To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he expects to review the outcome of the pathfinder Money Guidance service announced in the 2008 Pre-Budget Report. (282604)

The pathfinder Money Guidance service, covering the North West and North East of England, launched on 14 April and will run until March 2010. On current plans, interim evaluation findings will be available in the autumn and evaluation will be completed in spring 2010. The Treasury will review interim and final evaluation findings to inform decisions on national roll-out of the Money Guidance service.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent representations he has received on the application of value added tax to fees charged for the repair and maintenance of listed buildings; and if he will make a statement. (282452)

The Government have had a number of representations on this matter and it continues to keep the impact of VAT on all building work under review.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer of 23 February 2009, Official Report, column 1193W, on the Caribbean: crime, what funding the UK provided for the establishment of the Drugs and Crime Task Force in Anguilla. (282273)

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has provided approximately £50,000 in funding for the establishment of the Drugs and Gun Crime Task Force in Anguilla.

The Drug and Gun Crime Task Force was established in 2006 by the Commissioner of Police in Anguilla. On the request of the government of Anguilla, the FCO provided co-funding for experienced, retired officers from the UK to train and mentor the task force following its inception. The task force is now fully funded by the Royal Anguilla Police Force.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer of 16 June 2009, Official Report, column 166W, on British Overseas Territories: young offenders, how many records on the Overseas Territories Regional Criminal Intelligence System relate to people trafficking offences. (282283)

There are 199 records held on the Overseas Territories Regional Criminal Intelligence System related to people trafficking.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer of 6 March 2009, Official Report, columns 1848-49W, on the British Virgin Islands: crimes of violence, how many of the crimes were committed against British tourists in each year. (282278)

The Royal Virgin Islands Police Force is responsible for the collation of crime statistics. However, they have advised that they do not routinely record crime statistics according to the victim's nationality or immigration status.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer of 9 March 2009 on the Cayman Islands: crimes of violence, how many of the crimes were committed against British tourists in each year. (282279)

I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my hon. Friend, the Member for Lincoln (Gillian Merron) the then Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, on 1 June 2009, Official Report, column 219W, which states that the Royal Cayman Islands Police Service do not record crime statistics according to nationality and are therefore unable to supply this information.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many breaches of information security there have been at (a) his Department and (b) its agencies in the last five years. (281055)

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) reports all significant personal data security breaches to the Cabinet Office and to the Information Commissioner. Information on personal data incidents is published on an annual basis in the Department's annual resource accounts as was announced in the Data Handling Review published on 25 June 2008. In 2008-09 the FCO recorded no major personal data incidents that required reporting to the Information Commissioner. Nine personal data incidents were centrally reported and recorded. In each case mitigating action was taken. Figures for 2007-08 were published in the last year's annual resource accounts. It is not possible to provide the details for previous years without incurring disproportionate cost.

Additionally, all significant control weaknesses including other significant security breaches are included in the Statement of Internal Control which is published within the annual resource accounts.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what activities have been undertaken by his Department's Euro Minister in that capacity. (277174)

The Government's policy on membership of the single currency remains as set out in my right hon. Friend the then Chancellor of the Exchequer's statement on the five tests assessment in June 2003. In principle, the Government are in favour of UK membership; in practice the economic conditions must be right. The determining factor is the national economic interests and whether, on the basis of an assessment of the five economic tests, the economic case for joining is clear and unambiguous. Euro Ministers are responsible for Euro preparations in their Department and attend Euro Ministers Steering Group meetings as necessary. However, meetings are held only when necessary to discuss practical preparations to ensure that a smooth changeover would occur if and when the five tests had been met.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions (a) he and (b) officials in his Department have had with the government of Egypt on the opening to cargo of the Rafah border crossing; and if he will make a statement. (282183)

[holding answer 25 June 2009]: It is vital that aid reaches the people in Gaza who need it. The UK has been consistent in its calls for better humanitarian access to the area. My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary has raised this issue on a number of occasions, most recently in his statement to the UN Security Council on 11 May 2009.

My predecessor, my hon. Friend the Member for Harlow (Bill Rammell) raised the issue of access through the Rafah crossing for humanitarian aid providers with the Egyptian Government when he was in Egypt on 21 May 2009. All aid to Gaza from Egypt is channelled through the Egyptian Red Crescent.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received of the recent unrest in Iran; and if he will make a statement. (282508)

Diplomatic and media reporting, based on eyewitness testimony, has highlighted the violent and unacceptable response by the Iranian authorities to peaceful and legitimate protests by the Iranian people.

