Roger Godsiff

The Government does not comment on cases in which it has no involvement. Under UK laws a foreign investor can already sue the Government over allegedly unfair or unlawful treatment. UK domestic courts and our legal system will continue to be the main route for resolving the vast majority of disputes between foreign investors and the Government regardless of any investment protection provisions included in the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP). This is because our domestic courts typically offer a quicker and cheaper method of resolving disputes.

The European Commission has published its proposal for investment protections in TTIP. This includes various possible measures to ensure these provisions are fair and transparent, including prohibiting claims from being pursued simultaneously under investor-state dispute settlement provisions and in domestic courts.

The UK will continue to work with the Commission on the details of these latest proposals. We need investment protections that ensure UK investors are treated fairly overseas by foreign governments. But the UK will make sure that governments can continue to regulate lawfully in the public interest.

The Low Pay Commission publish an annual report on the National Minimum Wage (NMW) which includes a full assessment of the Government’s NMW compliance and enforcement strategy. The 2015 report is available here - https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-minimum-wage-low-pay-commission-report-2015 - the next report is due to be published in February 2016.

From April 2016, we are increasing the calculation of penalties from 100% to 200% of the arrears owed. The penalty is reduced by half if employers pay within 14 days.

By increasing the penalties for underpayment of the National Minimum Wage (NMW) we intend to deter employers from breaking the law so that working people receive the money they are legally due.

This new calculation ensures a tougher penalty for employers found to have underpaid the NMW.

The fast track Impact Assessment for increasing the penalties has been validated by the Regulatory Policy Committee and published here - http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukia/2015/324

The Government’s Response to the consultation relating to UK Export Finance’s anti-bribery and corruption policy is expected to be published early in the New Year.

The Government is committed to meeting its legally binding target to help as many fuel poor homes as reasonably practicable reach energy efficiency Band C by 2030, with interim targets on Band E by 2020 and Band D by 2025.

This Government has also set a specific goal of insulating 1 million homes by the end of this Parliament, in line with our commitments on fuel poverty.

A reformed domestic supplier obligation (ECO) from April 2017 will upgrade the energy efficiency of well over 200,000 homes per year. This will help to tackle the root cause of fuel poverty and continue to deliver on our commitment to help 1 million more homes this Parliament. We are providing support for households to improve their energy efficiency through the new supplier obligation, which will run for 5 years.

Our extension of the Warm Home Discount to 2020/21 at current levels of £320m pa will alsohelp households who are at most risk of fuel poverty with their energy bills.

The Government is committed to meeting its legally binding target to help as many fuel poor homes as reasonably practicable reach energy efficiency Band C by 2030, with interim targets on Band E by 2020 and Band D by 2025.

This Government has also set a specific goal of insulating 1 million homes by the end of this Parliament, in line with our commitments on fuel poverty.

A reformed domestic supplier obligation (ECO) from April 2017 will upgrade the energy efficiency of well over 200,000 homes per year. This will help to tackle the root cause of fuel poverty and continue to deliver on our commitment to help 1 million more homes this Parliament. We are providing support for households to improve their energy efficiency through the new supplier obligation, which will run for 5 years.

Our extension of the Warm Home Discount to 2020/21 at current levels of £320m pa will alsohelp households who are at most risk of fuel poverty with their energy bills.

The Government is committed to meeting its legally binding target to help as many fuel poor homes as reasonably practicable reach energy efficiency Band C by 2030, with interim targets on Band E by 2020 and Band D by 2025.

This Government has also set a specific goal of insulating 1 million homes by the end of this Parliament, in line with our commitments on fuel poverty.

A reformed domestic supplier obligation (ECO) from April 2017 will upgrade the energy efficiency of well over 200,000 homes per year. This will help to tackle the root cause of fuel poverty and continue to deliver on our commitment to help 1 million more homes this Parliament. We are providing support for households to improve their energy efficiency through the new supplier obligation, which will run for 5 years.

Our extension of the Warm Home Discount to 2020/21 at current levels of £320m pa will alsohelp households who are at most risk of fuel poverty with their energy bills.

Since 2013 the Government has supported industry in delivering over 1.6 million measures which were installed in over 1.3 million households through the Energy Company Obligation (ECO) alone. We are now working with the industry and consumer groups on a new value-for-money approach.

We’ve also commissioned an independent review led by Peter Bonfield to investigate quality, standards and consumer protection to ensure that the system properly supports and protects consumers.

