Written Answers to Questions
Monday 9 February 2009
Scotland
Departmental Internet
The Scotland Office operates no websites other than its main departmental website.
Until 2006 the Scotland Office also operated a website on behalf of the Commission on Boundary Differences and Voting Systems, chaired by Professor Sir John Arbuthnott.
Since completion of the Arbuthnott Commission's work it has only operated the departmental website: www.scotlandoffice.gov.uk.
Departmental Public Appointments
The Secretary of State for Scotland is responsible for appointing two commissioners to the Boundary Commission for Scotland. The commission is an independent and impartial advisory body, responsible for reviews of constituencies and regions for the Scottish Parliament, and constituencies in Scotland for the Westminster Parliament. One of the current commissioner appointments will run until 31 December 2010, the other until 6 June 2011. The posts are part time and require around one to two days work per month during the period of a boundary review. Commissioners are paid a daily fee, currently £486, for attending commission meetings and for meeting preparation. Applicants are expected to have a good understanding of the social geography of Scotland, the structure of constituencies for the Westminster and the Scottish Parliaments, and the electoral system. There are no statutory political restrictions, but it is recognised that commissioners are expected to be politically neutral. Appointments are made following Office of the Commissioner for Public Appointments (OCPA) and other relevant guidance.
The Secretary of State may also appoint, at the request of the commission, assistant commissioners, to "inquire into, and report to the Commission upon, such matters as the Commission think fit". In practice, assistant commissioners are appointed to conduct public inquiries into the commission's provisional recommendations. In Scotland, it is customary for Sheriffs Principal who preside over the relevant areas to be appointed for this purpose given their unquestioned independence and impartiality, and their local connection to the areas under consideration. These appointments are unpaid, and made for the duration of the inquiry process, typically a few months.
The Scotland Office retains all official records relating to the appointment of both commissioners and assistant commissioners.
Economic Situation
As one would expect, the Secretary of State for Scotland has regular engagements with outside organisations including relevant Government Departments on a range of issues relating to the economy.
Mass Media
The information requested is as follows:
PressData (web-based press cuttings) PA Mediapoint (web-based news wire) Newslink (broadcast transcription) 2003-04 18,215 0 0 2004-05 19,817 0 0 2005-06 18,000 0 0 2006-07 18,572 0 0 2007-08 12,150 5,651 2,892
Solicitor-General
BAE Systems: Saudi Arabia
The total cost to the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) of defending the legal action challenging the decision to drop the investigation into BAE Systems plc, as far as relating to Saudi Arabia, was £372,099.67. These costs comprise counsel fees, Treasury Solicitor fees and associated printing costs, and relate to both the hearing in the Divisional Court and the appeal in the House of Lords.
The legal team acting for the SFO (that is, external counsel and Treasury Solicitors) was paid £344,144.37.
Jonathan Sumption QC was paid £53,377 to represent the SFO in the appeal to the House of Lords.
All the above costs were met from the normal SFO budget.
All costs stated are exclusive of VAT.
Wales
Economic Situation
I have regular engagements with outside organisations on a range of issues relating to the Welsh economy.
I have recently met the Federation of Small Businesses Wales, the CBI and the Wales Trades Union Council. In addition I attend the regular meetings of the National Economic Council and the All Wales Economic Summits.
Non-domestic Rates
I refer the hon. Gentleman to my answer of 24 April 2008, Official Report, column 2180W. The 2005 council tax revaluation and rebanding exercise was revenue-neutral in that increases in council tax receipts during the year of the revaluation and subsequently arose from councils’ decisions on raising council tax, rather than the revaluation. The rises were in line with increases in previous years.
The increase in band D council tax was 3.8 per cent. between 2004-05 and 2005-06; 4.5 per cent. between 2005-06 and 2006-07, and 4.4 per cent. between 2006-07 and 2007-08.
Shellfish: Dredging
I recently discussed with the Welsh Assembly Government provisions in the Marine and Coastal Access Bill that will abolish Sea Fisheries Committees and provide Welsh Ministers further powers to manage fisheries, including scallop dredging, in Welsh waters.
At present local authority Sea Fisheries Committees are taking the lead role in managing scallop fisheries, within six nautical miles of the Welsh Coast. The Welsh Assembly Government have existing powers to regulate scallop dredging in Welsh waters—principally section 5 of the Sea Fish (Conservation) Act 1967.
I understand that discussions are taking place between WAG and other relevant organisations to develop a joint approach to seek to manage the situation in Cardigan bay.
Welsh Assembly Government
We have had frequent exchanges with Welsh Assembly Government Ministers and officials on the Welsh Language Legislative Competence Order. To make all such exchanges available in the Library would restrict our ability to conduct business effectively.
However, the Wales Office has released some information relating to exchanges on the proposed order. It is available on the Wales Office website:
www.walesoffice.gov.uk/foi/disclosures
Welsh Language
We have received legal opinions and advice relating to the Welsh Language Legislative Competence Order from a number of sources. To make such advice available would restrict our ability to conduct business effectively.
The Legislative Competence Order on the Welsh Language, when made, will confer legislative competence on the National Assembly for Wales in respect to the matters specified in the order. It will not confer official status on the Welsh language.
The explanatory memorandum accompanying the proposed order explains its scope and content in detail. I have today laid these documents as a Command Paper before the House for pre-legislative scrutiny. Copies have been placed in the Library and can be found in the Vote Office.
Prime Minister
China
Premier Wen visited the UK on 31 January-2 February for the annual UK-China summit, during which time we held a series of discussions.
I refer the hon. Member to the ‘UK-China Summit: Key Outcomes 2009’ which is available on the number 10 website:
http://www.number10.gov.uk/Page18214
I also refer the hon. Member to the ‘UK-China joint statement’, issued on 2 February, which is also available on the website:
http://www.number10.gov.uk/Page18220
Copies of both web pages have been placed in the Library of the House.
Personal Care Services
Defence
Absent Without Leave
Records held centrally on service personnel who have gone absent without leave (AWOL) relate to the number of incidents reported, not to the number of personnel. Therefore, individuals with multiple periods of absence are recorded more than once. For this reason the percentage of service personnel who went absent without leave in each of the last 10 years cannot be provided. The following table shows absence without leave statistics for each service by calendar year for each of the last 10 years:
Royal Navy1 Army Royal Air Force 1999 35 2,055 15 2000 55 2,710 25 2001 90 2,645 25 2002 110 2,950 25 2003 120 2,820 35 2004 185 3,030 55 2005 195 2,715 35 2006 155 2,330 10 2007 115 2,290 25 2008 125 2,105 5 1 Over this period there have been a number of changes to the criteria for reporting absentees in the RN. Notes: 1. Figures are rounded to the nearest 5. 2. While the figures reflect the number of reports of AWOL, it may come to light later that there are extenuating circumstances and therefore does not reflect the number of personnel who went on to be formally charged with AWOL.
The following table shows the number of service personnel convicted of desertion in each of the last 10 years:
Convictions of desertion 1999 18 2000 8 2001 3 2002 7 2003 3 2004 3 2005 6 2006 8 2007 2 2008 14 1 This figure does not include the last quarter of 2008 for the RN.
Afghanistan: Official Visits
Every effort is made to ensure that VIP visits to operational theatres proceed smoothly. However, on occasion, there are inevitably difficulties due to adverse weather, equipment serviceability and competing operational requirements for finite air and aviation resources. Visits are also on occasion cancelled for reasons without the control of my Department. We do not collate detailed statistics on the number of VIP visits delayed or cancelled and generating robust statistics could be achieved only at disproportionate cost.
Afghanistan: Peacekeeping Operations
It is expected to cost around £50 million to modify the Merlin helicopters for use on operations in Afghanistan. We are doing all we can to ensure a swift transition to Afghanistan. Nevertheless, we envisage a short period of around four months for the Merlin force to prepare for operations in Afghanistan after extraction from Iraq.
Air Force: Contracts
The scope of each individual multi-activity contract (MAC) is different, covering a range of services that support the operation of the station. These services may include, for example, cleaning, waste disposal, transport and supply and management of consumables. For large training units the MAC is often linked directly with the contract to provide the training output.
The monetary value and date of expiry of each RAF multi-activity contract is contained in the following table.
Location of MAC Expiry date Current estimated annual monetary value (£ million) RAF Valley March 2012 13.8 RAF Cranwell March 2013 13.2 RAF Northolt/Uxbridge March 2010 9.7 RAF Brampton/Wyton/Henlow March 2011-March 2012 7.9 RAF Shawbury March 2012 6.3 RAF Brize Norton March 2010 5.4 RAF Lyneham March 2012 4.5 RAF Cosford December 2011 4.4 RAF High Wycombe March 2010 4.2 RAF Halton March 2010 4.0 RAF Linton March 2010 2.0 Air Surveillance and Control System (ASACS)/RAF Fylingdales March 2009 2.6
Armed Forces: Parades
Details of all military tattoos and locations are not retained centrally by the MOD. The MOD does not currently run any tattoos; they are operated by commercial organisations who will hold their own records.
Arms Trade: Treaties
I have regular discussions with representatives of the defence industry and defence trade associations on a range of issues, but to date have not specifically discussed the proposed Arms Trade Treaty.
The Ministry of Defence fully supports the Government’s effort to establish an Arms Trade Treaty that will help prevent the irresponsible trade in conventional weapons. The Department is an active member of the cross-Whitehall team led by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office that is taking forward this work within the United Nations. The cross-Whitehall team maintains a dialogue with the defence industry through regular stakeholder group meetings. During 2009 this work will support the UN process, which is considering elements that might be included in an eventual legally binding treaty.
Defence Intelligence Staff
I refer the hon. Member to the answer my predecessor gave on 15 June 2006, Official Report, column 1384W, to the hon. Member for Lewes (Norman Baker), which provides the size of the Defence intelligence staff (DIS) for the years 1997 to 2006. The information for subsequent years is: April 2007—4,748; April 2008—4,308 staff; and is forecast as 4,365 staff for April 2009.
Defence: Industry
(2) what recent assessment he has made of the effect of the economic climate on the defence industry, with particular reference to the industry's capacity to (a) retain skilled workers and (b) meet procurement deadlines.
The Defence Industrial Strategy (DIS) promotes a sustainable and competitive UK defence industrial base. This ensures the retention of the specialist skills necessary to deliver the capabilities needed by our armed forces. Defence Ministers have regular discussions with representatives from the defence industry both individually and in the forum of the National Defence Industries Council on a wide range of issues including the effect of the current economic climate on the industry.
Departmental Catering
Ethically traded products purchased by defence food services integrated project team, which is responsible for the procurement of food for the armed services on operations and on exercises overseas, are set out in the following list:
90 per cent. of tea and coffee from fair trade sources
100 per cent. of pork from British sources
100 per cent. of milk from British sources
100 per cent. of eggs from British sources
100 per cent. of whole gammons from British sources
100 per cent. of fish from managed sources
The Sustainability Working Group was established within the Defence Food Service Integrated Project Team (DFS IPT) to identify opportunities to extend sustainable procurement of food for the armed services on operations and on exercises overseas. The procurement of catering for MOD's London headquarters and for all military establishments is therefore outside the scope of the Working Group.
Where, however, the DFS IPT identifies Fairtrade products that meet MOD quality requirements and offer value for money, they may be listed on the core range of products supplied for operational feeding to UK armed forces personnel "in barracks" not covered by the Pay As You Dine programme.
Catering in MOD's London headquarters is provided as part of a multi-activity contract. An extensive range of Fairtrade products is available that includes all coffee served in the deli bar, coffee bar and in the vending machines. A range of other Fairtrade beverages, fruit juices, snack bars and cakes is also available.
For those military establishments where catering is provided through the Pay As You Dine programme, or as part of a multi-activity contract, the catering contractor may choose to offer Fairtrade products as part of his strategy, although the requirement does not specify that he must. There are a wide variety of such contracts in place across the Department and information on Fairtrade products on offer is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Departmental Financial Penalties
The MOD and its defence agencies and trading funds have no statutory powers to levy such penalties.
Departmental Procurement
MOD procurement practices are designed to ensure that our armed forces have the best equipment available while at the same time ensuring value for money for the taxpayer. The defence industrial strategy recognises the crucial role that the UK defence industry plays in delivery of capability to the front line and promotes a sustainable and globally competitive UK defence industrial base. Defence Ministers have regular discussions with representatives from the defence industry both individually and in the forum of the National Defence Industries Council.
EU Battlegroups
I refer the hon. Member to the answer my predecessor gave on 4 March 2008, Official Report, column 2348W.
Ex-servicemen: Military Decorations
According to our records, a total of 1,679 veterans who have applied giving Bolton as part of their address, have been issued with HM Armed Forces Veterans Badge.
HMS Endurance
(2) what plans he has for transporting HMS Endurance to the United Kingdom; and what estimate he has made of the cost of such transportation;
(3) when he expects repairs to HMS Endurance to be completed; and when he expects HMS Endurance to be operational.
Ministers were notified of the flooding incident in HMS Endurance's engine room on 16 December 2008 and officials have kept us informed of the situation to date.
A contract has now been signed with Dockwise who will return HMS Endurance to the UK by the heavy lift vessel MV Target. It is currently estimated that the ship will return to the UK around 20 March 2009, weather permitting. Subject to detailed survey, our intention is that the ship will then be repaired prior to her return to service at a date yet to be agreed. I am withholding the cost of the heavy lift contract and the projected repair costs as they are commercially sensitive.
Service Accommodation
[holding answer 9 February 2009]: In addition to the increased investment in service accommodation in recent years, over £8 billion will be spent in the next decade, including some £3 billion on improving and upgrading accommodation. The MOD is restrained in much of the work on SFA by the contract with Annington Homes signed in 1996.
Since 2003, some 29,000 new or improved single living accommodation bed-spaces have been delivered with a further 30,000 planned by 2013.
Regarding service family accommodation (SFA), over 13,000 properties have been upgraded to the highest standard for condition since 2001, with a further 600 planned in this financial year (FY) and 800 in each year thereafter.
In addition to upgrading SFA, around £32 million was spent in FY 2007-08 on improvements such as new kitchens or bathrooms, improving the quality of life for service families.
Service Personnel: Retention
[holding answer 9 February 2009]: Taking the armed forces as a whole, retention rates are relatively stable and we have seen no unexplained peaks of personnel leaving in the last 10 years. There is real concern, however, that in some important areas exit rates are too high and appear to be increasing, if only slightly, year on year. These pinch point trades are continuously monitored and specific action is taken to improve retention and indeed recruitment. The recent Command Paper (July 2008) set out over 40 measures aimed at addressing many of the disadvantages of service life while the Government's response to the Report of Inquiry into National Recognition of our Armed Forces has now been presented to Parliament detailing how we have accepted the majority of recommendations. In addition, a wide range of measures are in place to improve retention, including career management, improvement to conditions of service and work/life balance, commitment bonuses and targeted financial retention initiatives.
Justice
Bail Accommodation and Support Services
The properties provided by ClearSprings are not bail hostels. What were known as approved hostels, probation hostels and bail hostels are now approved premises. There are 97 approved premises in England, and four in Wales. None is in Eastbourne, and there are no plans to open one there or to expand the number of approved premises in England or Wales. The core purpose of approved premises is to protect the public from offenders who pose a significant risk of harm, and, at 30 November 2008, only 157 of the 2,205 places were filled by defendants on bail.
Civil Proceedings: Legal Costs
Information on wasted costs orders against the defence in the Crown court and the total sum awarded in each case is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Commissioner for Victims and Witnesses: Costs
The total cost of the 2006 recruitment campaign for the role of Victims’ Commissioner was £96,625.
The recruitment exercise for the role of Commissioner for Victims and Witnesses was carried out according to the code of practice for public appointments. The recruitment exercise included the use of an executive search agency specialising in public appointments which targeted individuals perceived to be of the right calibre for the role and public advertisements in relevant publications. However, we were not successful in identifying a candidate with all of the appropriate skills necessary for the proposed role and Ministers decided not to appoint.
Coroners: Leicestershire
(2) what the longest time taken by a coroner to hold a treasure inquest, once requested, was for cases reported in (a) 2006, (b) 2007 and (c) 2008; and if he will make a statement.
The Ministry of Justice collects statistics on the number of finds under the Treasure Act 1996 reported to coroners in England and Wales during each calendar year, the number of treasure inquests concluded during the year and, of these, the number of verdicts of treasure returned. Information is not collected on the time taken to conduct treasure inquests.
Informal figures are, however, collated by the British Museum. These show that in 2007, the British Museum requested that coroners in Leicestershire hold seven treasure inquests. An average time taken between the inquests being requested and a verdict being returned is not available because one of these inquests is still ongoing, although the time taken for the other six ranged from 82 days to 515 days. A statistical average based on such a small number of cases would be very volatile and heavily dependent on the particular circumstances of each case.
The longest time taken by a coroner to hold a treasure inquest for cases reported in 2006, 2007 and 2008 is not yet known from the British Museum figures, because some inquests from each of these years have still not reached a conclusion.
Departmental Public Appointments
The Ministry of Justice is responsible for 40 public bodies which have over 9,000 members. These appointments are not centrally co-ordinated and therefore the activity required to provide an answer to the question raised exceeds the acceptable cost parameters.
Ministerial appointments to public bodies are regulated by the Office of the Commissioner for Public Appointments in accordance with the Public Appointments Order in Council 2002 and conducted in accordance with the Office of the Commission for Public Appointments Code of Practice. Appointments to these bodies and the records pertaining to them are subject to audit conducted by external auditors engaged by the Commissioner.
Duchy of Cornwall
The Duchy of Cornwall is a private estate that funds the public, charitable and private activities of the Prince of Wales, the Duchess of Cornwall, Prince William and Prince Harry.
Information Commissioner: Finance
The Information Commissioner is funded by a combination of grant in aid from the Ministry of Justice to pay for his freedom of information responsibilities and notification fees paid direct to the Commissioner by data controllers to pay for his data protection work.
Discussions are continuing with the Commissioner on the level of his grant in aid for 2009-10. A decision is expected shortly and will be notified to the Commissioner. The final figure will be published in the Main Estimate 2009-10 in April.
Following consultation last year, secondary legislation will shortly be introduced to Parliament to provide for tiered notification fees payable by data controllers. This will increase the Information Commissioner's funding in line with his estimate of the cost of meeting both his existing and proposed new statutory data protection responsibilities. The tiered notification fees will come into effect from October this year.
Magistrates Courts: Closures
As part of the Ministry of Justice (MoJ), HMCS Hampshire and the Isle of Wight (HMCS HIOW) has to make efficiency savings over the next three years. The proposal to close Lyndhurst temporarily and transfer its work to Southampton, a modern purpose- built magistrates court is one of a series of measures identified by local management to improve efficiency and reduce the running costs of the area during this period.
No decision has yet been made but consideration will be given to the needs of those who live and work in the New Forest area and their ability to access justice.
A decision to re-open a court following temporary closure would depend on the prevailing factors at that time. All decisions to close individual courts permanently are for Ministers.
Magistrates Courts: Wisbech
Wisbech magistrates court is a two criminal court room building in an accessible part of Wisbech. The building is co-located alongside the local police station (Cambridgeshire Constabulary) and its custody suite which is accessed by the courthouse. Cambridgeshire Constabulary are the tenants of HMCS. Many of the building services are linked to the adjacent police station. The courthouse has the use of two cells under a shared arrangement with the police and the Prisoner Escort Service (PECS). Recently Cambridgeshire Constabulary has made public its intention to move custody arrangements to a new county facility in March, Cambridgeshire from the end of March 2009 and will no longer provide this at Wisbech police station. The Wisbech police station will remain as an operational unit. HMCS have been actively involved in discussions with both the Cambridgeshire Constabulary and the PECs delivery organisation (GSL) as to how HMCS can ensure practical occupation of the cell area in order for the HMCS business to continue to operate as usual. Without the use of an available and suitable on-site custody suite the use of the courthouse would be considerably reduced which is why the local HMCS area has been working proactively alongside both Cambridgeshire Constabulary and PECs to resolve this situation successfully. There are no current plans or proposals to change or reduce the use of this courthouse.
Mass Media
The Ministry of Justice was created in May 2007. The cost for press monitoring services in 2007-08 was £103,385.63.
Media monitoring services include clippings of newspaper articles on subjects relevant to the Department that are compiled on a daily basis and summaries of broadcast news programmes throughout the day. It is important to monitor the climate of opinion so policy development can take place in the fullest context. Media monitoring is one way to do this and also provides useful instant feedback on policy announcements.
In common with other Government Departments of a similar size, the Ministry of Justice also monitors a wide range of media to ensure Government policy is reported accurately to the public to enable clear understanding of the work of Government and that inaccuracies are spotted and corrected.
Members: Correspondence
I wrote to my right hon. Friend on 30 January. I am sorry for the delay in replying.
National Identity: Languages
The UK does not have an official language defined in statute, although English is the predominant language by custom and usage. In addition, under the European Charter for Regional and Minority Languages the UK Government have recognised Welsh, Scottish Gaelic, Irish, Scots, Ulster Scots and Cornish as minority languages within the UK.
Offenders: Personal Records
The Department no longer uses the Offenders Index to provide routine data on reoffending and criminal history. We are currently analysing the final cohorts of offenders extracted from the Offenders Index which are based on data up to December 2006. The Ministry of Justice has no plan for further updates.
Since 2005, the Ministry of Justice has been using data extracted from its police national computer database to provide the published figures on reoffending. This database is updated weekly.
Reoffenders
The following table shows the one-year reoffending rates for offenders leaving custody in the first quarter of the years 2002 to 2006, by gender. The table shows the proportion of offenders who committed at least one further offence and the number of further offences committed per 100 offenders.
Number of offenders Actual reoffending rate (Percentage) Number of offences per 100 offenders Males 2002 Q1 14,385 55.0 283.8 2003 Q1 13,202 53.9 276.8 2004 Q1 14,359 51.8 249.9 2005 Q1 13,353 49.1 227.0 2006 Q1 13,178 46.6 207.5 Females 2002 Q1 1,193 55.8 340.9 2003 Q1 1,156 54.1 305.1 2004 Q1 1,402 53.7 285.2 2005 Q1 1,242 49.1 244.8 2006 Q1 1,202 45.0 218.6
Further information on the one-year rates of reoffending can be found at:
http://www.justice.gov.uk/publications/reoffendingofadults.htm
Reparation by Offenders
The available information is contained in the following table.
Year/court type 2005 2006 Magistrates court Crown court Total Magistrates court Crown court Total Avon and Somerset 61 — 61 74 — 74 Bedfordshire 8 — 8 16 — 16 Cambridgeshire 28 1 29 40 — 40 Cheshire 36 — 36 16 — 16 Cleveland 45 — 45 49 — 49 Cumbria 8 — 8 4 — 4 Derbyshire 44 — 44 39 — 39 Devon and Cornwall 86 — 86 98 1 99 Dorset 35 — 35 34 — 34 Durham 41 — 41 67 — 67 Essex 51 — 51 69 — 69 Gloucestershire 8 — 8 14 — 14 Greater Manchester 190 1 191 212 2 214 Hampshire 68 — 68 48 — 48 Hertfordshire 45 — 45 64 — 64 Humberside 125 — 125 118 — 118 Kent 88 — 88 114 — 114 Lancashire 100 — 100 160 — 160 Leicestershire 44 — 44 66 — 66 Lincolnshire 16 — 16 29 — 29 Merseyside 80 — 80 90 — 90 Metropolitan Police 202 1 203 311 2 313 Norfolk 26 — 26 70 1 71 North Yorkshire 69 — 69 55 — 55 Northamptonshire — — —- — — — Northumbria 429 — 429 479 — 479 Nottinghamshire 152 — 152 162 1 163 South Yorkshire 130 — 130 168 — 168 Staffordshire 70 — 70 88 — 88 Suffolk 87 — 87 86 — 86 Surrey 70 — 70 69 — 69 Sussex 89 — 89 144 — 144 Thames Valley 74 — 74 85 — 85 Warwickshire 34 — 34 63 — 63 West Mercia 41 — 41 41 — 41 West Midlands 116 — 116 96 — 96 West Yorkshire 185 — 185 170 — 170 Wiltshire 16 — 16 33 — 33 Dyfed-Powys 5 — 5 6 — 6 Gwent 45 3 48 47 — 47 North Wales 52 — 52 69 — 69 South Wales 112 — 112 75 — 75 Total 3,211 6 3,217 3,738 7 3,745
Year/court type 2007 Magistrates court Crown court Total Avon and Somerset 87 — 87 Bedfordshire 22 — 22 Cambridgeshire 49 — 49 Cheshire 21 — 21 Cleveland 49 — 49 Cumbria 9 — 9 Derbyshire 40 — 40 Devon and Cornwall 97 — 97 Dorset 53 — 53 Durham 91 — 91 Essex 56 — 56 Gloucestershire 33 — 33 Greater Manchester 295 — 295 Hampshire 56 — 56 Hertfordshire 56 — 56 Humberside 134 — 134 Kent 134 — 134 Lancashire 177 — 177 Leicestershire 63 — 63 Lincolnshire 20 — 20 Merseyside 106 — 106 Metropolitan Police 316 1 317 Norfolk 72 — 72 North Yorkshire 50 — 50 Northamptonshire 56 — 56 Northumbria 491 — 491 Nottinghamshire 157 — 157 South Yorkshire 147 — 147 Staffordshire 88 — 88 Suffolk 80 — 80 Surrey 66 — 66 Sussex 183 — 183 Thames Valley 81 1 82 Warwickshire 82 — 82 West Mercia 50 — 50 West Midlands 85 — 85 West Yorkshire 197 — 197 Wiltshire 17 — 17 Dyfed-Powys 5 — 5 Gwent 44 — 44 North Wales 66 — 66 South Wales 71 1 72 Total 4,052 3 4,055 1 Reparation orders are only given to young offenders aged under 18 Notes: 1. The statistics given are on a principal offence and primary disposal basis. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences the principal offence is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences the offences selected are the offences for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe A defendant could be issued with more than one disposal for a committed offence. The statistics do not include number of reparation orders given as secondary disposal. 2. Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. Source: Office for Criminal Justice Reform—Evidence and Analysis Unit [Ref IOS 86-09]
Repossession Orders: Mortgages
(2) for what reasons HM Courts Service automatically disposes of all court records of suspended possession orders after six years of inactivity.
There were 866 cases which involved a warrant of possession being issued in 2008 and which followed the original suspended mortgage possession order being made three to five years previously. There were also 103 cases which involved a warrant of possession being issued in 2008 and which followed the original suspended mortgage possession order being made 6-10 years previously.
The Ministry of Justice does not currently hold statistical information relating to lags between suspended mortgage possession orders made and warrants of possession issues of more than 10 years.
These figures do not indicate the number of homes actually being repossessed. Issuing a warrant of possession does not necessarily result in repossession.
HM Courts Service automatically disposes of all possession action files including those involving suspended possession orders after three years’ inactivity. Electronic records specifying the incidence and associated dates of suspended possession orders are still available for orders made within the last 10 years. However, record retention and disposition policies do not affect the enforcement of suspended possession orders. It is the duty of claimants to supply the order documents when applying for a warrant of possession to be issued.
Record retention and disposition policies fall within the remit of the Departmental Records Officer and Head of Record Information and Management Services for the Ministry of Justice. Retention periods are determined by (a) any legislative requirement and (b) the business need of the area to which the schedule relates. No special provisions are made for the retention and disposal of records involving suspended possession orders.
Repossession Orders: Yorkshire and the Humber
Figures for each parliamentary constituency in Yorkshire and Humberside region are not available. However, the following tables show the number of mortgage and landlord possession orders made in each county court within Yorkshire and Humberside Government office region.
The civil procedure rules state that all claims for the repossession of land must be commenced in the district in which the land is situated. However, county courts in the Yorkshire and Humberside Government office region may cover areas other than the parliamentary constituencies of this region. Therefore not all possession actions at these courts necessarily relate to Yorkshire and Humber constituencies.
Court level statistics on mortgage and landlord repossession actions from 1987 to 2007 are available on the Ministry of Justice website at:
http://www.iustice.gov.uk/publications/mortgatelandlord possession.htm
These figures do not indicate how many homes have actually been repossessed. Repossessions can occur without a court order being made, while not all court orders result in repossession.
1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 Barnsley 319 375 417 500 392 331 274 248 315 230 342 Bradford 761 942 1,171 1,665 1,182 996 864 870 967 782 987 Bridlington* 32 27 114 120 110 106 91 103 107 79 — Dewsbury 418 339 471 767 526 402 361 423 371 347 426 Doncaster 564 478 594 826 571 445 482 471 560 541 652 Goole* 66 50 91 135 96 82 97 122 76 — — Grimsby 562 447 954 1,028 649 505 436 486 477 470 512 Halifax 468 290 394 649 551 390 425 370 372 338 368 Harrogate 0 113 244 407 338 249 184 200 184 157 163 Huddersfield 223 198 382 442 457 341 331 370 334 307 414 Keighley 173 174 296 372 268 206 210 169 168 154 223 Kingston-upon-Hull 596 750 904 1,268 822 721 720 640 685 589 743 Leeds 807 903 1,068 1,463 1,146 937 831 761 896 816 903 Otley* 77 62 119 188 129 124 101 83 — — — Pontefract 287 241 311 423 286 276 276 242 250 247 264 Rotherham 448 346 523 675 483 413 325 289 345 231 337 Scarborough 128 101 177 271 198 137 129 149 117 140 359 Scunthorpe 159 171 359 455 285 231 239 215 243 364 224 Sheffield 492 664 889 1,211 847 810 632 543 562 533 600 Skipton 72 79 104 175 127 113 93 125 119 92 107 Thorne* 72 68 90 163 102 63 — — — — — Wakefield 253 194 257 366 259 223 160 191 171 173 217 York 327 368 505 577 456 346 358 332 330 291 368 Yorkshire and Humber GOR 7,304 7,380 10,434 14,146 10,280 8,447 7,619 7,402 7,649 6,881 8,209 Other HMCS North East region 4283 3,894 4,243 5,952 5,192 3,969 3,236 3,264 3,493 3,015 4,298 HMCS North East region total 11,587 11,274 14,677 20,098 15,472 12,416 10,855 10,666 11,142 9,896 12,507
1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 (Jan-Sep)2 Barnsley 348 314 247 263 220 255 407 521 615 570 Bradford 1,105 1,000 927 802 770 763 1,099 1,235 1,437 1,342 Bridlington* — — — — — — — — — — Dewsbury 481 391 370 300 293 363 552 671 735 698 Doncaster 702 652 616 514 458 550 847 1,195 1,389 1,087 Goole* — — — — — — — — — — Grimsby 555 495 429 399 333 405 630 670 749 599 Halifax 466 351 340 280 252 304 419 510 585 529 Harrogate 187 164 155 118 133 156 233 232 205 160 Huddersfield 424 363 319 272 240 289 446 533 545 543 Keighley 227 187 153 142 145 155 213 241 308 264 Kingston-upon-Hull 800 704 632 534 529 579 833 1,011 1,181 956 Leeds 843 773 743 678 661 708 1,078 1,258 1,520 1,328 Otley* — — — — — — — — — — Pontefract 298 266 230 206 197 255 475 534 617 572 Rotherham 436 381 302 277 258 284 484 615 704 672 Scarborough 255 225 244 151 156 195 292 350 441 359 Scunthorpe 284 219 246 217 212 240 380 448 484 450 Sheffield 632 625 536 481 478 509 863 997 1,181 972 Skipton 99 76 95 67 63 51 85 105 133 105 Thorne* — — — — — — — — — — Wakefield 266 232 189 149 166 204 342 373 418 364 York 388 341 300 240 303 291 405 463 510 440 Yorkshire and Humber GOR 8,796 7,759 7,073 6,090 5,867 6,556 10,083 11,962 13,757 12,010 Other HMCS North East region 3,964 3,958 3,463 3,245 3,055 3,441 5,540 7,079 8,061 7,028 HMCS North East region total 12,760 11,717 10,536 9,335 8,922 9,997 15,623 19,041 21,818 19,038 1 Mortgage data include all types of lender. 2 Figures for the latest year are provisional. * County court closed or merged with other county courts. Source: Ministry of Justice
1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 Barnsley 218 199 242 407 337 292 285 240 249 166 182 Bradford 241 313 716 1048 970 1141 561 639 821 771 967 Bridlington* 37 32 93 111 77 111 82 99 98 53 — Dewsbury5 287 179 378 521 588 516 261 344 276 307 448 Doncaster 313 335 415 589 548 343 328 362 428 476 507 Goole* 52 21 69 118 101 78 86 114 73 — — Grimsby 391 379 546 824 579 522 457 362 516 319 582 Halifax5 249 225 442 565 469 294 279 389 384 282 341 Harrogate5 26 87 112 254 330 213 142 195 148 123 144 Huddersfield 109 100 362 451 548 296 321 277 338 277 343 Keighley5 134 102 208 283 247 181 148 149 164 115 166 Kingston-upon-Hull 430 421 547 1,400 556 538 476 390 531 378 779 Leeds 726 350 531 1,101 854 759 463 497 684 752 707 Otley* 47 42 66 142 94 95 66 71 — — — Pontefract5 211 137 221 311 264 189 192 168 138 216 295 Rotherham5 314 236 336 503 426 333 236 304 299 306 392 Scarborough 75 68 125 173 170 128 92 132 85 127 185 Scunthorpe5 114 110 241 277 272 196 237 155 263 158 194 Sheffield 497 324 545 797 649 517 285 497 389 398 516 Skipton 54 53 71 123 127 107 56 73 75 84 88 Thorne* 36 33 52 132 91 81 — — — — — Wakefield5 247 114 162 259 232 186 147 132 190 221 177 York 238 193 314 455 405 316 274 237 253 258 355 Yorkshire and Humber GOR 5,046 4,053 6,794 10,844 8,934 7,432 5,474 5,826 6,402 5,787 7,368 Other HMCS North East region 3,112 2,521 3,011 4,815 5,309 4,361 3,553 3,129 3,202 2,551 3,469 HMCS North East region total 8,158 6,574 9,805 15,659 14,243 11,793 9,027 8,955 9,604 8,338 10,837
1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 (Jan-Sep)2 Barnsley 278 251 198 188 148 160 268 351 435 423 Bradford 814 769 732 590 543 500 679 825 935 987 Bridlington* — — — — — — — — — — Dewsbury5 426 323 325 230 197 256 336 497 — — Doncaster 380 523 465 376 324 331 540 819 982 882 Goole* — — — — — — — — — — Grimsby 281 385 390 271 223 236 431 515 524 498 Halifax5 380 270 297 198 193 161 274 362 — — Harrogate5 127 128 115 77 63 90 157 169 — — Huddersfield 322 278 274 178 163 174 317 385 370 376 Keighley5 172 164 101 115 83 91 127 169 — — Kingston-upon-Hull 703 553 508 414 353 390 559 705 835 688 Leeds 684 611 600 437 448 410 682 876 1,049 997 Otley* — — — — — — — — — — Pontefract5 260 197 190 137 156 159 276 375 — — Rotherham5 347 297 262 189 185 191 304 431 — — Scarborough 219 152 187 106 88 119 184 227 309 289 Scunthorpe5 218 152 233 158 145 150 250 335 — — Sheffield 496 451 359 299 295 303 446 738 803 734 Skipton 72 64 66 46 42 41 52 73 95 92 Thorne* — — — — — — — — — — Wakefield5 172 167 157 119 97 157 199 297 — — York 299 267 221 139 172 172 268 333 338 298 Yorkshire and Humber GOR 6,650 6,002 5,680 4,267 3,918 4,091 6,349 8,482 — — Other HMCS North East region 3,305 3,216 2,935 2,249 2,088 2,145 3,290 5,128 — — HMCS North East region total 9,955 9,218 8,615 6,516 6,006 6,236 9,639 13,610 15,087 13,178 Notes: 1 Mortgage data include all types of lender. 2 Figures for the latest year are provisional. 3 The court, following a judicial hearing, may grant an order for possession immediately. This entitles the claimant to apply for a warrant to have the defendant evicted. However, even where a warrant for possession is issued, the parties can still negotiate a compromise to prevent eviction. 4 Includes outright and suspended orders, the latter being where the court grants the claimant possession but suspends the operation of the order. Provided the defendant complies with the terms of suspension, which usually require the defendant to pay the current mortgage or rent instalments plus some of the accrued arrears, the possession order cannot be enforced. 5 The rollout of the Possession Claim On-Line (PCOL) system in late 2006 has affected the availability of court-level data. Only those county courts who do not have direct on site access to PCOL were affected. Consequently, upward adjustment has been made to estimate the effects of missing data. The figures for these courts are adjusted at HMCS regional level. * County court closed or merged with other county courts. Source: Ministry of Justice
1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 Claims issued Orders made Claims issued Orders made Claims issued Orders made Claims issued Orders made Claims issued Orders made Barnsley 472 368 498 378 420 379 577 427 595 448 Bradford 1,085 731 1,166 940 1,251 944 1,202 872 949 761 Dewsbury5 658 538 691 610 710 637 672 523 819 654 Doncaster 904 752 759 707 817 699 1,085 889 1,077 917 Grimsby 304 171 312 167 263 218 384 277 427 312 Halifax5 395 310 463 325 452 308 569 386 626 442 Harrogate5 215 185 210 178 215 164 179 145 181 119 Huddersfield 557 492 551 484 648 532 683 543 687 550 Keighley5 169 122 152 128 155 138 153 121 131 100 Kingston-upon-Hull 1,691 944 1,699 862 1,544 938 2,534 1,654 2,025 1,208 Leeds 1,306 1,110 2,078 1,508 2,862 2,587 2,056 1,831 1,155 767 Pontefract5 288 258 354 317 306 274 287 246 247 219 Rotherham5 394 325 529 348 757 606 774 658 795 614 Scarborough 442 300 402 289 443 339 371 300 357 286 Scunthorpe5 574 276 622 374 533 511 532 422 492 429 Sheffield 2,664 1,704 2,271 1,601 2,321 1,553 2,808 2,245 2,334 1,592 Skipton 47 32 62 53 70 66 78 57 95 69 Wakefield5 268 216 256 266 279 258 267 180 286 245 York 758 605 739 558 689 554 838 632 711 521 Yorkshire and Humber GOR 13,191 9,439 13,814 10,093 14,735 11,705 16,049 12,408 13,989 10,253 Other HMCS North East region 9,042 6,674 8,387 6,705 7,915 6,182 8,959 6,733 8,819 6,521 HMCS North East region total 22,233 16,113 22,201 16,798 22,650 17,887 25,008 19,141 22,808 16,774
Claims issued Orders made Claims issued Orders made Claims issued Orders made Claims issued Orders made Claims issued Orders made Barnsley 585 454 688 498 744 536 600 509 423 382 Bradford 1,039 920 1,020 843 934 791 790 595 401 355 Dewsbury5 789 596 720 605 461 378 552 — 394 — Doncaster 1,034 903 814 764 876 719 809 769 592 580 Grimsby 469 364 361 309 424 322 483 536 310 264 Halifax5 495 414 494 377 485 333 449 — 274 — Harrogate5 172 125 174 141 184 148 143 — 150 — Huddersfield 655 533 725 530 603 478 612 489 393 414 Keighley5 148 108 172 153 166 139 169 — 56 — Kingston-upon-Hull 1,520 948 1,448 1,066 1,700 1,122 1,359 1,036 914 714 Leeds 1,496 1,060 1,583 1,181 1,215 1,134 1,163 1,002 872 941 Pontefract5 399 312 321 281 310 261 277 — 205 — Rotherham5 819 659 614 456 795 594 556 — 321 — Scarborough 327 229 330 293 360 281 309 285 227 200 Scunthorpe5 418 364 389 337 384 309 357 — 294 — Sheffield 2,486 1,823 2,294 1,724 2,048 1,368 2,012 1,779 1,451 1,671 Skipton 73 62 95 74 59 58 71 55 39 34 Wakefield5 358 347 218 175 282 239 279 — 190 — York 872 588 754 525 677 571 642 513 404 292 Yorkshire and Humber GOR 14,154 10,809 13,214 10,332 12,707 9,781 11,632 — 7,910 — Other HMCS North East region 9,512 6,495 8,244 6,070 8,855 6,120 8,022 — 5,393 — HMCS North East region total 23,666 17,304 21,458 16,402 21,562 15,901 19,654 15,756 13,303 10,981 1 Landlord possession data include all types of landlord whether social or private. 2 Figures for the latest year are provisional. 3 Landlord actions include those made under both standard and accelerated procedures. Landlord actions via the accelerated procedure enable the orders to be made solely on the basis of written evidence and shorthold tenancies, when the fixed period of tenancy has come to an end. 4 Includes outright and suspended orders, the latter being where the court grants the claimant possession but suspends the operation of the order. Provided the defendant complies with the terms of suspension, which usually require the defendant to pay the current mortgage or rent instalments plus some of the accrued arrears, the possession order cannot be enforced. 5 The rollout of the Possession Claim On-Line (PCOL) system in late 2006 has affected the availability of court-level data. Only those county courts who do not have direct on site access to PCOL were affected. Consequently, upward adjustment has been made to estimate the effects of missing data. The figures for these courts are adjusted at HMCS regional level. Notes: The court, following a judicial hearing, may grant an order for possession immediately. This entitles the claimant to apply for a warrant to have the defendant evicted. However, even where a warrant for possession is issued, the parties can still negotiate a compromise to prevent eviction. Court level data are not available for all landlord possession actions prior to 1999. Source: Ministry of Justice
Road Traffic Offences
I have been asked to reply.
