First elected: 5th May 2005
Left House: 3rd May 2017 (Defeated)
Speeches made during Parliamentary debates are recorded in Hansard. For ease of browsing we have grouped debates into individual, departmental and legislative categories.
e-Petitions are administered by Parliament and allow members of the public to express support for a particular issue.
If an e-petition reaches 10,000 signatures the Government will issue a written response.
If an e-petition reaches 100,000 signatures the petition becomes eligible for a Parliamentary debate (usually Monday 4.30pm in Westminster Hall).
These initiatives were driven by Alasdair McDonnell, and are more likely to reflect personal policy preferences.
MPs who are act as Ministers or Shadow Ministers are generally restricted from performing Commons initiatives other than Urgent Questions.
Alasdair McDonnell has not been granted any Urgent Questions
Alasdair McDonnell has not been granted any Adjournment Debates
Alasdair McDonnell has not introduced any legislation before Parliament
Alasdair McDonnell has not co-sponsored any Bills in the current parliamentary sitting
We are hoping to reform our relationship with the EU. The Government is focused on delivering a successful renegotiation.
HM Government does not collect or hold data for cross-border post between the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland.
Data relating to the volumes of mail between the UK and the Republic of Ireland are subject to commercial confidentiality between the national postal operators, Royal Mail and An Post, and other carriers operating between the two countries.
The setting of postal prices, including prices for cross-border mail between the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland, is the direct responsibility of postal operators. It is for postal operators and other carriers to ensure that they offer cross-border services that meet the needs of postal users in Northern Ireland and that their services are competitively priced, while covering the costs of their respective operations.
Royal Mail, as the UK’s designated universal service provider, can negotiate suitable cross-border arrangements with the postal administration in the Republic of Ireland in the same way as it does for any other international destination, though its universal services must comply with the requirements of the Postal Services Directive on cross-border mail within the European Union and with Ofcom’s regulatory framework which sets parameters on pricing for universal postal services. Other carriers offering services between the UK and the Republic of Ireland are responsible for setting their own pricing structures in response to market pressures.
Royal Mail works closely with An Post to provide customers with a high-quality cross border postal service. A Consumer Focus NI report of March 2010 (http://www.consumerfocus.org.uk/northern-ireland/publications/cross-border-post-improving-mail-services-between-northern-ireland-and-the-republic-of-ireland) found that on reliability 85% of consumers and 75% of businesses rated the cross-border services as good and that the service exceeded the EU performance targets of delivery within 3 days of posting in both directions.
The decision to limit the allocation of shares under the Royal Mail Retail Offer to those applying for less than £10,000 was taken by Ministers on 9 October 2013.
The banks involved in the sale of Royal Mail shares were informed on the same day as the decision was made.
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.
The BBC published their Diversity Strategy in April of this year. In the White Paper; A BBC for the Future: a broadcaster for distinction, the Government welcomed the proposals set out in the Diversity Strategy. The Government is confident that the BBC will fulfil its remit to serve all audiences and ensure that it will make suitable provisions to ensure that everyone can access their services.
Under its Universal Service obligations, BT must provide public call boxes in order to meet the reasonable needs of users in terms of geographical coverage, the number of public call boxes and the quality of call box services. The Government provides the powers for Ofcom to set such conditions under section 45 of the Communications Act 2003.
Compliance with Ofcom regulations is a matter for Ofcom and any evidence that BT is not complying with its published criteria should be presented to Ofcom to investigate.
BT currently operates 1612 payphones in Northern Ireland.
We do not hold have historic data on removals for Northern Ireland.
This is a matter for local authorities to take based on the value of retaining a phone box to the local community.
We recognise the importance of public call boxes as a means of calling the emergency services. Ofcom requires that there is a period of consultation before a public call box is removed and that one of the factors to be considered by the relevant public body is the potential importance of the call box to contact the emergency services.
