To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission how many requests for information relating to hon. Members have been received by the House authorities under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 since the inception of the Act; and of those how many requests have been (a) met in full, (b) met in part and (c) resisted in full, excluding those requests for information already released. (122869)

Since the inception of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 on 1 January 2005, the House has received 121 requests for information relating to hon. Members. The House’s log of FOI requests contains the following information about requests made up to 21 February 2007.

(a) In 29 cases, no exemption was applied and requests were met in full

(b) 15 were met in part

(c) 77 were not met.

To ask the Solicitor-General whether the Serious Fraud Office has received requests from representatives of the US Department of Justice for case files in relation to Al-Yamamah contracts. (124356)

The Serious Fraud Office has not received any requests from representatives of the US Department of Justice for case files in relation to Al-Yamamah contracts.

To ask the Solicitor-General whether investigations are being undertaken into allegations of false accounting by BAE Systems in connection with the Al-Yamamah contract. (124357)

Investigations are not being undertaken at this point into allegations of false accounting by BAE Systems in connection with the Al-Yamamah contract.

To ask the Solicitor-General whether meetings have taken place in the last 12 months between the Serious Fraud Office and representatives of the US Department of Justice concerning investigations into Al-Yamamah contracts. (124359)

The Serious Fraud Office has met with representatives of the US Department of Justice to discuss case related matters.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what (a) discussions, (b) correspondence and (c) email exchanges (i) he and (ii) his officials have had with (A) Ministers and (B) officials in the Home Office on immigration matters in North Wales during the past six months; when those exchanges took place; and what the outcome was of those exchanges. (123959)

My officials, the Under-Secretary of State and I, have very regular contact with Ministers and officials of the Home Office, on a range of matters which fall within the purview of the Home Secretary, including immigration, as they relate to Wales.

To ask the Secretary of State for Wales on what dates he has held meetings with Ministers in other Departments to discuss Welsh issues, broken down by Department. (123960)

In the course of business I discuss Welsh issues with colleagues on an almost daily basis. At many meetings with ministerial colleagues I discuss both Wales and Northern Ireland issues.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport whether the Government intend to proceed with a bill to give powers to knock down all or part of the Commonwealth Institute. (122677)

[holding answer 23 February 2007]: We have encouraged the Commonwealth Institute to work with English Heritage on a listed building consent application which we understand they hope to submit to the Royal borough of Kensington and Chelsea later this year. We have no plans to introduce a bill that will give powers to demolish all or part of the buildings on the Commonwealth Institute site.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what databases are controlled by her Department and its agencies; and what percentage of the data in each database she estimates are inaccurate or out of date. (124036)

The only databases controlled by my Department are internal systems used to support standard business processes such as correspondence and public inquiries. My Department also collates national lottery award information from the distributors and publishes an extract on the internet.

I cannot provide information on data accuracy save at disproportionate cost.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what funding her Department makes available to community radio. (124199)

The Department has made £500,000 available for each year from 2004-05 to 2007-08. Decisions beyond this period will be considered as part of the comprehensive spending review. The community radio fund is managed by Ofcom.

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (1) what the expected cost to the public purse is of state support to people on benefits for digital switchover. (107905)

[pursuant to his reply, 9 January 2007, Official Report, c. 493W]: I regret that in my previous answer the figure of £228 million given for the cost to the BBC to support Digital UK for the period of digital switchover was incorrect. The correct figure is £216 million. The full correct response to your questions is as follows—

In addition to meeting its costs for the upgrade of the transmission network for digital switchover, the BBC will meet Digital UK’s communication costs and a share of Digital UK’s operational costs. The cost to the BBC to Support Digital UK amounts to £216 million for the period of digital switchover. In addition, the BBC will also fund the digital switchover help scheme for people 75 or over or who have a significant disability. Our best estimate at this stage is that the cost of the scheme will be at or around £600 million over the period of switchover.

There are no central estimates of the overall cost to Government of digital switchover. However, other than the costs of updating television equipment within the Government sector, the only costs will be those incurred for research, communications and other programme support costs for the Digital Switchover Programme.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the shared priorities for policing UK airports between the British Transport Police and geographical forces are; and what consultation he has held with stakeholders on such priorities. (123265)

UK airports are policed by the relevant local force. The British Transport police has no remit or powers for policing UK airports.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he expects the free national off peak bus travel scheme for pensioners to be introduced; how it will be funded; and who will be responsible for administering the scheme. (124192)

The Concessionary Bus Travel Bill, which is currently before Parliament, provides for a national bus travel concession for older and disabled people in England. This would be introduced in April 2008, in line with the Chancellor's announcements in the 2006 Budget. For those eligible, it will guarantee free off-peak local bus travel anywhere in England, rather than within the local authority area of residence as at present.