This information is not collected centrally. Available information is held on the Motor Insurance Database maintained by the Motor Insurers' Information Centre and relates to vehicles seized from those reasonably believed to be driving without appropriate insurance. In 2007 there were approximately 150,000 vehicles seized and in 2008 approximately 185,000.
Shoplifting: Fixed Penalties
There are already limits on the issue of penalty notices for disorder for shoplifting offences. Operational guidance makes it clear among other things that the disposal will be appropriate for first-time offences and not those who repeatedly offend. However the length of time since a previous shoplifting offence has been committed should be taken in account in considering whether a second penalty notice may be appropriate.
Following representations form the hon. Lady and from retail organisations, operational guidance covering shoplifting is being reviewed; a revised version will be issued shortly.
Television: Licensing
Information on the number of persons proceeded against for television licence evasion in the Hampshire police force area from 2003 to 2007 (latest available), is in the following table.
From information held centrally, it is not possible to provide borough or city level data.
These data are on the principal offence basis. The figures given in the table on court proceedings relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offence for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences, the offence selected is the one for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe.
Court proceedings data for 2008 will be available in the autumn of 2009.
Number 2003 1,891 2004 1,889 2005 2,520 2006 2,269 2007 2,269 1 The statistics relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences, the principal offence is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. 2 Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. 3 The TV licensing provisions of the Wireless Telegraphy Act 1949 were replaced by new provisions in section 363 of the Communications Act 2003 which came into effect 1 April 2004. Source: Evidence and Analysis Unit, Office for Criminal Justice Reform.
Culture, Media and Sport
Creativity and Business International Network
(2) how many organisations have agreed to become a strategic partner of the Creativity and Business International Network to date; and when he expects to announce these partnerships.
Discussions about financial support from the private sector, including strategic partnerships, are ongoing, and details will be announced in due course.
The Creativity and Business International Network has been offered support from a large number of creative and business organisations, including the commitment of 24 international ‘ambassadors’. A range of public sector bodies, trade organisations, businesses and individuals have also offered help and advice.
Departmental Training
In each of the last five financial years the following organisations have provided media training services for DCMS.
2008-current
Angela Coles
2007-08
Angela Coles
2006-07
No media training services provided.
2005-06
No media training services provided.
2004-05
No media training services provided.
Heathrow Airport: Listed Buildings
Based upon the information provided by the Department for Transport from its consultation document “Adding Capacity at Heathrow Airport” (2007), English Heritage estimates that six listed buildings will be lost as a result of the construction of a third runway at Heathrow airport. The consultation document is available at
http://www.dft.gov.uk/consultations/closed/heathrow consultation/consultationdocument.
Malvern St. James School
Additional advice had to be sought from English Heritage before the assessment process on the Edinburgh Sports Dome could be completed. Consequently, it did not prove possible to reach a decision by the end of November 2008. The case is given high priority, and the Secretary of State will reach a decision as soon as possible. I will notify the hon. Member as soon as a decision has been made.
Members: Correspondence
[holding answer 4 February 2009]: I offer the hon. Member an apology for the administrative error in dealing with this correspondence. The issues raised in the letter are the policy responsibility of the Intellectual Property Office, and I understand that a reply will be sent soon from the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills.
Memorials: World War II
A total of 148 individual second world war pillboxes have been given statutory designation.
The Defence of Britain Project (1995-02) has recorded nearly 20,000 20th century military sites in the United Kingdom, including pillboxes. As well as recording the 20th century militarised landscape of the United Kingdom, the project also informs heritage agencies at local and national level with a view to the future preservation of surviving structures. Full details of the project are at:
http://www.britarch.ac.uk/cba/projects/dob
English Heritage has undertaken a series of research projects to improve our understanding of second world war defences in the context of the many other sites that represent our defence heritage. Options for preservation include statutory designation, although it would not be appropriate to designate all of the many thousands of surviving pillboxes—careful selection is necessary. Alternatively, many of these structures have local significance and their recording on local authority Historic Environment Records is another way of improving understanding and protection.
Music: Education
The pilot music mentoring programme began in 2006-07 and is led by Youth Music. Youth Music advises that the number of mentors that have taken part in the programme is as set out in the following table.
2006-07 2007-08 2008-09 Adult mentors 70 70 40 Peer mentors 170 170 50
The pilot music mentoring programme began in 2006-07. This is led by Youth Music and has engaged over 1,000 young people in one to one, small group and large-scale mentoring activity in 14 areas in England. More than 700 positive outcomes have been recorded from the pilot phase, with around 180 of those linked to further education, training or employment or other transferable skills.
Music: North East
In November 2007, the Department for Children, Schools and Families announced a £332 million investment in music education. A share of that is automatically allocated to local authorities in the north-east. Since September 2005, the Government have also provided time-limited funding of £1.26 million to the Sage Gateshead to work in partnership with local authorities and other music education providers to enhance opportunities for children and young people across the north-east through its ‘Access to Excellence’ work. A significant proportion of the ‘Access to Excellence’ programme has been delivered through Redcar Community College.
Since September 2006, the Department for Children, Schools and Families' Music and Dance Scheme (which provides means-tested support for children with exceptional potential in music and dance) has invested £638, 000 to enable children to access specialist provision via the Sage Gateshead.
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport provides financial support for the arts through Arts Council England which has supported a number of projects that have helped promote music to young people in the north-east. This includes Youth Choir at Brinkburn Music Festival 2008 (Grants for the Arts Award of £22,000); Monumental Music CIC, Sunderland Music Club (Grants for the Arts Award of £13,420); and Interopera (Grants for the Arts Award of £13,420).
Since 1999, Youth Music, a regularly funded organisation of Arts Council England, has invested £4,583, 071 in the north-east, through open programmes, the Youth Music Action Zone (CoMusica) and the MusicLeader network for the region. Youth Music has provided a further £40,000 of direct investment in the north-east through Sing Up, the Music Manifesto National Singing Programme, of which Youth Music and the Sage Gateshead are partners.
Support has also been provided via other Arts Council England regularly funded organisations. This includes Jazz Action, which has set up the Milestones Project providing talented young musicians from the north-east with the opportunity to showcase their music in front of a live audience, and Monster Productions, based in the north-east, which run early year musicals throughout the country, including the north-east area.
Newspapers: North East
My Department has no plans at present to provide financial support to local newspapers in the north-east. The Digital Britain Interim Report, published on 29 January 2009, recognised that at a local level, the challenges for news organisations are intense. One of the actions recommended in the report is for Government to invite the Office of Fair Trading, together with Ofcom and other interested parties, to undertake an exploratory review across the local and regional media sector and make appropriate recommendations. I will consider any findings or further recommendations arising from this action.
Religious Buildings
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport provides financial support for the historic environment through English Heritage, which makes funding decisions independently of Government. It is for English Heritage to determine where money is spent depending on its assessment of relative need across the wider historic environment. The Department is satisfied with English Heritage's performance on facilitating the conservation of churches and places of worship.
Sports: Finance
The Big Lottery Fund has indicated that the value of awards and payments made by BIG and its predecessor body, the New Opportunities Fund, for physical education and sport initiatives are shown in the following tables. The figures are UK wide.
PE and sport in schools (NOPES) Spaces for sports and arts School sports coordinators Community sports programmes Football foundation Total value of awards (£ million) 2001-02 0.0 10.6 0.0 0.0 0.0 10.6 2002-03 36.5 11.8 10.3 0.0 30.0 88.6 2003-04 193.3 0.2 8.9 0.0 0.0 202.4 2004-05 330.6 0.0 7.5 57.1 0.0 395.2 2005-06 66.3 1.6 15.8 23.8 0.0 107.5 2006-07 19.2 0.2 12.0 9.3 0.0 40.7 2007-08 4.9 -0.2 13.1 -0.1 0.0 17.7
PE and sport in schools (NOPES) Spaces for sports and arts School sports co-ordinators Community sports programmes Football foundation Total value of payments (£ million) 2001-02 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 2002-03 1.3 1.8 1.7 0.0 0.0 4.8 2003-04 16.3 8.1 4.9 0.0 3.1 32.4 2004-05 67.2 -0.8 7.1 5.8 5.7 85.0 2005-06 198.1 3.4 13.2 27.2 8.4 250.2 2006-07 172.8 11.6 10.4 24.2 6.7 225.8 2007-08 88.5 0.0 16.3 15.0 6.1 125.9
(2) how much his Department has paid to Fast Track for its work on the Medal Hopes scheme to date; and how much he expects to pay to Fast Track for such work in each of the next three years.
[holding answer 5 February 2009]: To date, the Department has made no payment to Fast Track, who are contracted on a commission-only basis.
Teachers: Music
I have been asked to reply.
Since September 2006, when the contract was let, £3.3 million has been spent to develop and deliver a programme of professional development for those working with children at Key Stage 2 in music. This breaks down as follows: £1.1 million in 2006-07, £1.3 million in 2007-08 and £0.9 million to date in 2008-09.
Television: Licensing
The Government looked at television licence fee concessions for a wide range of groups during the BBC Charter review process. There was little consensus as to who should receive concessions, the criteria on which they should be allocated, or how they should be funded. As a result there were no changes to the existing range of concessions.
Tourism
There are no official minutes from the Department's most recent tourism summit. However, the transcripts of the Prime Minister's and the Secretary of State's speeches are on Visit Britain's website including a transcript of the question and answer session. Details can be viewed at the following web link:
http://www.tourismtrade.org.uk/aboutvisitbritain/corporate events/tourismsummit.asp
Additionally, a number of outcomes stemmed from the summit including:
VisitBritain to compile a list of the industry's ‘top five asks’ of Government.
To explore ideas on a graduate job scheme for tourism and a development bank focused on supporting investment in the tourism industry.
The establishment of a cross-Whitehall ministerial group on tourism and high-level tourism advisory group, to be chaired by the Minister for Tourism.
To explore the feasibility of a British City of Culture, potentially every four years.
To maximise the tourism potential of forthcoming sporting events under the banner of a Decade of Sport.
Meet with all regional development agencies to discuss the support given to tourism in each region.
[holding answer 5 February 2009]: The Secretary of State and I have met a number of representatives and received various representations from the regional development agencies and from the wider tourism sectors in the regions. Last summer the Secretary of State, Minister for Tourism and Minister for Sport met all the chairs of the regional development agencies and I plan to meet each of the regions in the spring to follow up on the fruitful discussions held at the tourism summit in Liverpool last month.
The amounts spent by UK tourists visiting overseas and overseas tourists visiting the UK in each of the last 10 years for which figures are available are as follows1:
UK visits overseas Overseas visits to UK 1998 19,489 12,671 1999 20,020 12,498 2000 24,251 12,805 2001 25,332 11,306 2002 26,962 11,737 2003 28,550 11,855 2004 30,285 13,047 2005 32,154 14,248 2006 34,411 16,002 2007 35,013 15,960 Source: 1 This information was taken from the International Passenger Survey and relates to calendar years.
VisitBritain have advised that the percentage of global tourism the UK has received, in each of the last 10 years for which figures are available, is as follows;
UK share of global tourist arrivals (percentage) 1997 3.92 1998 3.88 1999 3.68 2000 3.41 2001 3.08 2002 3.18 2003 3.30 2004 3.37 2005 3.49 2006 3.62 2007 3.40
[holding answer 5 February 2009]: VisitBritain has provided some initial thoughts on the industry’s main needs, pending its final submission. When it is received, Ministers will give it full consideration with a view to how best to achieve the full potential of tourism to the British economy during the period of the global economic downturn.
Tourism: Greater London
Visit London has advised that it undertakes a range of tourism marketing campaigns to promote the capital internationally, nationally and to Londoners themselves.
In December last year, Visit London, in partnership with the London Development Agency and the Mayor of London, launched a four-month marketing campaign to stimulate visits to the capital in the build-up to Christmas 2008 and the new year. This will run across the capital's key visitor markets including Britain, Europe and North America and will last until the end of March 2009.
Including match funding from the private sector, Visit London will in total spend £3.25 million in the four months to March on promotional campaigns, which it believes should deliver £70 million in economic benefit to the city. Further marketing activity to promote the capital beyond the end of March 2009 is due to be launched in February.
In addition, promotion of London will be included in the £6.5 million ‘Value for Money Campaign’ launched by VisitBritain and VisitEngland at the tourism summit held in Liverpool on 8 January. This will build on the current domestic and international Enjoy England campaign, which positions England and Britain as good value destinations.
Tourism: Olympic Games 2012
There have been no direct discussions between DCMS Ministers and HMT on additional funding for tourism to harness marketing opportunities of the Olympics. However HMT has been invited to attend a cross-Whitehall Ministerial Group on Tourism to discuss priorities within the tourism industry.
World Creative Business Conference
The cost of Edelman and Acclaim is included within the £1 million allocated towards the running of the World Creative Business Conference in each of the next three years, including 2008-09.
World Heritage Sites
My Department has submitted State of Conservation reports to UNESCO's World Heritage Centre for the City of Bath World Heritage Site on 30 January 2009; Edinburgh Old and New Towns World Heritage Site on 30 January 2009; Stonehenge, Avebury and Associated Sites World Heritage Site on 30 January 2009; and the Heart of Neolithic Orkney World Heritage Site on 2 February 2009.
My Department has no plans to put forward any UK World Heritage Sites for consideration by the World Heritage Committee for inclusion on the World Heritage in Danger List in 2009.
Olympics
CompeteFor
The London Development Agency used an existing list of approved companies who had successfully tendered for selection on the Office of Government Commerce's Catalist Framework for CompeteFor. The OGC framework is itself developed through an open competitive process. Its framework agreements are let using an Official Journal of the European Union procurement process that shortlists suppliers by category, which any business can tender for, and which helps to speed up the procurement process.
Departmental Lobbying
I have received no representations from any of the noble Lords in question.
Departmental Manpower
[holding answer 3 February 2009]: In my Private Office I have five officials and a special adviser.
In addition, the Government Olympic Executive which reports to me through the Permanent Secretary of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, comprises 87.3 full-time equivalent staff, a total which includes both established civil servants and agency and interim staff.
[holding answer 5 February 2009]: My Private Office comprises five officials and a special adviser. In addition, the Government Olympic Executive (GOE) which reports to me through the Permanent Secretary of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, comprises 87.3 full-time equivalent staff, a total which includes both established civil servants and agency and interim staff.
The GOE is responsible for ensuring the Games are delivered on time, on budget and to the benefit of the whole of the UK. It works extensively with other organisations, such as the London Organising Committee (LOCOG) and the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA), providing important oversight, management and accountability for the games as a whole. GOE is the only body overseeing the entire Olympic project.
There are five teams within GOE:
Build and finance—responsible for ensuring the delivery of the Games infrastructure and venues remains on time, and that the whole programme remains on budget and provides value for money;
Staging—responsible for the myriad Government commitments and legislative changes necessary to host the world’s largest sporting event and assurance of LOCOG’s plans and finances in Government’s role as funder of last resort;
Legacy—responsible for ensuring that the Government’s ambitious legacy commitments are delivered, including getting 2 million people more active, transforming the heart of east London and inspiring a generation of young people;
Operations—responsible for overseeing the entire Olympic Project, identifying risks and issues across organisations, managing the Olympic Board and ensuring we are accountable to Parliament and the public; and
Communications—a small team responsible for working across Government to ensure events and activities are co-ordinated to avoid duplication and wasted resource.
Job descriptions for each official in my Private Office and in the GOE could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Olympic Games 2012: Facilities
Confidential commercial negotiations are continuing about the costs of the various elements of the Olympic Village. Therefore it is not possible to provide build cost information until those negotiations have concluded.
Confidential commercial negotiations are ongoing between the Olympic Delivery Authority, the preferred developer, Lend Lease, banks and Registered Social Landlords regarding investment for the Olympic Village. Therefore it is not possible to provide detail of the investment arrangements until those negotiations have concluded.
My Department is working closely with the Mayor, the London Development Agency, London borough of Hackney and other partners to explore proposals for the legacy use of the International Broadcast Centre/Main Press Centre (IBC/MPC) to ensure that we are able to leave a positive sustainable legacy for the site and for local communities. As part of this work programme, we are working with the Greater London Authority, the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills and the Higher Education Funding Council for England to undertake a feasibility study on the need, size, scope and specialisms for a potential new university on the IBC/MPC site, or elsewhere on the Park, as part of the legacy planning for the Park site.
Olympic Games 2012: Waste Disposal
[holding answer 4 February 2009]: In the construction of the Olympic Park, the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) will transform a previously contaminated site into an integral part of the long-term regeneration of east London and the wider Thames Gateway. Across the whole site the ODA continues to exceed its 90 per cent. target of reclaiming demolition material for reuse or recycling.
Where possible, all excavation and demolition waste from the Olympic stadium site is treated at source and the cleansed material, where appropriate, reused or recycled in the landscaping and foundations work of the Olympic Park.
Where this has not been possible, waste material has been transported off-site for landfill disposal at Environment Agency approved sites across the UK. The locations of those sites are:
Kings Cliff, Cambridgeshire (Augean Kings Cliff)
Dudley, West Midlands (Himley Quarry)
Teesside, North Yorkshire (Impetus Waste Management ICI 3)
Barling Magna, Essex (Barling Landfill)
Purton, North Wiltshire (Parkgate Farm Landfill)
Middlesbrough, Cleveland (Augean Middlesbrough)
In addition, a small amount of arisings from the stadium site were identified in summer 2008 as containing—or potentially containing—asbestos above the agreed levels. This waste was taken off-site for safe disposal to Powerday landfill facilities at Old Oak Sidings in London.
Northern Ireland
Assets Recovery Agency
As chair of the Organised Crime Task Force I receive regular updates on the assets recovery work of the Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA) in Northern Ireland. Since the merger in April 2008 SOCA has adopted, and will continue to adopt, new civil recovery cases in Northern Ireland. Civil recovery is one of a number of tools at SOCA's disposal to tackle criminal finances and profits and it will ensure that the most effective and appropriate asset recovery powers (criminal, civil or tax) are used in each case.
Civil Proceedings: Legal Costs
I have been asked to reply.
Information on how many occasions wasted costs have been ordered against the defence in Crown court in Northern Ireland in each of the last five years was not centrally recorded prior to the introduction of a new IT system in October 2006. Consequently, it is not possible to provide the requested information prior to this date.
There were no orders for wasted costs made against the defence between October 2006 and 31 January 2009 in Crown court in Northern Ireland.
The magistrates court in Northern Ireland has no power to make a wasted costs order.
I have been asked to reply.
There were no orders for wasted costs made against the Public Prosecution Service in a Crown court in Northern Ireland over the last five years.
The magistrates court in Northern Ireland has no power to make a wasted costs order.
Crime
In 2006 (the latest year for which figures are available) there were:
(a) 36 convictions for sexual crimes involving minors. Court datasets do not include victim information in relation to an offence and it is therefore possible only to give the number of convictions for those offences which, by their definition, identify a child as the victim.
(b) 11 convictions for rape; and
(c) 66 convictions for arson offences.
(d) and (e) Data relating to prosecutions for fuel and cigarette smuggling are the responsibility of HM Revenue and Customs from whom this information should be sought.
(f) and (g) The Northern Ireland court datasets do not contain background information in relation to an offence and it is not possible therefore to separate those convictions for fraud which related to credit card or bank fraud. It is, however, possible to determine the total number of convictions for fraud and forgery and in 2006 there were 333 such convictions.
(h) 532 convictions for burglary;
(i) 2,809 convictions for driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs; and
(j) 350 convictions for vehicle theft.
Data are collated on the principal offence rule; only the most serious offence with which an offender is charged is included.
Departmental Buildings
The total cost of the works is shown in the following table.
Office name Size (sq m) Total cost of works, excluding VAT (£) Lisburn Chambers, Linenhall Street, Lisburn, County Antrim 2493 1,159,580 Linum Chambers, Bedford Square, Bedford Street, Belfast 2802 998,753 Ballymena Chambers, Parkway, Ballymena, County Antrim 2494 1,055,500 Omagh Chambers, 2 Townhall Square, Omagh, County Tyrone 2265 1,070,633 Foyle Chambers, 35 Limavady Road, Londonderry, County Londonderry 2364 1945,000 1 Anticipated total cost.
Departmental Disciplinary Proceedings
The Northern Ireland Office (NIO) and its agencies have policies and procedures in place to deal with harassment and bullying. Staff in the NIO undergo mandatory training in equality and diversity, which includes guidance on appropriate behaviour in the workplace. The number of staff disciplined for bullying and/or harassment of work colleagues in each of the years requested is as follows:
Bullying Harassment Bullying and harassment 2006 0 0 0 2007 0 1 1 2008 1 1 0
Departmental ICT
The majority of ICT projects are relatively small and are developed in-house with minimum cost. To compile information to support all projects would be at disproportionate cost. Therefore the information contained in the following table relates only to projects costing in excess of £1 million.
1998 1999 1999 2001 2002 2003 2003 2008 Project Bloody Sunday Inquiry, Londonderry OASIS Y2K Refresh COMPASS PRISM CAUSEWAY DPP Infrastructure FLAX PRISM, Technical Refresh Purpose Implementation of IT systems to support the work of the inquiry To upgrade NIO departmental infrastructure and make it Y2K compliant To provide an e-human resources system for the Northern Ireland Prison Service To provide a prisoner record system for the Northern Ireland Prison Service A joint enterprise by criminal justice organisations in Northern Ireland to share information electronically To implement a modern ICT infrastructure for the DPP NI Replace NIO IT infrastructure, provide internet and intranet and meet electronic document and records management targets Refresh of the software and architecture Original expected cost (£ million excluding VAT) n/k 2.1 4.6 13.61 42.7 1.2 8.5 1.3 Original expected delivery date n/k December 1999 April 2002 December 2005 December 2006 October 2003 December 2004 March 2010 Actual cost incurred (£ million excluding VAT) 33 2.2 5 4.66 33 to date 1.2 8.5 — Actual delivery date 1998 to date December 1999 September 2003 September 2005 to March 2008 Ongoing October 2003 December 2004 2008-ongoing Contractors Bull Information Systems, International Computers Capital Computers, Diagonal Solutions, Deloittes, Fujitsu HP Pecaso Accenture Sopra Fujitsu BT BT Sopra and further contracts to be awarded Initial estimated payment to contractors (£ million) n/k 2.1 3 3.61 42.7 — 8.5 1.3 Outturn payment to contractors (£ million) 33 2.2 3.4 4.66 22 to date n/k 8.5 — 1 The PRISM costs include the capital and recurring costs of the project and cover the period up to the completion of implementation in March 2008. The costs also include the provision of a range of additional functionality including biometric access controls.
Departmental Official Residences
My Department pays the council tax bills for residential accommodation used by staff based in London who are required to work away from their appointed office in Belfast.
Departmental Training
The following list gives the external organisations engaged by the Northern Ireland Office to provide training for fast stream staff in the past three years.
External provider
National School of Government
Eglinton
During the past three years, 29 staff from Northern Ireland Office have participated in the provision of training to external organisations.
Drugs: Smuggling
In 2006 (the latest year for which data are available), 14 persons with Irish nationality were convicted of drug trafficking offences.
Data are collated on the principal offence rule; so only the most serious offence with which an offender is charged is included.
Mass Media
The following table details the Northern Ireland Office’s expenditure, excluding agencies and Executive NDPBs, on contracts with press monitoring services in the last five years.
Financial year Expenditure (£) 2007-08 0 2006-07 2,600 2005-06 23,663 2004-05 0 2003-04 0
Offensive Weapons
The information is not available in the format requested as it is not possible to separately identify the number of convictions for certain offences, for example murder, in which a knife was involved. It is only possible to provide conviction statistics for those offences which, in their definition, refer to an ‘offensive weapon’ (of which knives will be one sub-category) or ‘article with blade or point’. These are:
Armed with offensive weapon with intent to commit offence;
Possessing offensive weapon in public place;
Possessing article with blade or point in public place;
Possessing instrument with intent to commit an offence;
Possessing article with blade or point on school premises;
Possessing offensive weapon on school premises.
In 2006 (the latest year for which data are available), there were 242 such convictions.
Data are collated on the principal offence rule; so only the most serious offence with which an offender is charged is included.
Prison Sentences
Our assessment, based on analysis of experience in other jurisdictions, would indicate that in many cases prisoners subject to public protection sentences are more likely to co-operate with the sentencing planning process in order to demonstrate risk reduction. NIPS do not anticipate that the new sentencing arrangements will have any impact on levels of discipline among the prison population in Northern Ireland.
Foreign and Commonwealth Office
Arms Trade
I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 25 November 2008, Official Report, column 1194W.
Although the US voted against the resolution at the UN General Assembly vote in December 2008, the US delegation took part in the UN meeting in New York on 23 January 2009 preparing for the Opening Ended Working Group, which starts in March 2009. This is an encouraging sign, and shows that the US remains engaged in discussions on this issue.
We will be raising the Arms Trade treaty, alongside a wide range of other subjects with the new US Administration over the next few weeks, as both senior appointees and officials take up their new positions.
Bangladesh: Elections
The Department for International Development contributed £10 million to compile the new voters register, £1.1 million through the Asia Foundation to promote accountability and issue-based non-violent campaigning. We funded a country-wide scheme to motivate vulnerable groups to register to vote. The UK also made financial or human resources available to the EU and ANFREL (Asian Network for Free Elections) election observation missions.
In his statement of the 31 December 2008, my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary commented on the successful elections. This is available on the Foreign and Commonwealth Office website at:
http://www.fco.gov.uk/en/newsroom/latest-news/?view= News&id=l1710213.
Community Relations: Islam
I have been asked to reply.
The Government have not commissioned any research solely for the purpose of investigating perceptions of Muslims within the UK. A number of pieces of Government research do provide evidence from which it would be possible to infer how Muslims ‘may’ be perceived. Examples of these include:
The Communities and Local Government Citizenship Survey; a large scale nationally representative survey intended to understand people’s views on issues such as race equality, faith, feelings about community, volunteering and participation. It is possible to analyse responses by the faith of respondents. In addition, questions on perceptions of the subjects of discrimination include an option to select ‘Muslim’ as one of a number of responses.
The University of Kent ‘Equality, Diversity and Prejudice in Britain’ (commissioned by the Government Equalities Office, previously part of CLG); includes research on positive/negative perceptions of 11 social groups, one of which was Muslims.
The Department for Work and Pensions ‘Barriers to employment for Pakistanis and Bangladeshis in Britain and Constraints’; looks at a number of issues, including perceptions towards two minority groups that are predominantly Muslim.
All of the above research projects were funded solely by the UK Government. It is not possible to attribute costs to the specific elements or questions which relate to perceptions of Muslims in the UK, as one question or interview can be analysed from a number of standpoints.
Cyprus: Peacekeeping Operations
The commander of the Turkish army in north Cyprus is Lieutenant-General Hilmi Akin Zorlu. He has served in a wide variety of assignments during his career, including as commander of the international security assistance force in Afghanistan in 2002 and 2003. In the UN Secretary-General’s latest report on Cyprus, he reported that the situation in the buffer zone remained calm and stable and that the opposing forces extended in general good co-operation to the UN Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP). He also commended the cancellation by both sides of their annual military exercises. The UK welcomes such steps and would encourage further such confidence building measures.
Cyprus: Politics and Government
The Government have not recently raised the issue of the number of Turkish troops in northern Cyprus with Turkey. This is a central issue that will need to be addressed in the course of negotiations to achieve a comprehensive settlement. We would look to support any measure that helps build trust on the island. In this context, we welcomed both sides’ recent cancellation of military exercises as an important confidence building measure.
Democratic Republic of Congo: Armed Conflict
Accusations that the Governments of Rwanda and Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) are complicit in supporting rebels are serious, and should be considered carefully in light of the evidence presented. The UK broadly supports the recommendations of the UN Group of Experts in their most recent report.
However, whether these recommendations are followed, and whether sanctions will be applied against anyone as a result of the report, are questions for the DRC Sanctions Committee as a whole. Member states will need to consider collectively what the next steps will be.
[holding answer 26 January 2009]: It is increasingly difficult to obtain accurate figures regarding the strength of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA). The Government of Uganda estimate that there are currently 400-450 LRA combatants split into small groups across the north of the Democratic Republic of Congo towards the borders with Southern Sudan and the Central African Republic, as well as around 400 non-combatant women and children (grouped separately).
We have repeatedly condemned the actions of the LRA and the heinous crimes they have committed.
Departmental Catering
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has no directly operated or franchised catering outlets.
Departmental Internet
In addition to the main website, www.fco.gov.uk, the following websites have been operated by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) web team and the FCO's overseas posts during the last five years:
Afghanistan Conference 2006
Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting
Britain USA (British Embassy Washington)
Britaus (British High Commission Canberra)
British Consulate General Hong Kong
British Consulate General, Hong Kong, Chinese
British Embassy Beijing
British Embassy Beijing - Chinese
British Embassy Berlin
British Embassy Berlin - German
British Embassy Copenhagen
British Embassy Copenhagen, Danish
British Embassy, Abu Dhabi
British Embassy, Addis Ababa
British Embassy, Algiers
British Embassy, Algiers, French
British Embassy, Amman
British Embassy, Ashgabat
British Embassy, Ashgabat - Russian
British Embassy, Ashgabat - Turkmen
British Embassy, Astana
British Embassy, Astana - Russian
British Embassy, Athens
British Embassy, Athens, Greek
British Embassy, Baghdad
British Embassy, Baghdad - Arabic
British Embassy, Bahrain
British Embassy, Baku
British Embassy, Baku, Azeri
British Embassy, Bangkok
British Embassy, Bangkok Thai
British Embassy, Beirut
British Embassy, Beirut Arabic
British Embassy, Belgrade
British Embassy, Belgrade - Serbian
British Embassy, Berne
British Embassy, Bogota
British Embassy, Bogota, Spanish
British Embassy, Bratislava
British Embassy, Bratislava Slovakian
British Embassy, Brazil
British Embassy, Brazil, Portuguese
British Embassy, Brussels
British Embassy, Brussels, Dutch
British Embassy, Brussels, French
British Embassy, Bucharest
British Embassy, Bucharest - Romanian
British Embassy, Budapest
British Embassy, Budapest, Hungarian
British Embassy, Buenos Aires
British Embassy, Buenos Aires, Spanish
British Embassy, Burma
British Embassy, Cairo
British Embassy, Caracas
British Embassy, Caracas - Spanish
British Embassy, Chisinau
British Embassy, Chisinau - Romanian
British Embassy, Chisinau - Russian
British Embassy, Dakar
British Embassy, Dakar, French
British Embassy, Damascus
British Embassy, Doha
British Embassy, Doha - Arabic
British Embassy, Dublin
British Embassy, France
British Embassy, France, French
British Embassy, Guatemala City
British Embassy, Guatemala City, Spanish
British Embassy, Harare
British Embassy, Havana
British Embassy, Havana, Spanish
British Embassy, Helsinki
British Embassy, Helsinki, Finnish
British Embassy, Helsinki, Swedish
British Embassy, Holy See
British Embassy, Italy
British Embassy, Italy - Italian
British Embassy, Jakarta
British Embassy, Kabul
British Embassy, Kathmandu
British Embassy, Kiev
British Embassy, Kiev, Ukrainian
British Embassy, Kigali
British Embassy, Kuwait - Arabic
British Embassy, La Paz
British Embassy, La Paz, Spanish
British Embassy, Lima
British Embassy, Lima - Spanish
British Embassy, Lisbon
British Embassy, Lisbon - Portuguese
British Embassy, Ljubljana
British Embassy, Ljubljana - Slovenian
British Embassy, Luanda
British Embassy, Luanda, Portuguese
British Embassy, Luxembourg
British Embassy, Madrid
British Embassy, Madrid, Spanish
British Embassy, Managua
British Embassy, Managua - Spanish
British Embassy, Manila
British Embassy, Mexico
British Embassy, Mexico - Spanish
British Embassy, Minsk
British Embassy, Montevideo
British Embassy, Montevideo - Spanish
British Embassy, Muscat
British Embassy, Muscat - Arabic
British Embassy, Oslo
British Embassy, Oslo - Norwegian
British Embassy, Panama City
British Embassy, Panama City - Spanish
British Embassy, Phnom Penh
British Embassy, Podgorica
British Embassy, Prague
British Embassy, Prague - Czech
British Embassy, Rabat
British Embassy, Rabat - Arabic
British Embassy, Rabat - French
British Embassy, Reykjavik
British Embassy, Riga
British Embassy, Riga - Latvian
British Embassy, Riyadh
British Embassy, Russia
British Embassy, Russia Russian
British Embassy, San Jose
British Embassy, San Jose, Spanish
British Embassy, San Salvador
British Embassy, San Salvador - Spanish
British Embassy, Sanaa
British Embassy, Sanaa - Arabic
British Embassy, Santiago
British Embassy, Santiago, Spanish
British Embassy, Sarajevo
British Embassy, Seoul
British Embassy, Seoul - Korean
British Embassy, Skopje
British Embassy, Sofia
British Embassy, Sofia, Bulgarian
British Embassy, Stockholm
British Embassy, Stockholm - Swedish
British Embassy, Sudan
British Embassy, Sudan - Arabic
British Embassy, Tajikistan
British Embassy, Tajikistan - Russian
British Embassy, Tallinn
British Embassy, Tallinn, Estonian
British Embassy, Tallinn, Russian
British Embassy, Tashkent
British Embassy, Tashkent - Russian
British Embassy, Tbilisi
British Embassy, Tegucigalpa
British Embassy, Tegucigalpa, Spanish
British Embassy, Tehran
British Embassy, Tehran - Farsi
British Embassy, Tel Aviv
British Embassy, The Hague
British Embassy, The Hague - Dutch
British Embassy, Tirana
British Embassy, Tirana, Albanian
British Embassy, Tripoli
British Embassy, Tripoli Arabic
British Embassy, Tunis
British Embassy, Tunis - French
British Embassy, Turkey
British Embassy, Turkey - Turkish
British Embassy, Ulaanbaatar
British Embassy, Ulaanbataar Mongolian
British Embassy, Vienna
British Embassy, Vietnam
British Embassy, Vietnam Vietnamese
British Embassy, Vilnius
British Embassy, Vilnius - Lithuanian
British Embassy, Warsaw
British Embassy, Warsaw - Polish
British Embassy, Yerevan
British Embassy, Yerevan, Armenian
British Embassy, Zagreb
British Embassy, Zagreb, Croatian
British Embassy,Quito
British Embassy,Quito, Spanish
British High Commission, Accra
British High Commission, Bandar Seri Begawan
British High Commission, Bandar Seri Begawan, Malay
British High Commission, Banjul
British High Commission, Belmopan
British High Commission, Bridgetown
British High Commission, Colombo
British High Commission, Dar es Salaam
British High Commission, Dhaka
British High Commission, Dhaka, Bangla
British High Commission, Freetown
British High Commission, Gaborone
British High Commission, Georgetown
British High Commission, Islamabad
British High Commission Islamabad, Urdu
British High Commission, Jamaica
British High Commission, Kampala
British High Commission, Kuala Lumpur
British High Commission, Lilongwe
British High Commission, Lusaka
British High Commission, Maputo
British High Commission, Maputo Portuguese
British High Commission, Maseru
British High Commission, Mbabane
British High Commission, Nairobi
British High Commission, Nassau
British High Commission, New Zealand
British High Commission, Nicosia
British High Commission, Nigeria
British High Commission, Ottawa
British High Commission, Ottawa, French
British High Commission, Port Louis
British High Commission, Port Moresby
British High Commission, Port of Spain
British High Commission, Port Vila
British High Commission, Singapore
British High Commission, South Africa
British High Commission, Suva
British High Commission, Valletta
British High Commission, Victoria
British High Commission, Windhoek
British High Commission, Yaounde
British High Commission, Yaounde, French
British Office Pristina, Kosovo
British Trade and Cultural Office, Taiwan
British Trade and Cultural Office, Taiwan (Chinese)
Caribbean (demonstration site)
Consulate-General, Jerusalem
Consulate-General, Jerusalem Arabic
Crossroads For Ideas
Design UK Japan
Domican Republic Spanish
Dominican Republic
E-Media (best practice website for staff)
FCO Arabic website
FCO Urdu
Freedom Of Information
G8 Gleneagles 2005
Governor to the Cayman Islands
i-uk China
i-uk General Arabic
i-uk Germany
i-uk Germany German
i-uk Netherlands
i-uk.com
i-uk. com Finland
i-uk. com France
i-uk. com India
i-uk. com Malaysia
i-uk.com South Africa
Rugby World Cup 2007
Shanghai Expo 2010
UK Delegation to NATO
UK Delegation to the OECD
UK EU presidency 2005
UK EU presidency 2005, French
UK Food Japan
UK in India
UK International Policing
UK Japan 2008
UK Mission to the United Nations, Geneva
UK Mission to UN, New York
UK Now - Seoul
UK Now - Seoul, Korean
UK Permanent Representation to the Conference on Disarmament
UKNow - Japanese
UKNow Japan
UKvisas
Departmental Pay
The information requested is as follows:
2007: £2,201,790 on variable pay for 348 SCS/SMS staff;
2008: £2,435,100 on variable pay for 288 staff.