Improving mobile connectivity across the UK, including in rural and hard to reach areas is a priority for the Government, and the December 2014 agreement with industry guarantees that each mobile network operator will provide voice and SMS text coverage to 90% of the UK's landmass by end-2017. Additionally, Telefonica has a licence obligation to deliver indoor 4G coverage to 98% of UK premises over the same period. Taken together these obligations will cut complete not spots further, and improve mobile coverage across the UK.
The Code of Practice for the Public Emergency Call Service requires that a caller from a mobile phone is able to roam onto another mobile network to make an emergency call if they have no signal from their own provider. The improvements in mobile connectivity arising from the December 2014 agreement will support this.
Employment levels in the local newspaper industry have been discussed at a number of summits and meetings my department has held with the local newspaper industry. These discussions have indicated there has been a steady decline in employment figures in the local newspaper industry since 2010.
Schools are free to teach first aid, and may choose to do this as part of personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) education, which is a non-statutory curriculum subject. This is reflected in the PSHE Association’s non-statutory programme of study, which includes first aid.
When teaching first aid, many schools draw on the expertise of reputable organisations, such as the British Red Cross, the British Heart Foundation and St John Ambulance.
No formal response will be made. On 16 September 2016 the Government published its response to the final report and recommendations of the Independent Review on Antimicrobial Resistance. The response outlines future plans and ambitions to reduce the need for antibiotics and tackle antibiotic resistance.
We continue to work with a wide-range of stakeholders and use emerging, scientifically sound evidence to develop policy.
On 16 September 2016 the Government published its response to the final report and recommendations of the Independent Review on Antimicrobial Resistance.
The response includes clear commitments to reducing the need for antibiotics in livestock. We have committed to work closely with different individual sectors to ensure that appropriate sector specific reduction targets are agreed by 2017. This will ensure that future reductions are greatest where there is most scope, and that they are underpinned by improvements which focus on encouraging best practice and responsible use of antibiotics.
This work aligns with the actions already set out in the Government’s Five-Year Antimicrobial Resistance Strategy, including improving the stewardship of existing antibiotics, improving infection prevention and control and optimising prescribing practice.
Representatives from Defra sit on the European Medicines Agency’s ad hoc Antimicrobial Expert Group (AMEG). The group is comprised of experts on human and animal health.
In 2013, AMEG assessed the risk posed to human health by the use of antibiotics in veterinary medicine. Their assessment was revised in 2016 following the discovery of bacteria resistant to colistin, a last resort antibiotic in human medicine. They recommended that colistin was classified as a critically important antibiotic to human health and called for a reduction of its use in veterinary medicine.
AMEG will continue to assess emerging evidence and bring recommendations where necessary.
The Government is focused on delivering a successful renegotiation. We believe we can and will succeed in reforming and renegotiating our relationship with the EU and campaigning to keep the UK in the EU on that basis.
DFID supports the aims of the recommendation of the UN High Level Panel on Access to Medicines. DFID is a long-term supporter of medical and health research, including research to develop new health technologies (including diagnostics, drugs and vaccines). The research funding is provided to organisations that (a) prioritise public health needs over profit and (b) comply with the Department’s open access policy, to enable wide access to findings and allow for further collaboration.
While we support the aims of the UN High Level Panel on Access to Medicines, we note that this panel of experts could not reach consensus. DFID supports improving transparency in the pharmaceutical industry and funds the Access to Medicine Index to increase the transparency of pharmaceutical companies.
DFID supports the aims of the UN High Level Panel on Access to Medicines, but we note that this panel of experts could not reach consensus. The World Health Organisation has analysed the barriers that limit access to medicines, and developed a Global Strategy and Plan of Action on Public Health, Innovation and Intellectual Property. It is, therefore, well-placed to consider, with partners, which of the Panel’s recommendations add value.
Through the World Health Assembly (WHA), member states have discussed practical steps for greater coordination of research, including the establishment of a global health observatory for monitoring and tracking research. Progress on the observatory and the establishment of a Global Expert Committee for Health Research and Development will be discussed with the WHO in early 2017.
The Department has provided a grant payment of £70,000 to Driver First Assist for its 2016-17 programme.
