Asked by: Jeremy Corbyn (Independent - Islington North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he plans to participate in the UN study on the effects of nuclear war.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK voted against the United Nations General Assembly Resolution "Nuclear War Effects and Scientific Research", which proposed establishing an independent scientific panel on the effects of nuclear war, because the devastation that would be caused by nuclear war has been long understood. The UK questioned the benefit of further research in that area, which could not change our collective understanding of the horror of a nuclear war.
Asked by: Jeremy Corbyn (Independent - Islington North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what research his Department has undertaken on the consequences of nuclear war since the signature of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons in 1968.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The devastation that would be caused by nuclear war has been long understood and was written into the preamble of the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) in 1968. The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office's focus since then has therefore been on upholding the NPT and nuclear risk reduction.
Asked by: Jeremy Corbyn (Independent - Islington North)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of the presence of UK troops as part of the NATO’s Exercise Steadfast Dart 25 in Eastern Europe on the risk of escalating tensions in that region.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
In an unpredictable security environment, exacerbated by Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine, we must remain ready to deter all threats and to defend all Allies. Exercises like Steadfast Dart enhance our collective defence and deterrence, and are planned and publicised well in advance. NATO’s actions are defensive, transparent and proportionate. NATO and Allies fully respect our international obligations, and abide by both the letter and the spirit of the OSCE’s Vienna Document on military transparency.
Asked by: Jeremy Corbyn (Independent - Islington North)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if she will take steps to ensure that landlords who are found liable for rent repayment orders in tribunal pay back monies owed.
Answered by Matthew Pennycook - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Rent repayment orders (RROs) are an important and effective tenant-led enforcement tool. They deter landlords from non-compliance and empower tenants to take action against unscrupulous landlords.
The Renters’ Rights Bill includes measures to significantly strengthen and expand RROs. Changes include doubling the maximum amount a landlord can be ordered to pay, extending them to new offences, doubling the period in which tenants and local authorities can apply, making superior landlords and company directors liable and requiring landlords to pay the maximum amount when they have been convicted.
When an RRO is made, the relevant landlord must pay. Where they do not, the tenant or local authority can apply to the county court for a judgment to enable enforcement of the debt through the court. If necessary, the tenant or local authority can, for example, use county court bailiffs to enforce the order and recover the debt.
Asked by: Jeremy Corbyn (Independent - Islington North)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if he will take steps to ensure that the Insolvency Service investigates landlords that do not follow tribunal rent rulings to pay back monies owed.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
If a landlord fails to pay a rent repayment order, the order may be enforced by creditors using civil recovery action, such as pursuing a County Court judgment or ultimately petitioning for a winding-up order against the company. Should a winding-up order be made against the company, this would trigger an investigation by the Official Receiver into how the company's affairs have been conducted and to establish the cause of its insolvency.
Asked by: Jeremy Corbyn (Independent - Islington North)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many prosecutions have been brought against corporate health bodies under section 20 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014; how many of those prosecutions were successful; and what penalties were sought.
Answered by Andrew Gwynne
There is no individual prosecutable offence under section 20 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008. Under the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014, failure to comply with Regulation 20(2)(a) and (3) Duty of Candour is an offence. The Care Quality Commission (CQC) can either issue a Fixed Penalty Notice administratively, or can prosecute the offence through the court. The following table shows the providers the CQC has successfully prosecuted over the last five years, for Regulation 20 Duty of Candour breaches:
Year | Provider | Fine |
2020 | Plymouth Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust | £1,600, for a single count of Duty of Candour charged |
2021 | Spire Healthcare Limited | £5,000, for four counts of Duty of Candour charged |
2022 | Premier Care (Southern) Limited | £3,300, for two offences of Duty of Candour charged |
2023 | DM Care Limited | £120,000 following prosecution under Regulation 12, failure to provide safe care and treatment, with no separate penalty issued for the Duty of Candour offence |
2024 | Claremont Care Services Limited | £24,000 following prosecution under Regulation 12, failure to provide safe care and treatment, and an additional fine of £800 for a single Duty of Candour offence |
There were no other Duty of Candour prosecutions prior to September 2020.
Asked by: Jeremy Corbyn (Independent - Islington North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will take steps to encourage the release of (a) Taj Muhammad Sarparah and (b) other Baloch citizens detained in Pakistan.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK strongly condemns any instances of enforced disappearances. We urge states to fully investigate any allegations, prosecute those responsible and provide justice to victims and their families. We continue to encourage progress towards the criminalisation of enforced disappearances in Pakistan. The British High Commission regularly raises these issues with the Government of Pakistan at a senior level. The UK will continue to urge the Government of Pakistan to guarantee the rights of all people as laid down in Pakistan's Constitution and in accordance with international standards.
Asked by: Jeremy Corbyn (Independent - Islington North)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he is taking steps to support hospitals that (a) are and (b) have been indebted by Private Finance Initiative (PFI) schemes.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The funding allocation formula used to set budgets for integrated care boards includes an adjustment to reflect the impact of the excess finance costs that some trusts face due to the financing arrangements for some buildings constructed under historic Private Finance Initiative (PFI) arrangements.
The Department does not centrally provide funding to support trusts in paying for their PFI schemes. However, the Department, along with NHS England, is supporting National Health Service trusts to manage their PFI contracts, including looking for opportunities to deliver better value for money. This support is available to all trusts with a PFI contract.
Asked by: Jeremy Corbyn (Independent - Islington North)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what (a) intelligence the Government is sharing with Israel on the potential location of remaining UK national hostages in Gaza and (b) other intelligence the Government is sharing with Israel gathered from surveillance flights from RAF Akrotiri.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
The unarmed UK surveillance aircraft are employed solely to support hostage rescue. Only information relating to hostage rescue will be passed to the relevant Israeli authorities responsible for hostage rescue.
We are unable comment further on detailed intelligence matters for operational security reasons.
Asked by: Jeremy Corbyn (Independent - Islington North)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment the Government has made of the potential impact of Israel's use of surveillance data provided by the UK on the UK's role in ensuring adherence to international law.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
The unarmed UK surveillance aircraft are employed solely to support hostage rescue. Only information relating to hostage rescue will be passed to the relevant Israeli authorities responsible for hostage rescue.
We are unable comment further on detailed intelligence matters for operational security reasons.