Asked by: Natalie McGarry (Independent - Glasgow East)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential risks to further and higher education in (a) Scotland and (b) the UK of the UK leaving the EU.
Answered by Lord Johnson of Marylebone
The Government values students, educators and researchers from outside the UK who come to learn and work in the UK, including in its devolved nations. UK universities, further education (FE) colleges and providers are home both to world-class teaching and to world-leading research, and exiting the EU will not change this. Future arrangements for migration, higher education and FE student funding, and UK students studying abroad will need to be considered as part of wider discussions about the UK’s relationship with the EU.
Asked by: Natalie McGarry (Independent - Glasgow East)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will make it his policy that all Government departments undertake a cross-cutting review on the effect of their policies on (a) inequalities in health and (b) deprivation in (i) Glasgow and (ii) Scotland.
Answered by Ben Gummer
All UK Government policies and legislation that extend to Scotland in reserved areas, as would be the case with Wales and Northern Ireland, are accompanied by the necessary economic and equality impact assessments, which are published.
Asked by: Natalie McGarry (Independent - Glasgow East)
Question to the Scotland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what steps his Department has taken to encourage investment and growth in the number of jobs in Glasgow East constituency.
Answered by David Mundell
The UK Government is investing £500 million in the Glasgow and Clyde Valley City Deal, part of £1 billion of public investment that is being taken forward in partnership with the Scottish Government.
The Deal will deliver 3 labour market projects including a £9 million employment scheme that will work with 4000 people in receipt of Employment Support Allowance and assist at least 600 in to sustained work. A £15 million integrated employment programme will work with 15,000 young people (aged 16-24) over the next three years, helping 5,000 in to sustained work.
A new centre for Business Incubation and Development has been established in Glasgow with £4 million of City Deal funding and this is now providing support for growing small to medium sized enterprises.
Asked by: Natalie McGarry (Independent - Glasgow East)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what work his Department has done to assess the potential effect of the soft drinks industry levy on levels of obesity in children and teenagers.
Answered by Jane Ellison
The Chief Medical Officer has said that reformulation and resizing are the key wins to tackle obesity.
The Soft Drinks Industry Levy has been specifically designed to encourage companies to reduce the amount of added sugar in their products and move consumers towards healthier choices, by promoting low-sugar brands and introducing smaller portion sizes for high-sugary drinks.
The government will monitor industry progress in reformulation over the coming years.
Asked by: Natalie McGarry (Independent - Glasgow East)
Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union :
To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, what recent steps he has taken to decide the immigration system to be implemented upon the UK leaving the EU.
Answered by Robin Walker
My Department is working closely with the Home Office and other Government Departments to identify and develop options to shape our future immigration system, including considering how best to control the number of people coming to the UK from the following Brexit. We are already fully engaged with the Governments of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland to ensure a UK-wide approach to our negotiations. My ministerial collegues and I have also discussed the next steps with a range of organisations, including the General Secretary of the Trades Union Congress and key business groups.
Asked by: Natalie McGarry (Independent - Glasgow East)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the effect that the Government's Troubled Families programme has had on meeting its objectives related to underprivileged communities.
Answered by Marcus Jones
The Troubled Families Programme has an important role to play in tackling disadvantage and poverty through its focus on families affected by complex, multiple problems in England. The programme encourages services to consider the overlapping nature of problems which families face - tackling the root causes rather than responding to each problem in isolation. It promotes a new way of working, with services coming together - typically through one dedicated worker - working with and understanding the needs of the whole family instead of constantly reacting to their individual problems.
Through the original programme, launched in 2012, over 116,000 families had their lives 'turned around' using the criteria of the first programme, with children back in school; youth crime and anti-social behaviour significantly reduced; and over 18,000 adults from troubled families into work. The new expanded programme now aims to support 400,000 families with multiple, complex problems by 2020, and transform for the long term the way that public services work with families facing multiple disadvantages.
Asked by: Natalie McGarry (Independent - Glasgow East)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many British airstrikes have been conducted in (a) Iraq from September 2014 to September 2016 and (b) Syria from December 2015 to September 2016.
Answered by Mike Penning
Between 1 September 2014 and 31 August 2016 there were 941 UK airstrikes in Iraq. Between 1 December 2015 and 31 August 2016 there were 63 UK airstrikes in Syria.
These strike numbers are constantly reviewed and updated by the Coalition to ensure records are as complete and accurate as possible. As such, past and future statements regarding statistics may differ to those given here.
Asked by: Natalie McGarry (Independent - Glasgow East)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will make an assessment of the effect of the Government's welfare reforms on deprivation in (a) Glasgow East constituency, (b) the city of Glasgow and (c) Scotland.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Shadow Secretary of State for Education
The Government set out our assessment of the impact of the welfare policies in the Welfare Reform and Work Act on 20 July 2015, with similar assessments for previous changes.
Asked by: Natalie McGarry (Independent - Glasgow East)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether it is his policy to keep open the Kinloss army barracks.
Answered by Lord Lancaster of Kimbolton
The Ministry of Defence is continuing to review our estate to ensure it is smaller and more sustainable, this will allow us to focus on delivering future Defence capability and has enabled the investment in sites such as Lossiemouth and Faslane.
Whilst no decision has been made on the future of Kinloss Barracks, Scotland will continue to be a vital home for our Armed Forces. However Scotland, like the rest of the UK, must expect some sites to close as well as investment in these other locations.
Asked by: Natalie McGarry (Independent - Glasgow East)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make it her policy to include Scottish universities in the Government's tier 4 Visa Pilot.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
The Tier 4 visa pilot has been introduced to test the benefits of a differentiated approach within the education sector on the basis of compliance with immigration sponsorship requirements.
The pilot is deliberately narrow in scope, with institutions selected due to their consistently low visa refusal rates. This is to ensure that the outcomes can be adequately monitored, whilst minimising the risk of unintended consequences, before considering rolling-out the scheme more widely.
Should the pilot be successful, the Home Office will liaise with stakeholders, including Scottish universities, over plans for extending the scheme.