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479480

registered interest
date	17/03/2016
answering body	HM Treasury
answering dept id	14
answering dept short name	Treasury
answering dept sort name	CaTreasury
hansard heading	Non-domestic Rates: Appeals
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many non-domestic rate arrears appeals were (a) lodged and (b) heard in each of the last 10 years.
tabling member constituency	Cardiff West
tabling member printed	Kevin Brennan
uin	31686
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/03/2016 answer text <p>The information requested is accessible via Tables LRW1and LRW2 of our 2005 and 2010 NDR Challenges and changes publications. Links below:</p><p> </p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/479037/NDR_2010_Challenges_and_Changes.xls" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/479037/NDR_2010_Challenges_and_Changes.xls</a></p><p> </p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/479045/NDR_2005_Challenges_and_Changes.xls" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/479045/NDR_2005_Challenges_and_Changes.xls</a></p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency South West Hertfordshire answering member printed Mr David Gauke question first answered 29/03/2016 10:34:14 answering member 1529 label Biography information for Mr David Gauke
tabling member	1400 label Biography information for Kevin Brennan

479487

registered interest
date	17/03/2016
answering body	Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
answering dept id	26
answering dept short name	Business, Innovation and Skills
answering dept sort name	Business, Innovation and Skills
hansard heading	Apprentices
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what the average length of time was that an apprentice stayed on an apprenticeship in 2015.
tabling member constituency	Liverpool, Walton
tabling member printed	Steve Rotheram
uin	31690
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/03/2016 answer text <p>Estimates of the average length of Apprenticeships, overall and by Sector Subject Area, are published as a supplementary table (first link) to a Statistical First Release (second link). Latest published data in this table is for the 2013/14 academic year. Data for 2014/15 will be published at the same link in due course.</p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/464924/apprenticeships-average-length-of-stay.xls" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/464924/apprenticeships-average-length-of-stay.xls</a></p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/learner-participation-outcomes-and-level-of-highest-qualification-held" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/learner-participation-outcomes-and-level-of-highest-qualification-held</a></p> answering member constituency Grantham and Stamford answering member printed Nick Boles grouped question UIN 31693 question first answered 24/03/2016 14:44:16 answering member 3995 label Biography information for Nick Boles
tabling member	4035 label Biography information for Steve Rotheram

479491

registered interest
date	17/03/2016
answering body	Department for Energy and Climate Change
answering dept id	63
answering dept short name	Energy and Climate Change
answering dept sort name	Energy and Climate Change
hansard heading	Environment Protection: Investment
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, pursuant to the Answer of 2 February 2016 to Question 23296, what estimate her Department has made of the amount of (a) public and (b) private sector investment for low-carbon infrastructure and supply chain investment which has been invested in each year for which data is available.
tabling member constituency	Cardiff West
tabling member printed	Kevin Brennan
uin	31530
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/03/2016 answer text <p>DECC’s March 2015 Energy Investment Report estimates that total investment in low carbon electricity was £42.1billion between 2010 and 2014. Table 1 below splits this investment out by technology type. Detailed information is not available on how this figure is split between public and private sector investment, though the majority is private sector investment supported by government policies, or how much is invested in the supply chain. In November, the Government renewed its commitment to the transition to a low carbon economy by confirming a continued budget for the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI). The overall budget for the RHI is to rise from £430 million in 2015/16 to £1.15 billion in 2020/21.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p><strong><em>Table 1: Estimated investment in low carbon electricity generation capacity for 2010-2014</em></strong></p><table><tbody><tr><td><p> </p></td><td><p>Estimated investment in electricity generation capacity in £’s billion (2012 prices)</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Electricity generation technology</p></td><td><p>Total</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Onshore Wind1</p></td><td><p>7.9</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Offshore Wind</p></td><td><p>9.5</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Biomass and Bioenergy2</p></td><td><p>8.8</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Marine</p></td><td><p>0.1</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Solar PV3</p></td><td><p>11.4</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Hydro4</p></td><td><p>0.3</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Other Renewable5</p></td><td><p>1.7</p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>Renewables Generation Capacity Investment</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>39.6</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Nuclear6</p></td><td><p>2.5</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>CCS</p></td><td><p>0.0</p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>Renewables, Nuclear &amp; CCS Generation Capacity Investment</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>42.1</strong></p></td></tr></tbody></table><p><em>Source: DECC’s Energy Investment Report March 2015</em></p><p> </p><p> </p><p><em>1</em><em> Including large scale onshore wind, but excluding Scottish Islands onshore wind </em></p><p><em>2</em><em> Including dedicated biomass, biomass conversions, bioliquids, energy from waste, anaerobic digestion (including small scale), advanced conversion technologies, landfill and sewage gas (including CHP variations of any of these technologies)</em></p><p><em>3</em><em> Including large and small scale solar PV </em></p><p><em>4</em><em> Including large and small scale hydro technologies </em></p><p><em>5</em><em> Including Scottish Islands onshore wind, small scale onshore wind, and geothermal (including CHP)</em></p><p><em>6</em><em> 2010-2014 investment estimate includes the purchase of Horizon Nuclear Power by GE Hitachi, the purchase of the Moorside site by NuGen and expenditures in the period relating to the development of Hinkley Point C</em></p> answering member constituency South Northamptonshire answering member printed Andrea Leadsom question first answered 23/03/2016 14:43:03 answering member 4117 label Biography information for Andrea Leadsom
tabling member	1400 label Biography information for Kevin Brennan