Iranian state media reports say that more than 20 protestors have been killed. Other reports suggest that several hundred people have been arrested since the announcement of the result by the electoral commission on 13 June 2009.

Both my right hon. Friends the Prime Minister and the Foreign Secretary have made clear on a number of occasions that we deplore the violence against those who seek to protest peacefully, and that the media repression is unacceptable. And we have called on the Iranian authorities to investigate fully allegations that have been made about the election.

We continue to monitor the situation closely.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he is taking to ensure the security of staff in the British Embassy in Tehran. (282509)

The safety of our staff and their families in Iran is of paramount concern. We take our responsibility for their security and that of our embassy premises extremely seriously.

In response to the recent political unrest in Iran we changed our travel advice to advise against all but essential travel to Iran. As a consequence of this advice, we withdrew the dependents of our staff from Tehran on 23 June 2009.

We will continue to monitor the situation closely.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs with reference to Part 2, section 8, page 61 of the Government document, Pursue, Prevent, Protect, Prepare, published in March 2009, which countries have been assessed for counter-terrorism capacity; what funding has been provided to which countries under this initiative to date; how much his Department has budgeted for the project in the next three years; from what sources such funding will be drawn; and with which other Departments he has been working to deliver this project. (282512)

£127 million has been allocated to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s Counter Terrorism and Radicalisation Programme from 2008-09 to 2010-11. Work will be carried out in priority countries in the Middle East, South and South East Asia, and North and East Africa. Projects are designed to improve CT capabilities. We cannot provide budgetary details for specific projects or individual countries due to the sensitivity of some of the work.

In delivering the Pursue strand of the Contest strategy, we are working with a range of Departments and agencies, including the Ministry of Defence, intelligence and security agencies, Home Office and the Metropolitan Police Service, who also contribute their own resources to delivering Contest overseas.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when the Prime Minister's Special Envoy to Sri Lanka next plans to visit the country; and if he will make a statement. (281976)

My right hon. Friend the Member for Kilmarnock and Loudoun, (Des Browne) visited Sri Lanka from 4 to 7 May 2009 in his capacity as a Member of Parliament and as part of a cross party delegation. We are in contact with the Sri Lankan authorities to seek a mutually convenient opportunity for a further visit by a cross party delegation of MPs. Our intention would be for Mr. Browne to again take part.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with the Government of (a) Uganda and (b) Sudan in respect of the recent upsurge in violent activities by the Lord's Resistance Army in southern Sudan. (281966)

Officials at our High Commission in Kampala have had discussions with the Government of Uganda on Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) activity and stressed the importance of both continued regional cooperation to deal with the threat and protection of civilian populations from LRA attacks. Officials at our embassy office in Juba are also monitoring the situation closely and have raised the issue with other interested parties, including the UN.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what (a) private meetings and (b) public engagements Ministers in her Department have attended at which representatives from the think-tank Demos were present in the last 12 months; and if she will make a statement. (279486)

Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery. As was the case with previous Administrations, it is not the Government’s practice to provide details of all such meetings.

I can confirm that my predecessor, my right hon. Friend the Member for Stalybridge and Hyde (James Purnell) attended the following public engagements at which representatives from the think-tank Demos were present in the last 12 months.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what training courses have been attended by special advisers in her Department in the last 12 months; and at what cost. (279388)

Special advisers receive training as appropriate to enable them to fulfil their duties and responsibilities as set out in the “Model Contract for Special Advisers”.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps she is taking to provide relevant training to help back into employment those who became unemployed during the recession. (282451)

The Budget made an additional £2.8 billion available to DWP, on top of the £1.3 billion funding announced in the pre-Budget report, which will ensure that over the next two years we can continue to expand our support to jobseekers through the economic downturn. From early 2010 all 18 to 24-year-olds will be guaranteed an offer of a job (either a new job through the Future Jobs Fund or an existing job in a key employment sector), work focused training, or a place on a Community Task Force. The Future Jobs Fund—worth around £1 billion—will create 150,000 new jobs for long-term unemployed people and will contribute significantly to the guaranteed offer for young people.

The Government are investing £0.5 billion over two years to support people through an expanded range of work and training options, to provide jobs through recruitment subsidies, support to start a business, work-related training and volunteering opportunities. This support includes access to 75,000 new work-focused training opportunities to help customers significantly increase their skills in order to enter work. The training, delivered on a part-time or full-time basis, will support people in progressing towards a full qualification. This extra help was introduced on 6 April and is available to all those who have been out of work and claiming jobseeker’s allowance for six months or more.