Departmental Secondment
[holding answer 2 February 2009]: As at 1 January 2009 there were 267 officials seconded to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office from a wide range of other Government Departments or institutions. The 267 officials comprise 29 senior management level, 11 at D7, 98 at D6, 31 at C5, 84 at C4, 13 at B3 and one at A2 level. For security reasons it would be inappropriate to provide a breakdown by job title and Department or institution.
Departmental Training
We are not aware of any digital media training courses provided by the Internet Advertising Bureau for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in 2008.
EU Countries: Carbon Emissions
My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary’s discussions with EU partners on emissions reduction targets have been largely in the context of delivering the EU’s 2020 climate and energy legislative package. The package represents the delivery phase of the commitments which were agreed by heads of Government at the 2007 spring European Council, and puts the EU on track towards a low carbon economy. We welcome the agreement of the ambitious 2020 package at the December European Council.
Throughout 2008, Government officials had good contact on the package with their Polish and Czech opposite numbers and the Foreign Secretary also discussed climate and energy issues with Polish Foreign Minister Sikorski and Czech Foreign Minister Schwarzenberg.
Guantanamo Bay: Detainees
[holding answer 20 January 2009]: By December 2007 the Government had secured the return from Guantanamo Bay of four individuals previously lawfully resident in the UK. The UK has, since August 2007, sought the release and return of two further former residents, Mr. Shaker Aamer and Mr. Binyam Mohamed, who remain in detention at the facility.
We remain in ongoing discussions with the US regarding Mr. Mohamed’s case and continue to press for his release and return at all levels. My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary has raised the case with former Secretary of State Rice, as has our Ambassador in Washington with senior members of the US Administration. Senior UK officials across Government have also raised with their counterparts in State Department, Department of Defence and NSC.
The US has not agreed to release and return Mr. Aamer to the UK in light of security concerns expressed in relation to his case. We maintain dialogue with them regarding Mr. Aamer’s welfare but are no longer in active negotiations for his return to the UK. Our request for his release and return remains open should the US position change.
Israel: EU External Trade
[holding answer 15 January 2009]: We do not believe that economic sanctions are the best way to engage or to influence Israel. We therefore have no plans to seek a review of Israel’s trade status with the EU.
Languages
I will write to the hon. Member separately, and place a copy of that letter in the Library of the House.
Middle East: Armed Conflict
We have been very active in seeking to bring an end to the conflict in Gaza. From the outset, we have called for an immediate and sustainable ceasefire. The Prime Minister and Foreign Secretary have spoken frequently to key leaders. Security Council Resolution 1860 was tabled by the UK, and the Foreign Secretary played a leading role in securing its adoption. We are now being similarly active in seeking to ensure that the ceasefire is built on.
Morocco: EU External Relations
The issue of Western Sahara was discussed at the 13 October 2008 meeting of the EU-Morocco Association Council. Western Sahara remains part of the political dialogue between the EU and Morocco, which will be strengthened as part of the advanced status.
The UK continues to believe that progress towards a negotiated solution to the dispute in Western Sahara providing for the self-determination of the people of Western Sahara is best achieved under the auspices of the UN. To this end and in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution (1813) of 30 April 2008, the UK fully supports the efforts of the UN in this respect and looks forward to the appointment of a new UN Secretary General Personal Envoy to the Western Sahara, and the resumption of the Manhasset negotiations.
Palestinians: Diplomatic Relations
President Abbas is the elected leader of the Palestinian people. We work very closely with him and his Government.
We do not believe it is productive to talk to Hamas directly until it makes significant movement towards the Quartet principles of rejecting violence, accepting Israel’s right to exist and recognising previous agreements. The Arab League has mandated Egypt to communicate with Hamas. We are in regular contact with both the Arab League and Egypt. Turkey, Syria, Qatar and others are also speaking to Hamas.
Peace
Most of this information is not held centrally in these specific categories, and obtaining it would incur disproportionate cost. However, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) does hold information on conflict-related programme activity funded through trilateral (FCO, Ministry of Defence and Department for International Development) funds since 2002.
From 2000 to 2007, the FCO funded its conflict-related programme activity through the tri-departmentally managed and owned Global Conflict Prevention Pool (GCPP) and Africa Conflict Prevention Pool (ACPP). The Conflict Prevention Pool (CPP) was established in April 2008 to replace the GCPP and ACPP. The CPP funds a broad range of conflict prevention work including education and mediation initiatives, and currently supports work in a number of regions (the Balkans, the Americas, Africa, South Asia, Middle East and North Africa and Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States). A separate Stabilisation Aid Fund (SAF) was established in April 2008 to fund stabilisation and reconstruction activity in Afghanistan and Iraq.
From financial year 2001-02 to 2007-08, GCPP expenditure amounted to approximately £448 million, and ACPP expenditure amounted to approximately £341 million. For financial year 2008-09, £112 million has been allocated to the CPP, and £73 million has been allocated to the SAF.
Somalia: Armed Conflict
My noble Friend, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Security and Counter-terrorism at the Home Office, Lord West, discussed Ethiopia’s withdrawal from Somalia during his meeting with the Ethiopian Prime Minister, Meles Zenawi, on 12 December 2008 in Addis Ababa. At the meeting, Mr. Meles confirmed that Ethiopian forces would withdraw from Somalia by the end of the year.
Sri Lanka: Armed Conflict
[holding answer 29 January 2009]: I refer my hon. Friend to the written ministerial statement issued on 21 January 2009 by my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary, Official Report, columns 29-32WS.
[holding answer 29 January 2009]: I refer my hon. Friend to the written ministerial statement issued by my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary on 21 January 2009, Official Report, columns 29-32WS.
Sudan
[holding answer 22 January 2009]: We are aware that, in a report published in December 2008, the Darfur Consortium group of non-government organisations (NGOs) described the abduction of women and children in Darfur. While we do not have independent verification of these allegations, we are deeply concerned and join the report’s authors in condemning all instances of abduction, people trafficking and other forms of slavery.
We agree with many of the report’s recommendations, including the need for full deployment of the UN-African Union Mission in Darfur (UNAMID), a comprehensive ceasefire and inclusive peace process for a sustainable resolution of the conflict in Darfur. We are working closely with UN, African Union and international partners to achieve these objectives, especially UNAMID’s efforts to improve security for internally displaced persons and to ensure humanitarian agencies and NGOs can operate effectively in the region.
USA: Armed Forces
[holding answer 12 January 2009]: Foreign and Commonwealth Office participation in the American Central Command Assessment Team comprised one D7 grade officer and one Senior Management Structure officer. The UK was pleased to be able to contribute to the wide-ranging discussion on security, rule of law and issues of global concern.
Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Carbon Emissions: Waste Disposal
No. The current contract should be completed by the end of this financial year.
Departmental Buildings
DEFRA has 230 properties in its portfolio, most of which have minor decorative work carried out as part of ongoing maintenance. These works are not always recorded separately from other associated works.
Gathering the data together would incur a disproportionate cost.
No works or refurbishments have been carried out in offices allocated to DEFRA Ministers in the last 12 months.
Departmental Public Expenditure
In response to the economic downturn, DEFRA has with HM Treasury approval brought forward capital expenditure from 2010-11 into 2009-10 as shown in the following table.
Organisation Measure 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 Environment Agency (non-departmental public body) Flood and coastal erosion risk management 0 +20 -20 British Waterways (public corporation) Waterways network infrastructure 0 +5 -5 Total 0 +25 -25
Domestic Waste: Contracts
DEFRA’s arrangements for publishing peer reviews are set out in its science handbook. This requires peer reviews to be carried out on completed, published reports in certain defined cases.
In this case, a peer review was carried out on a draft research report before its completion or publication. In accordance with standard practice, therefore, it would not be appropriate to publish it.
Fisheries: Licensing
The following table shows the number of boats licensed for scallop dredging in England from 2004-08.
As at year ending 31 December Number of vessels 2004 186 2005 183 2006 169 2007 172 2008 163
Fisheries: Quotas
DEFRA has information on the monetary value derived from fish landings, rather than profitability, which is at best estimated.
DEFRA does not have all 2008 landings data, which should be available in May. On the basis of available 2008 information we understand that landings of quota species generated revenues of £459.2 million and revenues from all species landed amounted to £635.5 million. In 2007, for which we have a full year's worth of data, quota species generated £464.8 million in revenues, and all species landed generated £643 million.
Once all the data from 2008 are available DEFRA expects revenues generated in 2008 to exceed those generated in 2007.
Flood Control
The Leader approach is a delivery mechanism for the Rural Development Programme for England 2007-2013. It is a method of harnessing local knowledge to enable a bottom-up, community-led approach to the delivery of funding in rural areas. The Leader approach is being implemented through local action groups, which represent public and private partners and local interest groups covering broad sectors of the local society and economy.
Local action groups are implementing local development strategies setting out their plans for their areas, including selection criteria for local projects. The regional development agencies are responsible for the overall management of the delivery of the Leader approach.
A minimum of 5 per cent. of the EU funds within the Rural Development Programme for England will be spent through Leader. This means a minimum of £105 million across the country until 2013.
Reduction of flood risk has not been identified as a national priority for Rural Development funding. However, individual local action groups may have identified environmental management activity as a priority for them and within that there is scope for small-scale interventions to encourage community engagement in flood management.
Floods: Copeland
I have been asked to reply.
The Environment Agency north-west region is currently planning a number of flood risk studies within the borough of Copeland around the Whitehaven and Egremont area. These include Nor Beck in Cleator Moor, and Skirting Beck in Egremont. Once completed, these studies may lead to flood defence capital improvement works. There are currently no plans to bring the possible construction works forward as this would require additional grant in aid and other funding. In addition, a small scheme at Low Mill, near Egremont, is currently nearing completion.
Fly-tipping
The National Fly-tipping Prevention Group met on the following dates in the last 12 months:
4 March 2008;
24 June 2008;
24 September 2008; and
10 December 2008.
Inland Waterways
British Waterways has the discretion to apply to DEFRA for cruiseway status to waterways of remainder status, such as the Kennet and Avon canal. British Waterways has confirmed that it intends to submit its proposal for reclassification of the Kennet and Avon canal shortly. Ministerial consideration of the proposal will then be subject to the outcome of the consultation and other statutory procedures prescribed by the Transport Act 1968.
Joint Waste Authorities
The detail of liabilities will be set out on a case by case basis as agreed between the authorities involved.
Nappies: Waste Disposal
DEFRA, the Environment Agency and Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) paid a total of £45,787.50 (excluding VAT) to Environmental Resources Management Ltd. for the updated study into the environmental impact of nappies. DEFRA's share of the cost was £16,762.50. A copy of the study will be placed in the Library.
Nature Conservation
The Commission's proposals are still at a very formative stage and detailed proposals have not yet been brought forward for thorough evaluation. I am aware that options are still being appraised by the Commission and we expect member states to be further involved in discussions soon. The UK has attended all previous meetings with the Commission on development of these ideas and as we now work to implement the "Invasive Non-native Species Framework Strategy for Great Britain", we are well placed to contribute to the development of an EU strategy. On 3 February I laid in Parliament an Explanatory Memorandum on the Commission's Communication.
Invasive alien species are a major global threat to biodiversity and the Government support the work done under the Convention on Biological Diversity to promote concerted efforts to tackle this. The "Invasive Non-native Species Framework Strategy for Great Britain" has at its core one of the key invasive species guiding principles agreed by the parties to the convention—advocating prevention, early detection with rapid eradication and finally, management or control as the most cost effective policy approach. The GB strategy will enable us to take forward many areas of work relevant to implementing the decisions of the parties.
At the ninth conference of the parties in Bonn in 2008, along with a small number of other parties, we signalled our commitment to tackling this issue under the convention with a signed ministerial commitment presented at an event hosted by the global invasive species programme. As part of implementing a more strategic approach, the Government are also supportive of current proposals to develop a stronger EU framework to help address key issues at that scale.
Nitrate Vulnerable Zones
The Nitrates Pollution Prevention Regulations 2008 came into force on 1 January 2009. An impact assessment was laid with the regulations on 4 September 2008. It included an assessment of the potential costs to farmers of compliance.
The regulations came into force on 1 January 2009. An impact assessment covering the impact on the farming sector was laid with the regulations on 4 September 2008.
Noise: Pollution
Since 2001, the following amendments have been made to local authority powers to tackle noise.
The Noise Act 1996 has been amended by the Anti- Social Behaviour Act 2003 so that the Noise Act powers are easier for local authorities to use.
The Noise Act 1996 has been amended by the Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act 2005, which extended the Noise Act to licensed as well as domestic premises. Local authorities have a discretionary power to prosecute or issue a fixed penalty notice for night noise above the ‘permitted level’ emitted from a dwelling or licensed premises between 11 pm and 7 am.
Sections 69-81 of the Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act 2005 introduced new powers for local authorities to deal with audible intruder alarms in their area. A local authority may designate its area (or parts of it) as an alarm notification area. The occupier or owner in respect of any premises that are fitted with an audible intruder alarm in the designated area must nominate a key holder for those premises and notify the local authority of the contact details of that key holder.
The Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act 2005 also introduced powers for local authorities to enter premises in order to silence audible intruder alarms where key holders cannot be reached, or where the alarm is not in an alarm notification area. These powers of entry apply to audible intruder alarms sounding for 20 minutes continuously or one hour intermittently, and likely to cause annoyance to those in the vicinity.
Section 80 (2A) of the Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act 2005 introduced a discretionary power for local authorities to take such other steps as it thinks appropriate to persuade the appropriate person to abate a statutory nuisance from noise within a seven-day period without serving an abatement notice. An abatement notice must still be served after the seven-day period if the local authority thinks that a statutory nuisance still exists, or is likely to occur or recur, and the abatement notice can be served at any point within the seven days.
Complaints about noise from church bells would be subject to part III of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 (as amended), but we would expect common sense to be applied to the handling of complaints not least because church bells are part of our culture and heritage.
Duchy of Lancaster
Civil Servants: Housing
The rules and guidance for Departments on civil servants' pay and allowances are set out in the Civil Service Management Code. General guidance on terms and conditions for NDPB staff is set out in the Cabinet Office publication “Public Bodies: A Guide for Departments” and in the HM Treasury publication “Managing Public Money”. Copies of all publications are available in the Library of the House.
Civil Service: Pensions
Pensions paid by the civil service scheme are adjusted in April by the same amount as the state second pension. Pension payments will therefore be increased from April, based on the retail prices index for September 2008.
I refer the hon. Member to the written statement I gave to the House on 16 December 2008, Official Report, columns 111-12WS.
The accounts were laid before Parliament on 22 January 2009 [HC60].
In my written ministerial statement of 16 December 2008, I referred to some overpayments made to pensioners of public sector pension schemes, including the Principal Civil Service Pension Scheme.
The Civil Superannuation Resource Accounts contain reference to these overpayments. The decision was taken not to publish the accounts until such time as we had sufficient information to be able to inform those pensioners affected. Critical to this decision was the need to avoid unnecessary public concern among the vast majority (95 per cent.) of civil service pensioners who were entirely unaffected, but who would not have known that had a general announcement been made. Letters were sent to affected pensioners on 15 December and the statement, formally notifying Parliament of the overpayments, was made on 16 December.
Community Assets Programme
To be eligible to apply for the Community Assets programme, applications had to be made by either the local authority that owned the asset to be transferred, or a third sector organisation that the asset would be transferred to. In each case the application had to be endorsed by the other partner, and supported by the wider community. The transfer could be in the form of a registered freehold or a registered and assignable lease of at least 20 years without a break.
Applications had to address the three programme outcomes to be considered for funding:
1. Local third sector organisations have greater security and independence, and are better able to meet the needs of the communities they serve.
2. Communities have more access to better quality facilities that respond to their needs.
3. There is more effective partnership working between local authorities and the third sector.
Subject to meeting the initial eligibility criteria, projects were then assessed against the two following criteria:
1. The proposed project outcomes meet an identified need and help to achieve the programme outcomes.
2. The organisation can deliver the project well and achieve the proposed outcomes.
On the basis of assessment against these criteria, 38 in-principle grants were awarded in April 2008. A full breakdown of the above criteria and published guidance on the Community Assets programme can be found at:
www.biglotteryfund.org.uk.
Departmental Location
The Lyons Review set relocations to be achieved by 2010-11. Details of the numbers of Cabinet Office posts relocated in relation to SR 2004 Lyons Review were last reported in Cabinet Office Autumn Performance Report 2008 which is available in the Libraries of the House for the reference of Members.
Departmental Manpower
I refer the hon. Member to the answer the Prime Minster gave to the hon. Member for Fareham (Mr. Hoban) on 1 May 2008, Official Report, column 624W.
Departmental Pensions
The total number of Cabinet Office employees in a civil service final salary pension scheme was, as at November 2008, 1,234 or 73.3 per cent. of staff. These figures include ex-HMSO employees with reserved rights who are no longer Cabinet Office staff but are included within the Department's pension administrator's database.
Departmental Publications
I refer the right hon. Member to the statement I made on 2 February 2009, Official Report, column 31WS.
Departmental Rail Travel
My official travel is undertaken in line with the requirements of the Ministerial Code. The last rail journey I undertook on official business was 8 January 2009.
Employment
(2) how many people flowed off jobseeker’s allowance in each year since 2001;
(3) how many people flowed off jobseeker’s allowance on to incapacity benefit in each year since 2001.
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated February 2009:
As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Questions asking; how many people flowed from Jobseeker’s Allowance to paid employment in each year since 2001, how many people came off Jobseeker’s Allowance in each year since 2001, and how many people flowed off Jobseeker’s Allowance onto incapacity benefit in each year since 2001. (255649, 255682, 255686)
The table shows a breakdown of the destination of off-flows recorded by Jobcentre Plus in each year since 2001.
Information on the destination of off-flows from Jobseeker’s Allowance comes from a form completed by Jobcentre Plus employees when terminating a claim. Although effort is made to complete the termination as accurately as possible for each claim, there are a significant proportion of off-flows that fall into non-specific categories such as ceased claiming, not known and failed to sign.
Into paid employment1 Claimed incapacity benefit All other specified reasons Not known2 Total 2001 1,402,480 128,410 434,590 848,085 2,813,565 2002 1,324,640 118,725 466,660 892,095 2,802,120 2003 1,239,685 112,075 465,940 895,200 2,712,900 2004 1,107,175 102,150 440,430 883,925 2,533,680 2005 984,225 93,045 405,130 913,115 2,395,515 2006 983,495 97,450 415,990 1,041,685 2,538,600 2007 955,120 102,405 469,355 1,091,420 2,618,300 2008 938,735 85,045 484,050 1,109,925 2,617,755 1 Either found work or increased work to 16+ hours per week. 2 Includes ceased claiming and failed to sign. Note: Data are rounded to the nearest five.
Government Departments: Recruitment
The information requested is not held centrally and therefore it could be provided only at disproportionate cost with no guarantee of accuracy.
Government Information: Public Participation
The Show Us A Better Way competition generated a strong public response, with over 450 entries. The Power of Information Task Force will be concluding its work shortly. The Government are committed to harnessing the power of social media in order to spread innovation across the public sector.
Higher Civil Servants: Official Hospitality
Hospitality received by members of departmental boards will be published shortly and copies placed in the Library of the House.
Horizon Scanning Forum
The first meeting of the Horizon Scanning Forum (HSF) was held in September 2008. The HSF works closely with the new Cabinet Office Strategic Horizons Unit to meet the National Security Strategy commitment to
“strengthen the Government’s capacity for horizon-scanning, forward planning and early warning.”
The HSF acts as the main commissioning and co-ordinating body for national security-related horizon scanning work. The HSF will sit quarterly at working level, improving cross-government co-ordination between those involved in horizon scanning, identifying emerging themes and building an effective community that can share products, expertise and experience. For security reasons, it would not be appropriate to make public the precise composition of the HSF, but the Foreign and Commonwealth Office is represented.
House of Commons: Right of Search
I have not attended any meetings with Mr. Speaker on the arrest of the hon. Member for Ashford (Damian Green) and the search of his office. I can also confirm that my Department has received a request, under the Freedom of Information Act 2000, from the hon. Member for North Essex asking for this information. A response confirming the position set out in this answer has been sent to the hon. Member for North Essex.
Migration
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated February 2009:
As National Statistician, I have been asked to respond to your question concerning how the UK ranks among other EU member states in terms of net migration in (a) 1997 and (b) the most recent year for which figures are available. (254538)
Eurostat publish net migration figures for all EU member states. These may differ from the estimates produced by individual national statistics institutes as Eurostat make adjustments to improve comparability across member states. These show that the UK had the fourth highest levels of net migration in 1997 and third highest in 2007, the latest year for which complete data are available. However care should be taken when comparing net migration estimates as a small net migration figure may mask large immigration and emigration flows.
Non-profit Associations
The national survey of third sector organisations closed with a final national response rate of 47 per cent. The cost of the survey is commercially confidential, and the release of this information would adversely affect Government's commercial interests in contracting future work of this sort.
Property: Databases
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated February 2009:
As National Statistician I have been asked to reply to your recent question asking what estimate has been made of the cost of the property database being created for the 2011 Census. (253765)
The cost of developing an Address Register for the 2011 Census is now estimated to be about £12m over the years 2008 - 2011. The additional estimated cost since my reply to your previous question in November 2008 (Hansard reference 235103) is due to a decision following successful piloting to match fully the two key national address lists - the Royal Mail Postal Address File and Local Government’s National Land and property Gazetteer.
It is misleading to refer to this as a ‘property database’ since the Address Register will contain a list of household and communal establishment addresses linked to higher level geographic areas. The pre-requisite for a successful strategy of post-out of Census questionnaires as the primary delivery method, is the availability of a comprehensive, high quality address register for all areas of England and Wales. The Office for National Statistics is developing an address register that meets Census requirements in terms of quality and coverage and which local authorities can be confident will effectively underpin Census enumeration and outputs.
Roads: Taxation
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated February 2009:
As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking what consideration the Office for National Statistics has given to the classification of (a) local and (b) national road pricing schemes for the purposes of taxation statistics (252473).
ONS produces the United Kingdom’s National Accounts. The National Accounts are an internationally comparable accounting framework that describes the activities in a national economy, including the transactions that take place between sectors of that economy. The relevant international manuals are the System of National Accounts 1993(SNA93) and the European System of Accounts 1995 (ESA95) in particular.
As part of the process of producing the National Accounts, ONS decides on the classification of institutions and transactions within the economy. This well-established process is set out in Annex A of the National Statistics Protocol on Statistical Integration and Classification available at:
http://www.ons.gov.uk/about-statistics/ns-standard/cop/protocols/index.html
Whilst ONS has not considered the classification of any proposed national road charging scheme, some other government schemes have been examined. Those examined include the London Low Emission Zone (LEZ); the London Borough of Richmond Upon Thames emissions based parking charge, the London congestion charge and road/bridge toll charges.
Government revenue is mainly divided into taxes or service charges. Taxes are compulsory unrequited payments, where unrequited means that the payer does not receive anything directly in return. Service payments are requited in that they include the delivery of a service in exchange for a payment. In some instances the classification of these receipts can be difficult to interpret and the international statistical manuals recognise that “the borderline between taxes and payments for services rendered is not always clear cut in practice”. As a result ONS consider the nature of the receipts carefully before reaching a decision.
The London congestion charge and road/bridge toll charges are payments made for vehicles to use the roads within a defined zone. The charges are judged to be requited payments in line with international guidance and are therefore classified as payments for a service.
The LEZ and the London Borough of Richmond Upon Thames emissions based parking charge are classified as taxes. The LEZ charge is a compulsory payment for specific vehicles to drive within the LEZ. Although the vehicles gain access to roads within the LEZ. the charging policy relates to vehicles polluting the air within the zone rather the use of the roads. The LEZ charge on the use of the non-compliant vehicle is judged to be unrequited and classified as a tax on pollution.
Similarly, the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames's charge for a permit to park in a Controlled Parking Zone, which was implemented on 2 April 2007, is based on the emissions of the vehicle concerned. The decision to classify the charge as a tax on pollution is similar to the LEZ: the charge relates to the vehicle emissions rather than the direct consumption of a service.
Security Commission
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister to the right hon. Member for Horsham (Mr. Maude) on 16 December 2008, Official Report, column 581W.
Suicide
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated February 2009:
As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent question asking how many (a) males and (b) females in each age group committed suicide in the last year for which records are available. (255546)
The table attached provides the number of deaths where suicide was the underlying cause of death for persons aged 15 and over, for (a) males and (b) females by five year age group for 2007 (the latest year available).
Deaths Age Male Female 15-19 96 32 20-24 227 40 25-29 268 56 30-34 343 90 35-39 431 91 40-44 418 106 45-49 311 124 50-54 284 98 55-59 268 83 60-64 196 79 65-69 126 53 70-74 84 43 75-79 91 40 80-84 89 38 85+ 64 37 1 Suicide was defined using the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10) codes X60-X84 and Y10-Y34, excluding Y33.9 (where the Coroner's verdict was pending). 2 Figures include deaths of non-residents. 3 Suicide and undetermined intent deaths have not been included for children under the age of 15 years. 4 Figures are for deaths registered in 2007.
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
Letter from Karen Dunnell:
As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent question asking how many (a) males and (b) females in (i) under the age of 18, (ii) aged between 18 and 25 and (iii) over the age of 25 years committed suicide in each year since 1992. (255551)
The table attached provides the number of deaths where suicide was the underlying cause of death for persons aged 15 and over, for (a) males and (b) females by five year aged (i) 15 to 17 years, (ii) 18 to 25 years and (iii) over 25 years for 1992 to 2007 (the latest year available).
Male Female 15-17 18-25 Over 25 15-17 18-25 Over 25 1992 33 616 3,393 13 133 1,270 1993 41 617 3,150 14 121 1,222 1994 48 563 3,164 13 111 1,169 1995 24 549 3,268 19 106 1,145 1996 38 478 3,143 19 124 1,096 1997 41 537 2,987 23 103 1,123 1998 60 548 3,431 16 124 1,153 1999 42 465 3,455 24 110 1,137 2000 39 461 3,270 18 123 1,158 2001 50 427 3,216 15 97 1,086 2002 45 380 3,108 16 113 1,089 2003 40 413 3,127 19 93 1,104 2004 39 391 3,146 16 107 1,172 2005 32 356 3,093 21 97 1,103 2006 36 327 3,017 18 91 1,015 2007 39 332 2,925 15 65 930 1 Suicide was defined using the International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision (ICD-9) codes E950-E959 and E980-E989, excluding E988.8 for the years 1988 to 2000, and the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10) codes X60-X84 and Y10-Y34, excluding Y33.9 (where the Coroner's verdict was pending) for the years 2001 to 2007. 2 Figures include deaths of non-residents. 3 Suicide and undetermined intent deaths have not been included for children under the age of 15 years. 4 Figures are for deaths registered in each calendar year.
Unemployment
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
Letter from Karen Dunnell:
As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking how many and what proportion of 16 to 24 year olds resident in each (a) region, (b) parliamentary constituency and (c) local authority area were (i) unemployed and not in full-time education and (ii) economically inactive and not in full-time education in each (A) year since 1997 and (B) each month of the last five years for which figures are available. (252908)
Information in the form requested is not readily available and could only be compiled at disproportionate cost.
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated February 2009:
As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question how many households contained no one in (a) work and (b) full-time work in each quarter of the last two years. (255125)
The information available is provided in the attached table.
Estimates are only available for the April to June and October to December quarters in the source used; the Labour Force Survey household data set. Estimates for October to December 2008 will be available on 25th February 2009.
Figures for households are based on working age households. A working-age household is a household that includes at least one person of working-age, that is a woman aged 16 to 59 or a man aged 16 to 64.
The figures given for the April-June quarters are consistent with those published in the ‘Work and worklessness among households’ First Release—see web link:
http://www.statistics.gov.uk/pdfdir/work0807.pdf
It is vital to note that, as with any sample survey, estimates from the LFS are subject to a margin of uncertainty, as different samples give different results.
Thousand No-one in work No-one in full-time work Oct-Dec 2006 3,074 4,782 Apr-Jun 2007 3,071 4,792 Oct-Dec 2007 3,054 4,747 Apr-Jun 2008 3,056 4,766 1 A working-age household is a household containing at least one man aged 16 to 64 or women aged 16 to 59. 2 Where no member aged 16 or over is in employment/full-time employment. Note: Figures have been adjusted to include estimates for households with unknown economic activity. Source: Labour Force Survey households datasets
Unemployment: Sutton
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated February 2009:
As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking how many people aged between 18 and 24 years old were claiming jobseeker’s allowance in each of the last five years in Sutton and Cheam. (255371)
Table 1 shows the number of 18-24 year olds, resident in Sutton and Cheam parliamentary constituency, who were claimants of Jobseeker’s Allowance in each month from January 2004 to December 2008.
Number January 2004 155 February 2004 170 March 2004 165 April 2004 140 May 2004 155 June 2004 145 July 2004 150 August 2004 155 September 2004 150 October 2004 155 November 2004 155 December 2004 150 January 2005 180 February 2005 190 March 2005 195 April 2005 175 May 2005 165 June 2005 170 July 2005 210 August 2005 220 September 2005 220 October 2005 240 November 2005 225 December 2005 215 January 2006 210 February 2006 220 March 2006 215 April 2006 230 May 2006 220 June 2006 215 July 2006 225 August 2006 205 September 2006 240 October 2006 215 November 2006 185 December 2006 160 January 2007 165 February 2007 180 March 2007 190 April 2007 185 May 2007 155 June 2007 150 July 2007 175 August 2007 185 September 2007 195 October 2007 175 November 2007 165 December 2007 150 January 2008 170 February 2008 175 March 2008 170 April 2008 135 May 2008 135 June 2008 140 July 2008 165 August 2008 200 September 2008 210 October 2008 205 November 2008 205 December 2008 235 1 Data are rounded to the nearest 5.
Voluntary Work
Up to the end of January 2009 v had created over 875,000 opportunities to volunteer and 311,000 had been completed by volunteers. This is an increase from the 251,000 volunteers that had completed opportunities by the end of September 2008.
The following table provides a breakdown of opportunities commissioned and completed by the type of opportunity:
Type of opportunity Opportunities commissioned Opportunities completed Full-time 17,000 5,000 Part-time 400,000 165,000 Short-term 458,000 141,000 Total 875,000 311,000
Volunteering opportunities can play a hugely important role in enabling people to develop new skills and improve their employment prospects. In recognition of this, today the Government are publishing ‘Real Help for Communities: Volunteers, Charities and Social Enterprises’, a £42.5 million plan to support the third sector to deliver real help to people, communities and businesses during the recession. The plan contains a volunteer brokerage scheme for unemployed people which will create over 40,000 opportunities to learn new skills and give back to communities through volunteering. Copies of ‘Real Help for Communities: Volunteers, Charities and Social Enterprises’ have been placed in the Library of the House.
Transport
Bus Services: Chorley
In 2006-07 and 2007-08 funding for the statutory minimum bus concession was provided exclusively through the Formula Grant system, which is administered by the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG).
Formula grant is an unhypothecated block grant i.e. local authorities are free to spend it on any services provided (not just transport services) that meet their statutory obligations. This enables local authorities to decide on their own priorities based on local requirements.
It is not possible to identify how much formula grant has been allocated to a local authority for any particular service. This single pot of non-ring fenced funding allows local authorities to decide on their own priorities and provides an incentive for them to maximise value for money.
[holding answer 2 February 2009]: No request has been received from representatives of Chorley borough council. However, departmental officials have recently been to Lancashire county council to discuss the council's issues with funding for concessionary travel,
The Secretary of State will shortly be meeting with a north-west MP (the right hon. Member for Fylde (Mr. Jack)), and I have also met a number of parliamentary colleagues to discuss this issue. I will be happy to meet with any other members who are concerned about funding for concessionary travel in their area.
[holding answer 2 February 2009]: Chorley borough council will receive special grant funding of £280,000 in 2008-09 for the improvement to statutory concessionary travel to England-wide, which was implemented on 1 April last year. This additional grant represents 33 per cent. increase on outturn expenditure by Chorley in 2007-08 on concessionary fares. This is in addition to its existing funding for concessionary travel which is provided through formula grant. It is not possible to identify the precise amount received by each authority for concessionary fares from formula grant.
Bypasses: Finance
The following table lists bypass schemes which have been completed in each of the last 10 years by either the Highways Agency or the relevant local highway authorities.
Scheme 1999 Dudley Southern Bypass, West Midlands Coalfields Link Road Phase 1, Barnsley Leeds Inner Ring Road, Stage 6, Leeds A30/A35 Puddleton Bypass (DBFO) A564 Derby Southern Bypass Contract B 2000 A617 Rainworth Bypass, Nottinghamshire 2001 A174 Skelton and Brotton Bypass Burntwood Bypass Phase 1 and 2, Staffordshire A151 Weston Bypass , Lincolnshire C541 Addlethorpe Bypass and Bends Improvement, Lincolnshire 2002 A143 Broome-Ellingham, Essex A131 Great Leighs, Essex A6023 Denaby Main Diversion, Doncaster A511 Ashby Bypass Stage 2, Leicestershire A27 Polegate Bypass, East Sussex A43 Silverstone Bypass (A43 M40 to B4031 Dualling), Northamptonshire A43 Whitfield Turn to Brackley Hatch Improvement (A43 M40 to B4031 Dualling), Northamptonshire A6 Clapham Bypass, Bedfordshire A66 Stainburn and Great Clifton Bypass, Cumbria Wyre Piddle Bypass, Worcestershire A428 Crick Bypass, Northamptonshire (Developer Funded) 2003 A350 Semington-Melksham Diversion, Wilsthire Barnsley Coalfields Link Road (aka Shafton Bypass) A6 Great Glen Bypass, Leicestershire A53 Hodnett Bypass, Shropshire A5 Nesscliffe Bypass, Shropshire A500 Basford, Hough and Shavington Bypass, Cheshire A6 Rothwell-Desborough Bypass, Northamptonshire A6 Rushden and Higham Ferrers Bypass, Northamptonshire A6 Alvaston Bypass, Derbyshire A650 Bingley Relief Road, Yorkshire A4146 Stoke Hammond and Linslade Bypass (Northern Section), Buckinghamshire A41 Aston Clinton Bypass, Buckinghamshire A527 Biddulph Inner Bypass, Staffordshire Ashton-under-Lyne Northern Bypass Stage 1, Tameside 2004 St. Clements Way, Thurrock (aka West Thurrock Marshes Relief Road) A607 Rearsby Bypass, Leicestershire Mansfield Ashfield Regeneration Route, Nottinghamshire A63 Selby Bypass, North Yorkshire A10 Wadesmill to Colliers End Bypass, Hertfordshire 2005 A167 Chilton Bypass, Durham A21 Lamberhurst Bypass, Kent A47 Thorney Bypass, Norfolk A142 Fordham Bypass, Cambridgeshire Gloucester South West Bypass (Castlemeads section) A5 Weeford-Fazeley Improvement, Staffordshire A158 Coastal Access Improvement Phase 1—Partney Bypass, Lincolnshire A428 West Haddon Bypass, Northamptonshire (Developer Funded) A57 Cadishead Way (Brinell Drive to City Boundary), Salford Burntwood Bypass Phase 3, Staffordshire 2006 A505 Baldock Bypass, Hertfordshire South Lowestoft Relief Road, Suffolk A421 Great Barford Bypass, Bedfordshire 2007 Barford Bypass, Warwickshire A58 Blackbrook Diversion, St. Helens, Merseyside A197 Pegswood Bypass, Northumberland A1198 Papworth Everard Bypass, Cambridgeshire A612 Gedling Integrated Transport Scheme, Nottinghamshire A429 Barford Bypass, Warwickshire Barnstaple Western Bypass, Devon A38 Northfield Regeneration Relief Road, Birmingham Rugeley Eastern Bypass Stage 2, Staffordshire A4146 Stoke Hammond and Linslade Western Bypass, Buckinghamshire Cradley Heath Town Centre Relief Road, Sandwell Sheffield Northern Inner Relief Road, Sheffield A158/C541 Coastal Access Improvement Scheme, Phase 2—Burgh Le Marsh Bypass, Lincolnshire A165 Reighton Bypass, North Yorkshire Ridgmont Bypass and Woburn Link Road, Bedfordshire A66 Temple Sowerby Bypass and Improvements at Winderwath, Cumbria 2008 Tunstall Northern Bypass, Stoke A590 High and Low Newton Bypass, Cumbria A38 Dobwalls Bypass
This updates the table provided in my answer of 22 October 2008, Official Report, columns 415-17W.
Dartford-Thurrock Crossing: Road Traffic
Projected traffic level figures for individual years are not available but existing forecasts suggest that traffic levels may rise to between 170,000 and 190,000 vehicles per day by 2016.
Departmental Equality
The central Department and its agencies recorded the following percentage declared ethnicity (a) in total and (b) in each bargaining unit as set out in the following table:
Staff in post on 31 March 2008 Percentage of staff who have declared their ethnicity Central Department 86.4 Driving Standards Agency 94.4 Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency 93.3 Government Car and Dispatch Agency 99.3 Highways Agency 81.0 Marine and Coastguard Agency 89.5 Vehicle Certification Agency 100.0 Vehicle and Operator Services Agency 80.7 DFT (total) 88.7
Dredging: Thames Estuary
The timing of the proposed dredge is a matter for London Gateway Port Ltd., subject to completion of the statutory consent process. The dredge is required in order to accommodate deep sea container vessels serving the new London Gateway port.
Standard dredging practice in the Thames Estuary established by the Port of London Authority covers matters such as handling the incidental lifting of munitions left on the sea bed. Magnetometer surveys have also been conducted in order to provide the best advance information.
The shortest distance from the wreck of the SS Richard Montgomery to the southern edge of the proposed channel is just over 2.2 kilometres. The shortest distance from the channel to the edge of the wreck exclusion zone is 2.1 kilometres.
The choice of dredging contractor is an operational matter for London Gateway Port Ltd.
A public inquiry took place in 2003. Subsequently London Gateway Port Ltd. has set up a Marine Ecological Advisory Group which includes representatives from the Environment Agency, Natural England, the Marine and Fisheries Agency, the Port of London Authority and the Kent and Essex Sea Fisheries Committee, to consider among other matters the impacts of dredging.
Economic Situation
I have had regular engagements with outside organisations, including relevant Government Departments, on a range of issues relating to the economy.
First Capital Connect: Opening Hours
First Capital Connect has submitted their proposals under the procedures of the Ticketing and Settlement Agreement, which is the approved industry process for such matters.
First Capital Connect’s proposals are currently under consultation. It would, therefore, be inappropriate to make any comment on them at present which may fetter the discretion of the Secretary of State if the proposals are referred by the operator for arbitration.
Freight: Grants
The principles of the economic model used for the assessment of freight facilities grant applications are outlined in Department for Transport publication "Guide to Freight Facilities Grant (FFG) in England" which was published in November 2006 and is currently being reviewed. The document can be downloaded free of charge from:
http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/freight/railfreight/rfg/freight facilitiesgrantguide.pdf.