The National Infrastructure Commission will be resourced to carry out its task of advising Government on the UK’s infrastructure needs and priorities. It will not have adirectrole in funding infrastructure delivery.

We are clear that support should be focussed on those with the greatest need.

We expect the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) and the Trade in Services Agreement (TiSA) will be mixed agreements covering areas of both EU and Member State competence. In that case, they will be subject to agreement by each EU Member State, the EU Council and the European Parliament. As part of this process the agreements will be laid before Parliament for scrutiny before they are ratified by the UK. After political agreement is reached on the text of TTIP and TiSA and it has been established that these will be mixed agreements, we will confirm the procedures for Parliamentary approval.

Coal accounted for 39% of total UK electricity generation in 2012, falling to 30% in 2014. This trend is expected to continue and the Department’s published forecasts suggest that, in our central scenario, the last unabated UK coal fired power station will close in 2026.

However, if market conditions are right, there is a possibility that coal could continue to produce electricity until the late 2020s.

Source: DECC Updated energy and emissions projections 2014 https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/368021/Updated_energy_and_emissions_projections2014.pdf

I will attend the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Conference of the Parties in Paris.

I will meet world leaders to help lay the groundwork for an ambitious new global deal to address climate change. A global deal is the only way we can deliver the scale of action required to keep limiting the global temperature rise to below 2 degrees within reach. An ambitious agreement will help drive a global, irreversible, transformational shift to a low carbon economy which will promote innovation and drive down the costs of low carbon technology, further enabling cost effective climate action and mitigation ambition in the future. It will also help to create a more competitive, stable and transparent framework and opportunity for business and investors.

The Open University is an autonomous institution and it is for them to make decisions about how best to structure their workforce and meet the needs of their students.

All export licence applications are carefully assessed on a case by case basis against the Consolidated EU and National Arms Export Licensing Criteria, taking account of all relevant factors at the time of the application. A licence will not be issued for any country if to do so would be inconsistent with any provision of the Criteria.

We keep all licences under review in the light of changing circumstances in countries of destination for UK arms exports, including Saudi Arabia.

A political solution is the best way to bring long term stability to Yemen and to avoid a humanitarian catastrophe. The UK is fully and actively supporting the UN’s efforts to achieve this.

Energy policy is constantly kept under review, but government departments do not publish White Papers as a matter of routine. The Government is focused on delivering its priorities to ensure security of supply, to keep bills as low as possible and decarbonise the economy cost effectively and does not have any plans to publish a new White Paper at the current time.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Newport West (Mr Flynn) on 3 February 2015, UIN 222484.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave it him on 9 June 2015, UIN 1272.

It is my normal practice to attend Head of Government European Council meetings, and for the relevant Minister to attend relevant Council meetings.

I have nothing further to add.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the former Member for Louth and Horncastle (Sir Peter Tapsell) and the former Member for Croydon South (Sir Richard Ottaway) at Prime Minister’s Questions on 21 January 2015, Official Report, columns 210-212.

Community energy schemes can already supply local markets provided they hold a supply licence (or exemption) or have a partnership with a licensed supplier.

In recognition that existing routes may not meet the needs of every community scheme, the Government has established a Local Supply Working Group to identify key regulatory barriers and suggest solutions. An update on the Local Supply Working Group will be included in the Community Energy Strategy update that will be published in March 2014.

The total value of contracts the core Department has with private sector providers is set out in the table below. Records prior to April 2011 are not available.

This Government is committed to community energy and launched the first Community Energy Strategy in January 2014. A key commitment of that Strategy is to undertaken a sector survey in 2016 which will investigate a wide range of community energy benefits.

The Government recently responded to the consultation on extending the Warm Home Discount to 2015/16. In addition to extending the scheme to 2015/16, all participating suppliers will have to adopt standard criteria for their Broader Group schemes. This will make the Warm Home Discount more accessible to families with children and make it simpler to switch between the participating suppliers. The rebate for customers in 2015/16 has been maintained at £140 which means that an additional 71,000 Broader Group rebates will be paid to customers, potentially benefitting for the first time.

For setting a repayment plan for customers who fall behind on payments, all energy suppliers are required to take ability to pay into account. Some suppliers also provide special grants and other services to help families. Further information is available free from the Home Heat Helpline on 0800 33 66 99.

The information requested is not held centrally and can only be provided at disproportionate cost. Contracts of the Department are published on the Cabinet Office Website which can be found at:

www.contractsfinder.businesslink.gov.uk.

