Asked by: James Duddridge (Conservative - Rochford and Southend East)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions her Department has had with (a) hospitals in (i) Essex and (ii) Hertfordshire and (b) the Royal London Hospital on improving helicopter night landing availability.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We have had no such discussions. Decisions on the location of National Health Service Hospital Helicopter Landing Sites, including night landing capacity, are taken locally by NHS organisations consistent with their clinical services and patient needs.
Asked by: James Duddridge (Conservative - Rochford and Southend East)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many driving tests were conducted at the Southend Driving Test Centre in each year since 2010.
Answered by Richard Holden - Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office)
The table below shows the number of car practical driving tests conducted at Southend-on-Sea driving test centre each year. The test centre did not open until May 2012.
Year (April to April) | No. of driving tests conducted at Southend-on-Sea driving test centre |
2012 to 2013 | 2234 |
2013 to 2014 | 3869 |
2014 to 2015 | 5064 |
2015 to 2016 | 5772 |
2016 to 2017 | 6639 |
2017 to 2018 | 6485 |
2018 to 2019 | 6825 |
2019 to 2020 | 6306 |
2020 to 2021 | 1201 |
2021 to 2022 | 4581 |
Asked by: James Duddridge (Conservative - Rochford and Southend East)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if he will publish the timetable for the consultation on the Private Parking Code of Practice.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
The department is currently reviewing the levels of private parking charges and additional fees set out in the temporarily withdrawn Private Parking Code of Practice. As part of this review, we are carrying out an impact assessment and will consult before retaking new decisions on these elements of the Code.
The assessment will consider all relevant impacts that arise from the new Code and will cover England, Scotland and Wales where the Code is going to apply
Further details will be set out in due course.
Asked by: James Duddridge (Conservative - Rochford and Southend East)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if he will publish the Terms of Reference for the consultation on the Private Parking Code of Practice.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
The department is currently reviewing the levels of private parking charges and additional fees set out in the temporarily withdrawn Private Parking Code of Practice. As part of this review, we are carrying out an impact assessment and will consult before retaking new decisions on these elements of the Code.
The assessment will consider all relevant impacts that arise from the new Code and will cover England, Scotland and Wales where the Code is going to apply
Further details will be set out in due course.
Asked by: James Duddridge (Conservative - Rochford and Southend East)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether his Department has undertaken a business impact assessment of the proposed changes to the Private Parking Code of Practice in (a) Rochford and Southend East constituency and (b) England.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
The department is currently reviewing the levels of private parking charges and additional fees set out in the temporarily withdrawn Private Parking Code of Practice. As part of this review, we are carrying out an impact assessment and will consult before retaking new decisions on these elements of the Code.
The assessment will consider all relevant impacts that arise from the new Code and will cover England, Scotland and Wales where the Code is going to apply
Further details will be set out in due course.
Asked by: James Duddridge (Conservative - Rochford and Southend East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with his counterparts in Malawi on the treatment and work of Martha Chizuma, Malawi's Anti-Corruption Bureau Director.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The UK endorses the President of Malawi's commitment to fight corruption in Malawi. We welcome the reversal of the decision to suspend the Director of the Anti-Corruption Bureau, Martha Chizuma, after criminal charges against her were dropped. The UK provides technical assistance to Malawian law enforcement agencies, such as the Anti-Corruption Bureau, to help increase their capacity to pursue cases linked to serious corruption.
Asked by: James Duddridge (Conservative - Rochford and Southend East)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of mandating sustainable drainage systems for all new housing developments in England.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Defra carried out a review into making sustainable drainage systems mandatory for new developments in England. The review was published on 10 January 2023 and the Government is now looking at how best to implement through Schedule 3 to the Flood and Water Management Act 2010. Final decisions on scope, threshold and process will be made following a public consultation later this year and implementation will take place during 2024.
Asked by: James Duddridge (Conservative - Rochford and Southend East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how many full time equivalent staff his Department has in Eswatini.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The full time equivalent FCDO staff in Eswatini is fewer than 10.
Asked by: James Duddridge (Conservative - Rochford and Southend East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the implications for his Department's policies of the democracy movement in Eswatini.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The UK Government remains disappointed by the lack of progress towards meaningful dialogue in Eswatini to address the restrictions on democratic and civil rights. We are clear that all citizens have the right to peaceful assembly and freedom of expression and that the Government of Eswatini must exercise restraint and respect the human rights of its people. Through our High Commissioner in Mbabane, representations on this matter have been made directly to King Mswati III, the Prime Minister of Eswatini and others, including senior officers in the police service. The High Commissioner has also engaged with political activists within the Political Parties Assembly (PPA) and the wider Multi-Stakeholder Forum (MSF) to better understand their aspirations and capacities and to encourage constructive pursuit of their political goals. The FCDO will continue to monitor the human rights and security situation in Eswatini and promote dialogue and peaceful resolution of the political and social conflicts within the country.
Asked by: James Duddridge (Conservative - Rochford and Southend East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policies of potential changes in the sovereignty of the British Indian Ocean Territory; and what assessment he has made of the relevance to those policies of the lessons learned from the lease of Hong Kong from China.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK and Mauritius have decided to begin negotiations on the exercise of sovereignty over the British Indian Ocean Territory/Chagos Archipelago. You will appreciate that we are not able to provide any detail on the content of ongoing discussions, or speculate on the possible outcome of negotiations. However, we will keep Members and Parliament informed at key junctures.