479492

registered interest
date	17/03/2016
answering body	HM Treasury
answering dept id	14
answering dept short name	Treasury
answering dept sort name	CaTreasury
hansard heading	Redundancy Pay: Private Sector
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 4February 2016 to Question 24536, what assessment he has made of the number of exit payments in the private sector above £1 million; and what assessment his Department has made of the effect of such exit payments on pay inequality within and between the public and private sectors.
tabling member constituency	Cardiff West
tabling member printed	Kevin Brennan
uin	31531
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/03/2016 answer text <p>Exit payment terms and contractual arrangements, including the number of individuals on those terms, vary significantly across the private sector and within the public sector. The Government has made no specific assessment of the number of exit payments in the private sector above £1 million. The Government accepts there may be examples of terms in the private sector that match or exceed those in the public sector; including some private sector exit packages that exceed £1 million. Conversely, the Government has seen no evidence that redundancy terms such as employer-funded early retirement, which are widely available across the public sector and often cost employers tens, or even hundreds of thousands of pounds per person, are replicated to the same extent in the private sector.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>The Government has a duty to ensure public sector exit payments are fair and provide value for money to the tax payer. This is why, in the 2015 Spending Review, the Government announced it would consult on further cross public sector action on exit payment terms to ensure greater consistency within the public sector and reduce the cost of redundancy pay-outs. This consultation was launched on the 5 February 2016 and can be found at the following link: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/further-consultation-on-limiting-public-sector-exit-payments" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/further-consultation-on-limiting-public-sector-exit-payments</a>.</p><p> </p><p>The Government believes that the remuneration of senior staff in the private sector is primarily a matter for companies and their shareholders. Comprehensive reforms were introduced in 2013 to require companies to put their forward-looking pay policies, which must include details of their approach to exit payments, to a binding shareholder vote at least every three years. Companies are therefore only able to make exit payments within the limits that have been approved by a majority of shareholders.</p><p> </p><p>Overall, public sector pay remains on average comparable to private sector pay, and public sector defined benefit pensions are amongst the best available. HM Treasury analysis, as well as independent studies, show public sector pay at a premium for most of the last Parliament, and a significant continued premium when pensions are taken into account (IFS October 2014).</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Chelsea and Fulham answering member printed Greg Hands question first answered 24/03/2016 12:38:47 answering member 1526 label Biography information for Greg Hands
tabling member	1400 label Biography information for Kevin Brennan