The Department would be able to provide further contract information by narrowing the scope, if specific procurement projects were identified.

As an indication of departmental spend our financial records show that the following payments have been made to 3^rd party suppliers:

• April 2013 to March 2014: £184,784,757.64;

• April 2014 to January 2015: £147,863,946.28.

The Department does not hold information on how many families are in debt with their energy companies.

Ofgem closely monitors domestic energy suppliers’ performance and publishes information in relation to debt owed by domestic electricity and gas accounts holders in Great Britain, but they do not publish data relating to families with children or constituency areas. At the end of 2013, latest data available, 1.5 million domestic electricity account holders and 1.4 million domestic gas account holders were in debt to their energy supplier:

https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/ofgem-publications/92186/annualreport2013finalforpublication.pdf.

Ofgem’s Domestic Suppliers’ Social Obligations: 2013 Annual Report

The UK aims to operate one of the most rigorous and transparent export control systems in the world. All export licence applications are rigorously assessed on a case-by-case basis against the Consolidated EU and National Arms Export Licensing Criteria, taking into account all prevailing circumstances at the time of application. Exports to Saudi Arabia continue to be subject to close scrutiny, in particular under Criterion Two which concerns the ‘respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms in the country of final destination as well as respect by that country for international humanitarian law’. The Government will not issue an export licence if there is a clear risk that the proposed export might be used for internal repression.

Export licences are kept under review in the light of changing international circumstances. A cross-government mechanism can suspend or revoke extant licences when a changing situation, such as an outbreak of conflict or acts of internal repression, means the licence would no longer be consistent with the Consolidated Criteria.

Pharmacy students are funded in the same way as chemistry, biology and other science subjects which will not be subject to a student number control at HEFCE funded institutions in 2015/16. Medicine and dentistry attract a much larger amount of Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) grant funding than science subjects like pharmacy. Therefore it would not be appropriate to cap pharmacy student numbers.

The UK-Colombia Bilateral Investment Agreement completed its parliamentary scrutiny under the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act on 14 July 2014. The Agreement entered into force on 10 October 2014 which was sixty days after the date of receipt of the last notification by which the Parties notify each other in writing that their respective internal requirements for entry into force of the Agreement have been fulfilled.

Seven licences have been granted to four companies for the export of tear gas for Hong Kong since 2010.

The names of the companies who were granted these licences are exempt from disclosure because this information was provided in confidence and such information is commercially sensitive.

The Government will not issue an export licence if there is a clear risk that the proposed export might be used for internal repression.

No licences granted to companies to export dual-use chemicals that could be used as precursors to the production of chemical weapons to Syria remain in place.

The names of the companies which had licences approved to export dual-use chemicals that could be used as precursors to the production of chemical weapons to Syria cannot be disclosed. Following an assessment under the terms of the Freedom of Information Act the public interest, in the maintenance of the confidentiality and overall integrity of the export licensing system, on this occasion outweighs the public interest in the disclosure of the name of the exporter.

Applications to export dual use chemicals to Syria were assessed thoroughly against strict licensing criteria, drawing on open source and classified information. However, the licences were revoked following a revision to the sanctions regime which came into force on 17 June 2012. No goods were exported to Syria under these licences before they were revoked.

The UK aims to operate one of the most rigorous and transparent export control systems in the world. All export licence applications are rigorously assessed on a case-by-case basis against the Consolidated EU and National Arms Export Licensing Criteria, taking into account all prevailing circumstances at the time of application. In particular, Criterion Two concerns the ‘respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms in the country of final destination as well as respect by that country for international humanitarian law’. The Government will not issue an export licence if there is a clear risk that the proposed export might be used for internal repression.

Export licences are kept under review in the light of changing international circumstances. A cross-government mechanism can suspend or revoke extant licences when a changing situation, such as an outbreak of conflict or acts of internal repression, means the licence would no longer be consistent with the Consolidated Criteria.

Companies are held accountable by investors, consumers and civil society as well as governments for the way in which they conduct their operations, including labour conditions, and how they report on their actions in this regard.

Since October 2013, quoted companies have been required to provide information in their Annual Report about social, community and human rights issues, including information about any policies of the company in relation to those matters and the effectiveness of those policies.

The Department has negotiated at the European level to strengthen current human rights disclosure requirements and make them more specific. Provisions have now been agreed that will apply across all EU Member States from 2017 to large quoted companies and Public Interest Entities. My Department will shortly be consulting on the transposition of these measures into UK law.