The purpose of the economic model is to ensure that grants are only awarded when there is a financial need for funding. Annex 4 of the aforementioned guide deals with the financial appraisal of FFGs and, in its first paragraph, states that:
"The main financial requirement for a FFG is that compared with the road alternative, the proposed rail or water scheme would not be financially justified without grant.... This can only be a general guide; it may not cover the entire issues specific to each application. The Department can offer help and advice on specific cases."
The Department for Transport has aimed to assess standard freight facilities grant (FFG) applications within four months and more complex applications within six months. However the time taken to assess applications depends on many factors, including the completeness of the initial data supporting the application. There is also the potential for further information being received from the applicant through the course of the assessment and the potential need by the Department for clarification, which inevitably takes time.
In the past three years, the Department has assessed the following cases:
Year application received Cases assessed within six months Cases assessed within nine months Cases assessed within one year 2006 3 1 0 2007 3 0 0 2008 1 1 0
In addition, a further application was received in October 2008 which is currently being assessed.
The process of applying for FFGs is currently being reviewed, with a view to shorten the time taken to assess applications and make the process clearer for applicants.
The Department for Transport and the then Strategic Rail Authority (SRA) do not keep details of every application submitted. Details are retained for each offer of grant made to successful applicants.
The number of successful applications and the average value of grants awarded for each year since 2000 are set out in the following table.
Successful applications Average value of grant awarded (£) 2000 35 711,944 2001 28 797,076 2002 33 989,859 2003 7 822,188 2004 2 2,514,083 2005 4 565,978 2006 5 359,000 2007 3 843,483 2008 1 1,325,578
The SRA suspended the FFG programme for most rail projects in 2003, although grants continued to be available for aggregate-based facilities through the aggregates levy sustainability fund. FFGs were reintroduced for all rail schemes by the Department in 2007.
The Department for Transport and the then Strategic Rail Authority has allocated the following budget for Freight Facility Grants (FFGs) since 2000.
£ million 2000-01 32 2001-02 61.8 2002-03 50.5 2003-04 32.5 2004-05 9.7 2005-06 7 2006-07 7 2007-08 7 2008-09 4 2009-10 7 2010-11 10 2011-12 16 2012-13 20 2013-14 25
The SRA suspended the FFG programme for most rail projects in 2003, although grants continued to be available for aggregate-based facilities through the aggregates levy sustainability fund. FFGs were reintroduced for all rail schemes by the Department in 2007.
Funding for the FFG programme was boosted in September 2008 with the announcement of a long-term increasing budget to provide certainty for potential applicants. This included £61 million of capital funding over three years from April 2011.
Heathrow Airport: Exhaust Emissions
The Department for Transport's report, ‘Improving the Air Passenger Experience’, provides appropriate estimates of aircraft stacking above Heathrow in Figure 27 on page 25. This report is available at:
http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/aviation/airports/improve airpassenqer.pdf
Data for 2007-08 are not available. However, in 2006-07, aircraft were held in aggregate for 18,679 hours. This is based on 56 per cent. of arriving aircraft being held in a stack and an average 8.5 minute hold for those held. This equates to roughly 50,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emitted by aircraft stacking at Heathrow.
Heathrow Airport: Noise
Estimates of populations within the 57 decibel noise contour with a three-runway airport were presented in the November 2007 consultation document and supporting technical report on noise. Around 242,000 people are predicted to be within the 57 decibel contour in 2020 with around 605,000 annual movements, the maximum capacity we have supported initially. The new runway could open sooner with a lower capacity, but the timing and capacity will depend on the planning process and the mechanism we are establishing to ensure that local environmental limits, including noise limits are met, and will continue to be met.
Humber Bridge: Tolls
Concessions and exemptions are a matter for the Bridge Board. Exemptions are offered on a voluntary basis for certain disabled users (those on higher rate disability living allowance). Emergency services also receive exemption from tolls when on official duties.
In addition, on 28 July 2006, the Humber Bridge Board announced that it would discount toll charges for the local bus service (the X1) by 45 per cent. until the end of March 2008 to ensure it would continue to offer a service over the bridge. This concession remains in place and is subject to periodic review.
No estimation has been made by the Department for Transport for the amount of annual revenue forgone as a result of these exemptions.
M42: Lorries
The trial overtaking restriction for HGVs introduced on the M42 between junctions 10 and 11 has shown that light vehicle journey times have reduced and that HGV journey times remained unchanged in the morning peak but decreased at other times. The proportion of HGVs using lane 2 has reduced significantly.
Although the results of the trial have not offered dramatic journey time savings, the Government believe that it would be beneficial to make the M42 restriction permanent as a useful tool in helping the Highways Agency to meet journey time reliability targets.
M48 Severn Crossing
Legislation provides for the concession to last a maximum of 30 years and is due to end in 2022. But it may end sooner if certain financial objectives are met. Current estimates are that those objectives will have been met around 2016, when costs are expected to have been recovered.
Once the concession ends the undertaking will pass to the Government, which then has the power to charge tolls for up to a further five years. No decisions have been taken with regard to tolls beyond 2016, or whenever the concession period ends.
Motor Vehicles: Exhaust Emissions
There have been no discussions with the European Commission on the delay to implementation of the EU legislation referred to the Department’s letter.
The Department for Transport regrets the delay which has occurred in implementing the necessary point of sale controls and is seeking to remedy this. It is worth noting, however, that the EU regulations which set the standards to be met by new replacement pollution control devices for cars and vans have direct applicability on manufacturers.
Parking Offences
All motor vehicle insurance details are held on the insurance industry's motor insurance database (MID) and it is the insurance industry's responsibility to provide data to it.
The number of vehicles wrongly identified by the police as being driven uninsured based on information from the MID and impounded is not known. However, such cases are thought to be rare. The MIB supplements the database with a dedicated police helpline which the police can use in cases of doubt, e.g. if a driver claims he took out insurance very recently. This enables a direct check to be made with the claimed insurer.
Railway Network
[holding answer 3 February 2009]: Network Rail’s strategic review of the case for new rail lines is considering five of Network Rail’s strategic routes north and west of London: Chiltern, East Coast, West Coast, Great Western and Midland main lines. Initial results from this review suggest a future need for a new line between London and the West Midlands. To take forward the detailed work needed to make a firm decision on this, the company “High Speed Two (HS2) Ltd.” has been created.
Local and regional authorities can use planning processes to protect sites or alignments if they deem this appropriate. In addition, we have used our national safeguarding powers in cases such as Crossrail and consideration will be given to more specific use of these powers as our long term transport planning advances.
Railways: Disabled
The Railways for All strategy, published in March 2006, identifies the importance of improved information, ticketing and assistance to improving access to the railway network.
Front-line railway staff are trained in disability awareness and will always endeavour to help disabled customers. Assistance can also be booked in advance using the Assisted Passenger Reservation Service (APRS) which is owned and maintained by the Association of Train Operating Companies (ATOC).
Access for All funding of £280,000 has already been provided to ATOC towards development of staff training materials, and a programme of station access audits to improve the quality of information available through the National Rail Enquiry Service.
In addition the £370 million Access for All programme is making enhancements to railway stations which help to promote independent travel for disabled people.
In light of passenger feedback, and in particular the recent Passenger Focus report into Assisted Passenger Reservation Service bookings, published in September 2008, the Department for Transport intends to work with the industry to address potential areas for improvement to the Assisted Passenger Reservation Service system, and to identify what resources may be available to support this.
Railways: Fares
[holding answer 3 February 2009]: The Department for Transport does not hold this information. The Office of Rail Regulation (ORR) does however track all rail fares, and reports on the high level results on a quarterly basis. The ORR can be contacted for more information at the following address:
Office of Rail Regulation
One Kemble Street
London WC2B 4AN
Railways: Finance
The Department for Transport does not provide any funding to regional and local authorities specifically for the purposes of identifying and investing in opportunities for new rail stations and lines.
However, local authorities are free to use their revenue support grant for studies into new stations and lines and financially support new services. They can also use Local Transport Plan (LTP) integrated transport block funding for investing in new stations or lines. The region can also prioritise rail schemes for capital funding from within their regional funding allocation.
Railways: South East
Neither the Secretary of State nor any other Minister in the Department for Transport has had discussions with the South West Regional Development Agency on rail transport in the last 12 months.
Railways: Tickets
The ticketing and settlement agreement is a commercial document and is the property of the Association of Train Operating Companies. For this reason, there are no plans to place a copy in the Library of the House of Commons.
Roads: Accidents
Since 2005 a report on the contributory factors, including speed, reported by police officers who attend personal injury collisions has been published as part of “Road Casualties Great Britain”. The DFT-funded “On The Spot (OTS)” study involves additional non-police investigation of road collisions to explore the characteristics of personal injury collisions in depth. The OTS study is currently examining the characteristics of crashes that involve excessive or inappropriate speed.
In addition, there is a wide range of research on the link between speed and casualties which may be found on the Department’s website at:
http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/roadsafety/research/
For example, the Transport Research Laboratory (TRL) published a review of non-UK studies in 1994 which established a link between vehicle speed and the risk of a collision. This indicated that, in broad terms, a 1 mph reduction in average speed can reduce accident risk by around 5 per cent. In 2000 TRL published a report investigating whether this general rule could be applied to different types of UK roads and to further understand the relationship between vehicle speed and accident frequency. The report concluded that the percentage reduction in accident frequency for a 1 mph reduction in average speed is between 2 per cent. and 7 per cent. depending on vehicle speeds and the nature and layout of the road.
Rolling Stock
Please see the table for detail of contracts:
Number (a) Estimated value (£ million) (b) Company Rolling Stock January 2008 1 11 Bombardier 8 DMU vehicles February 2008 0 — — — March 2008 1 57 Bombardier 44 EMU vehicles April 2008 0 — — — May 2008 0 — — — June 2008 0 — — — July 2008 0 — — — August 2008 0 — — — September 2008 1 269 Alstom 106 EMU vehicles October 2008 0 — — — November 2008 0 — — — December 2008 0 — — —
255 of the HLOS carriages were on order when the rolling stock plan was published in January 2008, bringing the total now in order to 423.
Speed Limits
This information is not held by the Department. Local traffic authorities are responsible for setting local speed limits and have had powers to introduce 20 mph speed limits and 20 mph zones without seeking the approval of the Secretary of State since 1999. There is no requirement for local authorities to inform the Department when a speed limit is changed.
Speed Limits: Advertising
Speeding is a major factor in road safety, contributing to 727 deaths in 2007. Measures to prevent speeding on our roads are in the fields of enforcement, engineering and education including advertising.
The following table provides the amount spent on television and radio advertisements to reduce speed in each of the last five years.
£000 TV Radio 2004-05 1,186 477 2005-06 1,223 496 2006-07 1,492 547 2007-08 1,853 783 2008-091 1,815 459 1 Forecast expenditure.
Speed Limits: Cameras
Speeding is a major factor in road safety, contributing to 727 deaths in 2007.
Traffic calming measures are available to local highway authorities to reduce vehicle speeds on their roads. It is for the local authority to decide which measure would be the most effective in achieving safe and appropriate vehicle speeds in their area based on their knowledge of the local road network.
The Department for Transport provides guidance to local highways authorities on a wide range of traffic calming measures designed to reduce vehicle speeds in a variety of circumstances. The Department’s latest technical guidance on traffic calming, Local Transport Note (LTN) 1/07 Traffic Calming, was published in March 2007. This provides local authorities with advice on the design and use of traffic calming measures and brings together in one comprehensive document a summary of relevant research.
[holding answer 3 February 2009]: I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer given to the hon. Member for Beverley and Holderness (Mr. Stuart) on 28 January 2009, Official Report, columns 537-38W. It should be noted that separate information for Southend is not held.
[holding answer 3 February 2009]: The Department for Transport has not assessed the effectiveness of speed cameras in improving road safety in Southend. However, cameras operated by the Essex Safety Camera Partnership under the National Safety Camera Programme which ended on 31 March 2007 have proved to be very effective. Fatal casualties decreased by an average of 43 per cent. at fixed camera sites and killed or seriously injured casualties decreased by an average of 51 per cent. At mobile camera sites fatal casualties reduced by 42 per cent. and killed or seriously injured casualties decreased by an average of 22 per cent.
SS Richard Montgomery
The most recent assessment of the wreck was made in October 2008 using a high resolution multibeam sonar survey and laser scanning techniques. The data gathered during this exercise are now being analysed.
[holding answer 5 February 2009]: It is not proposed to dredge the River Thames in the vicinity of the wreck of the SS Richard Montgomery.
Taunton-Penzance Railway Line: Electrification
Electrification makes most sense on busier routes, such as the Midland main line and parts of the Great Western main line, where the high cost of installing new electrification infrastructure can be offset by the lower costs of running electric trains.
A cross-industry working group led by Network Rail is assessing the case for electrifying a wide range of lines. The group is expected to publish its conclusions at the end of March.
Train Operating Companies
(2) what subjects were discussed at his meeting with representatives of the Association of Train Operating Companies on 20 January 2009.
The Secretary of State has regular meetings with representatives of the Association of Train Operating Companies (ATOC) and the train operating companies themselves. The 20 January meeting, as is usually the case, covered a range of issues that affect the railway. ATOC have made no representations to reduce services by way of alterations to existing franchise service level commitments.
Transport: Costs
The following details Department for Transport grants to local authorities for maintenance of local roads and detrunking programmes.
£ million 2007-08 818 2006-07 757 2005-06 742 2004-05 715 2003-04 622
In 2005-06, 2006-07 and 2007-08 DfT also provided Nexus with capital grants of £4.180 million, £4.305 million, £4.391 million respectively for maintenance and renewals on the Tyne and Wear Metro. For previous years, funding was provided as a single grant for revenue with no separately identifiable maintenance element.
In addition to the funding detailed, local authorities receive other funding through various Government grants, business rates and council taxes. How much of this funding is spent on maintaining transport infrastructure or other public services is a matter for local decisions. The Department for Communities and Local Government publishes a set of tables detailing local authority expenditure using information collected directly from local authorities.
DfT also provides revenue and capital support to the rail industry, which is in the private sector. This funding is not generally linked to particular areas of spending, and so it is not possible to produce a figure for the amount of the funding support that is for infrastructure maintenance.
£ million 2007-08 879 2006-07 850 2005-06 852 2004-05 732 2003-04 726
The expenditure figures are for maintenance on the strategic road network managed and maintained by the Highways Agency. This includes renewal of the road surface and repairs to structures, as well as routine maintenance such as gully clearing, white lining, cleaning and winter maintenance. Costs excluded are those associated with our PFI contracts and our traffic and incident management service.
Expenditure figures have been adjusted to account for spend relating to roads trunked or detrunked in the financial year.
Transport: Repairs and Maintenance
The following table gives a breakdown of all Local Major Public Transport schemes supported by the Department for Transport. It does not include improvements to, or extensions of the road network, unless these are specifically for the purposes of public transport. Officials are in regular communication with local authority counterparts and measures are included in agreements of funding to ensure that maintenance is satisfactory. My earlier answer (UIN 235182) also showed the considerable amount of money that the Department provides for maintenance of the existing network.
Scheme Promoter Total (£ million) DfT Cont. (£ million) Status A612 Gedling Integrated Transport Scheme (mainly road but includes bus plug) Nottinghamshire CC 11.664 7.490 Complete 2007 A638 Quality Bus Corridor Doncaster MBC 20.410 15.319 Under Construction A64 Guided Bus Leeds CC 10.000 5.000 Complete 2001 A641 Guided Bus Bradford MDC 10.500 5.800 Complete 2002 Barnsley Interchange South Yorkshire PTE 24.300 18.330 Complete 2007 Birmingham International Airport/NEC Solihull MBC 11.800 11.113 Full Approval Granted—due to commence construction Blackpool and Fleetwood Tramway Emergency Works Blackpool BC 11.700 10.600 Complete 2008 Cambridgeshire Guided Busway Cambridgeshire CC 116.27 92.5 Under Construction CentreLink Nexus/Gateshead 29.0 17.3 Completed 2005 Coleshill Parkway Warwickshire CC 8.514 4.100 Completed 2007 Coventry Bus Network (Primelines) Coventry Council 30.880 24.480 Completed 2008 Doncaster Interchange South Yorkshire PTE PFI PFI Complete 2006 Durham Park and Ride Durham CC 11.3 9.2 Completed 2005 Eldon Square Bus Station Nexus (T and W PTE) 16.7 11.0 Completed 2008 Fastrack Kent CC 15.00 14.50 Completed 2006 Fastway West Sussex CC 28.86 19.46 Completed Four Lane Ends Interchange Nexus (T and W PTE) 7.6 7.6 Completed 2004 Getting Northampton to Work Northamptonshire CC 12.48 7.98 Under Construction Greater Bristol Bus Network West of England 70.310 42.343 Under Construction Greater Manchester Urban Traffic Control Greater Manchester Authorities 13.600 13.600 Under construction. Hagley Road Bus Showcase West Midlands 14.145 9.640 Under Construction Integrated A3 Bus Priority Corridor Hampshire CC 34.215 25.10 Completed 2008 Liverpool South Parkway Merseytravel 32 6.320 Completed 2006 Manchester Metrolink Phase 1 and 2 Capacity and Renewals GMPTE 102 58 Under Construction Manchester Metrolink Phase 3a GMPTE 575 244.3 Under Construction Masshouse Circus Birmingham CC 19.834 19.834 Completed 2003 North West Taunton Package (scheme includes a Park and Ride facility) Somerset CC 15.339 11.667 Under Construction Northern Orbital QBC GMPTE 9.400 4.300 Completed Norwich Bus Station and Improved public transport connections to Rail station Norfolk CC 9.553 9.553 Completed 2005 Nottingham Express Transit Line 1 Consortium (including Nottingham City Council and Nottinghamshire CC) PFI PFI Completed 2004 Nuneaton Development Project Warwickshire CC 6.541 6.210 Completed 2008 Outer Circle/Radial Routes West Midlands 11.099 10.443 Completed 2007 Plymouth Northern Corridor Plymouth City Council 14.287 11.250 Completed Quay Link Nexus (T and W PTE) 7.7 4.7 Completed 2004 Red Routes Package 1 West Midlands 28.000 28.000 Under Construction Ryde Interchange Isle of Wight Council 8.564 6.20 Fully Approved but main construction not yet commenced. Salisbury Park and Ride Wiltshire CC 4.181 3.200 Under Construction Scarborough Integrated Transport Scheme North Yorkshire CC 31.436 29.786 Under Construction Sheaf Square Sheffield CC 23.180 6.780 Complete 2006 South East Manchester Quality Bus Corridor Network GMPTE 23 23 Under Construction. DfT approved bid in 2003. Corridors are being delivered on an individual basis. Stephenson's Link Nexus (T and W PTE) 12.6 6.4 Construction substantially complete -final completion due 2009 Sunderland Direct Nexus (T and W PTE) 103.0 37.5 Completed 2002 Turning Point Nottingham City Council 11.7 11.7 Completed 2007 Walsall Town Centre Transport Package Walsall MBC 26.210 16.622 Under Construction Warrington Urban Traffic Control Warrington BC 5.100 1.050 Completed 2006 Warrington Bus Interchange Warrington BC 8.500 1 Completed 2006 West Midlands UTC West Midlands 26.600 26.600 Full Approval Granted -due to commence construction Wolverhampton Centre Access Scheme Wolverhampton CC 17.500 13.000 Under Construction Yellow Bus West Yorkshire PTE 18.704 18.704 Completed 2008 Yorcard Pilot South Yorkshire PTE 9.316 4.000 In Progress
Travel
The figures provided as follows are from the National Travel Survey and reflect the percentage of leisure journeys made in Great Britain by age and main mode from 1996-98 to 2006. The National Travel Survey is readily available from:
http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/statistics/datatablespublications/personal/mainresults/nt S2006/
Percentage/number Years 0-16 17-19 20-24 25-34 35-44 45-59 60-64 65-69 70+ Total Unweighted sample size (trips) Surface rail 1996 to 2001 16 6 15 21 13 13 3 4 8 100 2,165 2002 to 2006 14 7 14 20 13 15 4 4 7 100 5,798 Car (driver and passenger) 1996-98 20 4 8 18 14 19 5 5 7 100 80,001 1997-99 20 4 7 18 14 20 5 5 7 100 77,714 1998-2000 20 3 6 17 15 20 5 5 8 100 78,801 1999-2001 21 3 6 16 15 20 6 5 8 100 82,776 2002 22 3 6 14 16 21 5 5 8 100 60,998 2003 22 3 5 14 16 20 6 5 8 100 68,477 2004 22 4 6 12 16 20 6 5 9 100 67,817 2005 23 3 6 13 15 19 6 5 9 100 72,046 2006 23 3 6 12 15 20 6 6 8 100 70,165 Bus and coach 1996-98 22 6 7 13 9 11 6 8 20 100 5,318 1997-99 21 6 7 13 10 11 7 7 18 100 5,040 1998-2000 20 8 7 11 9 12 7 8 18 100 5,057 1999-2001 20 8 8 11 9 14 7 7 17 100 5,237 2002 23 10 11 14 7 11 5 5 15 100 3,889 2003 23 8 10 11 9 12 6 5 15 100 4,874 2004 21 9 10 10 9 14 5 6 16 100 4,685 2005 20 8 11 12 9 13 6 6 14 100 4,703 2006 22 9 9 11 8 12 5 7 16 100 4,859 Notes: 1. Leisure includes: Visiting friends at private home, visiting friends elsewhere, entertainment/public activity, sport: participate, holiday: base, day trip and other inc. just walk. 2. The sample size of the National Travel Survey was increased from 2002 which enables single years to be presented. Prior to 2002 data are shown for three year periods because of the smaller sample sizes, and for surface rail a larger number of survey years have been aggregated due to the small number of these types of trips.
International Development
Agriculture: Research
The Department for International Development (DFID) is a major funder of international agricultural research. Details for the last five years are as follows:
£ million 2003-04 29.6 2004-05 37.7 2005-06 35.6 2006-07 35.3 2007-08 38.3
Democratic Republic of Congo: Overseas Aid
The humanitarian situation remains grave with up to 1.3 million displaced in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and many conflict affected communities in need of emergency assistance. According to the UN, almost 130,000 people in Province Orientale have been recently displaced by the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) attacks and almost 300 killed in January as Joint DRC/Ugandan/South Sudan military operations are underway. There are also Joint Rwandan and DRC military operations in North Kivu to tackle the Democratic Liberation Forces of Rwanda (FDLR). Humanitarian access and protection of civilians remain key areas of concern. John Holmes, UN Under-Secretary General and Emergency Relief Co-ordinator will be visiting DRC between 6-10 February to assess the humanitarian response and protection concerns in North Kivu and Province Oriental.
The UK Government are a major donor to DRC and will provide £230 million between 2009-10 and 2010-11. We have developed a development programme which responds to the needs and constraints of the country, balancing meeting short-term needs (e.g. humanitarian assistance) with helping to lay the foundation for long-term development. We have worked closely with the international community to develop a joint donor framework and donor co-ordination is slowly improving. Given the high levels of poverty DRC remains under-funded overall. However, there are currently significant operational constraints to absorbing further aid.
Departmental Overtime
The cost of overtime payments paid to DFID staff in each of the last three financial years is as follows:
Cost of overtime payments to DFID staff (£) 2005-06 406,602.71 2006-07 392,890.25 2007-08 482,712.51
Economic Situation
Ministers and Officials at the Department for International Development (DFID) have regular engagements with outside organisations including relevant Government Departments on a range of issues relating to the economy.
Equality
Line management responsibility for the Director General Diversity Champion in the Department for International Development rests with the Permanent Secretary. A diversity team in Human Resources Division is responsible for ensuring that the Department's diversity plans are published on our external website.
India: Irrigation
The Department for International Development (DFID) has not provided any funding in direct support of major irrigation projects in the state of Andhra Pradesh.
However, DFID has provided £39 million to the Government of Andhra Pradesh for community-based water management through the Andhra Pradesh Rural Livelihoods Project (June 1999 to December 2007). Technical support, worth a further £147,000, has been provided to increase the ability of the Andhra Pradesh state Government irrigation department to effectively manage irrigation systems in the state.
Inland Waterways
There are two principal UN sponsored conventions that deal with freshwater: the UN Conventions of the Non-Navigational Uses of International Watercourses (1997); and the UN Economic Commission for Europe, Convention on the Protection and Use of Transboundary Watercourses and International Lakes (1992).
The UK has not signed, ratified or acceded to the UN Convention on the Non-Navigational Uses of International Watercourses Convention and has no current plans to do so. To date, 16 countries have signed this convention (out of 35 required for it to enter into force) and there are 15 parties to the convention. DFID is currently working with WWF-UK to review the international architecture that supports water resources management, including the potential role for the convention.
The UK is a signatory to the UN Economic Commission for Europe, Convention on the Protection and Use of Transboundary Watercourses and International Lakes, 1992, but has not ratified it. Ratification would be led by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA).
Other key conventions that make specific reference to water include the UN Convention to Combat Desertification in Countries Experiencing Serious Drought and/or Desertification, particularly in Africa (UNCCD). The UK signed the UNCCD in 1994 and ratified in 1996.
Malawi: Diplomatic Service
The Department for International Development's Malawi office forecasted spend on office entertainment was £3,000 for the financial year 2007-08. Of this, £2,384 was spent.
Treasury
Agriculture: Subsidies
The United Kingdom makes its contributions to the EC Budget as a whole and not to individual expenditure areas within it. The Government publish forecasts of UK gross, after taking account of the UK abatement, and net contributions to the EC Budget in their annual European Community Finances White Paper. The 2009 White Paper will be published later this year and will include forecasts for the period 2008-09 to 2010-11.
Apprentices
Since the previous question raised by the hon. Member, HM Treasury and its agencies have had no apprenticeships or advanced apprenticeships in place. Efforts are made to raise awareness of the programmes available and HM Treasury and its agencies will continue to seek to attract potential candidates to apprenticeship schemes including with our outsourced suppliers.
Methods used to promote the advantages of the apprenticeships and trying to recruit to the Government Pathway scheme include circulating literature and holding promotional events with external suppliers. The lack of take-up can be attributed to the highly skilled workforce that is already in place. A recent sample of HM Treasury and Office of Government Commerce colleagues found 98.6 per cent. of respondents were qualified to level 2 or above. This suggests the pool of potential applicants for apprenticeships is relatively small.
Banks: Audit
(2) which banks regulated by the Financial Services Authority bought consultancy services from their auditors in the last two years.
The information requested is published in the annual reports of the individual institutions and is available in the public domain.
Banks: Directors
[holding answer 22 January 2009]: It is important that any shortcomings identified in the management of banks are addressed to ensure proper governance of UK financial institutions.
Recent improvements in practice and supervision include the changes proposed to the FSA’s approved persons regime (CP08/25) that will better allow the FSA to assess the fitness and propriety of directors of parent holding companies that control major UK banks. The fiduciary duties of directors and the consequences of breach of these duties are set out in company law.
Banks: Finance
RBS Group plc, Lloyds TSB plc and HBOS Group plc have announced the terms on which they are participating in the Government’s recapitalisation scheme. Details are set out in the Placing and Open Offer Agreements that are available in the Libraries of both Houses of Parliament.
These banks are also eligible to use the Government’s Credit Guarantee Scheme (CGS), under which up to £250 billion of bank lending will be guaranteed. Participating banks have accessed some £100 billion of funding under the CGS so far. A list of participating institutions is published by the Debt Management Office at
http://www.dmo.gov.uk/index.aspx?page=CGS/CGSEligible.
Figures for individual banks are confidential. As the Chancellor of the Exchequer noted on 19 January, these guarantees have been successful in helping to bring down the inter-bank lending rate.
Banks: Government Assistance
[holding answer 22 January 2009]: The breakdown of the allocations is as follows:
(a) At least £200 billion will be made available to banks in exchange for high quality assets. The Bank of England will disclose the final amount in due course.
(b) Up to £250 billion of bank lending will be guaranteed. These are not funds disbursed by the Government—all guarantees provided under the Credit Guarantee Scheme are contingent liabilities. Participating banks have accessed some £100 billion of funding under the CGS so far.
(c) Up to £50 billion has been made available in the Government’s recapitalisation scheme. The Government have invested £19.97 billion in RBS and £16.96 billion in Lloyds TSB/HBOS.
(d) The Government are still working on the final design of the scheme. £3million has provisionally been allocated for costs in 2008-09, with further allocations yet to be finalised. No funds have been spent on the scheme to date.
(e) The WCS scheme is designed to break even but in the event that additional costs arise, we have given BERR additional flexibility to manage its resources effectively. This will ensure that up to £225 million is available should any costs arise. No funds have been spent on the scheme to date.
(f) £130 million has been allocated to the scheme which has started lending to businesses from reprioritisation within the BERR’s departmental expenditure limit (DEL) and access to the HMT Reserve. No funds have been spent on the scheme to date.
(g) Up to £50 million will be made available from within BERR’s departmental expenditure limit. No funds have been spent on the scheme to date.
(h) Up to £50 billion will be made available under the Bank of England asset purchase facility. With respect to the Asset Protection Scheme, the Government will publish further details by the last week of February.
Overall, the liabilities taken on will be backed by financial assets and fees will be charged for guarantees, safeguarding the taxpayers’ interests.
Banks: Loans
[holding answer 22 January 2009]: The directors of a UK financial institution are required to write down a loan in their accounts when they have doubts about the collectability of a loan (whether made to a domestic or offshore individual or entity).
If the auditor believes directors have understated or inappropriately disclosed the write down it must provide an emphasis of matter (if inadequate) or qualification (if misleading) in its audit report.
Audit reports and the qualifications they contain are published in conjunction with entities financial statements and filed at Companies House. No central database recording this class of audit qualifications is maintained.
Banks: Regulation
Anyone carrying on regulated activities (such as accepting deposits) must be authorised under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000.
Under section 56 of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (FSMA), the FSA can make an order prohibiting an authorised person from performing a specified or any regulated activity if it appears that the authorised person is not a fit and proper person to perform the functions of that regulated activity. The FSA also have power, under section 45 of FSMA, to cancel an authorised person's permission to carry out a regulated activity (and subsequently to withdraw their authorised status under section 33) if the grounds in section 45(1) of FSMA are satisfied.
Section 59 of FSMA sets out the requirement that a person carrying out a “controlled function” on behalf of an authorised person must be approved by the FSA. Under Section 63 of FSMA, the FSA may withdraw a person's approved status if it considers that the person is not fit and proper to perform the “controlled function”.
Bradford and Bingley: Mortgages
The publicly-owned part of Bradford and Bingley is managed at arm's length from Government on commercial principles. It is a matter for the company's management to release specific business updates or provide any required disclosures in its annual report and accounts.
Child Tax Credit
(2) how much was paid out in child tax credits in (a) the UK, (b) the North East, (c) the Tees Valley and (d) Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland constituency in each year since they were introduced.
Estimates of the average number of families benefiting from tax credits including information on average annual entitlements in each Government office region, local authority and parliamentary constituency, based on final family circumstances and incomes, are available in the HMRC publication “Child and Working Tax Credits Statistics Finalised annual awards. Geographical analyses”, for each relevant year. These publications are available on the HMRC website at:
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/personal-tax-credits/cwtc-geog-stats.htm.
Child Trust Fund
HMRC's Detailed Distributional Analysis, including details of average contributions made by parents and others in all years for which figures are available, was published on 6 November 2008. Geographically this data is only available at Government office region level and can be viewed on the HM Revenue and Customs’ website at:
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/child_trust_funds/dda-oct08.pdf.
The average contribution into a Child Trust Fund account registered in England was £261 in 2006-07 and £283 in 2007-08.
Delivery Unit
In line with normal practices regarding PMDU advice to Ministers, the unit's recommendations to the Chancellor are never put in the public domain.
Departmental Contracts
When PMDU transferred from the Cabinet Office to HMT in 2007, the remit of the unit changed significantly to include development of PSA policy and oversight of the delivery of the 30 key government PSAs. The unit’s budget and staff levels were increased to reflect these two additional responsibilities. The Cabinet Office agreed to make a £250,000 contribution to cover part of the additional staff costs. When the money was transferred to HMT it was recorded as being for consultancy when it should have been recorded as an increase in the staff budget.
Departmental Correspondence
The Cabinet Office annually publishes a report to Parliament on the performance of departments in replying to Members’ correspondence, which is available in the Library of the House.
Departmental Public Appointments
Information on appointments made by the Treasury is published in the annual departmental report, which can be accessed via the Treasury website:
www.hm-treasury.gov.uk.
More detailed information about individual appointments is set out in the relevant body's Annual Report. Vacancies may be advertised on the Cabinet Office Public Appointments website at
www.publicappointments.gov.uk.
The process for making a public appointment, including guidance on political activity and eligibility criteria, follows the Cabinet Office publication “Making and Managing Public Appointments”. For appointments regulated by the Commissioner for Public Appointments, the appointments process also complies with the “Code of Practice for Ministerial Appointments to Public Bodies”. Copies are in the Libraries of the House.
Departmental Recycling
HM Treasury is committed to recycling and reducing all forms of waste. Full information about waste and recycling, including volume by building, can be found in the HM Treasury Annual Report 2007-08, a copy of which can be found in the Library.
Departmental Training
The Treasury’s accounting system does not hold any record of spending with the Internet Advertising Bureau in 2007-08 or so far in the 2008-09 financial year.
Economic and Monetary Union
A meeting between local authorities and central Government officials to discuss euro preparations took place in September 2006.
Excise Duties: Alcoholic Drinks
As with all tax policy decisions, we will be monitoring the impact of alcohol duty increases on a range of factors, including retail outlets.
Excise Duties: Beer
Decisions on alcohol duty rates will be made by the Chancellor as part of the Budget process.
Gold and Foreign Exchange Reserves
Foreign currency swaps undertaken by the Bank of England with the Federal Reserve Bank of New York are reported in the Bank Return (within ‘other liabilities’) and in Bank Stats (Table D5.2, Bank of England foreign currency liabilities, within ‘other liabilities’) published on the Bank's website. Such swaps do not form part of foreign exchange reserves.
http://www.bankofengland.co.uk/publications/bankreturn/2009/090121cs.pdf
http://www.bankofengland.co.uk/statistics/ms/2007/Dec/tabd5.1.xls
On 10 October 2008 the Bank of England entered into an $8.484 billion overnight swap and a $29.998 billion one week swap with the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Details can be found in the Bank of England market notice ‘Result of US Dollar Repo Operations’ of 10 October 2008.
http://www.bankofengland.co.uk/markets/money/documentation/usdreporesult081010.pdf
The Bank of England has a contractual swap arrangement with the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. The existing swap line is such that there is no fixed limit to the amount of dollar liquidity that can be supplied to the system.
Details can be found in the Bank of England news releases ‘Coordinated Central Bank Action to Improve US$ Liquidity’ of 18 September, ‘Coordinated Central Bank Action to Address Pressures in Global Money Markets’ of 7 October, ‘US Dollar Repo Operations’ of 19 December, and market notice ‘US Dollar Repo Operations’ of 17 October 2008.
Private swap arrangements with other central banks may be put in place in appropriate circumstances, but the details may be kept confidential between the parties concerned.
http://www.bankofengland.co.uk/publications/news/2008/054.htm
http://www.bankofengland.co.uk/publications/news/2008/065.htm
http://www.bankofengland.co.uk/publications/news/2008/130.htm
http://www.bankofengland.co.uk/markets/marketnotice 081017b.pdf
Inheritance Tax
The cost of increasing the inheritance tax threshold to £1 million with effect from April 2009 is estimated at £500 million in 2009-10, £1.2 billion in 2010-11 and £1.3 billion in 2011-12.
Insolvency
The Government publish two economic forecasts per year, which are based on all relevant forecast factors and evidence. Although consistent with other forecasters, the economic forecast does not include a forecast of insolvencies by large or medium-size businesses. The Government last published a forecast in the pre-Budget report 2008 (Cm 7484) on 24 November and will publish an updated forecast at Budget 2009.
The Insolvency Service does not maintain a named list of insolvent companies. Companies House holds records of all registered companies on their registers, including those in insolvency and dissolution. However, these could not identify those which are "large" and "medium-sized" businesses, nor would a full record of all insolvent companies be available for the financial year 2008-09 until some time after the end of the year.
Members: Correspondence
I replied to the hon. Member on 19 December. A further copy has been sent to his office.
(2) when he plans to reply to the letter from the hon. Member for West Worcestershire dated 6 November 2008 on charities, PO Ref: 1/62894/2008.
Due to the large volume of correspondence received on these issues there has been a delay in sending some responses. The Financial Services Secretary hopes to be in a position to reply to the hon. Member shortly.
Mortgages: Arrears
The Government do not hold these figures. The Financial Services Authority (FSA) publishes quarterly data on residential mortgage lending, covering the period from the first quarter of 2007, available at:
http://www.fsa.gov.uk/pages/Doing/Regulated/Returns/IRR/statistics/index.shtml.
Pensions: Private Sector
The effect on private pensions of the recent stock market downturn varies with the share of assets individual schemes assign to equities. In general UK pension funds have substantially reduced their exposure to equities in recent years.
The Government have taken a number of steps to support good quality pension provision and are committed to helping scheme sponsors through this difficult time within the framework provided by the Pensions Regulator and the Pension Protection Fund.
We will continue to work with groups representing pension schemes, employers and scheme members to consider what further steps can be taken to support schemes.
Public Bodies: Finance
In devolved areas of spending it is for the Welsh Assembly government to decide what organisations it funds. In reserved areas of spending it is for the relevant Government Department to decide what organisations it funds.
Public Works Loan Board
The Public Works Loan Board lends only to local authorities in England, Scotland and Wales, therefore the Scottish Government has no outstanding debt with the PWLB.
The balance outstanding to the Public Works Loan Board in respect of parish and town councils in England at the end of each of the last five years was as follows:
Balance of principal (£) 2003-04 66,237,455.29 2004-05 69,267,400.71 2005-06 75,419,106.37 2006-07 77,340,091.21 2007-08 81,016,768.50
The Public Works Loan Board lends only to local authorities in England, Scotland and Wales therefore the Scottish Government has no outstanding debt with the PWLB.
The total amounts lent to the parish and town councils in England in each of the last five years are as follows:
Amount (£) 2003-04 11,709,583 2004-05 8,210,406 2005-06 11,737,008 2006-07 7,964,701 2007-08 9,415,688
Where PWLB debt is repaid by Scottish local authorities prematurely using proceeds from the sale of housing stock and where there is overhanging debt, the Scottish Government often contributes to the total sum repayable to the PWLB. Payments received from the Scottish Government by PWLB in this respect in each of the last five years are as follows:
Principal Interest Premium Total 2003-04 90,573,659.94 0 18,275,438.61 108,849,098.55 2004-05 0 0 0 0 2005-06 0 0 0 0 2006-07 80,148,935.93 0 27,468,125.43 107,617,061.36 2007-08 71,226,117.65 0 18,354,399.65 89,580,517.30
Public Works Loan Board receipts from parish town councils in England in each of the last five years are as follows:
Principal Accrued interest Premium Total 2003-04 5,490,065.15 4,062,911.27 272,639.73 9,825,616.15 2004-05 5,176,104.34 4,208,528.19 29,464.56 9,414,097.09 2005-06 5,592,703.84 4,317,054.09 173,036.58 10,082,794.51 2006-07 5,855,311.45 4,285,239.25 47,130.43 10,187,681.13 2007-08 5,831,642.47 4,583,982.74 37,996.42 10,453,621.63
Repossession Orders
The Government do not hold these figures. The Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) publishes the total numbers of properties taken into possession in the UK, available at:
http://www.cml.org.uk/cml/statistics.