The Government are making available additional money of up to £250 million to fund this improvement. We are confident that this will be sufficient to cover the total additional cost to local authorities.

Local authorities and Passenger Transport Executives will be responsible for administering the new concession when the Concessionary Bus Travel Bill comes into force. The Bill does, however, contain a power allowing the Secretary of State to change the tier of local government which has travel concession authority responsibilities. There is also a power allowing the Secretary of State to administer the scheme centrally. No decision on any use of these powers has yet been taken.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the answer of 21 November 2006, Official Report, column 37-8W, on the Dartford Crossing, what further modelling and analysis has been carried out on projected usage of the Dartford Crossing and the proposed Thames Gateway Bridge (a) since the evidence which was presented to the Thames Gateway Bridge Inquiry and (b) since the announcement of a public consultation on possible changes to the Dartford Crossing tolling regime. (124094)

The Department for Transport reassessed the evidence presented at the Thames Gateway Bridge Public Inquiry to help inform funding decisions. Since the inquiry, no further modelling has been carried out by the Department on either the Thames Gateway Bridge or the Dartford Crossing.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when the negotiations on the forthcoming Post Office contract renewal with the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency are expected to be concluded. (124622)

The DVLA Commercial team is at an advanced stage of negotiations with the Post Office for the renewal of the motor vehicle licensing (and other services) contract at the Post Office.

A heads of agreement letter has been exchanged between the two organisations and negotiations are expected to be concluded within the next few weeks.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when the new contract between Post Office Ltd and the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency to issue car tax discs in post office branches will commence. (124623)

The new contract between the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) and Post Office Ltd. to issue car tax discs in post office branches will commence on 1 April 2007.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many people were killed in (a) rail crashes and (b) road crashes in each of the last 10 years for which figures are available. (124646)

The information requested has been published by the Department on its website in (a) table 8.9 for rail crashes and (b) table 8.2 for road crashes of Transport Statistics Great Britain: 2006 edition'. These tables can be found at the following web address:

http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/statistics/datatablespublications/tsgb/2006edition/sectioneighttransportacciden1846

A copy of this publication is also available in the Libraries of the House.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what criteria are considered when making a decision about how much spare capacity needs to be available on a Virgin Pendolino train for it to stop at Milton Keynes station. (124292)

Many Pendolino trains already call at Milton Keynes Central station and will continue to do so; only those in the core peak period to and from London do not carry London commuter traffic. Any increase in capacity that might be provided to the Pendolino fleet could only be justified with the continued growth of long distance intercity business.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what surveys his Department has undertaken on the views of commuters on the FGW Link services; and if he will publish the results of those surveys. (123549)

The Secretary of State for Transport has not undertaken surveys on the views of commuters on the services within the First Great Western franchise formerly operated by First Great Western Link. Passenger surveys are undertaken by Passenger Focus. The results of the latest National Passenger Survey were published on 29 January 2007.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what modelling work (a) has been and (b) continues to be undertaken by his Department on train passenger numbers and service usage (i) on commuter services and (ii) on commuter services serving Twyford, Maidenhead and stations on the Henley and Bourne End branch lines. (123552)

Demand was assessed in 2004 while preparing the Greater Western franchise specification. Future likely passenger demand is being assessed at a strategic level as part of the work to scope the High Level Output Specification, which is to be published in July.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many deaths of (a) cyclists, (b) motorbike riders and (c) car drivers in 2006 were attributed to the condition of the highway or road on which the accident occurred. (124250)

2005 is the most recent year for which the information requested is available.

In 2005, there were (a) seven pedal cyclist fatalities (b) 23 motorcycle rider fatalities (c) 113 car driver fatalities resulting from personal injury road accidents in which “poor or defective road surface”, “deposit on road” or “slippery road” was reported as a contributory factor by the attending police officer.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the timetable is for the UK’s implementation of EU Directive 2004/52/EC. (124351)

The Road Tolling (Interoperability of Electronic Road User Charging and Road Tolling Systems) Regulations 2007, SI 2007/58, were laid before Parliament on 17 January and came into effect on 12 February. These regulations transpose the technical requirements of article 2(1) of directive 2004/52.

