Asked by: Alasdair McDonnell (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much is expected to be allocated to Northern Ireland under the National Infrastructure pipeline in each of the next five years.
Answered by Greg Hands
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
Asked by: Alasdair McDonnell (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he expects revenue to be generated to the public purse from the sale of assets, buildings and land in Northern Ireland during 2015-16; and if so for what amount.
Answered by Greg Hands
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.
Asked by: Alasdair McDonnell (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what progress is being made to facilitate the arrival of Syrian refugees to Northern Ireland under the vulnerable persons relocation scheme.
Answered by Lord Harrington of Watford
The Home Office is working very closely with officials from the Office of the First Minister and the Deputy First Minister (OFMdFM) to assist Northern Ireland’s offer to welcome Syrians in need of help. At local level, the Home Office is represented in Northern Ireland at OFMdFM’s Syrian Refugee Strategic and Operational Planning Groups. We are also assisting OFMdFM officials in introducing the processes needed to enable the first intake of Syrian refugees to arrive in Northern Ireland.
Asked by: Alasdair McDonnell (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much has been received from fines generated from vehicle clamping or instant removal for non-payment of vehicle excise duty in Northern Ireland between (a) 1 August 2013 and 31 July 2014 and (b) 1 August 2014 and 31 July 2015; and what proportion of this income has been retained in or returned to Northern Ireland.
Answered by Andrew Jones
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.
Asked by: Alasdair McDonnell (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether all registered owners of a vehicle in Northern Ireland have been issued with a new V5C document with a 12 digit reference number.
Answered by Andrew Jones
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.
Asked by: Alasdair McDonnell (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate his Department has made of the number of vehicles clamped for non-payment of motor tax in Northern Ireland between (a) 1 August 2013 and 31 July 2014 and (b) 1 August 2014 and 31 July 2015.
Answered by Andrew Jones
The table below shows the number of vehicles that have been clamped or instantly removed for non-payment of vehicle excise duty in Northern Ireland:
Date | Number of vehicles clamped or instantly removed |
1 August 2013 – 31 July 2014 | 1,522 |
1 August 2014 – 31 July 2015 | 2,502 |
Asked by: Alasdair McDonnell (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many owners of vehicles clamped for not having motor tax in Northern Ireland between 1 August 2014 and 31 July 2015 appealed against that enforcement action; and how many such appeals were successful.
Answered by Andrew Jones
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.
Asked by: Alasdair McDonnell (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the cost was of the transfer of the administration of motor vehicle taxation in Northern Ireland from Coleraine to Swansea.
Answered by Andrew Jones
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.
Asked by: Alasdair McDonnell (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment he has made of trends in the levels of employment in the local newspaper industry since 2010; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Lord Vaizey of Didcot
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.
Asked by: Alasdair McDonnell (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to protect viable businesses from distressed securities funds.
Answered by Harriett Baldwin - Shadow Minister (Business and Trade)
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.