Research and Development Tax Credit
Information on R&D tax credits is not yet available for 2008-09. The most recent National Statistics, published on the HMRC website on 19 December 2008, cover financial years up to 2006-07.
Information on claims for R&D tax credits by clean tech and green tech companies is not available because the data are broken down by industry sector using the UK Standard Industrial Classification of Economic Activities (SIC), and clean tech and green tech are not identified as separate sectors in this classification.
Revenue and Customs: Complaints
The information requested is not compiled centrally.
Revenue and Customs: North West
No renovation or refurbishment works have been carried out in HM Revenue and Customs’ offices in Blackburn and St. Helens in the last 12 months.
Both of these offices are occupied under the terms of an estates private finance initiative (PFI) contract. Planned preventive and lifecycle maintenance will have been undertaken by HMRC’s estates partner, Mapeley, who are responsible for maintenance of the sites to the required contractual accommodation standards.
Royal Bank of Scotland
Treasury Ministers answer parliamentary questions about Government expenditure on RBS as fully and accurately as appropriate, consistent with the Department's responsibilities. Questions about the operations of RBS are a matter for the directors of the bank.
Smuggling
The information requested is not available.
The following table shows the number of cases brought and the number of criminals sentenced for tobacco offences in each of the last five years.
Cases brought Number of people sentenced 2003-04 — 429 2004-05 — 204 2005-06 — 262 2006-07 237 299 2007-08 192 290
Valuation Office: Overseas Visits
(2) with reference to the answer to the hon. Member for Bromley and Chislehurst, of 17 March 2008, Official Report, column 899W, on the Valuation Office: visits abroad, which overseas destinations have been visited by Valuation Office Agency staff since March 2008; how many visits were made to each destination; and what the purpose of each visit was.
The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) receives a number of requests to provide advice overseas. Where VOA participation is expected to be beneficial at an overseas conference or seminar some or all of the costs incurred are normally borne by the conference organisers.
Since March 2008 staff from the Valuation Office Agency have made the following visits:
Fully paid for by the event organisers;
One person visited Moscow as a Keynote speaker at Russian Society of Appraisers Conference; and
One person visited Kansas City to attend a meeting of the International Association of Assessing Officers to review mass appraisal courses and textbooks.
Costs paid by the VOA:
Five visits, consisting of one person each time, were made to Dublin to discuss valuation practice and procedures across England, Wales, Ireland and Scotland;
One person visited Toronto to attend the Mass Appraisal Valuation Symposium, partly paid for by the organisers;
One person visited Warsaw as a Keynote speaker at the European Valuers Conference;
One person visited Beijing to attend an International Property Tax Institute Conference, partly paid for by the organisers;
One person visited Adelaide as a Keynote speaker at the Australian Valuer General, Registrar General and Surveyor General's Conference, partly paid for by the organisers; and
One person visited Cannes to attend Gartner's Symposium / ITxpo 2008.
VAT
(2) what estimate he has made of the average saving which will be made by households in each income decile with people of working age with dependent children as a result of the reduction in the rate of value added tax to 15 per cent. over the course of a year;
(3) what estimate he has made of the average saving for pension age households in each income decile (a) mainly dependent on state benefits and (b) mainly dependent on other forms of income from the reduction in the standard rate of value added tax to 15 per cent. over the course of a year.
The benefit to a household from a reduction in VAT of 2.5 percentage points, net of increases to alcohol and tobacco duty, is, on average, £275. This amount is derived from HMRC revenue forecasts, and therefore cannot be used for analysis by decile and household type.
Household spending patterns vary widely within deciles and household types, so estimates of savings on such a basis should be treated with caution. This is exacerbated by there being greater sampling variability associated with estimates for deciles and groups of given household types due to the relatively small sample sizes.
However it is possible to infer the following estimates of the benefit of the VAT reduction by household type and income decile, based on figures for average expenditures on VAT published by the ONS in their article “The effects of taxes and benefits on household incomes, 2006-07”.
The estimates assume the majority of the VAT reduction will be passed on to consumers in the form of lower prices in line with past experience, and that spending patterns remain unchanged.
Percentage Retired households Bottom 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th 9th Top Saving of gross income 1.5 1.1 1.1 0.9 0.9 0.9 0.8 0.9 0.9 0.8
Percentage Non-retired households Bottom 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th 9th Top Saving of gross income 1.6 1.0 0.9 0.8 0.8 0.8 0.7 0.7 0.7 0.5
Percentage Non-retired households with children Bottom 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th 9th Top Saving of gross income 1.7 1.0 1.1 0.8 0.9 0.8 0.8 0.8 0.7 0.4
VAT: Accountancy
Businesses are not required to notify HMRC if they use cash accounting. As a result of research conducted in 2006, HMRC estimates that the scheme is used by at least one in three eligible businesses which would benefit from it. The scheme is already available to over 90 per cent. of the VAT registered population, but does not benefit businesses that already operate on a cash receipts basis such as retailers.
Welfare Tax Credits
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Member for Rayleigh (Mr. Francois) on 7 November 2006, Official Report, columns 1043-1044W.
Welfare Tax Credits: Chelmsford
Estimates of the number of families with tax credit awards, including information on overpayments by constituency, based on final family circumstances and incomes, for the years 2003-04, 2004-05, 2005-06 and 2006-07 are available in the HMRC publications “Child and Working Tax Credits Statistics Finalised Annual Awards. Supplement on Payments. Geographical Analyses”, for each relevant year.
These publications are available on the HMRC website at:
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/personal-tax-credits/cwtc-geog-stats.htm
Welfare Tax Credits: EC Nationals
The information requested is not available for child tax credit. The working tax credit is not a family benefit within the scope of EC Regulation 1408/71 and it is therefore not payable in respect of a worker's family members resident in other EEA member states.
Welfare Tax Credits: Overpayments
HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) initiates court action only as a last resort. HMRC initiated 467 and 365 court actions for the recovery of tax credit overpayments through county court (England and Wales)1, sheriffs court (Scotland) and magistrates court (Northern Ireland) in November and December 2008 respectively.
For information on earlier months and years, I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Cardiff, Central (Jenny Willott) on 26 November 2008, Official Report, column 1926W.
Information on the total number of overpaid awards, and the aggregate amount overpaid, in 2006-07 is provided in the main aggregates table in the HMRC publication “Child and Working Tax Credits Statistics. Finalised Annual Awards. Supplement on Payments 2006-07”. This publication is available on the HMRC website at:
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/personal-tax-credits/cwtc-quarterly-stats.htm
Information on overpayments in 2007-08 is not yet available.
1 For England and Wales, these figures relate only to actions commenced centrally and exclude actions commenced by local HMRC debt pursuit offices where it is not possible to readily disaggregate tax credit cases from the total number of local initiated court actions.
Welsh Language
[holding answer 4 February 2009]: No central record of spending on translations by language is held and the information could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Women and Equality
Charities
Decisions on any future funding to these or other charities will be announced in the usual way.
Departmental Buildings
The Government Equalities Office was established on 12 October 2007. It was based initially in Ashdown house, a Communities and Local Government building in Victoria street in London SW1. In February 2008, the GEO moved to Eland house, another CLG building, also in London SW1.
The GEO’s area in Ashdown house was not refurbished during GEO’s tenure and there are no plans to refurbish GEO’s area in Eland house.
The GEO’s floor area in Eland house is 372 sq m. No records exist of the floor area in Ashdown house but space there was less than it is now in Eland house.
Departmental Internet
The Government Equalities Office sources its internet access through Steria, the in-house provider for the Department of Communities and Local Government. Steria is, in turn, supplied by Cable and Wireless and the internet is accessed via the Government secure internet (GSI).
Departmental Public Appointments
The Government Equalities Office (GEO) sponsors two non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs): the Women’s National Commission (WNC) an advisory NDPB, and the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) an Executive NDPB.
The WNC has a board and chair totalling 16 members. The existing terms of five of the commissioners are due to end in the summer of 2009. It is expected that recruitment of between two and five commissioners will take place during 2009.
The roles of the chair and 12 commissioners of the EHRC will be renewed or filled in the next 24 months. Remit, salary eligibility requirement and timetable have yet to be confirmed.
GEO complies fully with the Office of the Commissioner for Public Appointments (OCPA) guidance on political restrictions.
The remit, remuneration and further information about these posts will be made available via the public appointments website at:
http://www.publicappts-vacs.gov.uk
and the GEO website at:
http://www.equalities.gov.uk
later this year.
Records and documentation evidence of these appointments will be retained by GEO for at least two years in accordance with guidelines from OCPA.
Departmental Recruitment
The Government Equalities Office was established on 12 October 2007. Including those staff who came to us through the machinery of government changes that set up the GEO, in 2007-08 GEO recruited two staff over 55 years of age, representing 11 per cent. of new recruits, and one member of staff aged over 60 years, equivalent to 6 per cent. of new recruits.
Departmental Temporary Employment
With reference to the answer of 27 October 2008, Official Report, columns 688-89W, on departmental temporary staff, the total number of staff recruited through each company and the average length of contract, in weeks, is as follows:
Company Number of staff recruited Average contract length (Weeks) Adecco 3 37 Brook Street UK Ltd. 13 26 Michael Page Associates 1 5 Morgan Hunt 4 17 Reed Employment Ltd. 13 14
Mass Media
The Government Equalities Office was established on 12 October 2007. The Department for Work and Pensions met the costs of press monitoring services for the GEO from then until 31 March 2008. Since 1 April 2008, GEO has spent £11,428.25 on press monitoring services.
Political Parties: Finance
The Commission has informed me that the three payments made by them, as referred to in the answer to the hon. Member for Beckenham (Mrs. Lait) of 6 October 2008, Official Report, column 303W, are related to charges for attending the 2007 annual party conferences. The Commission attended the conferences to build its profile with parliamentarians and key stakeholders and promote factual information about its work, to co-inside with the launch of the new Commission in October 2007.
Written Parliamentary Questions
My Department has received one named day question since the start of the current Session. The question could only be answered after collecting information from other Government Departments and the time taken to do this meant that GEO did not respond by the due date.
Work and Pensions
Bereavement Benefits
The bereavement payment was last increased in April 2001 with the introduction of the bereavement benefit scheme.
The Department does not hold information regarding the change in funeral costs since 2001.
Departmental Internet
The following list details the websites operated by the Department for Work and Pensions in addition to its main website in the past five years. The list includes the Department's executive agencies, NDBPs and other public bodies.
Websites operated by the Department
Jobcentre Plus
www.jobcentreplus.gov.uk
The Pension Service
www.thepensionservice.gov.uk
Child Support Agency
www.csa.gov.uk
Directgov Disabled People and Carers Sections
www.direct.gov.uk/disability
www.direct.gov.uk/carers
Directgov Over 50s Section
www.direct.gov.uk/over50s
Directgov Jobseekers
www.direct.gov.uk/en/Employment/Jobseekers
Age Positive
www.agepositive.gov.uk
Office for Disability Issues
www.officefordisability.gov.uk
European Social Fund
www.esf.gov.uk
Health and Safety Executive
www.hse.gov.uk
Now Let's Talk Money
www.nowletstalkmoney.com
Websites operated by the Department for Work and Pensions where the department is not responsible for the content
Independent Case Examiner
www.ind-case-exam.org.uk
Industrial Injuries Advisory Council
www.iiac.org.uk
Social Security Advisory Committee
www.ssac.org.uk
Websites that are managed independently of DWP
Independent Living Funds
www.ilf.org.uk
Pension Protection Fund
www.pensionprotectionfund.org.uk
Pensions Ombudsman and PPF Ombudsman
www.pensions-ombudsman.org.uk/
Remploy
www.remploy.co.uk
The Pensions Regulator
www.thepensionsregulator.gov.uk
The Pensions Advisory Service
www.pensionsadvisoryservice.org.uk
The Rent Service
www.therentservice.gov.uk
Websites that have since closed
Disability Employment Advisory Committee
www.deac.org.uk
Disability Living Allowance Advisory Board
www.dlaab.org.uk
Employer Task Force
www.employertaskforce.org.uk
Ethnic Minority Employment Task Force
www.emetaskforce.gov.uk
Images of Disability
www.imagesofdisability.gov.uk
National Employment Panel
www.nationalemploymentpanel.gov.uk
Pensions At Work
www.pensionsatwork.org
Pensions Commission
www.pensionscommission.org.uk
Fair Cities
www.faircities.net
Benefit Fraud Inspectorate
www.bfi.gov.uk
New Deal
www.newdeal.gov.uk
Action Teams
www.actionteams.gov.uk
Employment Zones
www.employmentzones.org.uk
Worktrain
www.worktrain.gov.uk
One
www.one.gov.uk
Departmental Official Engagements
[holding answer 15 January 2009]: The information that the hon. Member has requested is listed in the following table. This also includes regional engagements as my Regional Ministers do discuss departmental business at these events.
Minister Date Official engagement James Purnell 1 December 2008 Child Poverty Action Group James Purnell 9 December 2008 Tower Project, London James Purnell 11 December 2008 Joseph Rowntree Housing Trust, York James Purnell 17 December 2008 Inclusion ‘Workless in 2009’ Tony McNulty 1 December 2008 Hammersmith Jobcentre Plus Tony McNulty 1 December 2008 London Prevent Network Tony McNulty 1 December 2008 Mayor of London Tony McNulty 1 December 2008 Ealing Council Tony McNulty 1 December 2008 North West London Tony McNulty 2 December 2008 Media Breakfast Tony McNulty 2 December 2008 Ethnic Minority Advisory Group Reception Tony McNulty 3 December 2008 London Council Tony McNulty 3 December 2008 A4E Tony McNulty 4 December 2008 Employers Round table Tony McNulty 4 December 2008 Speech OSCT event Tony McNulty 4 December 2008 Visit London meeting Tony McNulty 8 December 2008 Harrow College Tony McNulty 8 December 2008 Shepherds Bush Jobcentre Plus Office Tony McNulty 8 December 2008 Met Police meeting Tony McNulty 8 December 2008 London and European Resilience Event Tony McNulty 9 December 2008 London Child Poverty Delivery Group Tony McNulty 10 December 2008 National Prevent Conference Tony McNulty 11 December 2008 London community Safety Partnership Tony McNulty 15 December 2008 London Colleges Tony McNulty 15 December 2008 Tower Hamlets Tony McNulty 15 December 2008 Ocean Job Shop Tony McNulty 15 December 2008 Brick Lane Youth Development Association Tony McNulty 16 December 2008 UK Commission for Employment and Skills Tony McNulty 17 December 2008 Drug Strategy Commission reception Tony McNulty 18 December 2008 Met Police Tony McNulty 18 December 2008 Joint Terrorism Analysis Centre Rosie Winterton 1 December 2008 Immingham Pensioners Wellbeing Group Rosie Winterton 3 December 2008 Opportunity age Strategic Group Rosie Winterton 4 December 2008 DWP Pensions Staff Conference Rosie Winterton 4 December 2008 Help the aged Age Concern Rosie Winterton 5 December 2008 Local Government Yorkshire and Humber event Rosie Winterton 8 December 2008 EEF Rosie Winterton 9 December 2008 B and CE benefit Schemes Rosie Winterton 10 December 2008 Business in Sport and Leisure (BISL) Rosie Winterton 10 December 2008 Charity Champion Awards Rosie Winterton 11 December 2008 Age Concern Newcastle ASDA Northumbria Employee event Newcastle Rosie Winterton 12 December 2008 Association of Colleges Yorkshire and Humber Rosie Winterton 15 December 2008 Pension Credit Centre Burnley Rosie Winterton 16 December 2008 NAPF Rosie Winterton 16 December 2008 Help the Aged Age Concern CPA Anchor Trust Rosie Winterton 17 December 2008 BGOP—Better Government for Older People OPAG—Older People’s Action Group Kitty Ussher 4 December 2008 Conference of the Association of British Credit Unions Ltd. Kitty Ussher 8 December 2008 Valuation Office Agency Kitty Ussher 9 December 2008 Balham Benefit Delivery Centre Kitty Ussher 9 December 2008 National Housing Federation Kitty Ussher 10 December 2008 White Paper launch Kitty Ussher 11 December 2008 National Housing Federations Unlocking Potential conference Kitty Ussher 11 December 2008 Chartered Institute of Housing Kitty Ussher 15 December 2008 Stewart Maxwell MSP Kitty Ussher 15 December 2008 Lyn Brown MP Kitty Ussher 16 December 2008 Beverley Hughes MP Kitty Ussher 16 December 2008 Jennifer Willott MP Kitty Ussher 18 December 2008 Zimbabwe Inter-Ministerial Meeting Kitty Ussher 18 December 2008 Life Chances Ministerial Meeting Jonathan Shaw 1 December 2008 Office for Disability Issues Annual event Jonathan Shaw 1 December 2008 Neuro-diversity Meeting Jonathan Shaw 1 December 2008 Welfare Reform Meeting Jonathan Shaw 1 December 2008 RADAR People of the Year Awards Jonathan Shaw 2 December 2008 Shelter Housing Event Jonathan Shaw 2 December 2008 Justice and Crime Sub-Committee Jonathan Shaw 2 December 2008 Kimberly Clark/SEEDA meeting Jonathan Shaw 2 December 2008 SEEDA Infrastructure Event Jonathan Shaw 3 December 2008 City and East London JCP LOCOG Event Jonathan Shaw 3 December 2008 Canterbury Innovation Centre Jonathan Shaw 3 December 2008 MCCH Jonathan Shaw 4 December 2008 Include Me Too Conference Jonathan Shaw 4 December 2008 Equality 2025 Jonathan Shaw 4 December 2008 National Autistic Society Meeting Jonathan Shaw 8 December 2008 Placeshaper Housing Association Reception Jonathan Shaw 9 December 2008 RNIB Meeting Jonathan Shaw 9 December 2008 Remploy Meeting with Shop Stewards Jonathan Shaw 9 December 2008 Parkinson’s Disease Society Meeting Jonathan Shaw 9 December 2008 Tell Us Once Event Jonathan Shaw 9 December 2008 Employers’ Forum on Disability Meeting Jonathan Shaw 9 December 2008 IDEAS Meeting Jonathan Shaw 9 December 2008 Remploy and other Supported Businesses Procurement Meeting Jonathan Shaw 10 December 2008 Independent Living Funds Meeting Jonathan Shaw 10 December 2008 Welfare Reform Stakeholder Event Jonathan Shaw 10 December 2008 Care and Support Ministerial Meeting Jonathan Shaw 11 December 2008 Equality Bill Consultation Event Jonathan Shaw 12 December 2008 British Olympians and Paralympians Medallists Event Jonathan Shaw 15 December 2008 Meeting with Devolved Administration Ministers Jonathan Shaw 16 December 2008 SEEDC Jonathan Shaw 16 December 2008 Remploy Meeting Jonathan Shaw 16 December 2008 IDEAS Workshop Jonathan Shaw 16 December 2008 Employment, Social Policy, Health and Consumer Affairs (EPSCO) Jonathan Shaw 17 December 2008 Employment, Social Policy, Health and Consumer Affairs (EPSCO) Lord McKenzie 1 December 2008 SR Partnership Lord McKenzie 1 December 2008 Steel Construction Institute Lord McKenzie 2 December 2008 Inside Government Conference Lord McKenzie 2 December 2008 Evershed’s Lord McKenzie 3 December 2008 Launch of HSE New Strategy consultation Lord McKenzie 4 December 2008 Pension Consultants Lord McKenzie 5 December 2008 Birmingham New Hospital Joint Venture Lord McKenzie 9 December 2008 Annual Multi Pensions 2008 Lord McKenzie 9 December 2008 Trade Union Congress Lord McKenzie 10 December 2008 Personal Account Delivery Authority Lord McKenzie 10 December 2008 Confederation of British Industry Lord McKenzie 10 December 2008 National Association of Pension Funds Lord McKenzie 10 December 2008 Association of Consulting Actuaries Lord McKenzie 12 December 2008 Gateway Education centre and Shrewsbury Hospital Lord McKenzie 16 December 2008 National Association of Pension Funds Lord McKenzie 17 December 2008 Australian Health and Safety Minister
Funeral Payments
(2) what expenses can be claimed by benefit claimants under Other Funeral Expenses as referred to in his Department’s technical guidance SB16.
There is no definition of a respectful funeral within the departmental guidance or in the legislation relating to funeral payments from the Social Fund. The person responsible for arranging the funeral may claim for items or services including:
the funeral director’s fees
church fee or minister’s fee
organist’s fee
flowers
cost of an urn
hygienic treatment.
This is not a complete list of items and services that may be claimed under “other funeral expenses”. A decision maker can award the necessary cost of certain specified items, including burial or cremation charges, in addition to an amount up to a limit of £700 for all other funeral expenses.
Housing Benefit
It has been estimated that the expenditure which will arise as a result of the provision which makes excess payments of up to £15 to local housing allowance claimants where their rent is less than the local housing allowance rate applicable to their case may be as follows:
Estimated cost of excess (£ million) 2008-09 60 2009-10 160 2010-11 240
It is important to note that these estimates are subject to a number of assumptions and estimates are sensitive to small changes in these assumptions.
[holding answer 2 February 2009]: The information is not yet available.
Incapacity Benefit: Forest of Dean
[holding answer 5 February 2009]: The available information is in the following table.
Number Mental impairments 1,180 Physical impairments 1,830 Notes 1. To qualify for incapacity benefit/severe disablement allowance, claimants have to undertake a medical assessment of incapacity for work which is called the personal capability assessment. Therefore, the medical condition recorded on incapacity benefit/severe disablement allowance claim form does not itself confer entitlement to incapacity benefits, so, for example, the decision for a customer claiming incapacity benefit on grounds of mental or behavioural disorders would be based on their ability to carry out the range of activities in the personal capability assessment; or on the effects of any associated mental health problems. Causes of incapacity are based on the International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision, published by the World Health Organisation. 2. Mental impairments are defined as organic, including symptomatic, mental disorders (F00-F09), mental and behavioural disorders due to psychoactive substance use (F10-F19), schizophrenia, scizotypal and delusional disorders (F20-F29), mood affective disorders (F30-F39), neurotic, stress related and somatoform disorders (F40-F48), behavioural syndromes associated with physiological disturbances and physical factors (F50-F59), disorders of adult personality and behaviour (F60-F69), mental retardation (F70-F79), disorders of psychological development (F80-F89), behavioural and emotional disorders with onset usually occurring in childhood and adolescence (F90-F98) and unspecified mental disorder (F99). All other medical conditions are included in the physical impairments category. 3. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10. Source: DWP Information Directorate 100 per cent. WPLS
Mortgage Relief
(2) what his Department’s net expenditure on mortgage interest support for those on income support with mortgages taken out after October 2005 has been in each year since 2005-06.
The information requested is not available.
Post Office Card Account
The financial details of the contract are subject to the normal principles of commercial confidentiality. It would not therefore be appropriate to make this public as this information relates to the commercial interest of the Department and Post Office Ltd.
Poverty: Children
The information on the number and proportion of children who were in poverty and whose parents were out of work is shown in the following table.
Number (million) Proportion (percentage) 2002-03 1.6 64 2003-04 1.5 61 2004-05 1.4 58 2005-06 1.4 58 2006-07 1.4 61 Notes: 1. These statistics are based on households below average income, sourced from the Family Resources Survey and Low Income Dynamics data, sourced from the British Household Panel Survey. 2. Small changes should be treated with caution as these will be affected by sampling error and variability in non-response. 3. The reference period for households below average income figures is single financial years. 4. The income measures used to derive the estimates shown employ the same methodology as the Department for Work and Pensions publication ‘Households Below Average Income’ series, which uses net disposable household income, adjusted (or “equivalised”) for household size and composition, as an income measure as a proxy for standard of living. 5. For the households below average income series, incomes have been equivalised using OECD equalisation factors. 6. Numbers of children have been rounded to the nearest 100,000 children and proportions have been rounded to the nearest per cent. 7. Children have been counted as being in workless families where they are in lone parent families where the parent does not work or in couple families where both parents do not work. 8. Parents have been counted as being of working age if at least one is of working age (i.e. 64 or below for men, 59 or below for women). Source: Households Below Average Income
Information on the number and proportion of children who had moved out of poverty as a result of their parents moving into work is not available. Poverty is a complex and multidimensional issue with many different factors acting at the same time in moving individuals into or out of poverty.
The risk of a child being in a low income household in the United Kingdom in 2006-07 where one or more adult works is much lower at 14 per cent. than for children in workless families, where the equivalent proportion is 61 per cent. as shown in the table. Data from the Low Income Dynamics publication illustrate that an increase in the number of workers or full-time workers in a family with children greatly increases the likelihood of that household moving out of low income. The Low Income Dynamics paper is available in the Library.
Prisoners Release
I have been asked to reply.
I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 3 February 2008, Official Report, columns 1175-76W.
Unemployed
I have been asked to reply.
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated February 2009:
As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking how many economically inactive people of working age wanted employment in each of the last five years. (254493)
The information requested is provided in the attached table. The estimates are consistent with those published in Table 13 of the Labour Market Statistics First Release Historical Supplement, which is available on the National Statistics website via the following link:
http://www.statistics.gov.uk/OnlineProducts/LMS_FR_HS.asp
The estimates are derived from the Labour Force Survey (LFS). As with any sample survey, estimates from the LFS are subject to a margin of uncertainty.
Total (thousand) 2004 2,016 2005 2,053 2006 2,102 2007 2,093 20083 *2,102 1 Economically inactive people are neither in employment nor unemployed. The number of economically inactive people who want a job comprises: those who have not been looking for work in the last four weeks but who say that they would like to have a regular paid job; plus, those that have been looking for work but who were unable to start work within two weeks. 2 Men aged 16-64 and women aged 16-59. 3 Coefficients of Variation have been calculated as an indication of the quality of the estimates, as described below: Guide to Quality: The Coefficient of Variation (CV) indicates the quality of an estimate, the smaller the CV value the higher the quality. The true value is likely to lie within +/- twice the CV—for example, for an estimate of 200 with a CV of 5 per cent. we would expect the population total to be within the range 180-220. Key Coefficient of Variation (CV) (%) Statistical robustness * 0 = CV <5 Estimates are considered precise. ** 5 = CV <10 Estimates are considered reasonably precise. *** 10 = CV <20 Estimates are considered acceptable. **** CV = 20 Estimates are considered too unreliable for practical purposes. Note: It should be noted that the above estimates exclude people in most types of communal establishment (e.g. hotels, boarding houses, hostels, mobile home sites etc.) Source: Labour Force Survey
Vacancies
I have been asked to reply.
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
Letter from Karen Dunnell:
As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking how many job vacancies there were in (a) Vale of York constituency, (b) North Yorkshire and (c) England in (i) 2006, (ii) 2007 and (iii) 2008. (254271)
The Office for National Statistics estimates the number of vacancies from the Vacancy Survey, but estimates below UK are not available from this source.
An alternative source of information on job vacancies is administrative data from Jobcentre Plus. This data only includes job vacancies notified to Jobcentre Plus and consequently is inconsistent with the UK estimates from the Vacancy Survey; however geographical breakdowns of this data are available.
Table 1 attached, shows the number of live unfilled job vacancies held by Jobcentre Plus for the Vale of York constituency, North Yorkshire and England in December of 2006, 2007 and 2008. Figures from Jobcentre Plus for Great Britain, along with three month averages for the UK from the Vacancy Survey have also been included for comparison.
Not seasonally adjusted Vale of York North Yorkshire England Great Britain December 2006 478 3,007 264,618 308,414 December 2007 1,079 4,086 342,840 394,904 December 2008 477 2,154 238,385 271,011 1 Job vacancies for Vale of York, North Yorkshire. England and Great Britain are live unfilled vacancies from the Jobcentre Plus administrative data. The GB totals are much lower than the UK figures from the ONS Vacancy Survey. Source: Jobcentre Plus Administrative Data
UK October to December 2006 603,000 October to December 2007 676,000 September to November 2008 562,000 Source: Vacancy Survey, ONS
Vacancies: East Riding
[holding answer 4 February 2009]: I have been asked to reply.
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated February 2009:
As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking how many job vacancies there are in East Riding of Yorkshire. (254291)
The Office for National Statistics estimates the number of vacancies from the Vacancy Survey, but estimates below UK are not available from this source.
An alternative source of information on job vacancies is administrative data from Jobcentre Plus. This data only includes job vacancies notified to Jobcentre Plus and consequently is inconsistent with the UK estimates from the Vacancy Survey; however geographical breakdowns of this data are available.
Table 1 attached, shows the number of live unfilled job vacancies held by Jobcentre Plus for the East Riding of Yorkshire in December 2008. Figures from Jobcentre Plus for Great Britain, along with three month averages for the UK from the Vacancy Survey have also been included for comparison.
Not seasonally adjusted East Riding of Yorkshire Great Britain December 2008 650 271,011 1 Job vacancies for East Riding of Yorkshire and Great Britain are live unfilled vacancies from the Jobcentre Plus administrative data. These are not consistent with the UK estimate of total vacancies, from the ONS Vacancy Survey. Source: Jobcentre Plus Administrative Data
Seasonally adjusted—UK September to November 2008 562,000 Source: Vacancy Survey, ONS
Vocational Training
I have been asked to reply.
People aged over 25 are eligible for all Government supported training for adults including apprenticeships. 27,200 adults aged 25 and over started an apprenticeship in 2007-08 and 16,800 between August and October in 2008-09. The Government are currently investing £4.5 billion in adult skills, through Train to Gain, Skills for Life and other work related training. There is now a legal right for all adults to get training up to national vocational qualification level 2 if they do not already have a qualification at this level.
The Department is also working with DWP to create a joined up employment and skills system that gives low-skilled and unemployed adults the skills and support they need to find sustained employment. The Employability Skills Programme has been designed to meet the complex needs of Jobcentre Plus customers, and Local Employment Partnerships aim to open up opportunities for people on benefits who are often overlooked in the labour market. The Government are making a reality of our commitment to integrate the employment and skills systems. The aim is that all of those out of work will get the help they need to address their skills needs, find employment and progress in work through continued skills development.
Winter Fuel Payments
A cold weather payment is made to an eligible customer if the average temperature has been recorded as, or is forecast to be, 0°C or below over seven consecutive days at the weather station linked to the customer's postcode.
Eligible customers living in the postcodes BB1, BB4, BB5 and BB6 have qualified for cold weather payments twice since 1 October 2008 (based on the temperature criterion having been met up to 28 January 2009).
A cold weather payment is made to an eligible customer if the average temperature has been recorded as, or is forecast to be, 0°C or below over seven consecutive days at the weather station linked to the customer's postcode.
Eligible customers living in the postcodes BB18, BB8 and BB9 have qualified for cold weather payments twice since 1 October 2008 (based on the temperature criterion having been met up to 28 January 2009).
Winter Fuel Payments: Maladministration
Cold weather payments commenced in November 1988 but records are available only from the year 1999-2000 onwards.
While we do not hold the exact information requested in the PQ, the Department is able to provide summarised information that was reported in the Department for Work and Pensions Accounts from 1999-2000 to 2007-08 inclusive. During this period, cold weather payments totalling £87.382 million were paid out with £2,155.00 reported as being overpaid and the amount written off falling just below £1,000.00
£ Value of new cold weather payment overpayments Value of new cold weather payment overpayment write-offs in year 1999-2000 450.00 0.00 2000-01 258.50 8.50 2001-02 322.00 221.00 2002-03 1,067.50 416.50 2003-04 0 263.50 2004-05 34.00 17.00 2005-06 17.00 25.50 2006-07 17.00 17.00 2007-08 117.00 0.00 Total 2,155.00 969.00 Note: Amounts may not be written off in the year in which the error occurs.
Innovation, Universities and Skills
Adult Education
[holding answer 5 February 2009]: The target audience for the Skills for Life strategy is adults in England with literacy and/or numeracy skills below Level 2 and this includes learners aged 25 years and over. The increase in the number of Skills for Life (literacy, language and numeracy) learners aged 25 years and over (and in all other age groups) in 2004-05 and 2005-06 was part of our Skills for Life strategy to improve the basic skills of 2.25 million adults between 2001 and 2010.
The strategy is based around boosting demand, ensuring capacity, raising standards and increasing learner achievement. The boosting demand element included work with employers to raise awareness of the issue and the successful 'Get On' campaign to encourage individuals to improve their skills. DIUS is refreshing its Skills for Life strategy and will soon be publishing a delivery document.
Apprentices
In Quarter 3 2008, there were just under 10,000 people of working age1 studying towards an apprenticeship in the public sector. This represents around 7 per cent. of those working age people in England studying towards an apprenticeship.
These data are taken from the most recent quarterly Labour Force Survey (LFS) which covers the period July to September (2008). Data up to 31 December 2008 will be available from 11 February.
1 Men aged 16 to 64 and women aged 16 to 59
Apprentices: Cleveland
Information on projected apprenticeship volumes is available at national level only.
Table 1 shows FE and Skills participation for Middlesbrough and Redcar and Cleveland local authorities in 2007/08, the latest year for which we have fully audited information. This information is also available on the Data Service website, and was released alongside the post-16 education statistical first release, which was published on 18 December 2008:
www.thedataservice.org.uk/statistics
This information by parliamentary constituency is not available.
Age Local authority 16-18 19+ All learners Middlesbrough Redcar and Cleveland 4,400 4,800 10,600 12,000 15,000 16,900 Notes: 1. Volumes are rounded to the nearest hundred. 2. These figures include FE, University for Industry, WBL (including apprenticeships, Entry to Employment), Train to Gain and Adult Safeguarded Learning. 3. Final 2007/08 data will be published in March 2009. 4. This table uses learner volumes as a measure for comparative purposes. Full-year numbers are a count of the number of learners that participated at any point during the year. 5. Learners that are included in different data collections e.g. a learner undertaking an apprenticeship and a Train to Gain qualification, will be counted twice in this table. 6. Age is calculated based upon age as at 31 August of the academic year. 7. Local authority is based on the learner's home postcode.
Cumbria University: Finance
(2) how much funding his Department is making available to continue the development of the University of Cumbria over the next three years.
The Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) has provided £10.3 million through its Strategic Development Fund to establish the University of Cumbria over a period of four years from 2007-08. In addition the university has received annual grant funding of £18,864,672 in 2007-08, and £19,584,615 in 2008-09. Grant allocations for 2009-10 will be announced by HEFCE in March.
Departmental Air Travel
The Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS) was created as a result of the machinery of government changes in June 2007. The Department's predecessors DfES (now DCSF—Department for Children Schools and Families) and DTI (now BERR—Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform) provide travel bookings for DIUS. The number of air miles used to calculate the departmental payment for the 2007-08 for DIUS provided by BERR was:
Miles (a) Domestic 27,560 (b) Short haul 140,286 (c) Long haul 285,096
The number of air miles used to calculate the departmental payment for 2007-08 for DIUS provided by DCSF was included in the DCSF return because figures could not be separated for this period. To separate this data would involve disproportionate cost.
Departmental ICT
From our records, the following ICT projects have been initiated by the Department and its agencies. Only projects where either the initial estimated or outturn cost is greater than £200,000 have been listed.
Project (a) Initial estimated cost (b) Initial delivery date (i) outturn cost (ii) completion date Contractors Total paid (£) DIUS UnlTE Project (ICT services contract) 1,700,000 February 2008 1,700,000 February 2008 Fujitsu 1,700,000 DIUS website redevelopment 425,000 March 2009 n/a n/a Atticmedia 38,000 Eduserv Nil Patents Electronic Case File System 3,800,000 March 2008 3,100,000 March 2008 n/a 3,100,000 Fast Track Trade Mark Application 290,000 April 2008 270,000 April 2008 n/a 270,000
Departmental Languages
Since 1 January 2008, one Minister in the Department has taken foreign language lessons.
For employees in the Department, the Professional Skills for Government framework sets out the skills and expertise needed in their job including the flexibility to specify foreign language skills where that is relevant. Costs for individual training are arranged locally for employees as part of their learning and development, and are not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Departmental Publicity
The Learning and Skills Council (LSC) has been responsible for promoting apprenticeships since it came into existence in April 2001.
Since 1997 we have witnessed a renaissance in apprenticeships from a low point of 64,000 with only 27 per cent. completions to last year's record high of 225,000 with 64 per cent. completions, a remarkable achievement This shows the huge demand for apprenticeships which is why we are examining every possible opportunity to create more apprenticeships which offer hope and real career opportunities for young people and adults.
The LSC plan to spend £2,845,439 nationally in 2008-09 on media advertising (excluding VAT and Central Office of Information fees). Planned advertising spend at regional level is not readily available. The national advertising campaign fronted by Sir Alan Sugar will run throughout February and March. I am pleased that Sir Alan has offered his time free of charge to support the Apprenticeships campaign. Planned advertising spend for 2009-10 has not yet been confirmed.
The Department and the Department of Children, Schools and Families have allocated funds to the LSC for marketing. The Department has no plans to spend money directly on advertising apprenticeships in 2008-09 and 2009-10.
Economic Situation
DIUS immediate priority is to provide real help to support individuals and businesses through these challenging economic times.
Ministers and officials have regular and frequent engagements with outside organisations including relevant Government Departments, our delivery partners, businesses and other stakeholders on a wide range of issues relating to the current economic situation.
Educational Institutions: Construction
In “Our Statement of Priorities—Better skills, Better jobs, Better Lives”, published in November 2007, it was stated that we will invest £2.3 billion between 2008-09 and 2010-11 to ensure that colleges have world-class buildings.
The original annual capital grant allocations to the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) were set out as follows:
£ million 2008-09 694 2009-10 820 2010-11 850
These figures include the total LSC capital budget which includes funding for both 16 to 19-year-olds and adults.
However, as announced in the last pre-Budget report, investment of £110 million for 2009-10 has been brought forward into 2008-09, and a further £110 million for 2010-11 has been brought forward into 2009-10. This is in support of this Government’s actions to help beat the current global economic downturn.
The revised annual capital grant allocations to the LSC are subsequently as follows:
£ million 2008-09 804 2009-10 820 2010-11 740
As announced in the last pre-Budget report, investment of £110 million for 2009-10 has been brought forward into 2008-09, and a further £110 million for 2010-11 has been brought forward into 2009-10.
This accelerated funding will be spent to bring forward building works, benefiting learners and regenerating communities, and will help us beat the current global economic downturn.
Employment: Young People
The proportion of mothers aged between 16 and 19 years in education, employment or training in England in 2006-08 was 32.9 per cent. (source: Labour Force Survey sample, 2008). Data are averaged over three years because of small sample sizes and do not include information on the proportion of fathers aged between 16 and 19 participating in education, employment or training.
The proportion of parents aged 16 to 19 in education, employment or training in December 2008 in the ceremonial county of Hampshire was 33.7 per cent. and in the three authorities, comprising the ceremonial county, as follows: the administrative county of Hampshire 34.6 per cent.; Portsmouth 42.5 per cent.; Southampton 29.2 per cent. (source: Connexions Client Information System—CCIS). This information is not reported for borough council areas in county authorities.
Further Education
In 1997 the total capital expenditure in further education colleges in England was nil.
