Asked by: Chris Davies (Conservative - Brecon and Radnorshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
What steps his Department is taking to support freedom of speech in universities.
Answered by Chris Skidmore
The government is deeply committed to protecting freedom of speech in Higher Education (HE). The Equality and Human Rights Commission and key partners in the HE sector worked with the previous Minister of State for Universities, Science, Research and Innovation to develop a single piece of guidance which will set out key principles. This will enable universities and student unions to understand their obligations for protecting and supporting free speech.
Asked by: Chris Davies (Conservative - Brecon and Radnorshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
What steps his Department is taking to support freedom of speech in universities.
Answered by Chris Skidmore
The government is deeply committed to protecting freedom of speech in Higher Education (HE). The Equality and Human Rights Commission and key partners in the HE sector worked with the previous Minister of State for Universities, Science, Research and Innovation to develop a single piece of guidance which will set out key principles. This will enable universities and student unions to understand their obligations for protecting and supporting free speech.
Asked by: Chris Davies (Conservative - Brecon and Radnorshire)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
What recent assessment he has made of trends in the size of Hezbollah’s weapons arsenal.
Answered by Alistair Burt
We remain concerned by reports that Hizballah continues to amass an arsenal of weapons in Lebanon. We condemn the threat this poses to regional stability and that this is done in direct contravention of UN Security Council Resolutions 1559 and 1701.
Asked by: Chris Davies (Conservative - Brecon and Radnorshire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
If he will bring forward legislative proposals to support hill farmers after the UK leaves the EU.
Answered by George Eustice
Hill farmers play an important role in the maintenance of traditional upland landscapes providing both environmental and cultural benefits. The Government’s consultation document ‘Health and Harmony: the future for food, farming and the environment in a green Brexit’ makes clear that upland areas have the potential to benefit from the proposed new environmental land management schemes in England, given the nature of their landscapes and the public goods that they deliver.
Asked by: Chris Davies (Conservative - Brecon and Radnorshire)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent reports he has received of rocket fire into Israel from Gaza.
Answered by Alistair Burt
We are gravely concerned by recent increases in terrorist rocket fire. Since the 6th December 2017, 27 rockets have been fired from the Gaza strip. Rocket attacks wreak havoc on the daily lives of Israelis and make achieving peace more difficult. We call on all parties to refrain from violence and to commit to a negotiated solution to end the conflict.
Asked by: Chris Davies (Conservative - Brecon and Radnorshire)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent representations he has made to the Palestinian Authority on re-joining direct peace talks with Israel without preconditions.
Answered by Alistair Burt
The UK is committed to making progress towards a two-state solution. We regularly press both the Israelis and Palestinians to engage in direct negotiations that will lead to a safe and secure Israel living alongside a viable and sovereign Palestinian state. Our Consul General in Jerusalem reiterated our support for a negotiated two-state solution with Saeb Erekat, Secretary General of the Palestine Liberation Organization Executive Committee, on 2 January.
Asked by: Chris Davies (Conservative - Brecon and Radnorshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if his Department will carry out research into how best to tackle pavement parking; and what the timetable is for the consultation of Traffic Regulation Orders.
Answered by Jesse Norman
The Department plans to conduct a survey on Traffic Regulation Orders in the Spring.
The Department is currently considering the options for dealing with pavement parking, and expects to engage with interested parties in the near future.
Asked by: Chris Davies (Conservative - Brecon and Radnorshire)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if his Department will carry out research into how best to tackle pavement parking; and what the timetable is for the consultation of Traffic Regulation Orders.
Answered by Jesse Norman
The Department plans to conduct a survey on Traffic Regulation Orders in the Spring.
The Department is currently considering the options for dealing with pavement parking, and expects to engage with interested parties in the near future.
Asked by: Chris Davies (Conservative - Brecon and Radnorshire)
Question
To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what steps the Government is taking to celebrate the centenary of women being able to vote.
Answered by Anne Milton
I was delighted that my Rt hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, announced a £5 million fund to celebrate the centenary of the Representation of the People Act, and I have written to all hon. Members outlining how constituents will access the fund. The hope is that the centenary will build a legacy by educating a new generation about the hard-won right to vote.
Asked by: Chris Davies (Conservative - Brecon and Radnorshire)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the effect of recent changes to the climate change levy on the policy to move off-gas grid businesses away from oil, coal and other higher carbon fuels.
Answered by Jane Ellison
As announced at Budget 2016, the Government will rebalance the Climate Change Levy (CCL) rates between energy sources from 2019-20.
In 2019-20, the electricity to gas rates will move from a ratio of 2.9:1 to 2.5:1. Liquefied Petroleum Gas and other taxable fuel rates will be increased in proportion to the rate for gas. The Government intends to further rebalance the electricity to gas ratio to 1:1 by 2025.
This continues to ensure that the CCL encourages the efficient use of energy by businesses and reduces emissions by creating incentives to source electricity from renewable sources.