Asked by: Gavin Robinson (Democratic Unionist Party - Belfast East)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of (a) the Public Processions (Northern Ireland) Act 1998 and (b) subsequent amendments to that Act; and how many prosecutions there have been under the Act in each year since it came into force.
Answered by Hilary Benn - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The Public Processions (Northern Ireland) Act 1998 (as amended) currently provides an effective framework for managing public processions and related protests in Northern Ireland. As set out in the Stormont House and Fresh Start Agreements, any alternative arrangements for managing public processions in Northern Ireland would need to be agreed by the Northern Ireland Executive. Prosecutions under the Act are a matter for the Police Service of Northern Ireland and the Public Prosecution Service.
Asked by: Gavin Robinson (Democratic Unionist Party - Belfast East)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether obligated packaging producers will be required to pay Extended Producer Responsibility fees for packaging data submitted to his Department for 2024.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Yes. If the company is still a producer at the start of the 2025 assessment year then 2024 tonnage data will be used to calculate their obligation in 2025. This is in line with the current producer packaging recycling obligations that have been in place since 1997.
Asked by: Gavin Robinson (Democratic Unionist Party - Belfast East)
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 charge Extended Producer Responsibility fees retrospectively for obligated packaging producers.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
No. The amounts of the fees are calculated by reference to producers’ activities in the previous year, they are not fees payable in arrears for that previous year.
Asked by: Gavin Robinson (Democratic Unionist Party - Belfast East)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will take steps to provide British citizenship to the children of British National (Overseas) passport holders from Hong Kong that are in the UK.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
British National (Overseas) status holders who are on the BN(O) route in the
UK may apply for British citizenship after 5 years’ qualifying residence, and being free from immigration time restrictions for a further year.
Their children who have come to the UK as their dependants can apply when they meet the requirements.
Children born to BN(O)s in the UK will be able to apply for registration as a British citizen once their parent becomes settled.
Asked by: Gavin Robinson (Democratic Unionist Party - Belfast East)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what his Department's budget is for armed forces (a) uniforms and (b) protective clothing in the 2024-25 financial year; and what the value is of orders placed with companies in Northern Ireland to provide (i) uniforms and (ii) protective equipment for the armed forces in the same period.
Answered by Maria Eagle - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Logistics Commodities and Services Transformation (LCST) budget for all Clothing Raw Materials and Consumables purchases in the 2024-25 financial year (FY) is £79.839 million.
The value of orders placed with companies based in Northern Ireland for FY 2024-25 to date totals £16,441,905. We are forecast to spend an additional £11,755,371 for the remainder of the FY2024-25.
It has not been possible to identify which items are classed as uniform or which are protective clothing within the timeframe permitted.
Notes:
Asked by: Gavin Robinson (Democratic Unionist Party - Belfast East)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of pausing the implementation of the Extender Producer Responsibility scheme.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
This Government is committed to Extended Producer Responsibility for Packaging (pEPR) as a vital first step to cracking down on waste as we move towards a circular economy. It will create 21,000 jobs, stimulate more than £10 billion investment in the recycling sector over the next decade, and see packaging producers, rather than the taxpayer, cover the costs of managing waste. Delay to the implementation of the scheme would defer these environmental and economic benefits.
We will continue to work closely with businesses on the implementation of this programme and provide them with the clarity they need to prepare.
Asked by: Gavin Robinson (Democratic Unionist Party - Belfast East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress he has made on implementing his Department's policy document entitled Options for addressing the cost of pilot training, published on 31 May 2023.
Answered by Anthony Browne
The Government is aware that the high cost of training to become a commercial airline pilot can be a significant barrier to many young people seeking to pursue a career as a pilot. The Generation Aviation programme sees Government work with industry and outreach partners to raise the profile of aviation careers and remove barriers to access so the sector can build a workforce fit for the future.
As part of this, the Department commissioned independent research to help both Government and industry understand options for addressing the high cost of pilot training in the UK. The research, published in May 2023, found that there is a possibility that the future supply of commercial pilots will not meet demand in the UK. It made recommendations about alternative funding approaches and about addressing other costs for new pilots.
Since publication, the DfT has worked closely with industry to consider next steps. Airlines have a crucial role to play in reducing the financial barriers to becoming a pilot and we applaud the airline carriers who have recently launched funding options/sponsored pathways and cadetships.