Additional disclosure requirements will be introduced in the Modern Slavery Bill. Big businesses will have to publicly state each year what action they have taken to ensure their supply chains are slavery free. This requirement goes further than any similar legislation in the world by applying to businesses regardless of the nature of a company or what it supplies, whether goods or services.

In September 2013, the UK was the first country to publish a National Action Plan implementing the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. The Action Plan underlines the duty of businesses to respect the human rights of their employees and those in their supply chains. My Department is taking action to develop guidance for businesses reporting on this obligation, beginning with the retail sector.

In order to toughen up our enforcement of the National Minimum Wage my Department has made it simpler to name and shame employers that break the law on the National Minimum Wage and has increased the financial penalty that employers pay for breaking the law from 50 per cent to 100 per cent of the unpaid wages owed to workers. The maximum penalty has also increased from £5,000 to £20,000 and will be applied per worker not per firm.

Information on the total value of exports of tear gas from the UK in 2013 is not available from published trade statistics.

All export licence applications are assessed on a case-by-case basis against the Consolidated EU and National Arms Export Licensing Criteria and the prevailing circumstances at the time of each application. Criterion 2 concerns the respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms in the country of final destination, as well as respect by that country for international humanitarian law. An export licence would not be granted if there was a clear risk that the goods to be exported might be used for internal repression.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office posts overseas have a standing requirement to monitor developments in human rights and conflicts in their respective countries and to report back if there are any developments that might affect licensing policy. In addition, open source material such as NGO reporting is used to make such assessments.

Licences are revoked on a case-by-case basis if the proposed export is judged to be no longer compatible with the Consolidated Criteria. Existing licences, and the processing of new export licences, may be suspended, again on a case-by-case basis, where the security conditions in the export destination deteriorate to the point that it is not possible to make a judgement as to whether a particular licence remains consistent with the Consolidated Criteria.

All export licence applications are assessed on a case-by-case basis against the Consolidated EU and National Arms Export Licensing Criteria and the prevailing circumstances at the time of each application. Criterion 2 concerns the respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms in the country of final destination, as well as respect by that country for international humanitarian law. An export licence would not be granted if there was a clear risk that the goods to be exported might be used for internal repression.

Defence and Security Equipment International (DSEI) is a commercial exhibition run by Clarion Events. Any decision as to whether to allow a company that may have been ejected from a previous DSEI to exhibit at a future one is a matter for Clarion.

A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between BIS and Clarion was set in place in 2013 to give Clarion the authority they need to control the activities of their exhibitors at DSEI. It sets out Clarion’s role and responsibilities, and those of the exhibitor companies, regarding UK export and trade control legislation.

The European Commission negotiates on behalf of the Member States in the EU. The negotiating teams of the EU and the other negotiating states are led by chief negotiators, and contain officials with expertise in the areas under negotiation. It is the mutual responsibility of these negotiating teams and their officials to draft the agreements, including in the case of the Trade in Services Agreement (TiSA), the prudential carve-out, which forms part of the Financial Services chapter.

The text will be released as part of a whole package when negotiations are complete.

The European Commission negotiates on behalf of the EU according to instructions from its members. Member States are consulted for their views on the content of each negotiating paper.

The European Commission’s negotiators have the opportunity to discuss and amend texts through rounds of talks until a consensus is reached by all TiSA members.

The European Commission has made it clear that safeguards are in place in all EU wide trade agreements to ensure that Member State governments remain free to manage public services as they wish.

http://trade.ec.europa.eu/doclib/press/index.cfm?id=1115

The UK Government is a strong supporter of the Trade in Services Agreement, which provides an opportunity to address barriers to trade in services through seeking to deepen services trade rules and regulatory disciplines and to address market access objectives. Given the crucial role of financial stability to overall economic stability, governments and regulators need to have the ability to closely monitor and regulate banks, insurance companies and other financial services providers. The TiSA text will contain a prudential carve-out which will fully protect the ability of UK and international financial regulators to regulate and take any prudential actions for the sake of financial stability or to protect investors, depositors, policy holders or persons to whom a fiduciary duty is owed by a financial service supplier.

As with other trade agreements currently in place, such as the WTO General Agreement on Trade in Services, we expect agreements under negotiation, such as the Trade in Services Agreement, to contain provisions regarding data transfer and provisions regarding data protection. As with other agreements, we will want to see these provisions provide robust safeguards for the protection of EU citizens’ data while at the same time allowing for legitimate data transfers to third countries.