In total since that time, this Government have invested £2.4 billion and will be investing a record further £2.3 billion across the next three years.
But the pace of demand for capital funding has increased. Projects and the scale of Government funding they require are becoming increasingly ambitious. In addition there are signs that the ability of colleges to raise their own funds for proposed projects is being affected by the downturn.
It is for this reason that over the next few weeks the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) is working closely with colleges that have submitted or are working on bids, to look at the individual current positions before making future funding decisions. As a result of this the consideration of a small number of applications that were due for decision—both in principle and in detail—have been deferred from December to March.
However, the 253 colleges that have been given approval in detail and either have work already under way or have been previously been given the final go ahead for works to begin will not be affected, although the LSC will be in touch in due course to check progress.
In 1997 the total capital expenditure in further education colleges in England was nil.
Since 1997, this Government have invested £2.4 billion in redeveloping and modernising further education colleges. In addition we have plans to invest a further £2.3 billion in the next three years. Currently more than 250 projects are under way and funded by the Learning and Skills Council (LSC)—helped by the recent decision to accelerate £110 million in 2008-09 from future budgets to help beat the downturn.
The Learning and Skills Council is responsible for the administration of the further education capital budget. While the LSC does provide some support to colleges for the costs associated with developing their projects, as independent providers, colleges themselves are responsible for the management and financing of their capital projects. As a result, the Department does not collect information regarding any potential indirect costs colleges may or may not incur during the life of a capital project. However, the LSC is currently working closely with colleges that have submitted or are working on bids, to look at the individual current positions.
The total capital expenditure in further education colleges in England in the financial year 1997-98 was nil.
In total since that time, this Government have invested £2.4 billion and will be investing a record further £2.3 billion across the next three years.
Currently more than 250 projects are under way and funded by the LSC—helped by the recent decision to accelerate £110 million in 2008-09 from future budgets to help beat the downturn.
But the pace of demand for capital funding has increased. Projects and the scale of Government funding they require are becoming increasingly ambitious.
It is for this reason that over the next few weeks the LSC will be working closely with colleges that have submitted or are working on bids to assess the whole programme before making further funding decisions. The LSC have yet to provide a full analysis of all of those schemes but this will include the impact of the current position on all affected projects.
In 1997-98, the total capital expenditure in further education colleges in England in the financial year 1997-98 was nil.
In total since that time, this Government have invested £2.4 billion and will be investing a record further £2.3 billion across the next three years.
In total, since the programme began under this Government, nearly 700 projects, at 330 colleges have been agreed. Only 42 colleges have not yet benefited from investment. The programme has therefore been a huge success.
But the pace of demand for capital funding has increased. Projects and the scale of Government funding they require are becoming increasingly ambitious.
It is for this reason that over the next few weeks the LSC will be working closely with colleges that have submitted or are working on bids to look at the individual current positions before making future funding decisions. As a result, consideration of a small number of applications that were due for decision by the LSC National Council where deferred from December to March.
At the March meeting of the LSC National Council it will decide when it can make a decision on the small number of applications that were deferred from December to March. It will also advise on when and on what basis it will consider other capital applications.
Further Education: Finance
Since 1997, this Government has invested £2.4 billion in redeveloping and modernising further education colleges. In addition we have plans to invest a further £2.3 billion in the next three years. In total, since the programme began, nearly 700 projects at 330 colleges have been agreed.
The Learning and Skills Council (LSC) administers the further education capital budget on behalf of the Department.
The LSC, through its approval process, agrees an appropriate level of capital grant support based upon a range of factors including the affordability of the proposal to the college.
Further Education: Overseas Students
[holding answer 3 February 2009]: Table 1 shows the number of Learning and Skills Council (LSC) funded learners undertaking further education provision (further education colleges, University for Industry and work-based learning) in 2007-08, split by whether the learner is UK or non-UK domiciled.
To be eligible for LSC funding an individual needs to satisfy the residency criteria set out in LSC Learner Eligibility Guidance. In general, this means that they need to have been lawfully living in the UK, European Union (EU) or European Economic Area (EEA) for the three years prior to the start of their course.
2007/08 is the latest year for which we have fully-audited information across all learning routes. We do not currently hold information on country of domicile for adult safeguarded learning or Train to Gain.
Around 1 per cent. of learners in further education (FE, University for Industry, WBL) were non-UK domiciled in 2007/08. Non-UK domiciled learners will include those from the EU and EEA.
Number of learners UK domiciled learners 3,093,000 Non-UK domiciled learners 34,000 Not known 3,000 Notes: 1. Volumes are rounded to the nearest thousand. 2. This information is based on country of domicile—institutions are advised that the country of domicile field should be treated as a self-assessment field and reflect the country where the learner was ordinarily resident for the three years preceding the start of their programme. 3. These figures include FE colleges, University for Industry and WBL (including apprenticeships and entry to employment). 4. Information on country of domicile is not currently available for Train to Gain and Adult Safeguarded Learning. 5. Final 2007/08 data will be published in March 2009. 6. This table uses learner volumes as a measure for comparative purposes. Full-year numbers are a count of the number of learners that participated at any point during the year. 7. Learners that are included in different data collections e.g. a learner undertaking an apprenticeship and a Train to Gain qualification, will be counted twice in this table.
Further Education: Pay
There are no plans to implement a salary structure for lecturers in further education institutions. This is a matter for FECs themselves, as independent organisations and employers of their own staff.
Higher Education: Admissions
The latest available figures from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) are shown in the following table. Figures for the 2007/08 academic year were released on 29 January 2009. Figures for the 2008/09 academic year will be available in January 2010.
Academic year Number 2001/02 140 2002/03 145 2003/04 185 2004/05 170 2005/06 180 2006/07 195 2007/08 180 1 Covers entrants to both full-time and part-time courses. 2 Students have been allocated to Leeds West constituency based on the home postcode reference recorded on the HESA student record. Some of these students may not have attended schools in the Leeds West constituency. 3 Excludes the Open university as they recorded the number of entrants incorrectly in the 2004/05 academic year. Note: Figures are based on a HESA standard registration population and have been rounded to the nearest five. Source: Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA).
Higher Education: Disadvantaged
(2) how many applicants from the lowest three socio-economic groupings were awarded places at university in the academic years (a) 2007-08, (b) 2006-07, (c) 2005-06, (d) 2004-05 and (e) 2003-04.
The information is shown in the following tables:
SEG 5-7 2003/04 65,332 2004/05 65,793 2005/06 71,266 2006/07 65,579 2007/08 71,631 Source: UCAS
SEG 5-7 2003/04 52,370 2004/05 52,340 2005/06 56,602 2006/07 51,916 2007/08 56,029 Note: The categories of socio-economic groups 5-7 are:; 5 Lower supervisory and technical occupations; 6 Semi-routine occupations; 7 Routine occupations. Source: UCAS
For the academic years recorded in the tables, for those aged up to 20, UCAS recorded socio-economic class based on the applicant’s parent’s occupation; for those aged 21 and over, the applicant’s socio-economic class was based on their own occupation.
Learning and Skills Council
The publication of the minutes of the Learning and Skills Council's (LSC) National Council meetings are an operational issue. Decisions about their publication are therefore a matter for the LSC. The LSC publishes a summary of its council minutes on their website. A summary of all meetings, including the December meeting, can be found at
www.lsc.gov.uk.
Learning and Skills Council: Finance
In Our Statement of Priorities—Better skills, Better jobs, Better lives, published in November 2007, it was stated that we will invest £2.3 billion between 2008-09 and 2010-11 to ensure that colleges have world-class buildings.
The original annual capital grant allocations to the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) were set out as follows:
Amount (£ million) 2008-09 694 2009-10 820 2010-11 850
These figures include the total LSC capital budget which includes funding for both 16 to 19-year-olds and adults.
However, as announced in the last pre-Budget report, investment of £110 million for 2009-10 has been brought forward into 2008-09, and a further £110 million for 2010-11 has been brought forward into 2009-10. This is in support of this Government's actions to help beat the current global economic downturn.
The revised annual capital grant allocations to the LSC are subsequently as follows:
Amount (£ million) 2008-09 804 2009-10 820 2010-11 740
As announced in the last pre-Budget report, investment of £110 million for 2009-10 has been brought forward into 2008-09, and a further £110 million for 2010-11 has been brought forward into 2009-10.
This accelerated funding will be spent to bring forward building works, benefiting learners and regenerating communities, and will help us beat the current global economic downturn.
Postgraduate Education
This Government acknowledge the value of postgraduate studies. However, we have to prioritise the funding available. Our priority is to ensure that finance is no barrier to students achieving a first degree: that is why statutory student support is concentrated on undergraduates.
However, there are also a number of measures in place to help people finance postgraduate studies. For example, we recently announced proposals to reposition career development loans as a key additional source of support to help people finance learning, as new professional and career development loans (PCDLs). PCDLs will offer more people the opportunity to reskill and improve their employment prospects by offering more generous terms for the learner, such as loans up to £10,000 and lower interest rates.
Funding may also be available for individuals through the Access to Learning Fund (ALF). The fund allows universities and colleges to provide extra discretionary support for students in particular need; it is administered directly by universities and colleges, which are best placed to assess students’ circumstances.
Postgraduate Education: Finance
(2) what steps the Government plans to take to maintain numbers of students wishing to study at postgraduate level in the current economic climate;
(3) what assessment he has made of the effect on postgraduate students of private finance providers being (a) unwilling and (b) not required to make binding funding commitments for the duration of courses in the current economic situation;
(4) what steps his Department takes to assist postgraduate students not eligible for career development loans whose financial support is withdrawn part-way through their course;
(5) what recent assessment he has made of the effect of the economic downturn on levels of financial assistance for postgraduate students from (a) employers, (b) private companies providing loans and (c) banks.
The Government are determined to ensure that finance is no barrier to going to university. Having a degree remains one of the best pathways to a rewarding career: employers prize the highly-developed skills and talents that graduates bring to their businesses. Going to university is an investment for the future, with graduates benefiting over their lifetime from their decision to go into higher education. The Government’s priority is to assist students to achieve a first degree. That is why statutory student support is concentrated on undergraduates.
No matter what the short-term outlook for the economy, it is sensible for individuals to look at how they can fulfil their potential—and for many that means postgraduate study. The number studying at postgraduate level have increased by 27 per cent. in the last decade. The Government continue to promote the importance of higher level skills and supports excellence in higher education, including through providing significant funding for internationally acclaimed research activity through the various research councils which support postgraduate study. In the decade since 1997, the Government’s support for the UK research base has risen from £1.3 billion to £3.4 billion.
It is up to individuals themselves to decide which private finance providers to select to fund their postgraduate study. To help learners tackle the challenges arising from the economic downturn, we recently announced proposals to reposition career development loans as a key additional source of support to help people finance learning, as new professional and career development loans (PCDLs). PCDLs will offer more people the opportunity to reskill and improve their employment prospects by offering more generous terms for the learner, such as loans up to £10,000 and lower interest rates.
Like career development loans, PCDLs will be commercial loans offered by participating banks and supported by the Government. The decision on which course the loan is used for, including who provides the course, lies with the individual and that is made clear to them before they take out a loan. The Government pay the interest on the loan during the period of study, after which the individual must repay the loan capital plus remaining interest in full. Deferred repayment terms are subject to the banks’ loan policy.
Further Government funding may be available for individuals through the Access to Learning Fund (ALF). The fund allows universities and colleges to provide extra discretionary support for students in particular need; it is administered directly by universities and colleges, which are best placed to assess students’ circumstances.
We continue to work closely with the higher education sector to monitor the impact of the current economic climate on students and institutions; and the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) are considering further measures to address the immediate needs of the economy, including funding for short courses which might lead to up-skilling.
Students: Finance
[holding answer 28 January 2009]: The Perfect Gift scheme was launched as a pilot project in October 2007 in nine further education colleges across England (one college per Learning and Skills Council region). The following table sets out the number of gift vouchers sold by each of the participating colleges:
College Region Number of vouchers sold Warwickshire College West Midlands 18 New College Nottingham East Midlands 1 College of North East London London 0 Gateshead College North East 0 West Herts College East of England 0 York College Yorks and Humberside 0 Blackpool and Fylde College North West 0 Chichester College South East 0 Filton College (Bristol) South West 0 Total Take-up 19
Students: Loans
The interest rate applicable to pre-1998 student loans is governed by the Education (Student Loans) Act 1990 and the Student Loans (Regulations) 1998 which set out that for the period between 1 September and the following 31 August the interest rate is the daily rate which results in an APR equal to the RPI (retail price index). The interest rate used is the RPI for the preceding March. Setting the interest rate in this way ensures that borrowers, over time, repay in real terms only as much as they borrowed. Moreover, if a borrower's income falls below £25,936 per annum, they can apply for their repayments to be deferred.
Train to Gain Initiative
National marketing and communications for Train to Gain is delivered by the national Learning and Skills Council (LSC) on behalf of the Department. Records indicate that during the period January to December 2008 total advertising expenditure excluding VAT was £4,092,266. There are no media costs for Jan 2009 and no projected media costs for February to March 2009. We are currently working with the LSC to develop a dedicated marketing and communications strategy for the financial year 2009-10.
Train To Gain Programme
[holding answer 15 December 2008]: All adults (aged 19 plus) in employment and volunteers can access Train to Gain regardless of previous academic qualifications.
For those without qualifications at level 2, full funding is available for a level 2 qualification. At Level 3, first full qualifications are fully funded for adult employees between 19-15 years of age and those who have not done a previous level 2. At Level 4, first full qualifications are fully funded for adults between the ages of 19-25 who have not done a previous Level 3. For others who already have a full level 2 and want to do another qualification above that level, some funding is available depending on individual circumstances. There are additional funding flexibilities available for SME employees and for employees in particular sectors through sector compacts.
Further detail on eligibility criteria can be found in the Train to Gain funding guidance at
www.lsc.gov.uk
Training: Journalism
The Government work through Sector Skills Councils (SSCs) to improve the level of skills and training. Skillset is the SSC with responsibility for journalists.
Publishing joined Skillset's sector coverage in April 2008 and work was undertaken in the year to research the skills needs of the industry. This included a survey of the supply of training and educational provision. Further work is in progress on the development of the national occupational standards. There will be consultation with the industry this year on how to support skill levels, and agreement on a training strategy.
Skillset provide information on the providers offering courses and the skills needed to work across a variety of media, such as newspapers, journals and online content. For local journalists who are directly employed by local newspapers there are options for their employer to access training through Train to Gain.
Vocational Training
In 2007-08 the Leaning and Skills Council contracted with 17 organisations to provide skills brokerage services to employers.
From April 2009 the Train to Gain skills brokerage service will be integrated with Business Link to provide an all-in-one service for employers as part of the Government's Business Support Simplification Programme.
[holding answer 5 February 2009]: The employer-training pilot ran from 2002 to 2006. In total, there were 45,300 Skills for Life learners on employer-training pilots (ETP). Of those learners, 32,500 (72 per cent.) achieved their qualification. This information is provided by the ETP database administered by the Learning and Skills Council.
Vocational Training: Car Industry
Businesses in the automotive industry can access:
The core Train to Gain offer:
Full funding for:
Literacy and numeracy support at all levels;
First full level 2 qualifications (equivalent to five GCSEs(;
First full level 3 (equivalent to 2 A-levels) for 19-25 year olds and for people without a first level 2;
First level 4 for 19-25 year olds who do not already have a level 3;
Repeat level 2 qualifications in certain sector specific areas, through the sector compact.
Shared investment between the employer and Government for:
English for Speakers of Other Languages qualifications at all levels;
Level 3 qualifications in certain sector specific areas, through the sector compact;
Apprenticeships.
In addition to quality-assured, impartial and independent advice from skills brokers which is available to those businesses who want help to identify skills needs at all levels, and to identify and source high quality, vocational skills training.
The SME flexibilities:
A new package of support to help the employees of small and medium sized businesses in the private and third sector:
Fully funded level 2 qualifications and subsidised level 3 qualifications, regardless of whether the employee already has a qualification at this level;
Bite sized courses in subjects demanded by businesses including: business improvement, business systems and processes, team working and communications, sales and marketing, IT User, IT support, customer service, new product design, finance and credit, cash flow and profit management, and risk management;
Funding for leadership and management training for businesses with five to 250 employees.
Pre-employment/redundancy flexibility:
Those who have been given notice of redundancy or who are coming back into work after unemployment can access full funding for level 2 qualifications and part funding for level 3 qualifications, regardless of whether they already have a qualification at this level, and irrespective of the size of employer they join. This is part of a wider Government package to help those made redundant during the economic downturn.
Both the SME and the pre-employment/redundancy flexibilities have been available since 2 January 2009.
To support the industry further we have agreed to boost the funding available through the sector compact from £65 million to £100 million. We will work with the sector to ensure this additional resource meets employers' priority skill needs.
Home Department
Illegal Immigrants
The huge shake-up we have made to the immigration system is paying off. Our borders are tougher than ever before and we are removing record numbers of foreign law breakers.
In the three months to September 2008 around 17,500 people were removed. This included a 14 per cent. increase in non asylum removals—a group that includes foreign national prisoners.
Last year the UK Border Agency removed 5,000 foreign prisoners, a record performance that is nearly four times the number removed in 2005.
Drug-related Crime
A key indicator of the effectiveness of measures to combat drug-related crime is the Drug Harm Index; since 2002 this has fallen 28 per cent., representing a substantial fall in drug-related crime types.
Recorded acquisitive crime—to which drug-related crime makes a significant contribution—has fallen by a similar amount.
Criminal Activity: Dogs
The Government require Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnerships/and Community Safety Partnership in Wales to identify local crime problems and to work in partnership to prioritise them. While DEFRA leads on dangerous dogs legislation, the police have a range of powers under this and other legislation to take action if dogs are being used in a criminal manner.
The Government require crime and disorder reduction partnerships and community safety partnerships in Wales to identify local crime problems and to work in partnership to prioritise them. While DEFRA leads on dangerous dogs legislation, the police have a range of powers under this and other legislation to take action if dogs are being used in a criminal manner.
Independent Police Complaints Commission
The Home Office receives a regular flow of representations on the operations of the IPCC on particular cases and occasionally, on general issues. The Home Office works closely with the IPCC to enable it to make a vital contribution to building public confidence and improving the police complaints system.
This is a matter for the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC). A copy of your question has been sent to the IPCC and they will respond to you directly.
Forensic Science Service
No recent representations have been received on the future of the Forensic Science Service.
Leave to Remain: Convictions Abroad
The UK Border Agency works hand in hand with other Agencies, including the Serious and Organised Crime Agency, to ensure that the information required to prevent foreign criminals from entering or remaining in the UK is made available to those that need it.
We already have one of the toughest borders in the world and we are determined to ensure it stays that way.
We are expanding our watch-lists, working more closely with foreign Governments to share information, and speeding up the re-documentation of those being removed.
European Arrest Warrant
Although there is no ministerial involvement in the EAW process, my officials and those agencies and services responsible for its operation continually review its effectiveness. Additionally, member states’ operation of the EAW is subject to peer evaluation at EU level.
In 2007 (the last year for which figures are available), the UK extradited 320 people to other EU member states under the EAW. In the same period, 96 people were returned to the UK to stand trial or serve custodial sentences.
Counter-terrorism: West Midlands
We have worked with Association of Chief Police Officers and west midlands police since 2004-05 to establish the Counter Terrorism Unit in Birmingham. It is one of three strategically located national assets that enhance the work of forces by providing co-ordination and specialist support to deliver our counter-terrorism strategy.
National DNA Database
Data are available on the number of detections with DNA, but not the number of prosecutions or convictions, by financial year. In 2007-08, 83 homicides and 184 rapes were detected in which a DNA match was available. Convictions are achieved through integrated criminal investigation so it is not possible to say whether the DNA match was the key factor in solving the crime.
We will publish a Forensics White Paper later this year setting out how we propose to implement the judgment of the European Court of Human Rights on 4 December 2008 in the case of S and Marper. Discussions with key stakeholders will take place ahead of publication.
Criminal Gangs
Since the Tackling Gangs Action Programme delivered a 51 per cent. drop in firearms-related injuries across four cities, we have committed a further £1.8 million for enforcement, risk management and prevention work; launched guidance to CPS, schools and parents; and plan to legislate to provide local areas with civil powers to manage gangs.
Departmental Spending
The Home Office budget for 2008-09 is £9.8 billion, and in 2009-10 it will rise to £10.1 billion. This represents a real terms growth of 1.5 per cent.
Visa Applications
The UK Border Agency processes around 2.5 million visa applications a year.
Its commercial partners currently operate 106 visa application centres in 48 countries and assist with over 80 per cent. of all visa applications. They provide support services but play no part in decision making.
The performance of UKBA’s commercial partners engaged in visa services is continually assessed by regional managers against contract service levels and other key performance indicators.
In addition, UKBA senior managers review a dedicated commercial partner balanced scorecard with senior executives from both companies on a bi-monthly basis.
Community Crime Fighters
500 people have attended the first three community crime fighters one-day training courses, so far.
3,600 activists will go through community crime fighter training by the end of 2009.
Crime Prevention
The Crime and Disorder Act 1998 Act places a statutory duty on the police and local authorities working with others in their local area to tackle local crime and disorder problems that matter to the public.
To further strengthen the delivery of effective partnership working, we will commence provisions for councillor call for action and crime and disorder overview and scrutiny committees in April 2009.
Detection Rates
There were 1,373,933 recorded crimes detected by the police in 2007-08. There were 144,939 full time equivalent police officers as at 31 March 2008. Figures include the 43 police forces of England and Wales plus the British Transport Police.
On this basis, there were 9.5 detections per officer in 2007-08, although the real figure is likely to be much higher. This is because many officers are deployed on functions other than crime solving, and the detection total does not include non-notifiable crimes: that is, almost all summary offences.
Driving Offences: Insurance
This information is not collected centrally. Available information provided to the Motor Insurance Database indicates that in 2008 there were 185,000 vehicles seized by the police for being driven without appropriate insurance. The Motor Insurers’ Information Centre, which is responsible for the database, indicated that in the preceding year about 40 per cent. of seized vehicles were subsequently destroyed or sold, rather than returned. The proceeds of disposal are paid to the vehicle owner, less any sums due in respect of removal and storage charges.
Drugs: Crime
No annual estimates are made of the levels of acquisitive crime associated with drug addiction.
It is estimated that between a third and half of acquisitive crime is drug related. More recent government survey data points to the extent of acquisitive crime that is drug-related. For example, Home Office research has found that:
81 per cent. of arrestees who used heroin and/or crack cocaine (HC) on at least a weekly basis reported committing acquisitive crimes in the 12 months prior to arrest, in comparison to only 30 per cent. of those arrestees who did not take HC weekly.
Source:
Table 5.4 Home Office Statistical Bulletin 12/07.
http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs07/hosb1207.pdf
Around two-fifths (39 per cent.) of drug treatment seekers reported committing an acquisitive crime in the four weeks prior to interview. This figure rose in the case of heroin and crack cocaine users, with 55 per cent. reporting that they committed an acquisitive crime in the four weeks before interview.
Source:
Home Office Research Report 3.
http://rds.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs07/horr03b.pdf
Economic Situation
The Government have long-standing, sound systems and flexible policies in place to deal with crime. These have led to significant reductions: overall crime, as measured by the British Crime Survey, has fallen by 39 per cent. since 1997. They also mean that we are well placed to prevent future rises in crime. As the Association of Chief Police Officers pointed out in January, the police service has never been in a better and stronger position to meet challenges caused by the economic downturn.
The Government are not complacent about crime and are taking early action to ensure that crime stays down. Burglary is a crime that people worry about during hard times; there are good programmes in place to tackle burglary but the Government are rightly keen to explore what more can be done to support people to protect their homes. That is why the Home Secretary held a summit on 4 February with a number of public, private and voluntary sector partners, including leading DIY retailers, the police, local government colleagues, British insurance industry representatives, residential landlords, Age Concern and others to discuss further practical measures to support people, particularly the most vulnerable.
Identity and Passport Service: Data Protection
15 Identity and Passport Service (IPS) staff have authorised access to an electronic database relating to an individual’s immigrations status and asylum application. 2,964 IPS staff have access to the electronic passport application support system (PASS), which supports the processing of passport applications. In addition, 1,711 staff of Siemens IT Solutions and Services, who IPS contract to support and maintain PASS, have authorised access to this system.
All IPS and Siemens staff that have authorised access have been subject to the relevant background checks and hold the appropriate security clearance in accordance with current Home Office policy.
Access is limited to staff who have a legitimate business need and is strictly controlled.
Identity Cards: Fees and Charges
The fees and charges strategy for the next 10 years is still being developed and so the fee revenue for identity cards and biometric passports for each of the next 10 years is not available at this stage. Fee revenue from ID cards and biometric passports will be set to recover the operational resource costs incurred in delivering the products and the fees will be set so that the provision of both identity cards and biometric passports will be self financing for the Identity and Passport Service.
The exact price customers will be charged for a digital photo plus recording of fingerprints will be determined by the market, through commercial competition. So the total fee revenue for taking biometric information is not yet known at this stage.
Independent Police Complaints Commission: Costs
The Home Office does not hold this information. This is a matter for the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC). A copy of your question has been sent to the IPCC and they will respond to you direct.
Interception of Communications Commissioner
The Interception of Communications Commissioner's Report for 2007 and the Intelligence Services Commissioner's Report for 2007 were published on 22 July 2008 and presented to Parliament by The Prime Minister as required under sections 58(6) and 60(4) respectively of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000.
Members: Correspondence
(2) when she plans to reply to the letter of 8 December 2008 from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Mrs A. Rehman.
I wrote to my right hon. Friend on 19 January 2009.
I wrote to my right hon. Friend on 19 January 2009.
Passports
While there has been no formal economic assessment, there is likely to have been some beneficial impact on the local economy of establishing passport offices and interview offices in multiple separate locations throughout the UK.
Passports: Manpower
IPS currently employs the following number of FTEs (full-time equivalent) per regional passport office and the forecasted FTEs for end March 2009:
Regional office Currently employed FTEs Forecasted FTEs end March 2009 Belfast 155 150 Durham 520 584 Glasgow 143 115 Liverpool 332 365 London 246 236 Newport 286 291 Peterborough 418 411 Total regional office FTEs 2,101 2,152
Police
The front line policing measure was based on the proportion of police officer time engaged in frontline activities. It was introduced to cover the period from April 2004 until March 2008. In line with the Government’s drive to reduce police bureaucracy and to remove centrally imposed top down targets (except one on improved levels of public confidence), the measure has been discontinued.
Police Custody
(2) what timescale has been estimated for closure of all police station cells which have been classed as unsuitable to house detainees on health and safety grounds;
(3) whether police authorities have access to additional grant funding to cover the cost of providing replacement police cells for those closed on health and safety grounds;
(4) what police cell closures have taken place in the Central Division of Cambridgeshire constabulary in each of the last five years; and what cell provision is planned.
The management of the police estate and allocation of resources are matters for each police authority and chief constable, who are responsible for assessing local needs.
Police: Demonstrations
Information provided by the Metropolitan Police Service is that to date police officers have reported 55 assaults by protestors and nine police vehicles have been damaged. The Metropolitan Police Service estimates that the total cost of the policing operation, between 29 December 2008 and 24 January 2009, is £2.7 million.
Police: Electronic Surveillance
Police investigations are independent of Government and there is no requirement on the police to report to Government authorisations made under the relevant legislation. That is, under Part III of the Police Act 1997 that provides lawful authority for police interference with property.
Part III of the Act is overseen by the Chief Surveillance Commissioner whose Annual Report is laid before the House and can be found on the internet at:
http://www.surveillancecommissioners.gov.uk
Police: Welsh Language
[holding answer 4 February 2009]: The information requested is not held centrally. Decisions on the distribution of resources are matters for the Chief Constable and the Police Authority for each force concerned.
Smuggling: Tobacco
(2) how many (a) charges and (b) prosecutions were brought for offences relating to the supply of illegal and counterfeit tobacco in each of the last five years.
I have been asked to reply.
The information requested is not available.
The following table shows the number of cases brought and the number of criminals sentenced for tobacco offences in each of the last five years.
Cases brought Number of people sentenced 2003-04 — 429 2004-05 — 204 2005-06 — 262 2006-07 237 299 2007/08 192 290
Tackling Knives Action Programme
(2) whether any of the search arches allocated to the Tackling Knives Action Programme were redeployed from other uses;
(3) how many new search wands her Department has purchased in each of the last 10 months;
(4) how many new search arches her Department has purchased in each of the last 10 months.
As part of the Tackling Knives Action Programme, the Home Office provided funding for the purchase of additional search arches and wands, supplying a total of 85 arches and 589 wands for the TKAP police forces. These commitments were over and above any equipment already available to TKAP forces and did not involve any redeployment of equipment. It is not possible to break this down by month.
In addition, prior to the establishment of the TKAP, the Home Office separately provided police forces in England and Wales with a total of 100 portable search arches and 400 wands to support search operations.
Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform
Bankruptcy: Hampshire
Table 1 shows the number of bankruptcies in (a) Southampton, (b) Test Valley and (c) Hampshire in each year from 2000 to 2007, derived from postcodes provided by bankrupt individuals1,2. Earlier years figures are not available.
1 Classifying bankrupts into administrative geographies is done using the postcode that the bankrupt individual provides. The use of this in assigning an individual to a borough is thus only as reliable as the postcode information provided.
2 In particular, inaccurate or missing postcodes mean that the numbers in the above table will be subject to an element of missing data. Nationally, this proportion has been decreasing from about 12 per cent. in 2000 to less than 4 per cent. in 2007.
Number 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 Southampton 68 89 99 125 199 274 359 371 Test Valley 41 30 46 65 73 91 139 113 Hampshire 432 430 482 634 872 1,154 1,491 1,352
Beer: Prices
[holding answer 3 February 2009]: I have not met with Pubcos to discuss beer pricing. This is a commercial matter for the businesses concerned.
Business: Government Assistance
UK Trade and Investment provides grant support for small and medium sized enterprises to exhibit at overseas trade fairs under the Tradeshow Access Programme (TAP). Grants are set at £1,000, £1,400 or £1,800 depending on the exhibition. From 1 April 2009 the support limit has been raised so that an eligible business may receive up to six grants in its lifetime (the previous limit was three). Details of TAP support are on the UKTI website at:
http://www.uktradeinvest.gov.uk/ukti/tap
Departmental Buildings
The previous answer referred to by the hon. Member included spend incurred in August 2007 following refurbishments resulting from Machinery of Government changes. The following information therefore dates back to August 2007.
The following costs relate to the Department's accommodation refurbishments for both Ministers and their outer offices:
August 2007: £36,643.
May 2008: £352;
June 2008: £265,991 (included major demolition, construction and redecoration work to standardise and 'future proof offices should ministerial numbers increase in future;
July 2008: £11,016;
September 2008: £19,958.
January 2009: £57,040.
Departmental Sick Leave
Information for 2004, 2005 and 2006-07 for the Department, its predecessor and its agencies can be found on the civil service website at:
http://www.civilservice.gov.uk/about/statistics/sickness.asp
Stress, mental health and behavioural disorders all fall within the category of ‘mental and behavioural disorders’.
For years prior to 2004, sickness absence data is not available in the form requested and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
India: EU External Trade
[holding answer 2 February 2009]: We would expect the chapter on international trade in services in an EU/India Free Trade Agreement to include provisions on the temporary movement of highly-skilled professionals both from India to the UK and from the UK to India.
At this point, FTA negotiations with India generally are at an early stage. Negotiations on services are at a very early stage and there has been no exchange of offers in services.
Minimum Wage
According to the ONS April 2008 Annual survey of Hours and earnings: (a) around 2 per cent. of all full-time 18 to 21-year-olds earn £4.60 an hour (the 18 to 21-year-old national minimum wage in April 2008). (b) Around 4 per cent. of all part-time 18 to 21-year-olds earn £4.60 an hour in April 2008.
The percentages reported above do not include those in employment reported as earning less than the 18 to 21-year-old national minimum wage rate.
Mobile Phones: Contracts
It falls to the Office of Communications (Ofcom) as the regulator in the telecommunications sector to reach decisions on how to set regulated mobile termination rates. In March 2007, Ofcom published a market review statement for the period 1 April 2007 to 31 March 2011 following a two-year market review and extensive industry consultation. This statement is currently subject to two appeals before the Competition Appeal Tribunal and the Competition Commission. The outcome of these appeals will determine the appropriate mobile termination rates in the near term.
Mobile Phones: Rural Areas
[holding answer 2 February 2009]: The mobile network operators build base stations in order to meet customers need for coverage and service. The decision to build in a particular location is largely a commercial matter for the operators.
For 2G or GSM networks the original coverage obligations laid on GSM operators were discharged many years ago and have been significantly exceeded on a voluntary basis. In the case of new 3G networks, an 80 per cent. population coverage obligation by 2007 was placed on each licence holder to encourage network rollout.
In July 2006 Ofcom consulted on the technical approach it would take in its assessment of compliance with this obligation. Site data was issued to Ofcom by the mobile operators on 14 November 2007.
Four of the five 3G licensees were in compliance with the obligation, but O2 was found to reach only 75.69 per cent. of the population, a shortfall that meant around 2.5 million people could not access its service.
In February 2008 Ofcom issued O2 with a notice under the Wireless Telegraphy Act for breach of licence. This proposed that if the 80 per cent. obligation was still unmet by the end of June 2008, Ofcom would shorten the term of O2’s licence by four months.
In May 2008 Ofcom confirmed that O2 had met its obligation.
Newspaper Press: Government Assistance
I refer my hon. Friend to his Westminster Hall debate on the local press, which I responded to, 20 January 2009, Official Report, column 185WH.
This is a complex issue, given the requirement that freedom of editorial control must not be threatened by state intervention. I want to reassure him that the situation of local and regional papers is being considered within the Digital Britain initiative, which Lord Carter of Barnes is taking forward. My hon. Friend will also be aware of the announcements that were made on 19 January about additional support for the banks to ensure that they maintain lending, and of the support that was announced on 14 January, through the enterprise finance guarantee and the working capital scheme. Those schemes are available respectively to companies with an annual turnover of up to £25 million and up to £500 million. They are applicable right across industrial sectors and therefore could include local news organisations.
Ofcom: Fines
I have been asked to reply.
The matters raised are the responsibility of the Office of Communications (Ofcom) as independent regulator. Accordingly, my officials have asked the chief executive of Ofcom to respond directly to the hon. Member. Copies of the chief executive’s letter will be placed in the Libraries of the House.
Pharmaceutical Industry: Redundancy
I cannot give you details of the actual number of redundancies as there is no requirement for employers to provide that information. However, employers who propose to make 20 or more redundancies at one establishment are required to notify my noble Friend the Secretary of State of the proposal under provisions contained in the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992. During the period 1 January 2008 to 31 December 2008, the Department was notified of 6,240 proposed redundancies in the pharmaceutical industry in Great Britain. The records are not maintained in the format you have requested so I regret that I am unable to break them down by region or parliamentary constituencies.
Postcodes
[holding answer 17 December 2008]: The provision of the postcode address file is an operational matter for which Royal Mail has direct responsibility. I have therefore asked the Chief Executive of Royal Mail, Adam Crozier, to provide a direct reply to the hon. Member.
A copy of the response will be placed in the Libraries of the House.
[holding answer 17 December 2008]: The provision of the postcode address file is an operational matter for which Royal Mail has direct responsibility. I have therefore asked the Chief Executive of Royal Mail, Adam Crozier, to provide a direct reply to the hon. Member.
A copy of the response will be placed in the Libraries of the House.
[holding answer 17 December 2008]: I have no plans to investigate the operation of the postcode address file. The provision of this service is an operational matter for which Royal Mail has direct responsibility.
Postcomm, the postal industry regulator, has responsibility for ensuring that Royal Mail maintains the postcode address file and that the file is made available to anybody who wishes to use it.
Regional Development Agencies: Finance
The Government have commissioned PricewaterhouseCoopers to conduct an independent evaluation of the economic impact of RDAs. The evaluation of the impact of South East England Development Agency’s spending is incorporated in the report. The evaluation report has just been completed and I will place a copy in the Libraries of the House shortly.
As part of the management of the “single pot” funding model, the regional development agencies (RDAs) and the London Development Agency (LDA) have the authority to agree “loans” between themselves, as a way of maximising the use of their overall budget allocation. This is often utilised to overcome issues around the timing of expenditure. Whilst there is no need to process such transactions between the RDAs generally (because they are all non voted), funds to the LDA are voted (because it is governed by the Greater London Authority) and any changes are, therefore, necessarily reflected in supplementary estimates.
Regional Development Agencies: Public Appointments
The declared political activity of each of the 23 appointed board members named in the written statement of 25 November are:
Advantage West Midlands
Cllr Mike Whitby—was leader of the Conservative group on the Birmingham city council and since 2004 has been leader of Birmingham city council.
East of England Development Agency
Nitin Dahad—none.
Shona Johnstone—during the past five years has been a Conservative county councillor and was leader of Cambridgeshire county council in 2007.
Cllr Madeline Russell—Conservative councillor for Biggleswade and since 2005 became leader of Bedfordshire county council.
East Midlands Development Agency
Elizabeth Donnelly—member of the Co-operative party.
Jim Harker—Conservative member of Northamptonshire county council and has been its leader since 2005.
Northwest Regional Development Agency
Anne Selby—none.
John Stageman—none.
Brenda Smith—none.
Lord Peter Smith—member of the Labour party and has been leader of Wigan council since 1991.
South East of England Development Agency
Zenna Atkinson—none.
Jeremy Birch—Labour councillor and has been a member of the party for 30 years.
Les Dawson—none.
Keith Mitchell—Conservative councillor and leader of Oxfordshire county council since November 2001.
South West England Development Agency
Ian Ducat—member of the Labour party.
Peter Madden—none.
Judith Reynolds—none.
Henry Studholme—none.
Steve Smith—none.
Yorkshire Forward
Bill Adams—member of the Labour party.
Ajaz Ahmed—none.
Julie Kenny—none.
John Vincent—none.
Sight Impaired
Most of the Department’s printed materials are produced through the central communications directorate. These are produced following departmental branding guidelines which do not allow the use of red and green together as background and foreground colours.
Small Businesses: Insolvency
The Insolvency Service does not hold information on business size and, therefore, cannot provide an estimate of the numbers of small businesses entering administration or liquidation since the beginning of 2005.
Total numbers of companies entering liquidation and administration are published quarterly and are available on the Insolvency Service’ website :
http://www.insolvency.gov.uk/otherinformation/statistics/200811/index.htm
(Tables 1 and 3 for England and Wales).
Summertime
The Government believe that the current summer time arrangements are a satisfactory compromise between those who prefer lighter mornings and those who prefer lighter evenings. There are no plans to commission a review of the arrangements but the Government will continue to listen to arguments for and against change.
Supermarkets
[holding answer 3 February 2009]: Merger control functions in the UK are carried out by the UK's independent competition authorities. Cases are considered on grounds of their impact on competition in the relevant markets. This provides the primary method of protecting the interests of UK consumers and promoting economic growth.
The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) has a duty to make a reference to the Competition Commission (CC) if it believes that the merger may be expected to result in a substantial lessening of competition within any market or markets in the United Kingdom for goods or services. Under section 73 of the Enterprise Act 2002 the OFT may, instead of making a reference to the CC, accept appropriate undertakings to take such action as it considers appropriate.
