Asked by: Luke Pollard (Labour (Co-op) - Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much his Department has spent on improving service accommodation at Piave and Bapaume Barracks since April 2022.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The table below provides the totals amount spent on improving service accommodation since April 2022.
Site | Single Living Accommodation (SLA) | Service Family Accommodation (SFA) | Total |
RM Bickleigh | £842,332.32 | £10,857,355 | £11,699,687.32 |
Cambrai Barracks | £37,592.04 | £26,776,398 | £28,647,140.20 |
Vimy Barracks | £69,431.26 | ||
Piave and Bapaumme Barracks | £28,760.29 | ||
Alma Barracks | £1,734,958.61 |
Please note that Cambrai, Vimy, Piave, Bapaumme and Alma are all located in Catterick Garrison therefore the SFA figures provided are for all SFA in Catterick.
Asked by: Luke Pollard (Labour (Co-op) - Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much his Department has spent on improving service accommodation at Alma Barracks since April 2022.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The table below provides the totals amount spent on improving service accommodation since April 2022.
Site | Single Living Accommodation (SLA) | Service Family Accommodation (SFA) | Total |
RM Bickleigh | £842,332.32 | £10,857,355 | £11,699,687.32 |
Cambrai Barracks | £37,592.04 | £26,776,398 | £28,647,140.20 |
Vimy Barracks | £69,431.26 | ||
Piave and Bapaumme Barracks | £28,760.29 | ||
Alma Barracks | £1,734,958.61 |
Please note that Cambrai, Vimy, Piave, Bapaumme and Alma are all located in Catterick Garrison therefore the SFA figures provided are for all SFA in Catterick.
Asked by: Pauline Latham (Conservative - Mid Derbyshire)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the extent to which Canada's critical minerals capacity is a factor in its inclusion of a potential expansion of Pillar II of the AUKUS agreement.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
As the AUKUS Defence Ministers announced earlier this month, in identifying collaboration opportunities for AUKUS nations to work with other states on advanced capability projects under Pillar 2, we will take into account factors such as technological innovation, financing, industrial strengths, ability to adequately protect sensitive data and information, and impact on promoting peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region.
Asked by: Ben Wallace (Conservative - Wyre and Preston North)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, which equipment programs within (a) the Army, (b) Strategic Command, (c) the Royal Air Force and (d) the Royal Navy have been deferred as part of the latest annual budget cycle round.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Department is reviewing its forward spending plans following the Government's announcement that defence spending will reach 2.5% of GDP in 2030.
Asked by: Tobias Ellwood (Conservative - Bournemouth East)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many (a) Typhoon and b) F-35 aircraft are operational.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
I refer the right hon. member to the answer I gave to the right hon. member for Garston and Halewood (Maria Eagle) on 22 March 2024 to Question 7163 which was deposited in the Library of the House with Paper reference DEP2024-0348.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of Leicester (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Viscount Younger of Leckie on 24 April (HL3765), what plans they have to collect data to evaluate the success of the two-child benefit cap, especially in relation to the statements in the 2015 Impact Assessment which suggest the two-child limit would (1) encourage parents to consider their readiness to support an additional child, (2) help people move into sustained employment, and (3) provide incentives to have fewer children.
Answered by Viscount Younger of Leckie - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
There are no such plans to collect data to evaluate the success of the two-child benefit cap. The Department committed to publishing statistics related to the policy to provide support for a maximum of two children annually. The latest statistics were published in July 2023 and can be accessed at: Universal Credit and Child Tax Credit claimants: statistics related to the policy to provide support for a maximum of two children, April 2023 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
DWP is committed to supporting families and helping parents into work. This requires a balanced system that provides strong work incentives and support for those who need it, but that also ensures a sense of fairness to the taxpayer and many working families who do not see their incomes rise when they have more children.
Asked by: Lord Browne of Ladyton (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, to support the Colombian Ministry of Equality and Equity, particularly pertaining to its work on reparations for victims of sexual and gender-based violence during conflict.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Colombia is a Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict Initiative (PSVI) and Women, Peace and Security National Action Plan focus country. Colombia is current chair of the UK-founded International Alliance on PSVI, a key forum for coordinating global action on conflict-related sexual violence. The UK contributed to the opening of a landmark case to address sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) from the armed conflict in the Special Jurisdiction for Peace (SJP), the authoritative transitional justice body providing reparations to SGBV victims. We continue to support this work, as well as assistance to victims and survivors seeking access to justice.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of Southwark (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the recent Refugee Council report Keys to the City 2024: ending refugee homelessness in London and its finding that in the two years to September 2023, there was a 239 per cent increase in refugees requiring homelessness support from local authorities after being evicted from Home Office asylum accommodation.
Answered by Lord Sharpe of Epsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
We recognise the number of individuals moving on from the asylum support system is placing pressure on local authorities. The Home Office and the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities are working closely on this and have been regularly engaging with local authorities to ensure they are supported. There are a number of improvements in train to ensure local authorities receive early notification of those leaving Home Office asylum accommodation to enable effective planning.
Asked by: Baroness Northover (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they plan to the respond to the letter from Professor Brian Bell of the Migration Advisory Committee requesting data for a rapid review of the Graduate Route.
Answered by Lord Sharpe of Epsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
We provided the requested data to the Migration Advisory Committee by 26 March 2024.
Asked by: Stephen Crabb (Conservative - Preseli Pembrokeshire)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps his Department is taking to help reduce the number of drug-related deaths in prisons in Wales.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
We have a zero-tolerance approach to drugs in all our prisons.
We have an ambitious 10-year Drug Strategy, which sets out our cross-government plan to address illegal drug use. It is underpinned by a record level of additional investment, as part of which the Ministry of Justice is rolling out a range of interventions, including in prisons in Wales, to get offenders off drugs and into recovery. These include:
Alongside the physical deterrents, prisons in Wales have a drug and alcohol intervention service which aims to address the causes of drug and alcohol-related usage and reduce the risk of harm. This is achieved through various means including opiate replacement treatments, psychosocial groups, and counselling.
Following the most recent deaths, HMPPS in Wales has taken further steps, including: