Asked by: Alicia Kearns (Conservative - Rutland and Melton)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether UK Research and Innovation have (a) staff and (b) offices in China.
Answered by Andrew Griffith - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
UK Research Innovation (UKRI) has one overseas office in China with seven staff, co-located in the British Embassy Beijing.
Asked by: Alicia Kearns (Conservative - Rutland and Melton)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, whether he plans to support the draft UN resolution tabled by Rwanda, Germany and Bosnia and Herzegovina on declaring 11 July as an international day of reflection and remembrance of the Srebrenica genocide.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani - Minister of State (Minister for Europe)
The UK is proud to support the draft resolution. The atrocities that took place at Srebrenica were a genocide, as confirmed by the International Courts. We must never forget the victims of the Srebrenica genocide.
Asked by: Alicia Kearns (Conservative - Rutland and Melton)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department plans to introduce a national monitoring system to track agricultural land being developed for ground mounted solar.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
As the Prime Minister said at PMQs last week, we must protect our nation’s food security and therefore our most valuable agricultural land.
As per planning policy, local planning authorities should consider all the benefits of the best and most versatile agricultural land, when making plans or taking decisions on new development proposals. Where significant development of agricultural land is shown to be necessary, planning authorities should seek to use poorer quality land in preference to that of a higher quality. Planning Practice Guidance also sets out a preference for the use of lower quality agricultural land.
I agree that monitoring of the impacts of solar on agricultural land is important and am in discussions with my counterparts in DLUHC and DESNZ.
Asked by: Alicia Kearns (Conservative - Rutland and Melton)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, which assessment methods his Department's hearing loss compensation scheme uses; and whether he plans to update them.
Answered by Andrew Murrison - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
There is no individual compensation scheme for hearing loss. The Armed Forces Compensation Scheme (AFCS) compensates for any injury (including Noise-Induced Sensorineural Hearing Loss), illness or death which was caused by or worsened by service on or after 6 April 2005. The older War Pension Scheme (WPS) compensates for any injury, illness or death which was caused by or aggravated by service before 6 April 2005.
Medical evidence is carefully considered, and hearing loss is assessed initially for attributability to service, based on the burden of proof associated with the scheme rules set by Parliament.
In making a determination on a claim, decision makers take into consideration a wide variety of evidence. In a hearing loss claim this is likely to include but is not limited to the service medical records, audiograms, hospital case notes and GP records (if they have left service). The evidence is carefully considered in accordance with the scheme rules.
If injury is found to be attributable to service, under the AFCS, hearing loss is assessed against Tariff Table 7 (senses), which details the type and level of hearing loss required to meet the criteria for the specific descriptors. Under the WPS, a percentage assessment is derived based on audiometric values.
There has recently been a review of the AFCS in the form of the quinquennial review (QQR). The purpose of which is to ensure AFCS remains fit for purpose, providing appropriate recognition and financial support to those members of the Armed Forces who are injured, become ill or die as a result of service, I announced the publication of the Government response to the AFCS Quinquennial Review on 21 March 2024.