One recent example is the acquisition by Co-operative Group Limited (Co-op) of Somerfield Limited. Under the terms of the undertakings accepted by the OFT on 15 January, the Co-op will divest stores in 133 areas across the UK to resolve competition concerns raised by the merger.
Textiles: Overseas Trade
UK Trade and Investment provides a wide range of support measures to companies seeking to do business in overseas markets, including financial assistance, through the Tradeshow Access Programme (TAP), to companies wishing to market their products or services at overseas exhibitions.
In financial year 2007-08 the TAP scheme supported 93 businesses at a cost of £240,000 in the Textiles sector. In the current financial year, 2008-09, we forecast supporting 106 businesses at a cost of £268,000.
The textile sector has also received £29,000 of support this year from UKTI’s Regional Challenge Fund, for activities such as enhancing the UK textile sector’s international media profile. The fund will be operating again in financial year 2009-10 and the textile sector will again be able to apply for support for suitable projects.
Trade: International Cooperation
[holding answer 2 February 2009]: The current EU services offer in the DDA negotiations proposes a system of numerical ceilings for the temporary entry of highly-skilled foreign professionals in the categories of contractual service suppliers and independent professionals in a limited number of services sub-sectors.
For the UK, the current offer retains the option of a numerical ceiling for contractual service suppliers and independent professionals for only one sub-sector—computer and related services.
The offer, setting out the strict criteria for entry in all categories and in all services sub-sectors committed, is in the public domain and can be found on the WTO website. However, the offer remains incomplete. It does not yet contain either numbers or modalities. These remain to be worked out in the negotiations.
Communities and Local Government
Aerials: Planning Permission
We are still undertaking our review of the planning procedures relating to applications for new base stations.
We are currently considering whether the two reviews published on 24 November—the ‘Killian and Pretty Review: Planning applications—a faster and more responsive system: Final Report’ and the ‘Final report into Non householder minor development consent review’ by White Young Green Planning—have any implications for the work on telecommunications.
Should we decide that the telecommunication regulations need changing we will consult publicly on any options.
Building alterations: Planning permission
The Government's guidance on the use of planning obligations (also known as section 106 agreements) is set out in Circular 05/05. This is available in the House Library.
Community Development: Referendums
The use of local referendums to promote community empowerment is a matter for local authorities to decide.
Council Tax: Lincolnshire
Details of the average Band D council tax in each billing authority in Lincolnshire in 2008-09 before the designation of the Lincolnshire police authority were published in a statistical release on 27 March 2008 and available on the Communities and Local Government website at:
http://www.local.communities.gov.uk/finance/ctax/ctax089old.htm.
Details of the average Band D council tax in each billing authority in Lincolnshire in 2008-09 after the designation of the Lincolnshire police authority were published in a statistical release on 21 August 2008 and available on the Communities and Local Government website at:
http://www.local.communities.gov.uk/finance/ctax/ctax089.htm.
Council Tax: Overpayments
The administration of council tax, including refunds of overpayments, is a matter for local authorities.
Departmental Contracts
This contract was for the provision of UK Contact Points for the North West Europe Territorial Cooperation Programme. The timetable for completion of the programme is 31 March 2011 and the contract was awarded to two individuals at an overall cost of £318,000. A copy of the specification has been lodged in the Library of the House.
The timetable for the completion of the Enabling more efficient information sharing across Government project is 28 February 2009. The contract was awarded to Xantura Limited and the maximum approved cost of the contract is £89,800.00. A copy of the full specification of the project has been deposited in the Library of the House.
Departmental Legal Proceedings
Legal proceedings involving the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government are handled on behalf of the Secretary of State by the Treasury Solicitors Department, which has supplied the information requested in the following table.
The upper part of the table (‘client group DCLG’) shows the cases in which the Department was directly involved. The lower part of the table (‘client group PINS’) shows cases where, although the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government was cited as the respondent, the challenged decisions had been delegated by the Secretary of State to a Planning Inspector, and so in practical terms the Planning Inspectorate (PINS) and not the Department was the respondent.
This right hand column shows the number of cases filed in the calendar years 2006, 2007, 2008. The number of cases filed, and in which the Department was directly involved were, respectively 2006: 162, 2007: 135, 2008: 99. The corresponding figures for cases handled by the Planning Inspectorate were 2006: 172, 2007: 181, 2008: 212.
The table also shows the number of cases closed per year. For example, of the 162 cases directly involving the Department which were opened in 2006, 17 were closed in 2006, 56 were closed in 2007, 47 were closed in 2008, one has been closed in 2009, and 41 still remain open. The table shows the equivalent figures for cases opened in 2007 and 2008, and the figures for cases handled by the Planning Inspectorate.
The Department of Communities and Local Government was created on 5 May 2006, so no legal proceedings naming the Department were filed before that date. The figures for 2006 in the table do however include cases opened between 1 January 2006 and 5 May 2006 involving the predecessor Office of the Deputy Prime Minister.
Client group Year opened 2006 2007 2008 2009 Still open Grand total DCLG 2006 17 56 47 1 41 162 2007 — 15 39 — 81 135 2008 — — 14 — 85 99 Total 17 71 100 1 207 396 PINS 2006 17 77 26 4 48 172 2007 — 12 38 2 129 181 2008 — — 5 2 205 212 Total 17 89 69 8 382 565 Grand total 34 160 169 9 589 961
Departmental Lobbying
The only representations received from the Noble Lords referred to in the question are as follows.
After the Secretary of State issued her decision to refuse planning permission for development of a natural gas storage facility at Preesall Saltfield, Fleetwood, Lancashire on 16 October 2007, Lord Taylor of Blackburn asked my noble Friend Baroness Andrews whether representatives of Canatxx Ltd. could meet officials. Representatives of Canatxx met policy officials on 6 December 2007 to discuss general policy on gas storage facilities.
In the summer of 2008 Lord Taylor of Blackburn requested information from my noble Friend Baroness Andrews about Newark as a growth point and related planning cases.
Departmental Mass Media
‘Civil unrest’ is included as a keyword search term for CLG’s contracted media monitoring provider in order to ensure relevant coverage relating to community cohesion and resilience issues, for which the Department is responsible, is captured.
The Department asked for this search term to be added to Durrants' list of key words on 17 November 2008.
Departmental Plants
A low level of internal planting within the CLG HQ buildings is maintained under our integrated facilities management contract. The cost of this is included within the fixed contract price for cleaning, grounds maintenance and pest control and is not separately identifiable.
Since 1 March 2008 additional new plants have been provided at a cost of £725.25.
It is not departmental practice to provide cut flowers for office use and so expenditure on this is nil.
Departmental Recruitment
Communities and Local Government have taken on the following number of staff since2005:
Staff Type 2005-06 2006-07 2007-08 2008-09 Grand Total Permanent Staff 56 68 96 86 306 Short Term Contracts 32 33 34 46 145 Agency Staff 228 208 363 374 1,173 Grand Total 316 309 493 506 1,624
In 2009-10 and 2010-11, as in the current year, our administration budget is planned to fall by 5 per cent. in real terms. There is also evidence that the rate at which permanent staff are leaving the Department is falling. Against this background, I would expect to see some reduction in recruitment.
Departmental Training
Other Ministers in Communities and Local Government have taken the following personal training courses at public expense since 1 January 2008: advice on continuing professional development; and advice on speeches.
Departmental Travel
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Transport on Monday 26 January 2009, Official Report, column 6W. All ministerial travel is undertaken in accordance with the ‘Ministerial Code’.
Domestic Visits: Essex
Since her appointment in July 2007, the Minster for the East of England has visited the administrative county of Essex on six separate occasions. The most recent visits were focussed around the economy such as the Regional Economic Forum held in Chelmsford and her visit to Jobcentre Plus and a local business in Basildon as part of the roll-out of the pre-Budget report.
The Minister has also visited Essex on skills related events including leading the East of England Talent Debate at Stansted, visiting Rickstones Academy in Witham as part of the Grand Schools Tour, and visiting a children's centre in Harlow.
The Minister recently chaired the Regional Partnership Group in Chelmsford.
Eco-Towns: Internet
The set up and development costs for the website
http://ecotownsyoursay.direct.gov.uk
totalled £76,786 and to date £6,000 has been incurred in maintenance costs. The website has the specific aim of encouraging participation in the eco-towns consultation.
Eco-Towns: Pennbury
Proposals for an eco-town at Pennbury, near Leicester have been put forward by the Co-operative Group in conjunction with English Partnerships, now part of the Homes and Community Agency (HCA), who are landowning partner and have contributed to the design ad preparation of the proposals.
English Housing Survey
Over the two years 2006-07 and 2007-08 there were, in England, an estimated:
(a) 1.5 million households headed by a foreign national;
(b) 310 thousand social housing households headed by a foreign national.
These figures were derived from the Survey of English Housing. The English Housing Survey started in April 2008 and the first estimates from this survey will be available in January 2010.
The definition of "foreign national" used above is consistent with that used in published results from the Survey of English Housing; namely a foreign national is someone who is not a national of the UK or Ireland.
Fire Services
£139 million has been spent to date on FiReControl. The total project cost for FiReControl is expected to be £380 million. A significant proportion of the remaining expenditure is already committed through agreed contractual costs. Full details of the contract costs are set out in the FiReControl business case, a copy of which is available in the Library of the House.
Fire Services: Contracts
The Department took advice from its own lawyers and from commercial property advisers and solicitors throughout the development of the building leases for regional control centre buildings. The fire and rescue authorities have taken and continue to take their own legal advice.
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Member for Ruislip-Northwood (Mr. Hurd) on 26 January, Official Report, column 108W.
Fire Services: Crimes of Violence
The Department collects figures on attacks on firefighters based on returns from fire and rescue authorities. The following table shows the number of attacks over the last three years by fire and rescue authority (FRA) for England.
2005-06 2006-07 2007-08 Avon 7 9 12 Bedfordshire 4 4 1 Royal Berkshire 8 4 1 Buckinghamshire 6 3 2 Cambridgeshire 29 15 17 Cheshire 31 25 21 Cleveland 96 91 60 Cornwall — 2 — Cumbria 1 8 5 Derbyshire 9 7 16 Devon (Devon and Somerset from 2007-08) 8 10 110 Dorset 6 5 4 Durham 28 48 22 East Sussex 1 — 4 Essex 17 17 6 Gloucestershire 8 4 6 Hampshire 6 5 11 Hereford and Worcester 1 1 8 Hertfordshire 1 — 2 Humberside 34 25 37 Isle of Wight — 1 1 Kent 10 13 9 Lancashire 28 38 35 Leicestershire 12 14 18 Lincolnshire 9 7 10 Norfolk 2 4 3 North Yorks 2 8 11 Northamptonshire 4 17 13 Northumberland 10 7 9 Nottinghamshire 31 29 18 Oxfordshire — 6 2 Shropshire — 9 6 Somerset 3 — 1— Staffordshire 23 23 29 Suffolk 4 3 3 Surrey 1 5 5 Warwickshire 21 25 10 West Sussex — 4 3 Wiltshire 2 4 1 Isles of Scilly — 1 — Greater Manchester 223 184 68 Merseyside 172 103 49 South Yorkshire 60 69 57 Tyne and Wear 33 98 92 West Midlands 137 79 95 West Yorkshire 112 108 169 London 10 15 6 Grand total 1,210 1,157 967 1 Devon and Somerset FRS merged on the 1 April 2007.
First Time Buyers
The Government are already investing £8 billion in affordable housing (for both social rent and low cost home ownership) through the new Homes and Communities Agency in 2008-11—a £3 billion increase compared to previous years.
The low cost home ownership programme is helping to make home ownership more affordable to first time buyers throughout England through a range of shared ownership and shared equity schemes. In response to the current difficult market conditions, we have expanded the availability of shared equity, which allows qualifying first time buyers to buy a property with the help of an equity loan (which can be used as a deposit). This includes the introduction of the new HomeBuy Direct scheme (which will give up to 18,000 first time buyers the opportunity to access affordable home ownership with an equity loan of up to 30 per cent. (funded on equal terms by Government and the participating developers).
We recently announced that local authorities would be invited to bid for social housing grant to build new affordable housing. We are now consulting on changes to the revenue and capital rules which would enable them to compete for this subsidy.
France (Channel)-England Programme Managing Authority
Officials from CLG have attended five meetings over the last 12 months of the programme Managing Authority of the 2007-13 Interreg IVA Cross-Border France-England Channel programme.
Officials from the Government office for the south-east have attended three meetings of the programme Managing Authority over the same period.
Home Information Packs
Our records show that as part of the Area Trials research, which ran from November 2006 to April 2007, 4,315 HIPs were subsidised by central Government of which 1,487 included a subsidised home condition report.
Homebuy Scheme
Social HomeBuy is a voluntary demand-led scheme. Registered social landlords who choose to offer the scheme to their tenants bid to the Homes and Communities Agency for grant to cover the discount offered to the tenant. From April 2006 to end of January 2009, spend through the National Affordable Housing programme totalled £3.4 million.
No funding is provided to local authorities offering the scheme other than £132,770 given to help early pilots with development and set up costs in 2006-07.
Housing Challenge
The letters sent in July 2008 by the Minister for Housing and Planning to the chairs of the regional assemblies concerning the NHPAU's advice have been deposited in the Library.
These letters were published on the 16 July 2008 and are available online:
www.communities.gov.uk/publications/planningandbuilding/guidanceregionalstrategy
Housing: Sales
The Government recognise that the housing market faces significant challenges.
In my interview with The Sunday Times I did not state that “there has been an upturn in the property market”. I was asked about the state of the housing market. In my reply, I mentioned that a number of recent surveys and professional groups have reported that buyer inquiries are rising, including the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS). However, mortgage availability remains a key barrier.
To help people who are struggling to get onto the housing ladder we introduced the HomeBuy Direct scheme which is designed to help up to 18,000 first time buyers through shared equity. Measures announced by the Chancellor on 19 January are intended to support lending.
Housing: Standards
The standards homes built in eco-towns must reach, are set out in the draft Eco-towns Planning Policy Statement (PPS), published for consultation on 4 November 2008. Copies of the draft PPS are available in the House Library.
Building regulation sets the minimum standards for house building. The Code for Sustainable Homes is a voluntary standard for new private sector housing, unless there is a planning requirement as set out by the Planning Policy Statement on Climate Change (supplement to PPS 1).
Local Government
Development of regional strategies will require close working between local authorities and the Regional Development Agency (RDA) and each region will need to establish structures which best suit their overall arrangements.
When local authority leaders’ boards are established they will receive funding on the basis of an agreed business plan to cover their work on the Regional Strategy and any other agreed functions. It will be for the RDA and the local authority leaders’ board to decide between them how their joint working arrangements are resourced.
Local Government Finance
Government have committed to achieving at least 3 per cent. value for money savings per year across central and local government over the 2007 comprehensive spending review (CSR07) period of 2008-09 to 2010-11. As their contribution to this challenge, councils in England are expected to achieve at least £4.9 billion cash-releasing efficiencies. The local government value for money delivery plan (www.communities.gov.uk/publications/localgovernment/deliveringvaluefor money) sets out a trajectory of £1.5 billion cumulative savings by the end of March 2009 and £3.2 billion by the end of March 2010. There are no expectations with respect to non- cashable efficiencies in CSR07.
There are no mandatory efficiency targets for individual councils, although targets have been agreed as part of seven local area agreements. The value of efficiencies achieved by all English councils and fire and rescue services will be published on and with council tax bills from this year so that citizens can see what progress is being made by their local authorities.
No estimate of the level of exposure of local authorities' pension funds and deposits to the Madoff hedge fund has been made. With regard to pension funds, investment/funding strategy and individual stock selection is a matter for the 89 individual pension funds in England and Wales, who are accountable for their decisions.
Under the Local Government Act 2003, local authorities are responsible for their own investment decisions. The Department's guidance on local government investments is available at:
http://www.local.communities.gov.uk/finance/capital/data/lginvest2.pdf
Local Government: Coastal Areas
Ten MAAs have been signed. The local authorities with seaside towns included in these are Bournemouth and North Tyneside, which includes Whitley Bay, and Sefton council, which contains the seaside town of Southport.
Other agreements in development include the West of England MAA, which involves Weston-super-Mare, and Fylde Coast MAA, which involves Blackpool.
A copy of the 10 multi-area agreements will be deposited in the Library.
Local Government: Fraud
Fraud investigations undertaken by councils operate within the rules, procedures and codes required for the particular type of investigation being undertaken, typically criminal, civil or employment focused in nature. As such there is no specific maximum period for a council to conduct an anti-fraud investigation.
Local Government: Lancashire
Central Government do not collect the information requested. However, the local government employers conducts an annual survey of chief executive and chief officer salaries and workforce numbers. The results of this survey are available on their website at:
http://www.lge.gov.uk/lge/core/page.do?pageId=119009
Local Government: Publicity
(2) which recommendations of the Killian-Pretty review of planning she plans to implement.
At the launch of the final report on 24 November 2008, my right hon. Friend, the Minister for Housing identified two recommendations on extending further permitted development rights for businesses and public services and reducing information requirements that we would be taking forward immediately. Among the other recommendations of the review was one that local authorities should be given greater autonomy and flexibility to determine the best approaches to use in order to notify the public about planning applications. We will set out the Government’s response to the remaining recommendations in the Killian Pretty Report shortly. Any proposals for substantive policy changes would be subject to consultation.
Local Government: Standards
Indicator 153 in the National Indicator Set measures ‘Working age people claiming out of work benefits in the worst performing neighbourhoods’. The data for this indicator is collected through Jobcentre Plus. We have no current plans for any new indicator monitoring benefit claimants in small areas. Consideration of any new indicators within the National Indicator Set will be taken forward as part of preparations for the next government spending review.
Performance against all the National Indicators in each local area will be included in annual reporting of the new Comprehensive Area Assessment (CAA) by the local public service inspectorates. The first CAA reports are expected in November 2009.
Lord Truscott
The only representations received from the noble Lords referred to in the question are as follows:
After the Secretary of State issued her decision to refuse planning permission for development of a natural gas storage facility at Preesall Saltfield, Fleetwood, Lancashire on 16 October 2007, Lord Taylor of Blackburn asked my noble Friend Baroness Andrews whether representatives of Canatxx Ltd. could meet officials. Representatives of Canatxx met policy officials on 6 December 2007 to discuss general policy on gas storage facilities.
In the summer of 2008, Lord Taylor of Blackburn requested information from my noble Friend Baroness Andrews about Newark as a growth point and related planning cases.
Luton Borough Council: Finance
I refer the hon. Member to the answer my right hon. Friend the Minister for Local Government gave on 7 February 2008, Official Report, column 1304-05W.
Furthermore, the following table gives an update on the final outturn figures for 2007-08 and planned expenditure for this financial year for grants made by this Department other than local government finance settlements.
2007-08 final outturn 2008-09 plan Supporting People Programme 4.646 4.520 ERDF 5.840 3.504 Planning Delivery Grant1 0.440 0.116 Homelessness programme 0.120 0.120 Disabled Facilities Grant 0.487 0.510 Growth Areas Programme2 9.279 19.566 LA Supported Capital Expenditure for Housing 1.756 1.756 Regional Housing Pots 0.342 1.000 Community Infrastructure Fund — 4.784 Local Area Agreements2,3 4.529 — Area Based Grant2 — 10.259 Total 27.439 46.135 1 In 2008, the Planning Delivery Grant programme was replaced by Housing and Planning Delivery-Grant. 2 Figures are allocated funding. 3 Direct funding from Communities and local Government for local Area Agreement grants, which was a pooling of many different types of grants previously funded separately, ceased, in 2008 and was absorbed by the commencement of the Area Based Grant in April 2008.
McKinsey
The documents have been placed in the House Library.
Non-Domestic Rates
No estimate has been made of the change in revenue which will result from the planned revaluation of national non-domestic rates in April 2010. After a revaluation, the overall national multiplier is set to ensure that the national non-domestic rates yield stays the same, only allowing for a change in inflation.
Non-Domestic Rates: Business
I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 19 January 2009, Official Report, column 1081W
Data are currently being collected from local authorities and details of the level of non-domestic rates to be collected in England in 2009-10 will be published in due course.
The legislation requires that the transitional scheme be designed with the objective of being self financing. We will be consulting on the details of the 2010 scheme over the summer 2009.
Workplace parking spaces can add to the rental value of office or other business premises and are therefore taken into account in arriving at rateable value for non-domestic rates.
Non-domestic Rates: Empty Property
The Department have received representations on empty property tax relief from industry representative groups, individual property owners both directly and through ministerial correspondence.
I have placed in the library a copy of the letter received from the urban regeneration companies.
Non-Domestic Rates: Ports
The figure of £200 million was an initial estimate, for England, of the aggregate of the port operators’ and port occupiers’ properties in the large ports of their rating assessments, based on information available at the time.
Since 6 October 2008, work has been undertaken to deal with inquiries and appeals in respect of those properties within ports, following consultation with ratepayers.
Non-Domestic Rates: Small Businesses
I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave the hon. Member for Hornsey and Wood Green (Lynne Featherstone), 22 January 2009, Official Report, column 1660W.
Planning Permission
The Department (then the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister) published ‘Diversity and Equality in Planning: A good practice guide’ in 2005, aimed at helping planners to better understand the important role that planning can play in supporting the Government's commitment to tackling disadvantage.
Our expectation is that the Infrastructure Planning Commission (IPC) will be ready to begin receiving applications in spring 2010. In most circumstances, cases will be decided within a year from application.
Regional Ministers: Official Engagements
I am depositing a table of this information in the Library.
Accurate information on the length of time spent on each engagement could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
I am depositing a table of this information in the Library. Accurate information on the length of time spent on each engagement can be provided at only disproportionate cost.
Rented Housing: Foreigners
Information on the number of foreign national households allocated social housing is collected in the Continuous Recording of Letting form (CORE). A question on nationality was first introduced to the form for the 2006-07 data collection period. CORE is collected on behalf of the Department for Communities and Local Government by St. Andrew’s University. Historically CORE has only collected information from registered social landlords. An increasing number of local authorities are now providing information through this process as well, but there are still some gaps in the data.
In 2007-08 for registered social landlords, there were 2,060 new general needs lettings made to foreign nationals from European Economic Area (EEA) countries and 2,020 from non-EEA countries.
The number of local authority general needs lettings is estimated using an adjustment for missing data. This is not yet available for 2007-08 and is expected to be completed by March 2009.
Right to Buy Scheme: Chelmsford
We do not have figures at constituency level, so all figures are shown for Chelmsford borough council.
The following table shows the number of local authority right to buy sales in the borough of Chelmsford , for each year since 1997-98. Chelmsford borough council transferred its housing stock to registered social landlords (RSLs) in March 2002. There have consequently been no sales of local authority housing stock under the scheme in Chelmsford since that date.
The preserved right to buy scheme is available to RSL tenants who were formerly local authority secure tenants and moved to RSL landlords with their homes under the stock transfers. Figures for preserved right to buy sales alone are not available at local authority level, but combined figures for RSL right to buy, right to buy and right to acquire sales are available, and the following shows these figures for the borough of Chelmsford.
LA right to buy sales in Chelmsford RSL sales of social housing in Chelmsford 1997-98 142 — 1998-99 120 — 1999-2000 169 — 2000-01 156 — 2001-02 149 2 2002-03 0 144 2003-04 0 59 2004-05 0 36 2005-06 0 19 2006-07 0 26 2007-08 0 18 Source: Quarterly P1B returns submitted by local authorities to Communities and Local Government, and Regulatory and Statistical Returns (RSR) submitted by Social Landlords to the Tenant Services Authority.
Social Mobility
The Government recognise that access to financial assets can play a key role in determining future outcomes. We are committed to supporting people's ambitions to own their own home, where this is sustainable, and we are determined to improve access to assets for all families.
We recognise that, despite the recent fall in house prices, the turbulence in the global financial markets has resulted in severe restrictions on mortgages and in many cases a requirement for purchasers to have significant deposits, making it harder for first time buyers to get on the housing ladder.
We are taking a range of measures in response to these difficult market conditions. For example, we have introduced HomeBuy Direct, a new scheme offered in partnership with house builders that is designed to help up to 18,000 first-time buyers into affordable home ownership with the aid of an equity loan of up to 30 per cent. (which can be used as a deposit). We are also taking steps to improve mortgage funding markets, as this is key to lowering mortgage costs and increasing the availability of affordable mortgages. Following on the Crosby Report's recommendations on mortgage finance markets, the Government will provide up to £50 billion of guarantees on new mortgage lending (and eventually on other assets).
Social Rented Housing: Standards
The cost per house of meeting the decent homes standard varies across the country and the Department does not collect those figures separately.
Local authorities are refurbishing the houses in their areas either at or above the decent homes standard. What the improved standard is and how it will be achieved will be determined by local circumstances and the level of resources that can be brought to the programme locally.
Ribble Valley borough council transferred its housing to a registered social landlord, Ribble Valley Homes, on 31 March 2008 under large scale voluntary transfer arrangements, in order to deliver the Decent Homes investment required.
Valuation Tribunal Service
No. This is a matter for the Valuation Tribunal Service to decide.
Children, Schools and Families
Bristol
I did not visit Bristol West on 12 May 2008.
Children in Care
Through the White Paper “Care Matters: Time for Change” and the Children and Young Persons Act 2008 the Government have put in place a range of measures to improve stability for looked after children.
Through the Fostering Changes training programme and the Multi-dimensional Treatment Foster Care and Social Pedagogy pilots we are taking action to help improve the range of support and skills for foster carers and residential workers to help them meet the needs of looked after children to prevent placement breakdown.
Children: Databases
As mentioned in the written ministerial statement of 26 January 2009, Official Report, columns 2-3WS we will provide an update in spring 2009.
Children: Day Care
(2) how much Ofsted received in registration fees from child minders working with children aged (a) under five and (b) five to eight years old in each of the last five years.
[holding answer 26 January 2009]: These are matters for Ofsted. The chief inspector, Christine Gilbert, has written to the hon. Member and copies of her replies have been placed in the Library.
Letter from Christine Gilbert, dated 26 January 2009:
Your recent parliamentary question has been passed to me, as Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector, for a response.
Table A shows figures for the total received by Ofsted in childcare registration fees. The data referring to childminder registration fees relate to the registration of individual childminders. The data referring to daycare relate to the registration of providers who provide more than four hours of childcare per day. The data referring to sessional daycare relate to the registration of providers who provide less than four hours of childcare per day.
£ 2003-04 2004-05 2005-06 2006-07 2007-08 Child Minder 894,223 910,837 874,046 911,682 1,008,894 Day Care 1,553,119 1,794,011 2,016,046 2,168,607 2,381,325 Sessional Day Care 189,335 412,111 215,088 184,511 188,969 Total 2,636,677 3,116,958 3,105,180 3,264,800 3,579,188
A copy of this reply has been sent to Rt Hon Beverley Hughes MP, Minister of State for Children, Young People and Families, and will be placed in the library of both Houses.
Letter from Christine Gilbert, dated 26 January 2009:
Your recent parliamentary question has been passed to me, as Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector, for a response.
Prior to the introduction of the Early Years Foundation Stage in September 2008, the age of the children using a provider did not affect its registration fee. We are, therefore, unable to readily identify the total received in registration fees from childminders working with children aged (a) under five and (b) five to eight years old in each of the last five years. Data covering the total received by Ofsted in childminder fees in the last five years are included in my response to Parliamentary Question 251412.
A copy of this reply has been sent to Rt Hon Beverley Hughes MP, Minister of State for Children, Young People and Families, and will be placed in the library of both Houses.
Citizenship: Education
The findings from each annual report of the Citizenship Education Longitudinal study cannot be viewed in isolation. Together they will inform policy development and enable us to improve the quality and delivery of citizenship education. The sixth annual report recognises that citizenship education, although a very helpful measure, is unlikely by itself to address the ‘democratic deficit’. It suggests that schools and citizenship education provision are likely to have an indirect influence through democracy in schools and student efficacy on student attitudes and intentions. As we set out in the Children’s Plan, the Government’s aim are for all young people to want and be able to participate and take responsible action. We believe that the new duty on schools to invite and consider the views of pupils on matters that affect them will help to strengthen efficacy levels among children and young people and encourage them to continue to play an active part in their community.
The Department does not collect information on the number of schools who have adopted the Active Citizens in Schools programme.
Crimes Against Humanity: Anniversaries
It is for schools to decide whether to observe days of remembrance or celebration and how that might fit with the curriculum or the wider education of the students. However, there are some elements of history that we believe are of vital importance and will continue to ensure that they are covered by all schools—the study of the Holocaust is one of these. Holocaust Memorial Day aims to encourage greater awareness among young people of the relevance of the Holocaust and the need for mutual respect and understanding. It is supported by a Government funded education pack.
Departmental Air Travel
My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families has not made any official journeys by plane.
The number of plane journeys taken by DCSF officials was 815. The data provided is based on bookings dealt with by the DCSF’s business travel booking service provider (Carlson Wagonlit Travel).
Any flights not booked by the Department’s travel provider can be provided only at disproportionate costs.
Travel by Ministers and civil servants is undertaken in accordance with the “Ministerial Code” and the “Civil Service Management Code” respectively.
Departmental Buildings
The Department for Children, Schools and Families was created on 28 June 2007.
There has been nil expenditure on work and refurbishment to offices allocated to Ministers in the Department for Children, Schools and Families.
Departmental Computers
The Department for Children, Schools and Families has not charged any of its officials the full replacement value for lost laptops.
Departmental Pay
The following table summarises the gross salaries and other payments made to permanent staff (including ministers and special advisers) from financial year 1999-2000 to 2007-08. These figures are drawn from the Department's published resource accounts. Figures prior to 1999-2000 were produced using different accounting principles and can only be reproduced on a comparable basis at disproportionate cost.
Department Salaries1 (£ million) 2007-08 Department for Children Schools and Families 98 2006-07 Department for Education and Skills 115 2005-06 Department for Education and Skills 119 2004-05 Department for Education and Skills 125 2003-04 Department for Education and Skills 130 2002-03 Department for Education and Skills 117 2001-02 Department for Education and Skills 110 2000-01 Department for Education and Employment 681 1999-2000 Department for Education and Employment 640 1 The salary figure includes: gross salary; performance pay and bonuses; overtime; reserved rights to London weighting or London allowances; recruitment and retention allowances; private office allowances; and other allowances to the extent they are subject to UK taxation.
Separate information on bonus payments made to staff would be available only at disproportionate cost.
Departmental Public Relations
The Department for Children, Schools and families was established on 27 June 2007. Including its predecessor (the Department for Education and Skills) the Department’s expenditure on public relations in 2007-08 was £2,333,000. There are no figures available for 2008-09 at present.
The Department employs public relations agencies for specific communications tasks, most commonly working alongside our press office to provide campaign support in local, regional and specialist media.
Departmental Redundancy
The Department was created on 27 June 2007. Since its inception, the number of employees released under the voluntary release scheme and the total cost over the remaining years stated are set out in the following table:
Number of employees Total Cost1 (£ million) 2007-08 118 29.2 2008-09 24 2— 2009-10 58 2— 1 The £9.2million shown in the table covers releases agreed and accounted for in 2007-08 and agreed release dates up to 2009-10. 2 Indicates brace.
Information on individual voluntary exit scheme payments to staff for each of those years is not available in the form requested and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.
There have been were no compulsory redundancies.
Departmental Surveys
Since its inception in June 2007 the Department has spent £1,845,528 on public surveys. This figure is inclusive of VAT and includes current spend to 19 January 2009.
Departmental Temporary Employment
Since its inception, the Department’s spend on agency staff for each year is set out as follows:
Agency (£) July-December 2007 333,015 January-December 2008 1,219,428
The Department also employs people on other short term contracts but information on salary costs by length of contract could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Departmental Training
Ministers in the Department for Children, Schools and Families have taken the following personal training courses at public expense since 1 January 2008:
Induction Workshop, Action Learning Set, Media Training, Select Committee Training.
Departmental Working Hours
(2) how many days off in lieu were granted to staff in (a) his Department, (b) its agencies and (c) its non-departmental public bodies for working (i) in lunch breaks and (ii) at other times outside contracted working hours, in the last year for which figures are available.
The information requested is not held centrally in the Department or in non-departmental public bodies and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
As part of the Department’s flexible working arrangements, employees from Grade 6 to Executive Assistant can work flexitime. These arrangements do not apply to members of the senior civil service
The Department has no agencies.
Dyslexia
(2) what plans his Department has for future teaching methods for dyslexic children.
Sir Jim Rose is currently developing recommendations, in the light of evidence, on the identification and teaching of children with dyslexia. We are now looking forward to Sir Jim publishing these recommendations in the spring.
All local authorities, schools and early years settings must have regard to the special educational needs (SEN) code of practice which provides advice on carrying out statutory duties to identify, assess and make provision for pupils’ with SEN. Children with dyslexia should have their needs identified and support put in place in the same way as for other children with SEN.
We have launched a professional development resource for those working in schools, called the Inclusion Development (IDP) Programme. This is being distributed to local authorities and schools through the National Strategies. It offers professional development in key areas of SEN, starting with training on communication difficulties including dyslexia.
We are also working with a number of dyslexia organisations to promote best practice in identifying and supporting children and young people with dyslexia in schools. This includes helping fund the ‘No to Failure’ project which brings together dyslexia organisations in trailblazing and evaluating the impact of both specialist training for teachers and specialist tuition for pupils with dyslexia, and the British Dyslexia Association helpline which provides advice about dyslexia to teachers as well as parents.
Education: Assessment
My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, has established an Expert Group on Testing and Assessment. The group is reviewing pupil well being as part of its remit, giving consideration to what advice should be provided to schools to ensure that preparation for national curriculum tests at Key Stage 2 is proportionate and educationally appropriate. The group’s findings will be used to inform future plans for testing and assessment.
The evaluation of Single Level Tests under the Making Good Progress pilot included consideration of pupils’ experience of testing in an interim Report (Evaluation of the Making Good Progress, Research Report DCSF-RR065), which was published in December 2008. The majority of interviewees who commented on pupils’ Single Level Test experiences in the report, considered that pupils were generally not stressed by the tests involved, because they were pitched at the ‘right’ level.
Education: Standards
“Faith in the System: the role of schools with a religious character in English education and society” was launched on 10 September 2007 and outlined the Government's and faith schools providers' shared vision on the role of faith schools in the English education system and wider society. The document does not represent a set of new policy initiatives but aims to dispel some of the common myths and misunderstanding around faiths schools. In it, the Government and faith leaders of all faiths that have publicly funded schools in England reaffirmed their commitment to continue to work together and with all schools to improve the life chances of children, to build bridges to greater mutual trust and understanding, and contribute to a just and cohesive society, while nurturing children in their faith and as engaged citizens. We know that the principles of “Faith in the System” are embedded in faith schools and that they are committed to working with other schools and to meeting the needs of all pupils, whether they are of the faith or not.
For example, the Board of Deputies of British Jews have developed the “Shared Futures” linking project, which aims to link minority faith schools and schools without a religious character where the significant majority of pupils are of a single faith. The Church of England (CofE) is now committed to reserving 25 per cent. of school places at new CofE schools for pupils from the local neighbourhood regardless of faith background or none; and last year, the Catholic Education Service (CES) launched new preliminary guidance for all Catholic schools in England on the statutory duty to promote community cohesion.
The faith groups are now working together to take forward “Faith in the System”, with the CES taking the lead in organising a follow-up conference, which is due to be held in autumn this year.
The costs of printing the “Faith in the System” document were £5,208 (£6,119 including VAT). No other substantial additional costs have arisen in relation to this resource as staff time in facilitating the working groups and drafting the document does not represent an additional cost.
Equality: Education
(2) whether his Department plans to issue guidance to its agencies on the use of the descriptors of key competencies for intercultural communication in the design and implementation of curricula at all levels of education, including teacher training.
[holding answer 2 February 2009]: It is crucial that young people have the right skills to compete in an increasingly fast changing global economy. Communication skills in other languages, combined with an understanding and appreciation of other cultures, will become increasingly important for the jobs of the future. We have made no specific assessment of this issue and have no plans to issue specific guidance to schools on intercultural competencies. However, intercultural understanding is a key concept within compulsory language learning for 11 to 14-year-olds, where pupils learn to appreciate other cultures, recognise different ways of seeing the world, develop an international look and communicate with native speakers where possible.
Citizenship education equips pupils with the knowledge and skills needed for effective and democratic participation. This includes such areas as the changing nature of UK society, the diversity of ideas, beliefs, cultures, identities, traditions, perspectives and values that are shared; migration to, from and within the UK and the reasons for this, the UK’s relations with the European Union and the rest of Europe, the Commonwealth, the United Nations and the world as a global community.
Foreign Languages: Assessments
(2) if he will support the introduction of a foreign language (a) GCSE and (b) A Level qualification in Serbian.
Decisions as to which languages are offered at GCSE or A-level are for awarding bodies to take in the light of demand. The Department is not aware of any plans to introduce a GCSE or A-level qualification in Serbian. Further details on getting qualifications accredited are available from the Office of the Qualifications and Examinations Regulator, whose website is
www.ofqual.gov.uk.
Free School Meals: Chelmsford
The requested information is shown in the table, together with the numbers of children eligible for free school meals. The numbers receiving free school meals on census day are regarded as less reliable than the numbers eligible.
Maintained nursery and primary schools1 Number on roll3 Number of pupils taking free school means Percentage taking free school meals Number of pupils known to be eligible for free school meals Percentage known to be eligible for free school meals 1997 8,851 806 9.1 1,007 11.4 2004 8,295 609 7.3 777 9.4 2005 8,255 605 7.3 745 9.0 2006 8,158 624 7.6 707 8.7 2007 8,116 630 7.8 690 8.5 2008 8,146 621 7.6 677 8.3
Number on roll3 Number of pupils taking free school means Percentage taking free school meals Number of pupils known to be eligible for free school meals Percentage known to be eligible for free school meals 1997 8,239 415 5.0 551 6.7 2004 8,818 356 4.0 458 5.2 2005 8,745 364 4.2 468 5.4 2006 8,777 418 4.8 549 6.3 2007 8,678 413 4.8 501 5.8 2008 8,533 349 4.1 446 5.2 1 Includes middle schools as deemed. 2 Includes city technology colleges and academies. 3 Includes dually registered pupils, excludes boarding pupils. Source: Schools Census
Functional Skills Qualifications
The Functional Skills pilot is being managed by the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA) and will last for three years. It started in September 2007 and ends in 2010. QCA are evaluating the pilot throughout that period and will be publishing summaries of the evaluation reports.
GCE A Level
The Department does not hold this information as we do not collect information on predicted A level grades.
General Certificate of Secondary Education
The numbers of pupils attempting English literature GCSE in maintained and independent schools in 1997, 2003 and 2008 are given as follows:
Maintained schools Independent schools 2007/08 472,575 38,933 2002/03 481,440 35,458 1996/97 422,619 35,985 Notes: 1. Figures for 2007/08 relate to pupils at the end of Key Stage 4, for 1996/97 and 2002/03 the figures relate to 15-year-olds (age at start of academic year, i.e. 31 August). 2. Figures include attempts by these pupils in previous academic years. Only one attempt is counted per pupil. 3. The figures are derived from the Achievement and Attainment Tables data.
