To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills how many staff in his Department are employed in (a) administering the English for Speakers of Other Languages programme and (b) developing content for citizenship courses; and what estimate he has made of the cost of employing such staff in (a) 2008-09 and (b) each of the next two financial years. (245584)

The team responsible for English for Speakers of Other Languages policy has evolved during 2008 so I am unable to provide a precise costing. This figure is an estimation based on the current cadre of five full-time equivalent staff at a cost of £290,000 for 2008-09. This does not include any Learning and Skills Council resource. Future costs are not provided as these would be predicated on future pay remits agreed with HM Treasury and the cadre may change according to policy priorities.

The Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills does not employ staff to develop content for citizenship courses. Citizenship materials are developed to meet Home Office criteria and content for these courses are developed by the Learning and Skills Improvement Service.

To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills with reference to the answer of 24 June 2008, Official Report, column 248W, on English language: education, when he expects to publish the independent impact assessment report on the English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) measures introduced in August 2007; and what the expected cost of provision of ESOL is expected to be in (a) 2008-09 and (b) the two following years. (245706)

The Department commissioned an independent review of the changes made to ESOL fees in 2007 to inform any future policy decisions. This work is not yet concluded because the initial work necessitated further in-depth research to produce a more complete picture. No decision has yet been taken on publication.

The cost of provision of ESOL is expected to be in the region of £300 million in 2008-09 and this will be maintained at a similar level for the following two years.