Driver First Assist is a not for profit organisation training large goods vehicle drivers to provide lifesaving first aid and manage the scene at a road traffic collision prior to the arrival of the emergency services. So far the organisation has trained 738 drivers to act as first responders.
Advice on “First aid on the road” is contained in Annex 7 of The Highway Code. Driver’s knowledge of first aid is tested as part of the driver theory test and many professional drivers take first aid training. The Department is providing support for a not-for-profit training programme for drivers in administering first aid.
The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) does not record the revenue generated from vehicle excise duty enforcement action carried out in Northern Ireland separately to that from the rest of the UK. Therefore, the information requested is not available. The DVLA passes all revenue generated from such enforcement action to HM Treasury.
The centralisation of registration and licensing services to the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency was delivered as part of a wider project to provide parity of services for Northern Ireland customers including electronic vehicle licensing. This has delivered £9m of savings so far and a projected saving of £12m per annum. The overall cost of this project was £22.15m. These costs cannot be broken down to separate out a specific cost for the transfer of the centralisation of motor vehicle taxation.
Between 1 August 2014 and 31 July 2015 there were 52 appeals lodged by vehicle keepers in Northern Ireland against enforcement action for the non-payment of vehicle excise duty. Of these 12 were successful.
No. However, since July 2014, when vehicle registration and licensing services in Northern Ireland were transferred to the DVLA in Swansea, the 12 digit reference number has been added to Vehicle Registration Certificates for Northern Ireland customers as and when they are issued.
The estimated numbers of passengers on flights originating in Northern Ireland who take connecting flights from other UK airports in each of the last five years are given in the table below.
Passengers originating in Northern Ireland who transfer at UK airports, 2009 - 2013
| |
Year
| Transfer passengers (000's)
|
2009
| 571
|
2010
| 506
|
2011
| 400
|
2012
| 441
|
2013
| 343
|
These figures are based on data from the CAA’s passenger surveys and reflect those airports which form part of the continuous survey (Heathrow, Gatwick, Luton, Stansted and Manchester). These airports account for the majority of transfer passengers travelling from Northern Ireland.
The Government has not made an assessment of the economic effects on Northern Ireland or the UK of the cost of air fares to and from Northern Ireland. However, we said in last year’s Aviation Policy Framework that the aviation sector’s economic output to the whole UK economy in 2011 was approximately £18 billion, and that it employs around 220,000 workers directly and supports many more indirectly. We recognise that airports across the UK play an important role in securing connectivity for local populations and their contribution to local, regional and national economies.
I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 20 October 2016 to Question UIN 48978.
Services for pancreatic cancer have been significantly strengthened within the National Health Service in recent years. This includes clearer diagnostic pathways; decision making by specialist multi-disciplinary teams; and centralisation of pancreas surgery within specialist teams.
However, we know more needs to be done. The Independent Cancer Taskforce’s report, Achieving World-Class Outcomes a Cancer Strategy for England 2015 – 2020, notes that whilst survival to date has improved significantly for some cancers, it has remained stubbornly low for other cancers, including pancreatic cancer.
The strategy makes recommendations for speeding up diagnosis of cancers with non-specific but concerning symptoms through the use of a multidisciplinary diagnostic centre. In terms of delivery, NHS England has appointed Cally Palmer as National Cancer Director. She will lead on implementation; as well as new cancer vanguards to redesign care and patient experience. She has set up a new Cancer Transformation Board to implement the strategy, and this met for the first time on Monday 25 January. There will also be a Cancer Advisory group, chaired by Sir Harpal Kumar, to oversee and scrutinise the work of the Transformation Board.
In addition, NHS England has a published a service specification for pancreatic cancer which clearly defines what it expects to be in place for providers to offer evidence-based, safe and effective pancreatic cancer services. This service specification has been developed by specialised clinicians, commissioners, expert patients and public health representatives to describe core and developmental service standards.
The full service specification can be found at:
http://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/a02-cncr-panc.pdf
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) published updated guideline, Suspected cancer: recognition and referral, in June 2015, to ensure that it reflects latest evidence and can continue to support general practitioner’s (GPs) to identify patients, including children & young people and urgently refer them as appropriate. NICE noted that 5,000 more lives could be saved each year in England if GPs followed the new guideline, which encourage GPs to think of cancer sooner and lower the referral threshold.
Improving early diagnosis of cancer is a priority for this Government. We have committed to implementing recommendation 24 of the Independent Cancer Taskforce’s report Achieving World-Class Outcomes and this will be underpinned by investment of up to £300 million more in diagnostics each year by 2020. The strategy also makes recommendations for speeding up diagnosis of cancers with non-specific but concerning symptoms through the use of multidisciplinary diagnostic centres. NHS England is working with partners across the health system to consider how best to take forward these and other recommendations.
Updated suspected cancer referral guidelines by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), including new guidelines for pancreatic cancer, which was published last June will continue to support general practitioners (GPs) to identify patients and urgently refer them as appropriate, where pancreatic cancer is suspected. NICE noted that more lives could be saved each year in England if GPs followed the new guideline, which encourages GPs to think of cancer sooner and lower the referral threshold.
Public Health England’s Be Clear on Cancer campaigns aim to raise awareness of the signs and symptoms of specific cancers, and to encourage those with symptoms to see their doctor promptly. A number of factors are taken into account when deciding which campaigns to develop and run, with one of the main criteria being the scope to save lives through earlier diagnosis and whether the cancer has a clear early sign or symptom that the general public can act upon should it arise. Pancreatic cancer is generally asymptomatic at an early stage and it is for this reason that there has not been a campaign focussing on this cancer type to date.
Public Health England is also looking to develop an approach to raise awareness of generic symptoms that can indicate a wider number of cancers and the need to visit the doctor promptly with these symptoms. This work is currently in development, with the help of a number of experts, including clinicians and charities.
Data is not available at the level of detail being requested. However, information is shown in the following table on the spend on upper gastrointestinal and ‘other' cancers for the period stated.
Estimated expenditure on upper gastrointestinal cancers and ‘other' cancers, 2008-09 to 2012-13, £ billions in 2012-13 prices
2008-09 | 2009-10 | 2010-11 | 2011-12 | 2012-13 | |
Cancers and Tumours - Upper Gastrointestinal | 0.24 | 0.28 | 0.20 | 0.20 | 1.55 |
Cancers and Tumours - Other | 2.21 | 2.57 | 2.95 | 3.00 | 0.63 |
Source:
Programme budgeting data, NHS England
It should be noted that the data are not a reliable source for making year on year comparisons due to changes to the data collection methodology.
Further, not all expenditure can be allocated to a disease based category – therefore some expenditure will be allocated as ‘miscellaneous'. General practitioner expenditure is also not included within the estimates.
The Department is fully committed to clinical and applied research into cancer prevention, diagnosis and treatment. The Department's National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health, including pancreatic cancer. These applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards being made on the basis of the importance of the topic to patients and the National Health Service, value for money and scientific quality.
The National Cancer Research Institute (NCRI) is a United Kingdom-wide partnership between the Government, charity and industry which promotes co-operation in cancer research among the 22 member organisations. An analysis of spend data submitted by NCRI partners covering the period from 2002 to 2011 is available on the NCRI website at:
www.ncri.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/2013-NCRI-Cancer-research-spend-in-the-UK-2002-2011_data-package.xlsx
This analysis includes data for all cancer research, for site-specific research and for individual sites including pancreatic cancer. Between 2002 and 2011, the proportion of site-specific funding spent on pancreatic cancer research almost doubled.
In August 2011, the Government announced £800 million investment over five years in a series of NIHR Biomedical Research Centres and Units, including £61.5 million funding for the Royal Marsden/Institute of Cancer Research Biomedical Research Centre, and £6.5 million funding for the Liverpool Biomedical Research Unit in gastrointestinal disease (which has a major focus on pancreatic cancer). Some research they conduct is relevant to multiple cancer sites.
The UK Clinical Research Network Portfolio Database currently has 15 studies in pancreatic cancer listed.
