Asked by: Margaret Curran (Labour - Glasgow East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 10 November 2014 to Question 213577, when the cultural programme in Berlin for the Cabinet Secretary for Culture and External Affairs took place; what engagements were part of that programme; what the cost to his Department was of providing support to the Cabinet Secretary on this programme; and if he will place in the Library correspondence relating to this programme.
Answered by David Lidington
Fiona Hyslop, Scottish Government Cabinet Secretary for Culture and External Affairs visited Berlin on 16-17 April 2013. Scottish Development International (SDI) Dusseldorf arranged and attended parts of the programme, with local support from British Embassy Berlin. The UK Government costs were met from within existing resources. Ms Hyslop met German State Minister Cornelia Pieper and the Europe Director General in the Germany Foreign Ministry. She hosted a lunch for Bundestag members from three parties. Ms Hyslop met Berlin based Glaswegian artist Douglas Gordon and visited an exhibition of his work as well as visiting the Neues Museum. The Embassy Residence hosted a trade focused dinner for Ms Hyslop. SDI sourced salmon, beef and whisky from Scottish suppliers for guests from the food and drink sector. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office does not hold any correspondence on this visit.Asked by: Margaret Curran (Labour - Glasgow East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 10 November 2014 to Question 213577, which Scottish ministers made the visits in (a) 2013 and (b) 2014; and what the destination of each visit was.
Answered by David Lidington
Details of these visits are the responsibility of the Scottish Government. However, The Foreign and Commonwealth Office holds the information attached.
Asked by: Margaret Curran (Labour - Glasgow East)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 16 October 2014 to Question 210913, when he plans to begin public information campaigns in Scotland to inform taxpayers and businesses about changes to the tax system in Scotland.
Answered by David Gauke
The Scottish rate of income tax will be introduced from April 2016. HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) will contact individuals who will be affected by the introduction of the Scottish rate from autumn 2015. HMRC will continue to work with stakeholders and provide updates to businesses about the changes ensuring those affected will have the information and support they need in advance of the introduction of the Scottish rate.
Asked by: Margaret Curran (Labour - Glasgow East)
Question to the Scotland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, when he last met with his ministerial counterparts in HM Treasury to discuss implementation of the Scottish rate of income tax.
Answered by Alistair Carmichael - Liberal Democrat Spokesperson (Justice)
I have regular meetings with cabinet colleagues, including the Chancellor of the Exchequer and Chief Secretary to the Treasury, where a wide range of topics are discussed.
Additionally, my officials are very actively engaged in a wide ranging work programme concerning the implementation of the Scottish rate of income tax. This includes working closely with UK Government and Scottish Government officials to support the timely introduction of all fiscal powers of the Scotland Act 2012.
Asked by: Margaret Curran (Labour - Glasgow East)
Question to the Scotland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, pursuant to the Answer of 15 October 2014, HC Deb, 15 October 2014, column 286, what details regarding the implementation of the Scottish rate of income tax are still under discussion; when he expects those discussions to conclude; and which government department will have responsibility for providing information to income tax payers about changes to the tax system in Scotland.
Answered by Alistair Carmichael - Liberal Democrat Spokesperson (Justice)
Implementation of the Scottish rate of income tax is being led by an HMRC project with oversight provided by a programme board with representatives from HMRC, HM Treasury, the Scotland Office and Scottish Government. The project is progressing a range of issues associated with defining the detail of the implementation and operation of the Scottish rate and the project is on track to make the necessary changes in readiness for April 2016.
HMRC will have prime responsibility for informing tax payers about these changes and will work with the Scottish Government to ensure that individuals and business have access to the information they will need.
Asked by: Margaret Curran (Labour - Glasgow East)
Question to the Scotland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what representations he has received from the Scottish Government on the living wage as defined by the Living Wage Foundation; and if he will place in the Library any such representations.
Answered by Alistair Carmichael - Liberal Democrat Spokesperson (Justice)
I have received no representations from the Scottish Government regarding the Living Wage.
Asked by: Margaret Curran (Labour - Glasgow East)
Question to the Scotland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what estimate he has made of the number of children in Scotland living in poverty in each year since 2010.
Answered by Alistair Carmichael - Liberal Democrat Spokesperson (Justice)
Estimates of the number and proportion of children in relative low income are published in the National Statistics Households Below Average Income (HBAI) series. This information is captured using the Family Resources Survey (FRS) and has been reported since 1998/99. These estimates are available for each financial year up to 2012/13, the latest period for which estimates are available.
Average figures for three survey years have been combined for region and individual countries; this is because single year estimates are not considered to be sufficiently reliable for geographies at a lower level than the UK. The estimates for Scotland can be found below:
Estimated number (millions) and proportion of children in relative low income by country and region (Before Housing Costs)
| Number (and percentage) of children in relative low income |
2007/08 – 2009/10 | 0.2 million (20%) |
2008/09 – 2010/11 | 0.2 million (19%) |
2009/10 – 2011/12 | 0.2 million (17%) |
2010/11 – 2012/13 | 0.2 million (17%) |
(Source: HBAI 2012/13
Asked by: Margaret Curran (Labour - Glasgow East)
Question to the Scotland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, how many (a) adults and (b) children were living in poverty in each UK parliamentary constituency in Scotland in each year since 2010.
Answered by Alistair Carmichael - Liberal Democrat Spokesperson (Justice)
Estimates of the number and proportion of adults and children in relative low income are published in the National Statistics Households Below Average Income (HBAI) series. This information is captured using the Family Resources Survey (FRS) and has been reported since 1998/99. These estimates are available for each financial year up to 2012/13, the latest period for which estimates are available.
The number and proportion of adults and children in relative poverty is not available at constituency level. This is because the survey sample sizes are too small to support the production of robust estimates at this level.
Asked by: Margaret Curran (Labour - Glasgow East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, which overseas trips by Scottish Government Ministers have been supported by his Department or British embassies and consulates in each year since 2010; what the purpose of these trips was; and what support was offered.
Answered by David Lidington
UK Embassies provide considerable support for Scottish Government Ministers when they are overseas. In 2013, UK Embassies supported more than 40 overseas visits by Scottish Government Ministers and in 2014 (up to October 2014), a further 14. The nature of the visits varies widely, as do the destinations, from supporting the First Minister of Scotland’s visit to Washington for Tartan Week, a full cultural programme in Berlin for the Cabinet Secretary for Culture and External Affairs, to the Minister for External Affairs and International Development’s trade engagements in the Gulf. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office does not hold central records from before this period.
Asked by: Margaret Curran (Labour - Glasgow East)
Question
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what representations he has received from the Scottish Government regarding the national minimum wage; and if he will place in the Library any representations so received.
Answered by Jo Swinson
We have received no representations from the Scottish Government regarding the national minimum wage.