In addition, in response to the current economic downturn, the Government have announced that:

Funding of £158 million has been made available through the European Social Fund for the Learning and Skills Council’s Train to Gain programme for people who are newly unemployed or facing redundancy to undertake training linked to opportunities in the local labour market.

Local Employment Partnerships (LEPs) have been made available to all claimants from day one of unemployment.

We have removed barriers to full time training making it easier for long-term unemployed people to get access to new skills in order to compete for the local jobs on offer. The Government have put the funding arrangements in place to enable jobseekers at the six month point in their claim to move to a training allowance in order to benefit from full time intensive training of up to eight weeks, designed to meet employers’ needs.

To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission what progress the Commission has made in its review of the performance of parliamentary IT systems; and how many times House of Commons IT systems have been shut down in the last 12 months. (281773)

The recommendations made in the Administration Committee’s report on Information and Communication Technology Services for Members (HC 498) are mostly completed. This has resulted in improvements being made to services and a clarification of the services offered.

PICT’s major three year programme of infrastructure renewal began in April 2008 and remains on track. Renewal of the core services of e-mail and MS Office are due for completion by autumn 2009.

The parliamentary IT systems have experienced partial outages on 10 occasions in the last 12 months, two of which were for upgrades to security patches.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many soldiers serving in Afghanistan since Operation Herrick began have returned from Afghanistan as a (a) single and (b) multiple amputee; and if he will make a statement. (260368) (260368)

[holding answer 3 March 2009]: I refer the hon. Member to the answer my right hon. Friend the Defence Secretary gave on 16 December 2008, Official Report, column 554W to the hon. Member for Romford (Andrew Rosindell).

We are currently reviewing the available information concerning amputations which have occurred as a result of Op Herrick, while ensuring that patient confidentiality is maintained. I will write to the hon. Member with the results of this review.

Substantive answer from Kevan Jones to Andrew Robathan:

The Academic Department of Military Emergency Medicine (ADMEM) at the Royal Centre for Defence Medicine, Birmingham, has recently begun to collate amputation statistics on a quarterly basis. Their records show that, between 1 April 2006 and 31 march 2009, a total of 51 UK Service personnel have suffered amputations due to injuries sustained while on operation deployment on OP HERRICK. These amputations can range from the loss of part of a finger or toe up to the loss of entire limb(s). There is no consolidated record of the number or nature of the amputations for each patient and that information could only be collated at disproportional cost.

Prior to 1 April 2006, comprehensive records were not held centrally and historic date could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

I hope this provides you with the information you require.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what procedures are followed when a breach of the rules of engagement in Afghanistan by (a) UK and (b) allied military personnel are reported; and if he will make a statement. (281678)

For UK armed forces personnel, standard military investigation procedures would be used to investigate a report that the rules of engagement had been breached. Other nations will have their own procedures which it would not be appropriate to comment on.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many military vehicles of each type were reported (a) stolen and (b) missing in the United Kingdom in each year since 1997. (281441)

The information requested is not held in the format requested. The following table provides the number of military vehicles reported to the MOD Police as stolen during the period from 1999-2009. Information is not available prior to 1999.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence which (a) sections of his Department and (b) non-departmental public bodies for which his Department is responsible have requested money saved from efficiency savings to be used for increased pay in their 2009 pay offers to staff. (282538)

Neither the main department nor those non-departmental public bodies who have their own pay arrangements have sought to use additional money saved from efficiency savings to increase pay in 2009.

I refer the hon. Member to the information published in the civil service pay guidance 2009-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the Answer to the hon. Member for New Forest East of 22 June 2009, Official Report, column 626W, on piracy, under what authority the Royal Navy seizes piracy equipment from suspected pirates. (282667)

Royal Navy vessels participating in counter-piracy operations are provided with detailed rules of engagement (ROE) setting out the measures they may take in relation to pirate vessels, including the seizure of suspected pirate vessels and equipment. These ROE are in accordance with international law, including the United Nations convention on the law of the sea (UNCLOS), and are kept under regular review.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what estimate his Department has made of the effect on employment of the decision by QinetiQ to relocate operations from the Hebrides Range to Aberporth Range. (282596)