Employers in the sector have already developed a First Officer Apprenticeship (FOA) standard to support the industry to develop the skills it needs and to help it widen access to the profession. The Department for Transport and Department for Education (DfE) are working with the sector to ensure that suitable training provision is available and to support the sector to make use of the apprenticeship. My department plans to host an industry event to discuss this in more detail next week.
Asked by: Gavin Robinson (Democratic Unionist Party - Belfast East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will take steps to introduce a Government-backed loan for pilot training.
Answered by Anthony Browne
The Government is aware that the high cost of training to become a commercial airline pilot can be a significant barrier to many young people seeking to pursue a career as a pilot. The Generation Aviation programme sees Government work with industry and outreach partners to raise the profile of aviation careers and remove barriers to access so the sector can build a workforce fit for the future.
As part of this, the Department commissioned independent research to help both Government and industry understand options for addressing the high cost of pilot training in the UK. The research, published in May 2023, found that there is a possibility that the future supply of commercial pilots will not meet demand in the UK. It made recommendations about alternative funding approaches and about addressing other costs for new pilots.
Since publication, the DfT has worked closely with industry to consider next steps. Airlines have a crucial role to play in reducing the financial barriers to becoming a pilot and we applaud the airline carriers who have recently launched funding options/sponsored pathways and cadetships.
Employers in the sector have already developed a First Officer Apprenticeship (FOA) standard to support the industry to develop the skills it needs and to help it widen access to the profession. The Department for Transport and Department for Education (DfE) are working with the sector to ensure that suitable training provision is available and to support the sector to make use of the apprenticeship. My department plans to host an industry event to discuss this in more detail next week.
Asked by: Gavin Robinson (Democratic Unionist Party - Belfast East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department is taking to support people who are training to be pilots.
Answered by Anthony Browne
The Government is aware that the high cost of training to become a commercial airline pilot can be a significant barrier to many young people seeking to pursue a career as a pilot. The Generation Aviation programme sees Government work with industry and outreach partners to raise the profile of aviation careers and remove barriers to access so the sector can build a workforce fit for the future.
As part of this, the Department commissioned independent research to help both Government and industry understand options for addressing the high cost of pilot training in the UK. The research, published in May 2023, found that there is a possibility that the future supply of commercial pilots will not meet demand in the UK. It made recommendations about alternative funding approaches and about addressing other costs for new pilots.
Since publication, the DfT has worked closely with industry to consider next steps. Airlines have a crucial role to play in reducing the financial barriers to becoming a pilot and we applaud the airline carriers who have recently launched funding options/sponsored pathways and cadetships.
Employers in the sector have already developed a First Officer Apprenticeship (FOA) standard to support the industry to develop the skills it needs and to help it widen access to the profession. The Department for Transport and Department for Education (DfE) are working with the sector to ensure that suitable training provision is available and to support the sector to make use of the apprenticeship. My department plans to host an industry event to discuss this in more detail next week.
Asked by: Gavin Robinson (Democratic Unionist Party - Belfast East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will take steps to launch a support scheme for pilot training.
Answered by Anthony Browne
The Government is aware that the high cost of training to become a commercial airline pilot can be a significant barrier to many young people seeking to pursue a career as a pilot. The Generation Aviation programme sees Government work with industry and outreach partners to raise the profile of aviation careers and remove barriers to access so the sector can build a workforce fit for the future.
As part of this, the Department commissioned independent research to help both Government and industry understand options for addressing the high cost of pilot training in the UK. The research, published in May 2023, found that there is a possibility that the future supply of commercial pilots will not meet demand in the UK. It made recommendations about alternative funding approaches and about addressing other costs for new pilots.
Since publication, the DfT has worked closely with industry to consider next steps. Airlines have a crucial role to play in reducing the financial barriers to becoming a pilot and we applaud the airline carriers who have recently launched funding options/sponsored pathways and cadetships.
Employers in the sector have already developed a First Officer Apprenticeship (FOA) standard to support the industry to develop the skills it needs and to help it widen access to the profession. The Department for Transport and Department for Education (DfE) are working with the sector to ensure that suitable training provision is available and to support the sector to make use of the apprenticeship. My department plans to host an industry event to discuss this in more detail next week.