The Government will bring forward any necessary draft legislation to implement the requirements of article 3 of the directive once the appropriate Commission Decisions have been taken in accordance with article 5(2) of the directive. In accordance with article 3(4) of the directive, these Decisions shall have effect three years after the date of the Commission Decisions for goods vehicles and five years after that date for cars.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many applications there were for trust port status in each of the last 10 years; and what the status is of each application. (124297)

Since 1998 the Department has received one application for trust port status, currently being considered, from Exeter city council.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list the trust ports in the United Kingdom; and when the last such port was established. (124298)

A list of trust ports in the UK is contained in our publication “Focus on Ports” a copy of which is on the Department’s website at: http:// www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/statistics/datatablespublications/maritime/focusonports/focusonports2006a?version=1 and is being placed in the Library of the House. No trust port has been established in the past 10 years. To obtain information on the most recent trust port to be established would involve disproportionate cost.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether he plans to extend the duty of care towards an animal for which a person is responsible under section 9 of the Animal Welfare Act 2006 to birds of prey used in fox hunting; and if he will make a statement. (124146)

Under the Animal Welfare Act 2006, the duty to ensure welfare applies to all vertebrate animals for which someone is responsible.

Those intending to use birds of prey for fox hunting must first assess whether the welfare of the bird is likely to be compromised when used for such purposes.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will introduce legislation to phase out the use of animals in circuses. (124133)

In March 2006, I announced that I intend to introduce regulations under the Animal Welfare Act 2006 to ban the use, in travelling circuses, of certain non-domesticated species whose welfare needs cannot be satisfactorily met in that environment.

A Circus Working Group has been formed to assist us in forming a decision on which non-domesticated species should be banned from travelling circuses.

The group has set up three specialist sub groups to source and review available scientific evidence. This includes an academic sub-group drawn exclusively from scientists and veterinarians. The working group as a whole will then provide a report setting out the findings to DEFRA Ministers. We hope to have draft regulations available for full public consultation during 2007, with the aim of bringing them into force in 2008.

Any ban will only apply to travelling circuses. Zoo performances, performances in the audio visual industry and performances in static circuses will not be affected. We have no plans to ban the use of domesticated animals from performing in travelling circuses.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whom he expects to represent his Department at the Vaccination: a tool for the control of avian influenza conference in Verona on 20 to 22 March 2007. (124157)

Officials from DEFRA’s Exotic Disease Prevention and Control Division and Veterinary Exotic Diseases, Research and Official Controls Division will be attending.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) what material is included within his Department’s definition of commercial waste; (123194)

Commercial waste is defined in section 75 (7) of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 and regulation 6 of and schedule 4 to the Controlled Waste Regulations 1992 (S.I. 1992 No. 588) as

“waste from premises used wholly or mainly for the purposes of a trade or business or the purposes of sport, recreation or entertainment”.

This definition excludes household waste, industrial waste, agricultural waste and waste from any mine or quarry. Examples of the waste that the definition includes are: office waste, restaurant or bar waste, shop waste, leisure centre waste and warehouse or site waste. However, this list is not definitive.

According to the latest survey carried out by the Environment Agency in 2002-03, around 30 million tonnes of commercial waste was produced by England in that year. Of this total, approximately 52 per cent. was landfilled; 34 per cent. was recycled; 6 per cent. was re-used and 3 per cent. was incinerated with energy recovery.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what percentage of mining and quarry waste was (a) landfilled, (b) recycled, (c) incinerated and (d) re-used in the latest period for which figures are available. (123197)

The latest information¹, show an estimated 96.5 million tonnes of mineral waste arisings in the UK in 2004.

Non-mineral waste from mines and quarries was included as a ‘controlled waste’ only when the Waste Management (England and Wales) Regulations 2006 (S.I. 2006 No. 937) came into force on 15 May 2006. Data on the total waste arising from mines and quarries and its disposal routes, are therefore not available.

The Waste Management Regulations apply the same national waste management controls to non-mineral waste from mines and quarries that have long applied to other sectors of industry.

In addition, implementation of the EU Mine Waste Directive will require operators to provide more information regarding the likely volume of waste they produce and how this will be managed.

¹ Based on the production data in the UK Minerals Year Book 2005, published by British Geological Survey, in combination with Defra mineral production to mineral waste ratios.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) what materials are included within his Department’s definition of industrial waste; (123198)

Industrial waste is defined in section 75 (6) of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 and regulation 5 of and Schedule 3 to the Controlled Waste Regulations 1992 (S.I. 1992 No.588). It includes waste from any factory and from any premises occupied by an industry (excluding mines and quarries).