The Hebrides and Aberporth Ranges are owned by the MOD and operated on its behalf by QinetiQ. The MOD proposes to relocate only trials control from the Hebrides Ranges to the Aberporth Ranges. Current levels of trials and training activity at the Hebrides Range are expected to remain broadly unchanged. Under the proposals up to 125 jobs would be lost at the Hebrides Ranges and up to 20 at the Aberporth Ranges.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make an assessment of the effects on the (a) economy and (b) society of the Western Isles of QinetiQ’s decision to relocate operations from the Hebrides Range to Aberporth Range. (282597)

The consultation documentation on the proposed changes involving the Hebrides and Aberporth Ranges, issued on 17 June 2009, contains Regional Socio-Economic reports on both the Western Isles and Ceredigion. It also contains a survey of the Regional Impact on Employment of the proposed changes to activities at Hebrides Ranges. This estimates that, in addition to the 125 direct job losses at the Range itself, there could be about 40 further induced or indirect job losses in the wider economy.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether his Department consulted (a) community representatives, (b) representatives of QinetiQ employees, (c) local enterprise agencies and (d) Comhairle nan Eilean Siar before QinetiQ’s decision to relocate operations from the Hebrides Range to Aberporth Range. (282598)

The MOD wrote to all major stakeholders for both the Aberporth and Hebrides Ranges in July 2007 outlining the study into the future of the ranges and the possible implications for the sites and workforce. Further letters were sent in June 2009 outlining the proposals and entering into a formal period of consultation which will conclude in August 2009.

A meeting has been held at ministerial level with the hon. Member for Na h-Eileanan an Iar. Offers were made to meet with the chief executive of the Comhairle nan Eilean Siar and other representatives. MOD officials have also met with the National Trust for Scotland and other parties with an interest in the island of St. Kilda on a number of occasions.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether his Department has had discussions with the Scottish Government on QinetiQ’s decision to relocate its operations from the Hebrides Range to Aberporth Range. (282599)

The MOD wrote to the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Sustainable Growth, John Swinney MSP, at the beginning of the study into the future of the Hebrides and Aberporth Ranges in July 2007 and to Minister for Europe, External affairs and Culture, Michael Russell MSP, in June 2009 on completion of the study to inform him of the decision in principle. There has also been informal contact at official level.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether the Hebrides Range is used for weapons testing by countries other than the UK. (282600)

Since the beginning of the Long Term Partnering Arrangement in 2003, under which QinetiQ operates a number of key test and evaluation facilities on behalf of the MOD, the following countries have used the MOD Hebrides Range for weapons testing and military training:

USA in 2003-04

Switzerland in 2005 (also scheduled to use the Range in 2010)

Germany in 2004-05 (also scheduled to use the Range in 2010)

Denmark in 2005 and 2007

Italy in 2003 (support role)

Netherlands in 2008 (Marines)

Sweden in 2007 and 2009.

NATO also uses the range annually.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether any munitions containing white phosphorus manufactured in the UK have been used in theatres of military operation against UK armed forces in the last 10 years. (280420)

This information is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how many pensioners in (a) Merseyside and (b) Crosby received a concessionary bus pass in the latest period for which figures are available. (282549)

The Department for Transport is not responsible for issuing passes and so does not maintain records of how many passes individual authorities have issued.

Merseyside and Crosby are part of the Merseytravel area. The last information held by the Department is that as of March 2009 Merseytravel had issued 307,132 passes to older and disabled people.

To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport pursuant to the answer of 8 June 2009, Official Report, column 704W, on the Channel Tunnel Intergovernmental Commission, who the UK representatives on the Intergovernmental Commission are; and how they were selected. (282585)

The UK delegation to the Channel Tunnel Intergovernmental Commission (IGC) currently comprises: Roy Griffins, Head of the UK delegation; Richard Clifton, Head of the UK delegation to the Channel Tunnel Safety Authority; Chris Whomersley, Foreign and Commonwealth Office; Tom Dowdall, Home Office; Herve Mathevet, HM Revenue and Customs; Linda Willson, Department for Transport; and Brian Kogan, Office of Rail Regulation (ORR). The delegation may be accompanied at meetings by expert advisers in relation to specific items on the agenda.

The Head of UK delegation, the Safety Authority representative, and the Office of Rail Regulation member are appointed by the Department following consultation with the Office of Rail Regulation. The Department also appoints its own representative. The remaining members of the UK delegation are nominated by the department or authority they represent.