479494

registered interest
date	17/03/2016
answering body	Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
answering dept id	26
answering dept short name	Business, Innovation and Skills
answering dept sort name	Business, Innovation and Skills
hansard heading	Companies: Registration
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many companies have cited in their registration at Companies House their registered office, the address of another business or private individual which they are not authorised to use in each year for which data is available.
tabling member constituency	Cardiff West
tabling member printed	Kevin Brennan
uin	31546
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 30/03/2016 answer text <p>Companies House has received the following number of complaints that companies have cited as their registered office, the address of another business or private individual that they allegedly are not authorised to use.</p><table><tbody><tr><td><p><strong>Year</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Number of Cases</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2013/14</p></td><td><p>1,270</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2014/15</p></td><td><p>1,385</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2015/16 (to date)</p></td><td><p>1,517</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p>Provisions contained in the Small Business, Enterprise and Employment Act 2015 will be commenced on 6 April. These will allow the Registrar of Companies to act in the event of a complaint of this nature about a registered office.</p> answering member constituency Broxtowe answering member printed Anna Soubry question first answered 30/03/2016 10:00:15 answering member 3938 label Biography information for Anna Soubry
tabling member	1400 label Biography information for Kevin Brennan

479511

registered interest
date	17/03/2016
answering body	Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
answering dept id	26
answering dept short name	Business, Innovation and Skills
answering dept sort name	Business, Innovation and Skills
hansard heading	Innovation and Science: Scotland
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will publish further information on the science and innovation audit for Edinburgh and the Lothians set out in paragraph 1.268 of Budget 2016.
tabling member constituency	Midlothian
tabling member printed	Owen Thompson
uin	31629
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 22/03/2016 answer text <p>The Edinburgh and Lothians audit is being taken forward in collaboration with a consortium led by Edinburgh University. Further information will be provided on GOV.UK in due course, once the first wave of audits gets underway.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Orpington answering member printed Joseph Johnson question first answered 22/03/2016 15:52:44 answering member 4039 label Biography information for Lord Johnson of Marylebone
tabling member	4482 label Biography information for Owen Thompson

479519

registered interest
date	17/03/2016
answering body	Department for Education
answering dept id	60
answering dept short name	Education
answering dept sort name	Education
hansard heading	Schools: Finance
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to her financial statement of 16 March 2016, Official Report, column 963, how the £500 million funding will be used to speed up the introduction of a fair national school funding formula.
tabling member constituency	East Ham
tabling member printed	Stephen Timms
uin	31704
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 22/03/2016 answer text <p>The Chancellor announced at the Budget that £540 million would be provided to the Department for Education to support the school reform agenda. This will supplement the department’s Spending Review settlement.</p><p> </p><p>We will spend around £500 million over the Spending Review period, over and above the per pupil protection of the core school budget, to accelerate the introduction of a fair national funding formula. All of this funding will be provided to support children’s education.</p><p> </p><p>The funding means that the government will be able to accelerate gains for schools that are due to see funding increases under the formula, while continuing to offer a minimum funding guarantee for all schools. We are currently consulting on the principles and funding factors that should define the national funding formula for schools. A second consultation, later this year, will address the weighting attached to those factors and transitional arrangements, including the use of this funding.</p><p> </p><p>A link to the consultation can be found here: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/schools-national-funding-formula" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/schools-national-funding-formula</a>.</p> answering member constituency East Surrey answering member printed Mr Sam Gyimah question first answered 22/03/2016 17:51:15 answering member 3980 label Biography information for Mr Sam Gyimah
tabling member	163 label Biography information for Sir Stephen Timms