According to the latest survey carried out by the Environment Agency in 2002-03, around 38 million tonnes of industrial waste was produced in England in that year. Of this total, approximately 38 per cent. was land-filled; 37 per cent. was recycled; 12 per cent. was re-used and 3 per cent. was incinerated with energy recovery.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what percentage of construction and demolition waste was (a) landfilled, (b) recycled, (c) incinerated and (d) re-used in the latest period for which figures are available. (123200)

According to the latest data available¹, the total construction and demolition waste produced in England in 2005 was estimated at 89.6 million tonnes.

Of this, 52 per cent. was recycled and a further 17 per cent. was spread on exempt sites (usually land reclamation, agricultural improvement or infrastructure projects). The remaining 31 per cent. was sent to landfill (including backfilling at quarries, and landfill engineering) as waste.

¹ Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG): Survey of Arisings and Use of Construction and Demolition Waste as Aggregate in England: 2005

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what discussions he has had with his colleagues in the Department of Trade and Industry about the inclusion of grid electricity low carbon milestones in the Energy White Paper. (123881)

The Government are taking forward the development of the policy proposals set out in the Energy Review Report. Discussions on a wide range of subjects have taken place at the ministerial and official levels between my Department and the Department of Trade and Industry.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate he has made of the proportion of flood defences in need of significant maintenance. (123664)

The Environment Agency (EA) is the principal authority with responsibility for flood risk management in England. The EA keeps records of the condition of flood defences that it maintains, together with the condition of defences maintained by third parties where they contribute to protecting communities.

Across England, 4 per cent. of these defences are in poor or very poor condition and 44 per cent. are in a fair condition. Significant maintenance will be required on the majority of these defences in the medium term. All defences, even those in good condition, require maintenance to ensure that they continue to provide an appropriate standard of flood risk reduction.

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what his Department’s estimate is of the (a) solar photovoltaic and (b) solar hot water needed to deliver a 10 per cent. carbon emissions reduction in an average UK house. (124443)

The average UK household emits around 1.6 tonnes of carbon per year. 10 per cent. savings from solar photovoltaic (PV) would require 12 square meters of panels, costing around £6,000 to install. The same savings from solar water heating would require around 7.5 square meters, costing typically £4,500.

The annual savings from 12 square meters of solar PV panels would be worth £136 per year (not including any revenue from Renewable Obligation subsidies, or any maintenance costs). The annual savings from 7.5 square meters solar water heating panels would be around £88 per year.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what the (a) outcomes and (b) outputs have been of the money his Department has spent in Afghanistan for reconstruction and development since the invasion; and if he will make a statement. (122767)

DFID spent £390 million on reconstruction and development in Afghanistan between April 2001 and March 2006. We plan to spend a further £102 million in 2006-07. DFID has a performance management and reporting system in place to assess the outcomes of our work, although there are well-recognised issues with attribution of development spending. Specific outputs are identified for every DFID project at design stage. These are monitored and reported against on an annual basis, as well as at project completion. Project reporting feeds into annual country level reporting and divisional level reporting, and finally into the departmental report. This is presented to Parliament every year. The relevant sections of the departmental reports for 2001 to 2006 illustrate the achievements of our Afghanistan programme.

DFID now puts over 50 per cent. of its funding through the Government of Afghanistan’s national budget via the World Bank managed Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund (ARTF). This supports the Afghan Government in delivering its own priority outputs and outcomes. Since 2002 DFID has channelled £235 million through the ARTF. This has helped the government to deliver essential public services: for example through the timely payment of over 100,000 teachers' salaries each month. DFID has led the development of a performance assessment matrix for the ARTF. This will further improve the monitoring of outputs and outcomes of spending through the national budget.

Other achievements since 2001 which are attributable to combined donor-government efforts include: the number of functioning health clinics has increased by 60 per cent.; 72 new hospitals and clinics have been built; £16 million vaccinations have been administered against childhood diseases, saving an estimated 35,000 lives; over 13,000 primary and secondary schools have been reconstructed; school enrolment has quadrupled; and nearly six million Afghan children are now in school, a third of them girls. Since 2003 economic growth has averaged over 10 per cent. per annum (8 per cent. in 2006-07) and private investment has risen from $22 million to over $400 million. GDP per capita has increased from $182 per capita in 2002 to $335 per capita in 2006, and government fiscal revenue has risen almost five-fold in the same time period: from around $115 million per annum to around $520 million per annum.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what the (a) salaries and (b) bonuses were of each member of the Board of Directors of the CDC Group plc. in each of the last seven years; and what the (i) salaries and (ii) bonuses of each of the managing partners of Actis was in each year since 2004. (121930)

The fees of the chairman and the non-executive directors of CDC are set in agreement with government in accordance with the guidelines for public appointments of this type. The remuneration committee of the board, consisting of the non-executive directors, sets the remuneration of the Chief Executive Officer, within a framework agreed with the government.