To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport pursuant to the answer of 8 June 2009, Official Report, column 704W, on the Channel Tunnel railway line: fares, if he will request the Intergovernmental Commission to raise with Eurotunnel the level of track access charges through the Channel Tunnel, with particular reference to the implementation of his policy of encouraging (a) high speed passenger rail traffic and (b) international rail freight. (282586)

Under Article 12(1) of the Treaty of Canterbury of 1986, Eurotunnel are free, within the framework of national and Community law, to determine their commercial policy and tariffs.

It would be improper for the Intergovernmental Commission to consider any representation from the Department for Transport on this matter.

To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport pursuant to his answer of 18 June 2009, Official Report, column 427W, on the Channel Tunnel railway line, for what reason no recent assessment of the effect of track access charges on the potential growth of international freight through the Channel Tunnel has been made. (282587)

Any assessment of the effect of track access charges on the potential growth of international freight through the Channel Tunnel is a matter for Eurotunnel and the rail freight operators.

To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport if he will take steps to ensure that SNCF does not secure a disproportionate share of cross-Channel rail traffic. (282562)

It is for the rail operators to market their services to customers. As such the Department for Transport is not in a position to interfere in shares of cross-channel rail traffic.

To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport pursuant to the answer of 3 June 2009, Official Report, column 484W, on departmental billing, how much his Department’s non-departmental public bodies paid in interest under the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998 in the last three years. (282331)

One of the Department for Transport’s non-departmental public bodies, the Commission for Integrated Transport, incurred a cost of £91.13 (£50.00 late payment interest and a penalty charge of £41.13) in 2008-09 under the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998.

None of the Department for Transport’s other non-departmental public bodies paid interest under the Act for the last three years.

To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how many (a) directors, (b) senior managers, (c) specialist and delivery managers and (d) executive support and administration staff there were in each Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency office in each of the last five years. (280314)

The information requested has been placed in the Libraries of the House.

To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how many applications for driving licences were found to be supported by birth certificates which claimed to but did not relate to the applicant in each of the last five years. (281934)

The following table provides the number of applications for a driving licence, over the last four financial years, that were supported with a birth certificate that appeared not to relate to the applicant. These figures were not recorded before April 2005:

To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what consideration he has given to the merits of transferring High Speed 1 to Network Rail. (282561)

Having considered various options, on 1 March 2006, the Secretary of State for Transport announced that the best way of delivering continuing value for money for the taxpayer in relation to the Channel Tunnel Rail Link (since renamed High Speed 1) would be for there to be an open, transparent and competitive process. The Government are currently engaged in a restructuring of London and Continental Railways. Following this, it is the Government’s intention, as market conditions allow, to sell, via an open and competitive auction, a long-term concession for High Speed 1 in such a way as to maximise value for money for the taxpayer.

To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what plans his Department has to review (a) the compulsory basic training for moped riders and (b) the moped riding age. (281760)

The Driving Standards Agency is reviewing the current arrangements for training learner moped riders in line with the commitments in the Government’s Motorcycle Strategy and plans to consult later this year. We have no plans to change our current minimum age of 16 years for riding mopeds.

To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport which railway stations in the London Borough of Bexley have received financial support from his Department for the installation of step-free access since 1997. (282755)

Access for all small schemes funding of around £41,000 has so far been offered towards step-free access projects with a total value of about £86,000 in the Bexley Borough. This funding is being used to provide mobile access ramps at Purfleet; removal of steps to the entrance and widening of the footpath at Welling; a low gradient pathway to the platform at Barnehurst; and a dropped kerb at Bexley.

The latest application pack for Small Schemes funding, for projects to be delivered in 2010-11, is now on the Department for Transport website at www.dft.gov.uk/accessunder 'Rail' and we would welcome further applications.

To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how many road deaths there were in (a) London and (b) the London borough of Hillingdon in each of the last three years for which records are available; how many of those killed were (i) drivers, (ii) vehicle passengers and (iii) pedestrians; how many such deaths occurred in 30 miles per hour zones; and how many were attributable to excess speed. (281829)

The information requested is given in the following tables. Information on contributory factors is not available below Government Office Region level since the number of accidents is small and therefore it may be possible to identify individuals, so fatalities involving excess speed are not shown for Hillingdon.

To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport (1) how much funding his Department has allocated to the construction of highways in (a) Essex and (b) Castle Point in each of the last five years; (282148)

I refer the hon. Member to the reply that I have given him today (UIN 281849).

