Asked by: Mike Wood (Labour - Batley and Spen)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the effect on child poverty of the introduction of child maintenance service charges.
Answered by Steve Webb
I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to the hon. Member for Newcastle upon Tyne North, Catherine McKinnell, on 13 October 2014 to Question UIN 208928.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Labour - Batley and Spen)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the gender impact of the introduction of child maintenance service charges.
Answered by Steve Webb
The assessment of the gender impact of fees and charges for the new Child Maintenance Service was published in the Equality Impact Assessment for the Child Support Fees Regulations 2013. This is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/220219/eia-child-support-fees.pdf.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Labour - Batley and Spen)
Question
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many (a) external and (b) Civil Service appointees have worked in ministerial offices in his Department (i) since May 2010 and (ii) between May 2005 and May 2010.
Answered by Jo Swinson
The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) currently has 9 Ministers, 7 of whom share offices with other Government Departments. There are no external appointees currently working in BIS ministerial offices. The total number of civil service appointed Private Office staff as at 6 January 2015 is 33.
BIS is unable to provide any historic data due to changes to the HR systems.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Labour - Batley and Spen)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the average time taken was for a decision on a visa application in each category in (a) Mumbai and (b) Islamabad in the most recent period for which figures are available.
Answered by James Brokenshire
The table aside sets out the average time taken in days for decisions to be made on visa applications considered in Mumbai and Islamabad between 1st January and 31st March 2014, by category of application.
Average decision times for visas processed in Mumbai and Islamabad (1st January and 31st March 2014). A decision is where the application has been issued, refused, lapsed or withdrawn | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Asked by: Mike Wood (Labour - Batley and Spen)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she plans to introduce service standards and set processing time limits for visa applications made at overseas posts.
Answered by James Brokenshire
Service Standards are in place for the processing of visa applications submitted overseas.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Labour - Batley and Spen)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many visa applications are presently deferred or on hold awaiting the outcome of the legal action in respect of the financial requirement that is presently before the courts.
Answered by James Brokenshire
According to Home Office management information, as at 31 March 2014, 3,134 family visa applications were on hold following the July 2013 High Court judgment in MM & Others.Following the Court of Appeal ruling in favour of the Home Secretary which confirmed the lawfulness of the income threshold policy, as a rational and reasonable means of achieving the legitimate aims of reducing taxpayer burdens and promoting integration, from 28 July, the individuals whose applications were on hold, pending this judgment, will now receive a decision. Decisions will take account of all the information presented. Any application which met all the requirements apart from the minimum income threshold now stands to be refused. The applications which have been subject to the hold will be decided as soon as possible. It is likely to take several weeks to complete this work. Overseas our regions are rebalancing resources to ensure decisions are made as quickly as they reasonably can be, allowing full consideration of the facts of the cases. This is with the aim of resolving all applications within three months in line with service standards for settlement applications.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Labour - Batley and Spen)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the average time taken was from a visa appeal being granted at tribunal to the post issuing the visa in (a) Mumbai and (b) Islamabad in the most recent period for which figures are available.
Answered by James Brokenshire
From 1st January to 31st March 2014, it took on average 34 days in Mumbai and 31 days in Islamabad to issue a visa after the tribunal decision was received in the respective post.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Labour - Batley and Spen)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much has been spent by her Department on legal representation and court costs in respect of action over the financial requirement.
Answered by James Brokenshire
In the case of MM & Others concerning the minimum income threshold under the family Immigration Rules, the costs incurred by the Home Office as at 3 July 2014 were approximately £163,000.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Labour - Batley and Spen)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the average time taken was by each arm of the Armed Forces to make serving personnel available to the civilian police in connection with criminal investigations in the most recent period for which figures are available; and how many approaches the civilian police have made to the Armed Forces for access to serving personnel in relation to indictable offences.
Answered by Anna Soubry
This information is not held in the format requested. The civil police are not required to seek the assistance or permission of relevant arms of the Armed Forces in relation to serving personnel being made available in connection with criminal investigations. However, if such an approach is made, then the Service authorities will attempt to assist as far as they are able so to do.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Labour - Batley and Spen)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what process the civilian police must follow when attempting to arrest, summons or charge a serving member of the armed forces in connection with indictable offences.
Answered by Mike Penning
If a member of the UK Armed Forces is arrested and detained in police custody for a recordable offence, the custody sergeant is responsible for notifying the circumstances of arrest, detention and offence to the relevant service authorities.
Civilian criminal courts and service tribunals have concurrent jurisdiction to deal with accused persons who are subject to military law. The decision on which jurisdiction prosecutes a person subject to military law is a matter of consultation between all police agencies involved in the investigation in consultation with the Crown Prosecution Service and Service Prosecutions Authority.