Details of fees, salaries and bonuses paid to directors of CDC are published in the Director’s Remuneration Report of the CDC Annual Report and Accounts for each year since 1999. The 2006 Report has not yet been published and the remuneration figures are therefore not yet available.

The remuneration of Actis Managing Partners is governed by the terms set out in the Actis ‘Members’ Agreement,’ the document that details how the business is to be run and its governance arrangements. The remuneration committee of the board, consisting of certain non-executive directors, sets the remuneration of the managing partners, within a framework that has been agreed with the government.

The Actis annual accounts for the years 2005 and 2004, which are available from Companies House, provide details of how much is earned by the partner with the highest entitlement to the share of Actis profits. Further details of the total remuneration of Actis Managing Partners are confidential under the terms of the Members Agreement.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will make a statement on the International Convention for the Protection of All People from Enforced Disappearance. (121927)

I have been asked to reply.

The UK welcomes this new convention. We hope it will be an important tool in preventing enforced disappearance in the future.

The UK was active throughout the negotiations to draft the convention, and we supported its adoption at both the UN Human Rights Council and the UN General Assembly. At the adoption of the convention the UK made an interpretative statement clarifying our understanding of certain provisions, including what constitutes an enforced disappearance, the application of obligations under international humanitarian law and the procedures applicable to the adoption and placement of children whose parents had been subject to an enforced disappearance. This statement can be found at:

www.fco.gov.uk/ukmisgeneva.

I will send a copy of the statement to the hon. Member and also arrange for a copy to be placed in the Library of the House.

The Government now need to conduct a detailed analysis of the provisions of the treaty and their implications for implementation in order to determine the UK's position towards ratification, including whether we would need to make any reservations. We understand that 57 states (including 10 member states of the European Union) have so far signed the convention. The convention requires 20 states to ratify in order to enter into force.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what items valued at above £100 were reported as stolen from his Department's buildings or premises in the last 12 months. (121976)

The items reported as stolen from DFID's offices over the last 12 months are as follows:

£2,722 cash from Helmand office;

£289 cash from Nigeria office;

one mobile phone.

In the case of both cash losses, investigations were carried out, and in one case an individual was dismissed.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps he is taking to meet the millennium development goal of universal primary education by 2015 for children in conflict-affected fragile states. (123697)

There is no agreed global list of conflict affected fragile states, nor fragile states. We do have a list of ‘fragile states’ which we are reviewing, as countries frequently move in and out of fragility and conflict, and political circumstances in a country can rapidly change. DFID defines fragile states as those where the government cannot or will not deliver its core functions—the delivery of basic services, provision of safety and security, capable management of public resources, and control over its own territory. DFID's list of fragile states is based on the countries in the bottom quintiles of the World Bank's country policy and institutional assessments from 1999-2003. Detail on DFID's current definition and list of fragile states can be found in DFID's policy paper, “Why We Need to Work More Effectively in Fragile States”, page 7 and annexe 1, which is available in the House of Commons Library.

DFID's commitment to work more in fragile states is clearly stated in the 2006 White Paper. The UK has also announced its intention to provide £8.5 billion over the next 10 years to support education and this will include support for fragile states. This long term commitment will support the development and implementation of education sector plans aimed at meeting the education goals including in fragile states.

DFID's bilateral programmes are already supporting education in fragile states. For example, in Afghanistan some 40 per cent. or £15 million of our support to reconstruction went to education last year. In addition, through the Education for All Fast Track Initiative's (FTI) Education Programme Development Fund (EPDF) there is the capability to support fragile states to get them on-track with education sector plans. The FTI is now piloting capacity building support for Haiti, Liberia, Somalia and Burundi through the EPDF. The UK-led FTI fragile states task team has been created to examine how the FTI can increase its support for fragile states.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what aid the UK is providing to the Government of Guinea in 2006-07; and if he will make a statement. (123850)

DFID is providing £750,000 in humanitarian and rehabilitation assistance to Guinea in 2006-07. It is being provided through international partners and agencies and is focused on a range of preventative humanitarian activities, including support to refugees, assisting people affected by conflict, monitoring of the food security position, and supporting an emergency immunisation programme.