In addition to that answer, the following table provides information on what funding the Department for Transport has allocated to the creation of additional lines on highways in (a) Essex in each of the last five years. Information is not held centrally on funding that has been allocated to (b) Castle Point.

To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how much capital funding has been spent on roads in (a) Essex and (b) Castle Point in each of the last five years. (281849)

The following table provides information on how much capital funding has been spent on roads in (a) Essex in each of the last five years. Information is not held centrally on funding that has been allocated to (b) Castle Point constituency.

In addition, Ministers also announced on 29 March 2009 funding for three further community infrastructure fund schemes being promoted by Essex county council. No expenditure has yet to be provided to the following schemes:

New A12 Junction—£11.2 million

First Avenue Multi Modal Corridor—£3.58 million

A414 dualling—£9.9 million.

The Department for Transport also provides integrated transport block and highways maintenance funding to local transport authorities, which would include Essex county council. I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 23 June 2009, Official Report, column 773W, which provides the funding support provided to Essex county council in the last five years.

To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport pursuant to the Government’s further response, HC (2008-09) 422, to paragraph 132 of the Eleventh Report of the Transport Committee, Session 2007-08, HC 460, how many members the proposed independent expert panel on road safety will have; and what criteria will apply to the appointment of members to the panel. (282209)

[holding answer 25 June 2009]: The current consultation on a new road safety strategy includes a proposal to create a new independent expert panel to improve both the assessment of trends in road deaths and the scrutiny of road safety more generally.

It would be wrong to prejudge the consultation by discussing the details of the new panel before it is confirmed that such a body should exist. However, any such appointments would need to comply with the Code of the Office of the Commissioner on Public Appointments.

To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport pursuant to the Government’s further response, HC (2008-09) 422, to paragraph 156 of the Eleventh Report of the Transport Committee, Session 2007-08, HC 460, how many safety representatives from each mode will be a part of the cross-modal group; and who these representatives are. (282210)

[holding answer 25 June 2009]: The Transport Safety Group brings together policy officials from within Department for Transport working on aviation, shipping rail, dangerous goods and road user safety, along with colleagues from the Rail Accident Investigation Bureau, the Marine Accident Investigation Bureau and the Air Accident Investigation Bureau. Each area is typically represented by one colleague though there is no formal limit. Attendance will vary depending on the issues under discussion.

To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what estimate he has made of the average number of journeys per day by each mode of transport between London and destinations in Castle Point constituency in the latest period for which figures are available. (282862)

The requested information is not available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how many (a) directors, (b) senior managers, (c) specialist and delivery managers and (d) executive support and administration staff there were in each Vehicle Certification Agency office in each of the last five years. (279291)

The information requested on the number of Vehicle Certification Agency staff in each category has been placed in the Libraries of the House.

To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how much was paid in bonuses to (a) directors, (b) senior managers, (c) specialist and delivery managers and (d) executive support and administration staff in the Vehicle Certification Agency in each of the last five years. (281632)

The Vehicle Certification Agency (VCA) paid the following bonuses to (a) directors, (b) senior managers, (c) specialist and delivery managers and (d) executive support and administration staff in each of the last five years:

VCA chief executive is in addition to above and published in VCA’s annual report and accounts.

To ask the Minister for the Olympics how many full-time equivalent officials in her Office are working on (a) project management, (b) legacy planning, (c) project oversight, (d) financial oversight and (e) other matters relating to the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games; and what plans she has for future staffing levels in each case. (279813)

In my capacity as Minister for the Cabinet Office, the Olympics, London, Humanitarian Assistance and Paymaster General, my private office is currently staffed by a team of nine officials (of which there is one vacancy) and two special advisers (of which there is one vacancy). Between them they cover my full portfolio of responsibilities. This includes the project, legacy, financial and other functions for which my staff in the Government Olympic Executive (GOE) are responsible.

The GOE report to me through the permanent secretary of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. Their roles and future staffing plans are included in the answer to be provided by the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport.

To ask the Leader of the House if she will publish lists of all hon. Members who participated in each round of voting to elect a Commons Speaker on 22 June 2009. (282453)

No list of Members who voted in the secret ballot is compiled.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much funding his Department has allocated to (a) visual arts, (b) musical arts, (c) music festivals, (d) public art, (e) art galleries, (f) the development of local artists and (g) theatrical arts in (i) Mid Bedfordshire constituency and (ii) the East of England in each year since 1997; and if he will make a statement. (281703)

Arts Council England is the national development agency for the arts in England. It distributes public money from Government and the national lottery. Arts Council England advises that it has allocated funding as set out in the following tables.

