td><td><p>15</p></td><td><p>236</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2010</p></td><td><p>150</p></td><td><p>7</p></td><td><p>10</p></td><td><p>167</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2011</p></td><td><p>200</p></td><td><p>6</p></td><td><p>8</p></td><td><p>214</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2012</p></td><td><p>220</p></td><td><p>9</p></td><td><p>17</p></td><td><p>246</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2013</p></td><td><p>222</p></td><td><p>6</p></td><td><p>15</p></td><td><p>243</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p>The Central Authorities are the International Child Abduction and Contact Unit for England and Wales, the Central Business Unit of the Northern Ireland Courts and Tribunals Service for Northern Ireland, and the Scottish Government for Scotland.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Bermondsey and Old Southwark answering member printed Simon Hughes question first answered 05/01/2015 13:55:33 answering member 194 label Biography information for Simon Hughes
tabling member	4006 label Biography information for Dr Matthew Offord

171685

registered interest
date	18/12/2014
answering body	Women and Equalities
answering dept id	31
answering dept short name	Women and Equalities
answering dept sort name	Women and Equalities
hansard heading	Small Businesses: Employment
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what estimate her Department has made of the number of (a) male and (b) female employees who are employed in organisations with less than 250 employees.
tabling member constituency	Hendon
tabling member printed	Dr Matthew Offord
uin	219397
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 07/01/2015 answer text <p>At the start of 2014, there were 5,236,390 businesses with fewer than 250 people working for them. In total, these businesses employed 15,159,000 people. [Figures produced by BIS, Business Population Estimates for UK and Regions 2014]. No estimate has been made of the gender breakdown of these employees. However, women now make up 46.8% of the total workforce [August – October 2014, ONS Labour Market Statistics]</p><p> </p><p>We encourage individual companies to collect and analyse data regarding the number of women they employ at different levels by signing up to the<em>Think Act Report</em> initiative. They are further encouraged to take action regarding any inequalities identified, and to publish details of their progress. Over 270 employers have voluntarily signed up to Think Act Report, covering over 2.5m employees.</p> answering member constituency East Dunbartonshire answering member printed Jo Swinson question first answered 07/01/2015 10:55:19 answering member 1513 label Biography information for Jo Swinson
tabling member	4006 label Biography information for Dr Matthew Offord