As set out in the Written Ministerial Statement of 21 July 2016, HCWS125, the MOD monitors incidents of alleged International Humanitarian Law (IHL) violations using available information which in turn is used to form an overall view on the approach and attitude of Saudi Arabia to IHL. This in turn informs the risk assessment made under the consolidated criteria, i.e. whether there is a clear risk that it might be used in the commission of a serious IHL violation, for the purposes of the arms exports licensing risk assessment. We are not acting to determine whether a sovereign state has or has not acted in breach of IHL, but instead - as Criterion 2(c) requires – we are acting to make an overall judgement.
While we have not raised this specific point, I raised the wider issue of Palestinian minors in detention with the Israeli Ambassador to London on 10 November. The treatment of Palestinian children in Israeli military detention remains a human rights priority for the UK. We have expressed our concerns to the Israeli authorities on the use of single hand ties and the need to notify children of their legal rights. Officials from our Embassy in Tel Aviv most recently raised the issue of Palestinian children in detention with the Israeli authorities on 10 October. We remain committed to working with the Israeli authorities to encourage further changes in practice.
The UK will recognise a Palestinian state at a time most helpful to the peace process. We judge that a negotiated end to the occupation is the most effective way for Palestinian aspirations of statehood to be met. We continue to be one of the principal supporters of Palestinian state building efforts, assisting them to tackle poverty, build institutions and boost their economy.
We regularly raise our concerns over press freedoms with the Egyptian authorities both in London and in Cairo. The Prime Minister raised the detention of journalists including the trial of the Al Jazeera journalists with President Sisi during his visit to the UK in November 2015. I raised press freedoms and freedom of expression with the Egyptian Ambassador earlier this month.
We also regularly make our views on freedom of expression known to the Saudi Arabian Government. We continue to underline to the UAE that people must be allowed to freely discuss and debate issues and exercise the right to freedom of thought. We believe that reforms, including meeting citizens’ aspirations for greater participation, will be the guarantor of longer-term stability in the region.
The promotion and protection of the right to freedom of religion or belief is one of the UK’s human rights priorities. We regularly urge foreign governments at senior levels to uphold the rights of all minorities; work to build international consensus on freedom of religion or belief; and support practical projects on community dialogue with civil society and faith groups.
An example of our lobbying in Africa was the case of Meriam Ibrahim, who was sentenced to death for apostasy. The Prime Minister, my right hon. Friend the Member for Witney (Mr Cameron), the Secretary of State for International Development, my right hon. Friend the member for Putney (Ms Greening) and the Minister for Africa my hon. Friend the Member for Rochford and Sounthend East (Mr Duddridge) all publicly condemned her sentencing, and called on the Government of Sudan to respect the right to freedom of religion or belief and international human rights laws. Following UK and international pressure Ms Ibrahim was subsequently released.
We are deeply concerned by the difficulties facing many Christians and religious minorities in the Middle East and deplore all discrimination and constraints on freedom of religion.
The Government has been a supporter of greater tax transparency and the provision in the Finance Act 2016 mirrors this position.
It remains important that the provision is used to deliver a model of public country-by-country reporting that has been agreed on a multilateral basis. This will ensure public country-by-country reporting applies to both UK headquartered and foreign headquartered multinationals, requiring them to report on their profits and taxes for the full range of countries in which they operate.
We will continue to work with international partners on greater public disclosure of the tax affairs of multinational enterprises, including our continued participation in the discussions on the European Commission’s proposal.
The government is committed to increasing competition in banking and creating an environment in which firms compete to offer a range of products that suit the varying needs of their customers. Both existing and prospective mortgage borrowers may benefit from shopping around to find the best deal available to them.
The Chancellor has not discussed with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) what effect its regulations on mortgage affordability assessments have had on the ability of borrowers to switch providers. Similarly the government has not undertaken a formal analysis of these effects.
Although the Treasury sets the legal framework for the regulation of financial services, specific rules are a matter for the FCA whose day-to-day operations are independent from government control and influence.