Regularly Funded Organisations

Arts Council England’s portfolio of Regularly Funded Organisations (RFOs) is funded from grant in-aid. In Mid-Bedfordshire there are no RFOs.

Prior to 2002-03, the Regional Arts Boards were independent bodies and they maintained records according to their own systems and requirements. Consequently, limited compatible figures for the RFO portfolio are available for earlier years.

The Grants for the Arts Programme began in 2003-04. The Programme funds individuals, arts organisations and other people who use the arts in their work. The Grants for the Arts—Organisations strand has always been lottery funded (see next table); the Grants for the Arts—Individuals strand was funded from Grant-in-Aid until 2007-08, and has been lottery funded since then.

Figures are for all lottery-funded programmes that ran since 1997, including those organised by the Eastern Regional Arts Board, the Grants for the Arts—Organisations Programme, which began in 2003-04 and the Grants for the Arts—Individuals Programme, which became lottery-funded after 2007-08.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what guidance his Department has issued to (a) local government and (b) regional public bodies on developing the role of cultural and historical resources in local economies. (280270)

The Department has not issued guidance on developing the role of cultural and historical resources in local economies either to local authorities or regional bodies. These bodies are themselves better placed to understand and guide local decision-making.

The Department has however published a number of related statements. 'Lifting people, Lifting Places', published in May 2009, outlines how government can offer further support in the current economic climate, by developing employment opportunities in culture and the creative industries, measures to transform town centres and other approaches to building the new economy with culture and creativity at its heart.

‘Looking After Our Town Centres’, jointly published with DCLG in April 2009, identifies the best steps communities can take to keep town centres thriving.

DCMS is chairing a national group to address culture and sport within the Sub National Review and related Integrated Regional Strategies. The Department's four main NDPBs have been working together to deliver objectives under the Regional Strategies area of work. For example, NDPB offices in the North West region have prepared a joint response to the Integrated Regional Strategy.

DCMS's local government improvement programme published 'A Passion for Excellence: One Year On' in March 2009 as part of an ongoing project, to support local government as “leaders of place”, working with their local partners to deliver better outcomes, improve the quality of life locally and improve the delivery of cultural and sport services to local people. It can be found at:

http://www.culture.gov.uk/reference_library/publications/5948.aspx

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many of his Department’s staff at each grade have worked primarily on matters related to tourism in each of the last 12 years. (281274)

There are currently 10 officials in the Department for Culture, Media and Sport supporting Ministers to develop and implement tourism policy. Other officers in the Department are also working on public engagement in respect of tourism matters. However, it is not possible to give figures as the number of staff working primarily on tourism matters in previous year because no records are available.

Following the recommendations of the DCMS Capability Review, standard functions like finance and briefing were brigaded into central teams and a flexible project resource was created to respond to new demands arising in any of our sectors, including tourism. This leaves smaller but more focussed specialist teams working on individual sectors, supported by the new central teams.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport when he plans to publish his Department’s museums strategy. (282535)

The Department’s strategic agency for museums, the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council, will publish shortly a strategic action plan for England’s museums. This has been developed in consultation with museums and their representative bodies.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what proportion of Lottery funding has been allocated to organisations in (a) Essex and (b) Castle Point in each of the last five years; and which organisations received such funding. (282077)

I have arranged for a list to be placed in the libraries of both Houses, of organisations in Essex and Castle Point that received lottery awards in each of the last five years.

The following tables show the value of lottery grants awarded to organisations in Essex and Castle Point in the same years, along with the total amount of lottery grants awarded during those years.

These statistics come from the Department’s Lottery Grants Database. The Database is searchable at www.lottery.culture.gov.uk and uses information on Lottery grants supplied by the Lottery distributors.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what proportion of all Lottery funding available has been awarded to organisations in (a) Tameside and (b) Stockport in the last 12 months. (279767)

Out of £805,595,710 Lottery funding awarded between 11 June 2008 and 11 June 2009, £1,357,072 was awarded to organisations in the Tameside Local Authority area, and £670,680 to organisations in the Stockport local authority area.

