Asked by: Lord Leigh of Hurley (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they have taken to improve the (1) procedures, and (2) policies, for UK citizens seeking assistance following a death abroad, in particular in respect of repatriation of deceased relatives, subsequent to the murder of Daniel and Amelie Linsey in Sri Lanka on Easter Sunday 2020.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) consular staff are available to offer appropriate and tailored support to British nationals and their families, 24 hours a day, seven days a week and 365 days a year. The support we can provide is set out in Support for British nationals abroad: A guide, available on GOV.UK (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/support-for-british-nationals-abroad-a-guide). The FCDO seek continuously to improve our processes and services by acting on feedback and reviewing what we do. The FCDO is an active member of international consular forums and learns from, and shares experiences and best practice with, a range of other countries.
The FCDO provides tailored support to families bereaved overseas, including providing information on local police and judicial procedures. Since 2015, the FCDO's Murder and Manslaughter Team have provided dedicated tailored support to families bereaved through homicide abroad. This includes working closely with a range of other organisations such as police Family Liaison Officers where these are deployed, and the Homicide Service in England and Wales, to help families access specialist services. A Memorandum of Understanding between the FCDO, National Police Chiefs Council, and the Chief Coroner of England and Wales has been updated and was published on GOV.UK (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/murder-manslaughter-and-infanticide-of-british-nationals-abroad--2) in September 2020, setting out how each organisation coordinates delivery of their respective roles and responsibilities.
Asked by: Lord Leigh of Hurley (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many deceased persons are currently being held by coroners in England awaiting registration of death.
Answered by Lord Keen of Elie
The Ministry of Justice collects statistics on deaths reported to coroners on an annual basis but does not have details of deaths that are under investigation. The Office of National Statistics publishes the number of registered deaths but does not distinguish between deaths referred to coroners and other deaths so it is not possible to determine the average waiting time.
Asked by: Lord Leigh of Hurley (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the current average waiting time between the arrival of a person whose death was unexplained with a coroner and issuing a death certificate.
Answered by Lord Keen of Elie
The Ministry of Justice collects statistics on deaths reported to coroners on an annual basis but does not have details of deaths that are under investigation. The Office of National Statistics publishes the number of registered deaths but does not distinguish between deaths referred to coroners and other deaths so it is not possible to determine the average waiting time.
Asked by: Lord Leigh of Hurley (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they will take, if any, in respect of those universities which refuse to adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance's definition of antisemitism.
Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton
On 16 May 2019, the former Minister for Universities, Science, Research and Innovation (Chris Skidmore), my hon. Friend for Kingswood, wrote to higher education providers on the importance of tackling antisemitism in universities. This letter urged them to consider adopting the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition and set out his view that, although legally non-binding, it is a useful tool which will help front-line services better understand and recognise instances of antisemitism.
This government believes that adopting the IHRA definition of antisemitism sends a clear message that antisemitic behaviour will not be tolerated, and that any instances of antisemitism will be taken very seriously. It is for public bodies and agencies to implement the definition and embed it within operational guidance as relevant. As autonomous organisations, it is for each higher education provider to decide if and how they wish to implement the IHRA definition. The government will continue to call on providers to demonstrate their commitment to Jewish students on campus by adopting this definition in its entirety.
In this letter, the former Minister for Universities, Science, Research and Innovation (Chris Skidmore), my hon. Friend for Kingswood, communicated to providers that the department would be keen to hear more regarding the initiatives taken by providers to address antisemitism and all forms of intolerance, harassment and hate-crime. The following institutions have so far responded to the letter: University of Cambridge, University of Nottingham, Nottingham Trent University, University of Oxford, University of Worcester, SOAS University of London and University of Southampton.
Asked by: Lord Leigh of Hurley (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty's Government which universities have replied to the letter sent by the Minister of State for Universities, Science, Research and Innovation on 17 May asking them to adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance's definition of antisemitism.
Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton
On 16 May 2019, the former Minister for Universities, Science, Research and Innovation (Chris Skidmore), my hon. Friend for Kingswood, wrote to higher education providers on the importance of tackling antisemitism in universities. This letter urged them to consider adopting the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition and set out his view that, although legally non-binding, it is a useful tool which will help front-line services better understand and recognise instances of antisemitism.
This government believes that adopting the IHRA definition of antisemitism sends a clear message that antisemitic behaviour will not be tolerated, and that any instances of antisemitism will be taken very seriously. It is for public bodies and agencies to implement the definition and embed it within operational guidance as relevant. As autonomous organisations, it is for each higher education provider to decide if and how they wish to implement the IHRA definition. The government will continue to call on providers to demonstrate their commitment to Jewish students on campus by adopting this definition in its entirety.
In this letter, the former Minister for Universities, Science, Research and Innovation (Chris Skidmore), my hon. Friend for Kingswood, communicated to providers that the department would be keen to hear more regarding the initiatives taken by providers to address antisemitism and all forms of intolerance, harassment and hate-crime. The following institutions have so far responded to the letter: University of Cambridge, University of Nottingham, Nottingham Trent University, University of Oxford, University of Worcester, SOAS University of London and University of Southampton.
Asked by: Lord Leigh of Hurley (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many applications for explosive precursors and poisons licences have not been granted within one month of application in the last year.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
The Home Office aims to process all applications within 28 days of receiving all relevant information from the applicant. 86% of licence applications within the last year were processed within 28 days of receiving all relevant information from the applicant.
Asked by: Lord Leigh of Hurley (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what percentage of explosive precursors and poisons licences are granted within one month of receipt of the application.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
The Home Office aims to process all applications within 28 days of receiving all relevant information from the applicant. Within the last year, 86% of all licence applications were processed within 28 days of receiving all relevant information from the applicant.
Asked by: Lord Leigh of Hurley (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether all applications for explosive precursors and poisons licences receive written confirmation of receipt and subsequent correspondence receives a reply within one month.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
The explosives precursors and poisons licence application process is online and applicants automatically receive confirmation of their application. The explosives precursors and poisons licensing team aim to respond to all correspondence within 28 days.
Asked by: Lord Leigh of Hurley (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to replace the Certificates of Tax Deposit Scheme with a comparable replacement; and what consultation they will undertake on this subject.
Answered by Lord Bates
There are no plans to replace the Certificate of Tax Deposit Scheme.
Closure of the Certificate of Tax Deposit scheme will make the tax system simpler and fairer. New certificates are no longer available to buy but existing ones will continue to be honoured until 23rd November 2023, giving up to six years for existing users to adjust to the change. There are no plans for consultation on a replacement.
Asked by: Lord Leigh of Hurley (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what amount of VAT was not recovered from sellers who were served with notices in the last 12 months.
Answered by Lord Bates
In the 12 months since the joint and several liability provisions came into force, HMRC has issued 500 notices to online marketplaces through which overseas businesses sell.
In all of these cases, the marketplaces have removed the sellers from their platforms, preventing further losses of VAT through fraudulent sales.
Joint and several liability notices remain in force until the sellers become fully compliant with their VAT obligations, which includes payment of all previously owed taxes, plus interest and penalties.
To the end of August 2017, HMRC had raised assessments for unpaid VAT on those sellers totalling £43.6m, with a further £71m due to be assessed on sellers still under investigation.
The VAT paid by overseas businesses has increased from £6m in 2015 to £27m in 2016, and it is expected to continue to rise significantly in 2017.