479521

registered interest
date	17/03/2016
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	Social Security Benefits
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, which is the first year in which he expects welfare spending to be contained within the welfare cap.
tabling member constituency	East Ham
tabling member printed	Stephen Timms
uin	31705
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 22/03/2016 answer text <p>The Government believes it is right to monitor welfare spending carefully. We will review the level of the Welfare Cap at the Autumn Statement, which is when the Office for Budget Responsibility will formally assess spending against the Welfare Cap.</p> answering member constituency Witham answering member printed Priti Patel question first answered 22/03/2016 17:39:09 answering member 4066 label Biography information for Priti Patel
tabling member	163 label Biography information for Sir Stephen Timms

479525

registered interest
date	17/03/2016
answering body	HM Treasury
answering dept id	14
answering dept short name	Treasury
answering dept sort name	CaTreasury
hansard heading	Blockchain
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what planning his Department is undertaking to facilitate private sector investment in the scalability of the proofs-of-work aspects of blockchain technology; and what discussions he has had with the Bank of England on that topic.
tabling member constituency	Clacton
tabling member printed	Mr Douglas Carswell
uin	31545
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 22/03/2016 answer text <p>Digital currencies, and the distributed ledger technology that underpins them, have the potential to bring innovative services and products to UK customers and firms – particularly in areas like international transfers.</p><p> </p><p>The Chancellor announced in March 2015 that the Government will bring digital currency exchange firms into regulation in the UK to help the legitimate industry flourish, and to create a hostile environment for illicit actors. We will publish proposals on this regulatory regime in due course.</p><p> </p><p>As outlined in Deputy Governor, Ben Broadbent’s recent speech, the Bank of England is also exploring this emerging sector and the implications it could have for monetary and financial stability as part of its broader research agenda.</p><p> </p><p>Separately, academics at University College London’s (UCL) digital currency research centre have also been looking at how the distributed ledger technology that underpins digital currencies could be harnessed by central banks. The Government is encouraged to see this research from one of the UK’s world-leading universities. However, this a theoretical paper by an independent institution, separate from the Bank of England’s work and from Government policy.</p><p> </p><p>It is the Government’s ambition to foster the growth of legitimate digital currency firms as part of the wider FinTech ecosystem here in the UK. As part of this, the Government will consider the wider implications of a growing digital currencies sector for the financial services sector and the economy as a whole. Some parts of Government are also looking at how the benefits of distributed ledger technology can be harnessed to deliver greater innovation. However, the Government and the Bank of England do not currently have any plans to introduce a centrally issued digital currency.</p><p> </p><p>The UK has been rated as having the world’s leading FinTech ecosystem in a recent global benchmarking exercise and attracted c. £524mn in investment in 2015.</p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency West Worcestershire answering member printed Harriett Baldwin grouped question UIN 31556 31557 31558 31559 question first answered 22/03/2016 16:41:28 answering member 4107 label Biography information for Dame Harriett Baldwin
tabling member	1527 label Biography information for Mr Douglas Carswell

479581

registered interest
date	17/03/2016
answering body	Department for Energy and Climate Change
answering dept id	63
answering dept short name	Energy and Climate Change
answering dept sort name	Energy and Climate Change
hansard heading	Nuclear Decommissioning Authority: Redundancy Pay
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, pursuant to the Answer of 11 March 2016 to Question 30208, whether she plans to give Ministerial approval to relax the restrictions of the public sector exit cap on employees of the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority who leave work after 1 October 2016.
tabling member constituency	Barnsley Central
tabling member printed	Dan Jarvis
uin	31669
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 22/03/2016 answer text <p>The proposed public sector exit payment cap will apply to organisations classified as being within the public sector by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). This includes the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority’s sites, which are funded by the UK taxpayer.</p><p> </p><p>It is envisaged that there will be discretion to relax conditions of the cap in exceptional circumstances, for example where there are genuine cases of hardship. This discretion, which would be considered on a case by case basis and which would be subject to Ministerial approval, will be provided for in the exit cap regulations.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency South Northamptonshire answering member printed Andrea Leadsom question first answered 22/03/2016 15:30:24 answering member 4117 label Biography information for Andrea Leadsom
tabling member	4243 label Biography information for Dan Jarvis