The information is derived from the Department's Lottery Grant database which is searchable at www.lottery.culture.gov.uk and uses information supplied by the Lottery distributors.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport when his Department expects to receive recommendations from the Royal Parks Agency following the Agency’s recent consultation on the proposal to introduce car park charging in Richmond Park; and if he will make a statement. (281880)

The Royal Parks has had a very large response to its consultation on changes to the Park Regulations. The results are currently being analysed with the expectation that the Agency will make its recommendations to Ministers by the end of July. I will carefully consider the recommendations and I have already agreed to meet the hon. Member prior to making any decision.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many pensioners in (a) Chorley and (b) Lancashire had a free television licence at the latest date for which figures are available. (282082)

[holding answer 24 June 2009]: TV Licensing, which administers free television licences for people aged 75 or over as agents for the BBC, can provide breakdown only by postcode. However, according to the records from the Department for Work and Pensions, the number of households with at least one person aged 75 or over claiming the winter fuel payment in 2007-08 was in (a) Chorley, 5,450 and in (b) Lancashire 71,710. Figures for 2008-09 are still being compiled.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if he will make an assessment of the impact of changes in the budget of Visit Britain since 2007 on the (a) tourist industry and (b) economy. (281248)

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport requires its sponsored bodies to achieve value for money and VisitBritain’s Tourism Framework Review sets a new agenda for the industry to work effectively with other structures.

In partnership with the industry and the wider public sector, the DCMS has a clear and coherent policy framework for industry growth. This includes branding and marketing improvement led by VisitBritain; the National Tourism Skills Strategy; work across Britain to drive up product quality through accommodation grading schemes and the better co-ordination of the over £350 million a year of public money invested in tourism at national, regional and local levels.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much his Department plans to spend on encouraging international travellers to visit the UK during the London 2012 Olympics. (281276)

Between 2008-09 and 2010-11, VisitBritain has been allocated funding of around £130 million towards marketing and promotion.

VisitBritain is in the process of reviewing its Olympics Delivery Plan and intends to submit this to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport shortly.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many cases of cancer have been diagnosed in (a) Peterborough constituency and (b) England in each year since 2000. (281669)

The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.

Letter from Karen Dunnell dated June 2009:

As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking how many cases of cancer have been diagnosed in (a) Peterborough constituency and (b) England in each year since 2000 (281669).

The latest available figures for newly diagnosed cases of cancer (incidence) are for the year 2006. Numbers of newly diagnosed cases of cancer for the years 2000 to 2006 for (a) Peterborough constituency and (b) England are in Table 1 below.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office which (a) sections of her Department and (b) non-departmental public bodies for which her Department is responsible have requested money saved from efficiency savings to be used for increased pay in their 2009 pay offers to staff. (282540)

The Cabinet Office and the non-departmental public bodies for which it is responsible have not requested money saved from efficiency savings to be used for increased pay in their 2009 pay offers to staff.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the responsibilities of her Department’s Director of Digital Engagement are. (282042)

The director for digital engagement works across Government Departments to promote the use of digital technology to communicate with the public. He is responsible for implementing the recommendations of the Power of Information Taskforce and for the programme to create better access to government held public data.

He also chairs the Government’s Knowledge Council and is responsible for increasing the civil service’s use of internal digital tools to improve cross Government policy development and service delivery.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what recent assessment she has made of the effectiveness of provision to category 1 responders of assessments of critical infrastructure in their areas to enable them to assess vulnerability to flooding. (280480)

Arrangements were put in place in March 2008 to share information on critical national infrastructure with all local resilience forums (LRFs) in England. This information has been shared with LRFs to enable local risk assessment and generic planning, under the Civil Contingencies Act (2004); we will assess the results next year.

In the immediate future the natural hazards team is undertaking an assessment of the vulnerability of the critical national infrastructure to flooding and will be working with the relevant lead Government Departments, economic regulators and operators to reduce those vulnerabilities.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how much the Central Office of Information spent on (a) producing advertising and (b) buying advertising space as part of the Make Things Happen apprenticeships advertising campaign. (266498)

The information requested falls within the responsibility of the Central Office of Information. I have asked the Chief Executive to reply.

Letter from Mark Lund, dated June 2009:

As Chief Executive of the Central Office of Information (COI), I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question on the Make things Happen apprenticeships campaign (266498).

COI supplied details of costs incurred in the campaign as part of the response given to the hon. Member by the Learning Skills Council’s acting chief executive (30 March 2009, Official Report, column 871W). Copies of the letter sent to the hon. Member by the acting chief executive are available in the libraries of the House.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the (a) budget and (b) staffing level of her Department’s Regional Support Unit will be in 2009-10. (269897)