Asked by: Ruth Edwards (Conservative - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the Defence and National Rehabilitation Centre.
Answered by Andrew Murrison - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
The Defence Medical Rehabilitation Centre (DMRC) Stanford Hall is a state of the art facility that rehabilitates our most seriously injured and I had the opportunity to speak to staff and patients when I visited last week .
The Government has committed funding to an NHS-led National Rehabilitation Centre (NRC) with plans for the facility to be operational by Autumn 2024. The NRC will be located in the Stanford Hall estate enabling the sharing of expertise and the potential use of specialist facilities available at the DMRC.
Asked by: Ruth Edwards (Conservative - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of including dentists and dental nurses on the shortage occupations list.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
Dentists and dental nurses are eligible occupations under the Health & Care visa route and their salary requirements are set according to national pay scales, which means they already receive comparable benefits to being on the Shortage Occupation List.
The Government launched the Health & Care visa in August 2020 making it easier, cheaper, and quicker for health workers to come to the UK to work compared to other immigration routes. Visa applicants pay a lower fee, they are subject to quicker processing time and also have a dedicated UKVI team that assists them with the application process. In addition, visa holders are exempt from paying the Immigration Health Surcharge.
Asked by: Ruth Edwards (Conservative - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with her EU counterparts on the potential impact of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps on peace and security in Europe.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Iranian regime, including the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), poses a persistent threat to the peace and security of Europe. Since January 2022, there have been at least 10 threats by Iran to kidnap or kill British or UK-based individuals. The recent transfers of UAVs to Russia for use in Ukraine is yet another facet of this threat. HMG works closely with European partners to counter and deter malign Iranian activity in the UK and overseas. We have sanctions designations on over 300 Iranian individuals and entities including the IRGC in its entirety.
Asked by: Ruth Edwards (Conservative - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made with Cabinet colleagues of the potential threat the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps poses to (a) the UK and (b) its overseas interests.
Answered by Tom Tugendhat - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security)
We do not routinely comment on operational or intelligence matters, however the UK will always stand up to threats from foreign nations. As we set out in the Integrated Review in 2021, we are committed to addressing growing threats from Iran, as well as other states.
The UK Government has long been clear about its concerns over the continued destabilising activity of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in the UK and overseas. This includes IRGC political, financial and military support to a number of militant and proscribed groups in the region, including Hizballah in Lebanon and Syria, militias in Iraq and the Houthis in Yemen. We also support the enforcement of UN prohibitions on the proliferation of weapons to such non-state actors, namely Lebanese Hizballah (UNSCR 1701) and the Houthis (UNSCR 2216).
Asked by: Ruth Edwards (Conservative - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will proscribe the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
Answered by Tom Tugendhat - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security)
We do not routinely comment on operational or intelligence matters, however the UK will always stand up to threats from foreign nations. As we set out in the Integrated Review in 2021, we are committed to addressing growing threats from Iran, as well as other states.
The UK Government has long been clear about its concerns over the continued destabilising activity of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in the UK and overseas. This includes IRGC political, financial and military support to a number of militant and proscribed groups in the region, including Hizballah in Lebanon and Syria, militias in Iraq and the Houthis in Yemen. We also support the enforcement of UN prohibitions on the proliferation of weapons to such non-state actors, namely Lebanese Hizballah (UNSCR 1701) and the Houthis (UNSCR 2216).
Asked by: Ruth Edwards (Conservative - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the trends in the level of the risk of persecution of the Baha'i people in Iran by authorities in that country.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Baha'i community in Iran is systematically persecuted by the Iranian regime. Reports indicate that the regime has redoubled its repression over the last year with increasing expropriation of land, destruction of homes and detention of Baha'is.
The persecution of religious minorities in Iran cannot be tolerated. The Minister for the Middle East and Human Rights, Lord (Tariq) Ahmad, made this clear in his statement of 5 August. The former Minister for Africa reiterated our commitment to holding Iran to account for its treatment of the Baha'i at the Westminster Hall debate of 11 October. The UK raised the Baha'i at the UN General Assembly (UNGA) Third Committee on 26 October and pressed for the inclusion of the Baha'i in the UNGA Resolution which passed on 16 November.
Asked by: Ruth Edwards (Conservative - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he plans to adopt a national hedgerow planting and restoration target equivalent to that of the national tree planting target.
Answered by Trudy Harrison
HM Government does not currently have plans to adopt a national hedgerow planting and restoration target equivalent to that of the national tree planting target.
We are required by the Environment Act 2021 to set at least one long-term biodiversity target, in addition to our target to halt the decline in species abundance by 2030. This target, and others set under the Act, will help target the causes of decline and drive actions to deliver nature recovery.
We will also be setting out our pathways to meet these targets in the Environmental Improvement Plan due in 2023. To meet our species abundance target we will need to create more, better joined up habitats, which will include hedgerows.
Asked by: Ruth Edwards (Conservative - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, when the Government plans to bring forward legislative proposals to create a new statutory regime to ensure that freeholders that pay maintenance charges can access equivalent rights to those of leaseholders.
Answered by Eddie Hughes
The Government is committed to promoting fairness and transparency for homeowners and ensuring that consumers are protected from abuse and poor service. Where people pay estate rent charges it is not appropriate that these homeowners have limited rights to challenge these costs.
That is why the Government intends to give freeholders on private and mixed tenure estates equivalent rights to leaseholders to challenge the reasonableness of estate rentcharges, as well as a right to apply to the First-tier Tribunal to appoint a new manager to manage the provision of services.
We will translate these measures into law when parliamentary time allows. We are committed to a long-term programme of reform to make sure that homeowners experience the benefits of true home ownership.
Asked by: Ruth Edwards (Conservative - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what progress her Department has made on delivering 20,000 new police officers.
Answered by Kit Malthouse
As at 31 December 2021, police forces in England and Wales have already recruited over 11,000 additional officers as part of the Police Uplift Programme and we are on track to deliver 20,000 additional officers by March 2023.
I am pleased to say 251 of these officers have so far been recruited to Nottinghamshire Police.
Asked by: Ruth Edwards (Conservative - Rushcliffe)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to maximise NHS capacity.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The Department continues to focus on recovery of services, as we have throughout the pandemic. The NHS and the Department have sought to maximise availability of capacity by all practical means, including virtual wards, the use of independent sector capacity, a focus on maximising safe discharge, coupled with investment in up to 160 community diagnostic centres, innovation in surgical hubs, and through growing our NHS workforce.