We have also recently agreed to provide £500,000 over three years from the Africa Conflict Prevention Pool to support civil society working to promote emerging democratic governance in Guinea.

The UK also provides financial support through the European Union and multilateral agencies. The UK’s estimated contribution through these agencies was £6.4 million in 2004.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what discussions are taking place in the EU regarding the distribution of the recently agreed aid package to Guinea; and if he will make a statement. (123851)

The UK welcomes the efforts of the European Union and regional leaders to help negotiate a peaceful solution in Guinea. The EU has expressed its concern that the recent restrictions on freedoms, especially on radio broadcasts, constitute a step backwards in the undertakings given by the Government of Guinea during the consultations under Article 96 of the Cotonou Agreement in December 2006, under which the EU agreed to release funds from EDF9. The EU is continuing to monitor the situation closely, and has reaffirmed its support for the process of democratisation and strengthening of the rule of law, particularly the holding of parliamentary elections in June 2007.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what discussions have been held with (a) the World Bank and (b) the African Development Bank regarding emergency aid to Guinea; and if he will make a statement. (123853)

The World Bank and the African Development Bank (ADB) are not providing emergency assistance to Guinea, but both are providing development assistance. ADB support is focused on improving governance, especially in the area of public resource management, basic education and rural infrastructure. The World Bank is revising its Country Assistance Strategy, and currently supporting work in community development, rural infrastructure including electrification, education, transport, health, and HIV/AIDS.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what role his Department plays in combating human trafficking in the countries to which the United Kingdom provides aid. (124502)

Poverty and social exclusion make people vulnerable to human trafficking. DFID's purpose is to support long-term programmes to help eliminate the underlying causes of poverty. Our programmes help improve the livelihood opportunities and security of poor people so that they are less susceptible to traffickers.

DFID also supports the anti-trafficking work of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) through its special action programme to combat forced labour and the international programme on the elimination of child labour. Over £14 million is currently committed to ILO and civil society programmes in south-east Asia.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much UK Government funding was allocated to educational facilities and activities in (a) Iraq and (b) Afghanistan in each year since 2001. (121615)

DFID’s main support to the education sector in Afghanistan is through the Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund (ARTF). This plays a big part in meeting in meeting the recurrent costs such as wages and salaries of teachers and school materials. ARTF resources cover 90 per cent. of the Ministry of Education’s wage bill and teachers’ salaries represent almost 40 per cent. of ARTF recurrent expenditures. DFID funds a third of these expenditures. The total UK contribution to ARTF to date is £223.7 million ($425.2 million). In addition, we gave limited support (£47,000) for primary education of refugees in 2001-02.

In Iraq, our support to education has been channelled through the International Reconstruction Fund Facility for Iraq (IRFFI). In 2004, we contributed £70 million to the multi-donor trust funds managed by the United Nations and the World Bank, which provide assistance in key areas including education. IRFFI projects have rehabilitated schools, provided essential text books, and trained Iraqi teachers. For more information on these funds please consult www.irffi.org.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what the projected spending on educational programmes by his Department is for each year until 2015. (123251)

The UK Government have committed to spending some £8.5 billion between 2006-07 and 2015-16 in support of education in developing countries. The Prime Minister has committed the UK to spending £1 billion a year on bilateral and multilateral support to education by 2010, which represents the doubling of education spend from 2005-10. It is expected that most of our partner countries will receive additional funding for education. The overall increases for 2008-09 to 2010-11 will be decided when the comprehensive spending review for 2007 has been concluded later this year.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how his Department monitors progress towards the UN Millennium Development Goals on education; and if he will make a statement. (123350)

Monitoring progress towards the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), including those on education (MDGs 2 and 3), is the responsibility of the United Nations (UN), and DFID uses their official assessments. The recently published UN “Millennium Development Goals Report 2006” is a comprehensive account of progress to date on each of the goals, and how great an effort remains necessary to meet them. This report is published by the Department of Economic and Social Affairs of the UN Secretariat and is based on a master set of data that has been compiled by an Inter-Agency and Expert Group on MDG indicators.