In May 2016 the FCA published a review which assessed the impact of recent changes to the regulation of mortgage lending. Where lending is affordable, the FCA did not see evidence that the responsible lending rules have prevented creditworthy consumers obtaining loans.
The full review can be found here: https://www.fca.org.uk/publication/thematic-reviews/tr16-04.pdf
According to data from the Bank of England, in September 2016 the average interest rate on outstanding mortgages fell to a historic low of 2.74%.
The government is committed to increasing competition in banking and creating an environment in which firms compete to offer a range of products that suit the varying needs of their customers. Both existing and prospective mortgage borrowers may benefit from shopping around to find the best deal available to them.
The Chancellor has not discussed with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) what effect its regulations on mortgage affordability assessments have had on the ability of borrowers to switch providers. Similarly the government has not undertaken a formal analysis of these effects.
Although the Treasury sets the legal framework for the regulation of financial services, specific rules are a matter for the FCA whose day-to-day operations are independent from government control and influence.
In May 2016 the FCA published a review which assessed the impact of recent changes to the regulation of mortgage lending. Where lending is affordable, the FCA did not see evidence that the responsible lending rules have prevented creditworthy consumers obtaining loans.
The full review can be found here: https://www.fca.org.uk/publication/thematic-reviews/tr16-04.pdf
According to data from the Bank of England, in September 2016 the average interest rate on outstanding mortgages fell to a historic low of 2.74%.
The government is committed to increasing competition in banking and creating an environment in which firms compete to offer a range of products that suit the varying needs of their customers. Both existing and prospective mortgage borrowers may benefit from shopping around to find the best deal available to them.
The Chancellor has not discussed with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) what effect its regulations on mortgage affordability assessments have had on the ability of borrowers to switch providers. Similarly the government has not undertaken a formal analysis of these effects.
Although the Treasury sets the legal framework for the regulation of financial services, specific rules are a matter for the FCA whose day-to-day operations are independent from government control and influence.
In May 2016 the FCA published a review which assessed the impact of recent changes to the regulation of mortgage lending. Where lending is affordable, the FCA did not see evidence that the responsible lending rules have prevented creditworthy consumers obtaining loans.
The full review can be found here: https://www.fca.org.uk/publication/thematic-reviews/tr16-04.pdf
According to data from the Bank of England, in September 2016 the average interest rate on outstanding mortgages fell to a historic low of 2.74%.
The Government has a clear mandate to improve Britain’s relationship with the rest of the EU, and to reform the EU so that it creates jobs and increases living standards for all its citizens. As the Prime Minister has made clear, this is about providing the certainty and reform that businesses have asked for. The CBI and BCC have come out to say they support the reform agenda the Prime Minister is seeking to deliver.
As the Chancellor of the Exchequer has noted, the best outcome for the UK economy is that we achieve major economic reform of the EU. The Prime Minister is focused on success: he believes he can and will succeed in reforming and renegotiating our relationship with the EU and campaigning to keep the UK in the EU on that basis.
The information requested can be obtained from “National Infrastructure Pipeline”, published in July 2015 and is available here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-infrastructure-pipeline-july-2015
The devolved administrations have the capacity to generate income from asset sales and should do so where this is a sensible way of realising value for taxpayers and freeing up resources for investment.
The Government has committed to securing good value for money for taxpayers by establishing UK Government Investments to deliver the sale of a wide range of publicly-owned assets.
The Stormont House Agreement contains specific measures whereby the Treasury would allow the Northern Ireland Executive to retain the proceeds of specific agreed asset sales in their entirety, and give exceptional consideration to those funds being used for a combination of both capital and resource spending.
Many businesses rely on funding and advice from creditors such as Private Equity funds for restructuring purposes, and have used this support to strengthen their business. However, it is inevitable that some businesses cannot overcome their financial difficulties. It is right that those who invest in businesses are allowed compensation in the event the company defaults on their debt.
However, the government understands the importance of protecting businesses from unfair or predatory practices by creditors. Anti-asset stripping measures were introduced under the Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive (AIFMD), which includes specific measures to address concerns about predatory creditors.