[holding answer 29 January 2009]: The numbers of pupils attempting both mathematics and physics GCSE in maintained and independent schools for the last five years are given as follows:
Maintained schools Independent schools 2007/08 52,830 8,689 2006/07 36,533 9,607 2005/06 34,267 12,426 2004/05 30,942 13,698 2003/04 28,293 13,938 Notes: 1. Figures relate to pupils at the end of Key Stage 4 except in 2003/04 for which the figures relate to 15-year-olds (age at start of academic year, i.e. 31 August). 2. Figures include attempts by these pupils in previous academic years. Only one attempt is counted per pupil. 3. The figures are derived from the Achievement and Attainment Tables data.
Literacy: Advisory Services
There are 46 English/literacy advisers employed by the National Strategies across the early years, primary and secondary sectors. Their principle role is to provide support to local authorities, schools and early years settings, including training and professional development materials which are provided free.
Music Standards Fund
The following table shows how much funding has been allocated through the Music Standards Fund in each of the last five years. In addition to the baseline amount of £297.5 million a further £52 million has been allocated to local authorities to encourage the development of programmes designed to increase the number of pupils at KS2 able to learn a musical instrument.
Baseline Additional for KS2 Total 2004-05 59.5 0 59.5 2005-06 59.5 1.5 61 2006-07 59.5 4.5 64 2007-08 59.5 23 82.5 2008-09 59.5 23 82.5 Total 297.5 52 349.5
Music: Education
The Department allocated £82,567,000 to local authorities in both 2007-08 and 2008-09 through the Music Standards Fund. We have asked local authorities to prioritise the provision of instrumental and vocal tuition at Key Stage 2 with this funding but we neither specify nor collect information on the actual amount that is spent on instrumental tuition. We are also investing £10 million per year to 2011 for the purchase of musical instruments.
The Department allocated £82,567,000 to local authorities in both 2007-08 and 2008-09 through the Music Standards Fund. We have asked local authorities to prioritise the provision of instrumental and vocal tuition at Key Stage 2 with this funding. We are also investing £10 million per year to 2011 on Sing Up, the National Singing Programme spearheaded by Howard Goodall. With this early introduction to quality music experiences we believe that children will come to see themselves as musicians and will have a real and long-lasting enjoyment of music which will encourage them to continue their learning as they move into secondary school. The compulsory Music Curriculum at Key Stage 3 is now much more focussed on performance and hands-on music making. The curriculum builds on students’ own interests and skills and should, therefore, engage them more fully which in turn will encourage them to continue with their studies in music through to GCSE and A Level.
While this information is not collected centrally, I refer the hon. Member to the reply given on 15 July 2008 Official Report, column 384W. That reply states the percentage of Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2 pupils reported as receiving specialist instrumental or vocal tuition in the surveys conducted by the Institute of Education, University of London in 2002, 2005 and 2007.
Data on secondary school pupils was not collected from Music Services in 2007. The 2005 Survey of Local Authority Music Services reported that overall, 8.4 per cent. of pupils Key Stage 1 to Key Stage 4 were learning to play an instrument, a small increase on the figures for 2002. The 2005 report also pointed out that one of the obstacles to increasing the number of pupils playing was the legislation preventing charging for groups larger than four pupils. That legislation has since been amended.
The survey reports are available at
www.dcsf.gov.uk/research.
Music: Teachers
Since September 2006, when the contract was let, £3.3 million has been spent to develop and deliver a programme of professional development for those working with children at Key Stage 2 in music. This breaks down as follows: £1.1 million in 2006-07, £1.3 million in 2007-08 and £0.9 million to date in 2008-09.
Physical Education: Finance
Since 2003, investment in the PE, School Sport and Club Links (PESSCL) Strategy and the PE and Sport Strategy for Young People (PESSYP) has totalled over £2.2 billion. This has been allocated and spent, as follows:
Allocated Spend PESSCL (2003-08) 1,500,000,000 1,500,000,000 PESSYP (2008-11) 755,000,000 1251,000,000 1 Forecast spend as at 31 March 2009.
Playgrounds
(2) how many of the proposed new adventure playgrounds referred to on page 101 of his Department's Annual Report have been built;
(3) when the (a) play strategy and (b) outcomes of the consultation on the strategy was published.
In April 2008 a first wave of 63 (20 Pathfinder and 43 Playbuilder) local authorities started receiving their play capital and revenue funding. By April 2009, all local authorities will have been offered funding of at least £1 million.
On average over the course of the programme, each play Pathfinder authority will receive around £2 million capital funding and £500,000 revenue funding, and each Playbuilder authority will receive around £1 million capital and £45,000 revenue funding.
Each play Pathfinder authority will deliver a staffed adventure playground to support local children most in need of improved play opportunities. Wave 1 Pathfinders are scheduled to complete 20 adventure play grounds in total by April 2010, and are on track to do so. The wave 2 Pathfinders starting in April 2009 have until 2011 to deliver 10 adventure playgrounds in total.
The Play Strategy was on launched Wednesday 10 December 2008, by a written ministerial statement, Official Report, column 51WS—and a launch event at the White Horse Adventure Playground, Tower Hamlets, attended by my noble Friend Baroness Morgan of Drefelin, the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Children.
The Play Strategy directly responds to a huge consultation response, including over 9,400 responses from children and young people themselves. 12 per cent. of responses came from disabled children. Key findings from the consultation response are highlighted throughout the Play Strategy document. Children, young people and families were clear that they want improved local play opportunities that are safe and exciting, and communities that are more child-friendly.
Pre-School Education: Manpower
The Childcare and Early Years Providers Survey collects information on the proportion of staff in the child care sector qualified to at least level three. The following table shows the proportion of staff in the child care sector qualified to at least level three for 2003, 2006 and 2007 by different type of child care provider. The proportion of staff qualified to at least level 3 rose in all types of child care setting from 2003 to 2007. Data for earlier years are not available.
2003 2006 2007 Full day care 57 73 72 Full day care in children’s centres n/a 80 82 Sessional 44 58 61 After school clubs 37 51 53 Holiday clubs 30 53 54 Child minders n/a 38 41 Nursery schools 78 80 83 Primary schools with nursery and reception classes 72 77 77 Primary schools with reception but no nursery classes 64 71 73 Notes: 1. Data include all paid child care staff from Childcare and Early Years Providers Survey. 2. Data are not available for all types of providers for 2003.
Primary Education
The latest a child can start primary school is at the beginning of the term immediately following their fifth birthday. There are no plans to change this.
The remit for the Independent Review of the Primary Curriculum, asks Sir Jim Rose to consider whether it be appropriate to allow more choice and flexibility in start dates for children entering school. The final report and recommendations will be published this spring.
We welcome the provisional findings of the Independent Review of the Primary Curriculum set out in the interim report. We look forward to receiving Sir Jim Rose’s final report and recommendations for consideration in the spring.
The Qualifications and Curriculum Authority are working to a timetable that will allow Sir Jim Rose to provide his final advice and recommendations, including programmes of learning, in the spring.
Sir Jim Rose is currently producing his final report of the Independent Review of the Primary Curriculum. As part of his review he is taking into account a wide range of evidence and research. Jim Rose has met with members of the Cambridge Primary Review.
My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, has asked Sir Jim Rose to undertake a review of the primary curriculum. As part of his remit, Sir Jim will be reviewing the content of existing programmes of study and reducing prescription where possible. His interim report sets out proposals providing an entitlement to a broad and balanced curriculum and a greater emphasis on children’s personal development.
We have set up an Expert Group on assessment who are examining the assessment system up to Key Stage 3. Part of their remit specifically states that they should state what advice schools should be given so that test preparation is proportionate, educationally appropriate, and that the delivery of a broad and balanced curriculum is not inhibited.
Primary Education: Class Sizes
Class size data is not collected by age of child. However, the following table shows classes as taught by national curriculum year group.
Classes taught by one teacher Classes of size 20 to 24 pupils Classes of size 25 and over pupils Year group 1 Year group 2 Year group 3 Year group 1 Year group 2 Year group 3 England 74,450 74,900 61,730 292,220 303,360 323,160 North East 5,350 5,240 4,110 10,680 11,750 13,090 841 Darlington 181 210 86 662 672 789 840 Durham 770 1,043 671 1,774 1,782 2,152 390 Gateshead 296 219 152 570 780 881 805 Hartlepool 301 112 255 280 439 410 806 Middlesbrough 416 456 371 577 637 763 391 Newcastle upon Tyne 357 426 317 1,418 1,371 1,625 392 North Tyneside 310 233 275 965 1,075 1,072 929 Northumberland 666 490 204 1,091 1,372 1,451 807 Redcar and Cleveland 311 352 389 521 663 517 393 South Tyneside 339 273 170 870 679 931 808 Stockton-on-Tees 632 606 488 783 842 940 394 Sunderland 769 818 731 1,167 1,435 1,562 North West 10,950 11,060 9,490 37,330 40,450 43,840 889 Blackburn with Darwen 220 226 184 1,179 1,212 1,303 890 Blackpool 159 138 20 1,138 1,129 1,343 350 Bolton 312 466 328 2,214 2,091 2,381 351 Bury 339 267 339 914 1,042 1,085 875 Cheshire 1,037 1,064 657 3,052 3,241 3,789 909 Cumbria 623 796 805 1,605 1,808 1,811 876 Halton 199 305 233 622 524 591 340 Knowsley 259 155 337 748 1,291 991 888 Lancashire 1,925 1,754 1,225 4,403 5,858 6,441 341 Liverpool 978 755 1,042 2,475 2,559 2,461 352 Manchester 645 528 878 2,978 2,933 2,749 353 Oldham 203 490 248 1,682 1,711 1,778 354 Rochdale 360 292 225 1,359 1,407 1,494 355 Salford 458 484 463 1,168 1,060 1,206 343 Sefton 619 422 448 1,345 1,609 1,827 342 St. Helens 331 357 314 1,042 1,049 1,431 356 Stockport 381 489 248 1,583 1,674 2,065 357 Tameside 331 318 363 1,470 1,600 1,604 358 Trafford 173 310 111 1,619 1,659 1,873 877 Warrington 331 494 329 1,243 1,095 1,333 359 Wigan 617 506 422 1,748 2,045 2,275 344 Wirral 447 441 268 1,740 1,851 2,005 Yorkshire and the Humber 8,130 8,970 6,520 28,090 28,300 30,900 370 Barnsley 518 335 373 665 1,296 1,098 380 Bradford 487 513 346 5,114 4,441 4,969 381 Calderdale 221 330 404 1,259 1,409 1,267 371 Doncaster 640 837 630 1,623 1,523 1,796 811 East Riding of Yorkshire 360 669 545 1,513 1,341 1,421 810 Kingston Upon Hull, City of 333 406 437 1,459 1,325 1,276 382 Kirklees 694 812 566 2,381 2,551 2,893 383 Leeds 1,340 1,149 850 3,970 4,182 4,379 812 North East Lincolnshire 156 279 154 705 637 754 813 North Lincolnshire 231 316 67 835 782 1,010 815 North Yorkshire 793 851 585 1,544 1,557 1,998 372 Rotherham 609 650 548 1,431 1,278 1,461 373 Sheffield 771 931 528 3,289 3,373 3,613 384 Wakefield 667 596 330 1,540 1,740 2,060 816 York 311 293 160 766 861 909 East Midlands 7,590 7,460 5,730 19,890 21,340 24,360 831 Derby 433 381 378 1,650 1,802 1,461 830 Derbyshire 1,419 1,361 1,065 3,018 3,673 4,306 856 Leicester 533 621 647 2,028 1,811 2,107 855 Leicestershire 1,246 1,212 578 2,393 2,676 3,157 925 Lincolnshire 955 1,055 553 2,398 2,838 3,342 928 Northamptonshire 1,170 919 947 3,735 3,819 4,129 892 Nottingham 504 498 448 1,414 1,402 1,726 891 Nottinghamshire 1,280 1,394 1,087 3,225 3,182 4,014 857 Rutland 45 21 23 30 141 117 West Midlands 9,540 8,810 7,000 32,060 34,380 36,690 330 Birmingham 1,393 1,326 1,539 9,362 9,611 9,722 331 Coventry 504 306 633 2,003 2,075 2,012 332 Dudley 882 918 561 1,665 1,799 2,251 884 Herefordshire 273 265 88 585 591 798 333 Sandwell 633 559 315 2,494 2,541 2,864 893 Shropshire 224 209 48 731 847 876 334 Solihull 600 393 326 1,307 1,619 1,809 860 Staffordshire 1,584 1,692 1,018 3,540 3,956 4,477 861 Stoke-on-Trent 361 474 317 1,450 1,303 1,824 894 Telford and Wrekin 153 139 161 654 847 912 335 Walsall 472 562 492 2,086 1,770 1,934 937 Warwickshire 722 670 608 2,588 3,032 2,821 336 Wolverhampton 643 592 457 1,310 1,463 1,290 885 Worcestershire 1,092 700 437 2,281 2,925 3,096 East of England 8,710 7,680 7,040 31,260 33,690 34,340 820 Bedfordshire 1,167 860 781 2,036 2,319 2,467 873 Cambridgeshire 663 490 386 2,940 3,316 3,176 881 Essex 2,145 2,023 1,370 7,115 7,826 8,551 919 Hertfordshire 1,176 981 1,214 7,549 8,091 7,378 821 Luton 113 224 391 2,224 1,976 1,783 926 Norfolk 1,399 1,221 1,155 2,791 3,633 3,875 874 Peterborough 197 220 158 1,417 1,464 1,540 882 Southend-on-Sea 198 220 88 1,275 1,133 1,275 935 Suffolk 1,362 1,209 1,258 2,772 2,896 3,010 883 Thurrock 289 229 242 1,136 1,032 1,289 London 8,220 8,470 8,090 60,420 58,060 59,340 Inner London 3,610 3,580 3,620 19,710 18,490 18,970 202 Camden 116 47 135 1,120 1,060 1,078 201 City of London 0 0 0 30 0 30 204 Hackney 330 277 381 1,267 1,492 1,325 205 Hammersmith and Fulham 48 43 89 892 1,004 779 309 Haringey 185 513 430 2,353 1,777 2,026 206 Islington 347 184 261 927 1,046 1,098 207 Kensington and Chelsea 112 96 113 571 447 514 208 Lambeth 299 361 287 1,933 1,590 1,820 209 Lewisham 324 536 287 1,935 1,522 1,860 316 Newham 457 265 322 2,686 2,719 2,926 210 Southwark 653 648 590 1,716 1,682 1,616 211 Tower Hamlets 250 246 240 1,996 1,782 1,745 212 Wandsworth 359 222 400 1,371 1,525 1,384 213 Westminster 130 137 88 914 841 768 Outer London 4,610 4,890 4,460 40,710 39,570 40,370 301 Barking and Dagenham 152 157 528 2,155 2,152 1,590 302 Barnet 246 248 197 2,631 2,428 2,601 303 Bexley 248 204 159 1,966 2,069 2,280 304 Brent 136 289 47 2,463 2,128 2,551 305 Bromley 268 362 194 2,550 2,325 2,646 306 Croydon 365 292 319 2,934 3,085 3,244 307 Ealing 270 293 255 2,968 2,598 2,549 308 Enfield 43 207 168 2,923 2,983 2,946 203 Greenwich 420 620 497 1,751 1,594 1,596 310 Harrow 211 455 427 1,898 1,598 1,657 311 Havering 376 201 231 1,596 1,735 1,772 312 Hillingdon 598 513 269 2,019 2,123 2,327 313 Hounslow 320 345 276 1,889 1,801 1,620 314 Kingston upon Thames 176 47 110 1,069 1,248 1,191 315 Merton 332 297 292 1,415 1,436 1,371 317 Redbridge 85 0 24 2,752 2,719 2,696 318 Richmond upon Thames 135 116 200 1,634 1,424 1,439 319 Sutton 164 175 156 1,431 1,534 1,699 320 Waltham Forest 69 69 114 2,669 2,588 2,594 South East 10,790 10,790 8,440 49,100 51,410 55,030 867 Bracknell Forest 111 142 183 799 817 786 846 Brighton and Hove 285 360 337 1,833 1,781 1,699 825 Buckinghamshire 611 800 749 3,313 3,249 3,507 845 East Sussex 424 421 214 2,491 2,544 3,063 850 Hampshire 1,661 1,601 1,018 7,138 7,773 8,074 921 Isle of Wight 369 138 175 361 509 719 886 Kent 1,543 1,506 1,314 9,198 9,479 9,500 887 Medway 584 622 491 1,707 1,676 1,957 826 Milton Keynes 492 387 241 1,446 1,826 1,966 931 Oxfordshire 1,068 1,119 703 2,650 2,763 2,883 851 Portsmouth 360 348 134 1,044 1,048 1,270 870 Reading 213 135 172 820 1,003 836 871 Slough 177 66 271 1,218 1,250 1,091 852 Southampton 177 491 192 1,500 1,308 1,672 936 Surrey 1,251 1,267 999 7,135 7,334 8,257 869 West Berkshire 173 202 302 806 846 786 938 West Sussex 854 693 694 4,035 4,557 5,176 868 Windsor and Maidenhead 115 114 46 589 580 621 872 Wokingham 317 377 207 1,016 1,062 1,164 South West 5,190 6,440 5,320 23,390 24,000 25,570 800 Bath and North East Somerset 91 221 179 970 767 969 837 Bournemouth 205 111 141 994 1,040 1,170 801 Bristol, City of 442 585 537 2,391 2,466 2,239 908 Cornwall 422 574 385 1,972 2,016 2,548 878 Devon 737 994 748 2,267 2,719 2,630 835 Dorset 646 626 480 1,823 1,827 2,039 916 Gloucestershire 393 519 680 2,811 2,638 2,662 420 Isles of Scilly 0 0 20 0 0 0 802 North Somerset 115 314 181 1,401 1,148 1,315 879 Plymouth 469 415 224 1,201 1,362 1,367 836 Poole 68 137 0 1,050 965 1,185 933 Somerset 427 362 500 1,674 2,008 2,038 803 South Gloucestershire 248 382 458 1,487 1,505 1,590 866 Swindon 270 426 309 1,173 1,172 1,221 880 Torbay 107 156 64 811 616 890 865 Wiltshire 545 622 412 1,366 1,748 1,710 1 Includes middle schools as deemed. 2 Classes as taught during a single selected period on the day of the Census in January. Note: National and regional totals have been rounded to the nearest 10. Source: School Census
Pupil Exclusions
The requested information on pupils with one or more episodes of fixed period exclusion is provided in the table.
Number of pupils receiving fixed period exclusions Level of deprivation of school based on IDACI1 (Percentage) Maintained primary schools State funded secondary schools 0-10 most deprived 5,000 17,810 10-20 4,060 20,100 20-30 3,430 19,520 30-40 2,800 22,800 40-50 2,080 22,670 50-60 1,920 22,540 60-70 1,480 18,360 70-80 1,160 17,770 80-90 970 18,080 90-100 least deprived 770 17,530 1 Includes middle schools as deemed. 2 Includes both CTCs and academies. Information is as reported by schools. 3 Based on schools open in January 2007. 4 2004 Income Deprivation Affecting Children Index at Super Output Area level based on the location of the school. Includes all schools which returned information on fixed period exclusions for 2006/07. Note: Numbers have been rounded to the nearest 10. Source: Schools Census
The latest available information covers the school year 2006/07; this has been placed in the Library.
In 2006/07, the latest year for which information is available, there were 8,680 permanent exclusions from primary, secondary and all special schools (including CTCs and academies). This figure is given in table 3 of the ‘Permanent and Fixed Period Exclusions from Schools in England 2006/07’ Statistical First Release:
http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000793/index.shtml
In 2006/07, the latest year for which data is available, there were 220 permanent exclusions from schools for looked-after children1. This figure is given in table A of the ‘Outcome Indicators for Children Looked After, 12 months to 30 September 2007—England’ Statistical First Release:
http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000785/index.shtml
Looked-after children who have been permanently excluded as a percentage of total permanent exclusions cannot be calculated because the figure for the total number of permanent exclusions and the figure for the number of permanent exclusions for looked-after children come from different sources and are on different bases.
1 If a child has been permanently excluded more than once in the previous school year, each occasion has been counted.
Pupil Referral Units
(2) how many Link schools there are; and how many such schools have the word link in their official titles.
Our proposal to re-name pupil referral units was put forward in the White Paper “Back on Track: A strategy for modernising alternative provision for young people”, published in May 2008. A full public consultation was held on the contents of the White Paper, including the proposed name change, and we received a number of responses suggesting new names for pupil referral units.
The ministerial stakeholders’ group on behaviour and attendance, which includes representatives from the professional associations unions, school governance organisations and local authority organisations, was also consulted on the Back on Track proposals, as was the national organisation for PRUs, which held a survey on its website to identify popular names.
Once a shortlist of names was collated, schools in England who already use the potential new names were contacted by officials.
My officials have identified five schools in England called ‘Link’ or ‘Links’.
Pupils: English Language
[holding answer 9 February 2009]: The requested information has been placed in the Library.
Recycling: Education
Education about recycling in schools comes within the National Framework for Sustainable Schools which was launched in May 2006. The Department's spending on sustainable schools has been to date:
Financial year 2006-07: £600,000
Financial year 2007-08: £1,015,000
And we have forecast to spend in 2008-09:
Financial year 2008-09: £1,015,000.
Since 2006, the Department has provided support to schools by producing a Top Tips guide for reducing waste; a guide to Bursars which includes advice on waste minimisation and recycling which could save schools' money; and a Carbon Detectives' Kit (carbon footprint tool) which enables young people to investigate their school's sustainability performance and supports them in finding ways to improve it.
Investigations into waste and recycling are included in the Carbon Detectives' Kit.
School Meals
The Department does not collect this information.
However, the School Food Trust's (SFT) annual survey on school meals take-up in England provides information on take-up by region.
Usual method of calculation Change of provision 2007-08 2006-07 Percentage of 2006-07 Difference (percentage points) Primary North East 53.6 55.3 -3.1 -1.7 North West 46.4 44.9 3.3 1.5 Yorkshire/Humber 43.9 43.2 1.6 0.7 East Midlands 39.9 34.3 16.3 15.6 West Midlands 45.1 45.5 -0.9 -0.4 East of England 39.6 39.3 0.8 0.3 Inner London 57.4 56.9 0.9 0.5 Outer London 40.9 42.9 -4.7 -2 South East 33.8 28.0 20.7 25.8 South West 34.8 35.8 -2.8 -1 All primary 43.0 41.3 4.1 1.7 Secondary North East 40.1 38.8 3.4 1.3 North West 45.0 41.9 7.4 3.1 Yorkshire/Humber 36.8 37.1 -0.8 -0.3 East Midlands 34.3 34.9 -1.7 -0.6 West Midlands 36.9 36.0 2.5 0.9 East of England 33.8 35.1 -3.7 -1.3 Inner London 41.0 38.5 6.5 2.5 Outer London 39.9 39.3 1.5 0.6 South East 32.0 39.7 -19.4 37.7 South West 31.2 26.8 16.4 44.4 All secondary 37.6 37.7 -0.3 -0.1 1 The apparent 6 per cent. increase in take up in East Midlands is attributable to a difference in the reported value for take up in one LA from 17 per cent. in 2006-07 to 29 per cent. in 2007-08. In April 2008, the reported value for the same LA for 2006-07 was 44 per cent. suggesting that the original value of 17 per cent. may have been in error. Also, two LAs with take up lower than the national average reported in 2006-07 but not for 2007-08. 2 The apparent 6 per cent. increase in take up in South East is attributable to increases in take up of 5 per cent. and 6 per cent. in two of the largest LAs in South East. Once weighting is applied, these increases make a significant contribution to the regional average. 3 The apparent 8 per cent. decrease in take up in South East is attributable to different LAs reporting in 2008 and 2007, with one LA with higher than average take up reporting in 2007 but not 2008, and one LA with lower than average take up reporting in 2008 but not 2007. Also, an 8 per cent. drop in take up in the second largest LA in South East will have significantly affected the weighted average. 4 The apparent 4 per cent. increase in take up in South West is attributable to more survey responses in 2007-2008 (5 LAs) compared with 2006-2007 (3 LAs). Note: Base (unweighted): Primary: 97 (2007-2008); 86 (2006-2007), Secondary: 78 (2007-2008); 64 (2006-2007). Analysis: weighted by number of pupils attending schools catered for.
The full survey can be viewed at
http://www.schoolfoodtrust.org.uk/doc_item.asp? DocCatld=1&Docld=86
The SFT has also published partial take-up data at local authority (LA) level, in a technical paper "NI 52 - take up of school lunches" (December 2008) that discusses the impact of the introduction of the new national indicator for take-up of school meals (NI52). The first official NI52 data collection will be in April 2009. Following this, take-up data at LA level will be available in the summer of 2009.
Schools: Collective Worship
We have no plans to remove the requirement for a daily act of worship in schools.
Schools: Finance
Local authorities have been invited to bid to bring forward funding allocated at local authority level from 2010-11 to 2009-10. Their views have also been requested on bringing forward projects funded by Devolved Formula Capital (DFC) at school level. The decision on whether to bring forward DFC will be made in the light of these responses.
Schools: Standards
There is good progress towards meeting the National Challenge. In 2007 there were 631 schools where fewer than 30 per cent. of pupils achieved five A*-C grades including English and mathematics at GCSE. This figure has reduced to 440 on the basis of final published data which is a reduction of 191 schools. All schools below the threshold will receive bespoke support as appropriate from the National Challenge.
Our joint consultation with Ofsted on school-level indicators of well-being has just finished and we are currently considering responses before making final decisions on what the indicators will be. The next steps will be for Ofsted to trial the indicators and for this Department to work with Ofsted to develop an evaluation plan.
Science: Education
The Department for Children, Schools and Families has responsibility for the curriculum in England only; responsibility for the rest of the United Kingdom was devolved to the Scottish Parliament and the Assemblies for Wales and Northern Ireland.
The Government’s ambition is to create an education and training environment throughout the whole of England that delivers the best in science teaching and learning at every stage. To support this ambition we announced in January 2008 a £140 million strategy over the period 2008-11 to educate the next generation of scientists and mathematicians and help recruit and train more science and mathematics teachers. Much work is already under way to improve standards of science teaching and learning, including:
Raising attainment through the Secondary National Strategy;
Streamlining the curriculum to make it more manageable and focus on the key concepts of science, as well as its excitement and relevance;
Supporting 500 science and engineering clubs for pupils at key stage 3 with an interest and aptitude for science.
Providing additional incentives to recruit more high quality science graduates into science teaching.
Improving the quality of teaching by making available good quality continuing professional development through the network of Science Learning Centres, which we fund jointly with the Wellcome Trust.
Science: GCSE
The table shows the number and percentage of pupils achieving A*-G in physics, chemistry and biology by eligibility of free school meals in 2007.
Number achieving A*-G Percentage achieving A*-G Total number of pupils Physics 1,481 1.9 176,647 Chemistry 1,524 2.0 1— Biology 1,803 2.4 1— Double science 40,294 52.6 1— 1 Indicates brace Source: National Pupil Database
Data relate to pupils at the end of KS4 in maintained schools only.
Serbo-Croat Language: General Certificate of Secondary Education
No assessment has been made. Decisions as to which languages are offered are for awarding bodies to take in the light of demand.
Social Workers: Recruitment
Social workers are directly recruited by their employers. The Department for Children, Schools and Families does not collect information on how much employers spend on recruiting children’s social workers.
Special Educational Needs
Information on children in care is usually sourced from the Looked After Children database but this cannot be used to answer this question. However, data on pupils in care is also collected via the School Census and the latest information is shown in the table.
This census shows that there were 34,390 pupils aged five to 19 attending primary, secondary and special schools classed as being in care as at January 2008. Data published by the Department as SFR 23/2008: Children looked after in England (including adoption and care leavers) year ending 31 March 2008, shows 47,600 children aged between five and 19 as being looked after as at 31 March 2008. However the School Census does not cover all looked after children; information is not collected for pupils in alternative provision, including pupil referral units, FE colleges, voluntary provision and those not in education or training. These differences in coverage will explain the different counts to an extent, but it is possible that the School Census undercounts the number of looked after children in primary, secondary and special schools.
All pupils aged 5 to 19 Number of pupils who were eligible for free school meals and have statemented special educational needs Number of pupils who were eligible for free school meals and have non-statemented special educational needs Number of pupils who were eligible for free school meals and were children in care Number of pupils who had statemented special educational needs and were children in care Number of pupils who had non-statemented special educational needs and were children in care Number of pupils who were eligible for free school meals, had statemented special educational needs and were children in care Number of pupils who were eligible for free school meals, had non-statemented special educational needs and were children in care 2004 70,920 322,430 5,530 7,500 10,680 1,210 2,440 2005 66,290 321,920 5,760 7,530 11,340 1,170 2,590 2006 62,180 322,710 5,730 7,890 12,270 1,120 2,520 2007 59,410 326,310 5,590 8,600 13,630 1,120 2,510 2008 56,670 330,900 5,400 8,570 14,120 1,090 2,510 1 Includes primary and secondary schools and all special schools (excludes general hospital schools). 2 Includes dually registered pupils and boarding pupils. Note: Numbers have been rounded to the nearest 10. Source: School Census
The Government are implementing a comprehensive national programme to strengthen schools’ capacity to manage behaviour. This includes targeted support for schools, high quality training, curriculum materials and consultancy support. We have also strengthened the law to help protect schools from challenges to their authority from pupils or parents, and enable them to foster a safe and orderly learning environment.
We are encouraging schools to develop a whole-school approach to improving social and emotional wellbeing and continuing to reduce behavioural difficulties, by promoting the Social and Emotional Aspects of Learning (SEAL) Programme and by publishing guidance on the management of behaviour.
In this context, last May we issued revised guidance on the education of children and young people experiencing behavioural, emotional and social difficulties as a special educational need (BESD). We have also commissioned the National Strategies to provide a wide range of support and advisory services, including continuing a professional development scheme, which includes study materials on managing behaviour in schools and addressing BESD.
Special Educational Needs: GCSE
Four special schools are published in the Achievement and Attainment Tables showing more than 50 per cent. of pupils achieving five or more GCSEs in 2008.
These are:
Edington and Shapwick School, Somerset;
Mary Hare Grammar School, West Berkshire;
More House School, Surrey; and
Mark College, Somerset.
Special Educational Needs: School Leaving
We believe that all young people should participate in education or training until at least 18. Young people who stay on after 16 are more likely to gain higher levels of qualifications by 18 than those who do not and are less likely to commit crimes, behave antisocially or to suffer ill health. The Education and Skills Act 2008 introduced compulsory participation until 18 for all young people and this will ensure that the entire education system focuses on the needs of the all young people, including those with profound and multiple learning difficulties. It may be that the most suitable and appropriate provision for a particular young person would continue to be a special school, in which case this should be the key factor in determining where that young person receives their education.
There is a vital and continuing role for special schools as part of an inclusive education system, meeting young people's needs directly and working in much closer partnership with mainstream schools to build expertise throughout the system. The present Special Educational Needs statutory framework provides for children and young people with statements to be taught in mainstream schools where this is what their parents want and is compatible with the efficient education of other children. It also provides for parents to seek a special school place and to have this preference considered. If a young person with SEN remains at school after reaching age 16, the school and the local authority continue the SEN arrangements already in place, subject to further regular reviews. If a young person with SEN continues their education at a further education college the Learning and Skills Council has a duty to take regard of the young person's learning difficulties and disabilities.
The Children, Skills and Learning Bill creates the conditions for local authorities to assume responsibility for funding for learners with profound and multiple disabilities in 2010 and we believe this is the best way to develop a continuous system of support and provision from age 0-25.
Special Educational Needs: Teachers
The information requested is not collected centrally.
Special Guardianship Orders
(2) how many special guardianship arrangements have broken down in each of the last five years.
Information on the number of looked after children who ceased to be looked after as a result of a special guardianship order, in each local authority in each of the last three years ending 31 March 2006 to 2008,can be found in the following table.
Information on the number of special guardianship orders that have been made is only available for the last three years as they were first introduced on 30 December 2005. The figures for year ending 31 March 2006 only account for the last three months of the data collection year.
Information on the number of special guardianship arrangements that have broken down is not collected centrally by the Department.
Number 2006 2007 2008 England 70 750 1,100 North East 10 50 70 Darlington 0 — — Durham — 5 15 Gateshead 0 0 0 Hartlepool 0 0 10 Middlesbrough 0 — 0 Newcastle upon Tyne 0 5 — North Tyneside 0 — — Northumberland 0 5 15 Redcar and Cleveland 0 — 0 South Tyneside — 5 — Stockton-On-Tees 0 5 5 Sunderland 0 5 10 North West 10 130 220 Blackburn with Darwen 0 — — Blackpool 0 — 5 Bolton — — 15 Bury — 5 10 Cheshire 0 10 5 Cumbria — 10 10 Halton 0 0 5 Knowsley 0 — 10 Lancashire — 10 25 Liverpool 0 15 25 Manchester 0 10 25 Oldham 0 — 10 Rochdale — — — Salford 0 — — Sefton — 10 — St Helens 0 — 10 Stockport 0 0 5 Tameside 0 — — Trafford 0 0 — Warrington 0 — — Wigan 0 10 10 Wirral 0 15 25 Yorkshire and The Humber 10 50 80 Barnsley 0 0 10 Bradford 0 — — Calderdale — 5 — Doncaster 0 10 10 East Riding of Yorkshire 0 0 — Kingston upon Hull, City of 0 — 0 Kirklees — — — Leeds — 25 35 North East Lincolnshire — 0 0 North Lincolnshire 0 — — North Yorkshire 0 — — Rotherham 0 0 — Sheffield 0 0 5 Wakefield — 0 — York — — — East Midlands 30 60 Derby 0 — 10 Derbyshire 0 — 5 Leicester 0 — — Leicestershire 0 10 10 Lincolnshire 0 — — Northamptonshire 0 10 10 Nottingham 0 — 15 Nottinghamshire 0 — — Rutland 0 0 — West Midlands — 80 80 Birmingham — 10 25 Coventry 0 10 — Dudley 0 0 — Herefordshire 0 — 5 Sandwell 0 20 — Shropshire 0 0 0 Solihull 0 — — Staffordshire 0 20 20 Stoke-on-Trent — 10 — Telford and Wrekin 0 0 — Walsall 0 0 — Warwickshire — — 10 Wolverhampton 0 0 — Worcestershire 0 0 — East of England — 50 90 Bedfordshire 0 5 15 Cambridgeshire 0 — 10 Essex 0 10 20 Hertfordshire 0 15 10 Luton 0 — 5 Norfolk 0 0 — Peterborough 0 5 10 Southend-on-Sea 0 0 0 Suffolk — 10 10 Thurrock 0 0 5 London 30 170 270 Inner London 10 100 180 Camden 5 10 20 City of London 0 0 0 Hackney 0 10 25 Hammersmith and Fulham — 10 25 Haringey 0 5 20 Islington 0 10 5 Kensington and Chelsea 0 0 5 Lambeth — — 10 Lewisham 0 10 10 Newham 0 10 10 Southwark — 10 10 Tower Hamlets 0 15 15 Wandsworth 0 5 10 Westminster 0 — 15 Outer London 10 70 90 Barking and Dagenham 0 — 15 Barnet — — — Bexley 0 — — Brent — — 10 Bromley 0 — — Croydon 0 5 — Ealing 0 — 10 Enfield 0 — 0 Greenwich — 10 10 Harrow 0 0 — Havering 0 — — Hillingdon 0 — — Hounslow — 10 10 Kingston upon Thames 0 — — Merton — — — Redbridge 0 — 0 Richmond upon Thames 0 0 0 Sutton 0 — 10 Waltham Forest 0 — 10 South East 10 130 180 Bracknell Forest 0 — 0 Brighton and Hove — 5 10 Buckinghamshire — — 10 East Sussex 0 — 10 Hampshire — 20 30 Isle Of Wight 0 — — Kent 0 25 30 Medway Towns 0 5 15 Milton Keynes — 10 — Oxfordshire 0 5 15 Portsmouth 0 — 0 Reading 0 10 15 Slough 0 5 — Southampton 0 — 0 Surrey — 5 35 West Berkshire 0 — 0 West Sussex — 10 10 Windsor and Maidenhead 0 — 0 Wokingham 0 — 0 South West — 60 60 Bath and North East Somerset 0 5 — Bournemouth — — — Bristol, City of 0 10 10 Cornwall 0 10 10 Devon — 10 10 Dorset 0 — 0 Gloucestershire 0 5 5 Isles of Scilly 0 0 0 North Somerset 0 — — Plymouth 0 10 — Poole 0 0 — Somerset 0 — — South Gloucestershire 0 0 — Swindon 0 — — Torbay 0 0 0 Wiltshire 0 — — 1 Source: SSDA903 return on children looked after. 2 Only the last occasion on which a child ceased to be looked after in the year has been counted. 3 Figures exclude children looked after under an agreed series of short term placements. 4 Special Guardianship orders were introduced on 30 December 2005. Consequently figures for year ending 31 March 2006 only account for the last three months of the data collection year. 5 To ensure that no individual can be identified from statistical tables, we use conventions for the rounding and suppression of very small numbers. National figures have been rounded t o the nearest100 if they exceed 1,000 or to the nearest 10 otherwise. Numbers at local authority level have been rounded to the nearest five and numbers at region level have been rounded to the nearest 10. Numbers of five or less have been suppressed and replaced with a hyphen (—) except where the number is zero.
Steer Review
I am expecting Sir Alan to issue his latest report within the next three weeks.
My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, has asked Sir Alan to use this report to advise him on how to make school partnerships for improving behaviour and tackling persistent absence more effective; what more might be done to encourage early intervention and more consistent good practice in provision for pupils with special educational needs; and the links between pupil behaviour and school policies on learning and teaching.
Teaching Methods
£1.6 billion is being made available across 2008-11 for personalised learning and special educational needs (SEN). This money is not ring-fenced and schools are free to spend it in a way which best supports their individual needs. In October 2008 we launched “Personalised Learning—A Practical Guide” to provide support and guidance to schools in prioritising their spending.
Core strategies underpinning personalised teaching and learning include:
The Assessment for Learning Strategy to help schools improve and plan their Assessment for Learning (AfL) provision, underpinned by £150 million being made available to schools across 2008-11. Progress against strategy objectives and their impact is being monitored and driven forward in partnership with key agencies including the National Strategies (NS) and the QCA.
From September 2010, access to a named personal tutor for every secondary school pupil and their parents. The personal tutor will know them in the round and will normally be the first point of contact for parents to discuss a range of academic and pastoral issues with the school.
One-to-one tuition in reading, writing and mathematics, being introduced nationally from 2009 in Key Stages 2 and 3 and, in National Challenge schools, at Key Stage 4. One-to-one tuition is being rigorously evaluated as part of the Making Good Progress Pilot.
Focused support in reading, writing and mathematics through the Every Child a Reader (ECaR), Every Child a Writer (ECaW), and Every Child Counts (ECC) suite of programmes.
Public Service Agreements and national targets for 2011 have a dual focus on ensuring that pupils reach the levels expected for their age in both English and mathematics (threshold targets) and improving the rates of progress made by pupils from ages 5-16 (new progression targets), with increased attention to achieving faster progress for underachieving groups.