The authoritative source of global education data is the Education for All (EFA) Global Monitoring Report (GMR) which contains data from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) Institute for Statistics. This report is published annually and reports on progress towards the EFA goals set out in the 2000 Dakar Framework for Action.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will make UK development assistance to (a) India and (b) Pakistan conditional on the enforcement by those governments of laws prohibiting bonded labour. (124486)

The UK's development assistance is not conditional on a single issue but depends on a shared commitment to three principles: reducing poverty and achieving the millennium development goals (MDGs); respecting human rights and other international obligations; and strengthening financial management and reducing corruption.

Our partnerships with both countries are firmly based on these principles, including working with the governments to ensure that all the human rights obligations implicit in the MDGs are met.

India's constitution provides a strong framework for promoting the rights of all its citizens. The Bonded Labour Systems Act of 1974 marked the abolition of bonded labour, the bonded labour system and bonded debt. The legal courts and the National Human Rights Commission have since taken clear positions against bonded labour.

The UK and Pakistan signed a 10-year Development Partnership Arrangement (DPA) in November 2006. The DPA is built around a shared commitment to pursuing the three principles outlined above. The government of Pakistan (GoP) has declared bonded labour illegal. The UK is working with the GoP to combat child labour by piloting the provision of cash transfers to parents whose children enrol in, and attend, school.

Therefore we do not see a case for interrupting our development assistance to either country.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps are taken to ensure that projects funded by his Department to fight specific diseases in developing countries do not take (a) resources and (b) medical staff away from those countries’ general healthcare infrastructure. (122761)

DFID uses a range of approaches and aid instruments to fight specific diseases in developing countries according to the country situation. The preference within the bilateral programme is to provide budget support or pooled funds to support the implementation of countries’ own health plans. Such approaches provide flexible and long term support to fund trained staff, essential medicines and the costs of delivering broad based health services.

In more difficult settings where DFID supports large disease specific programmes it encourages the delivery of integrated packages of care, for example adding distribution of bednets, micronutrients, and other vital treatments to immunisation programmes.

The challenges are greater in multilateral investments where DFID channels funds through others, for example the Global Fund to fight AIDS, TB and Malaria or the GAVI Alliance. DFID encourages these groups and others to buy into national plans and use national delivery systems where possible. The aim is to minimise the negative effect of projects that may divert funds, staff and effort to specific health issues at the expense of broader services. In response to such concerns GAVI has established a health systems funding window to support the infrastructure needed to deliver sustainable health systems and the Global Fund model is evolving with the recent contribution to the pooled health sector fund in Mozambique.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much funding his Department provided for the Skills for Development programme in each year since 2000. (123099)

DFID has provided funding of up to £5.4 million for the Skills for Development programme.

The following table shows the funds allocated in each year since 2000.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much money from the public purse (a) his Department and (b) its agencies gave to (i) the Smith Institute and (ii) its subsidiary SI Events Ltd in each year since 1997; and for what purpose each payment was made. (123092)

Since 1997 neither organisation has received any payments from DFID.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what support his Department provides to reproductive health programmes in South Asia. (123040)

In India, DFID has committed £252 million to the second Reproductive and Child Health Programme (RCH2) from 2006-11. This includes a major component of family planning and other reproductive health services, and gives priority to the poorest States. In addition, DFID’s support to health in the four focus states (West Bengal, Orissa, Andhra Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh) includes significant support for reproductive health services.

In Bangladesh, DFID has committed £100 million for a period of five years (2006-11) to the government-led Health Nutrition and Population Sector Programme. Reproductive Health is a central element of the programme’s essential service delivery component. DFID is also proposing a five year commitment to a United Nations maternal and neonatal programme targeting up to 47 million people, and focusing on improving maternal health services particularly for poor and excluded people.

In Pakistan, DFID has committed £7.5 million over five years (2003-07) to a joint reproductive health commodities social marketing programme with United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). DFID has committed £68.5 million, including technical assistance, between 2002 and 2006 for the National Health Facility, of which approximately £41 million is for reproductive health services. This national programme includes family planning; female health workers whose role includes providing community based family planning, and some population welfare which includes reproductive health. DFID’s £90 million support to the maternal and newborn health programme 2006-11 includes reproductive and maternal health initiatives.

In Nepal, DFID funds the national safe motherhood programme (£20 million from 2005 to 2010). DFID provided £11 million for family planning commodities through the UNFPA between 1997 and 2006.

To ask the Leader of the House what databases are controlled by the Privy Council Office; and what percentage of the data in each database he estimates is inaccurate or out of date. (124043)

The Privy Council Office controls a database for records management purposes and, separately, the Office of the Leader of the House of Commons has one correspondence database which is managed via a service level agreement by the Cabinet Office IT provider and Domain Technologies. To the best of my knowledge 100 per cent. of the data in each database is accurate and up to date.

To ask the Leader of the House if he will make a statement on the future role of Church of England bishops in the House of Lords. (124309)

Paragraph 6.22 of the White Paper ‘The House of Lords: Reform’ (Cm 7027) explains that the special representation of the Church of England in the House of Lords should continue. This is in line with the conclusions of the Wakeham Commission that:

“While there is no direct or logical connection between the establishment of the Church of England and the presence of Church of England bishops in the ‘second chamber’, their removal would be likely to raise the whole question of the relationship between Church, State and Monarchy, with unpredictable consequences.”

To ask the Leader of the House pursuant to the answer of 23 February 2007, Official Report, column 979W, on House of Lords reform, whether the elected members of the House of Lords would have the same freedom as hon. Members to make representations on behalf of their constituents. (124296)

Members of the House of Lords are not there to represent constituencies. Paragraphs 6.8 to 6.15 of the White Paper ‘The House of Lords: Reform’ (Cm7027) explains that one of the key principles that should underpin a reformed House is the complimentary nature of the House of Lords. The House of Lords should not duplicate the functions of the House of Commons.

To ask the Leader of the House what guidance he has given to Government Departments on unanswered parliamentary questions in the last 12 months. (123116)

Departments were reminded at the end of last Session to clear all outstanding questions before the House prorogued. I now regularly monitor the performance of Departments and where and when appropriate have from time to time drawn Ministers’ attention to the importance of adhering to the targets laid down for answering questions.

To ask the Prime Minister if he will make it his policy to invite the House to vote on whether hon. Members are made Knights or Dames for services to Parliament; and if he will make a statement. (124266)

No.

To ask the Prime Minister whether there have been any instances of a change in Government policy on the basis of a e-petition on the Downing Street website; and whether the most popular e-petitions are brought to his personal attention. (123782)

To ask the Prime Minister how many of the petitions on his e-petition website have led to a review or change in Government policy or practice. (124299)

I refer the hon. Members to the press briefing given by my official spokesman on 12 February 2007. A transcript of this is available on the No. 10 website http://www.number-10.gov.uk/output/Page10962. asp and a copy has been placed in the Library of the House.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much (a) attendance allowance and (b) disability living allowance was underpaid in each year since 2001. (118801)

The administration of attendance allowance and disability living allowance is a matter for the chief executive of the Disability and Carers Service, Mr. Terry Moran. He will write to the hon. Member with the information requested.

Letter from Terry Moran, dated 28 February 2007:

You asked the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much (a) attendance allowance and (b) disability living allowance was underpaid in each year since 2001.

The Minister for Disabled People, Anne McGuire MP, promised you a substantive reply from the Chief Executive of the Disability and Carers Service.

The information requested is not available for Attendance Allowance. For Disability Living Allowance information is only available for 2004-05 and is contained in the DWP Information Directorate's publication, “Fraud, Error and other Incorrectness in Disability Living Allowance—The results of the Benefit Review of Disability Living Allowance”. A copy has been placed in the Library.

I hope you find this information of use and I am sorry I cannot be more helpful.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people had the maximum default rate of non-dependent deduction applied to them due to non-disclosure of the income of non-dependents in each of the last five years. (118813)

The information is not available.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people received housing benefit and the disability premium in each quarter since 2001. (122065)

Information on housing benefit recipients with a disability premium is only available annually. The available information is in the table.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the 10 most common reasons were for stopping provision of (a) income support and (b) contribution-based jobseeker's allowance for people without accommodation in each of the last five years; and how many people had such provision stopped for each reason in each year. (123176)

The information is not available.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people aged between 25 and 50 years were claiming jobseeker's allowance in each month since 1992. (124439)

The available information is in the following tables.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what proportion of lone parents in (a) England, (b) London and (c) West Ham constituency were on income support when their youngest child is aged 16 years old in the last period for which figures are available. (122955)

The information is not available.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how the flat rate accrual amount of £72.80 proposed for the state second pension in Schedule 2 to the Pensions Bill was calculated. (118722)

The initial figure of £72.80 for the flat rate accrual amount is the equivalent of £1.40 a week in earnings terms. This figure will be re-valued in line with average earnings during a working life and with prices in retirement.

In coming to this figure we have ‘smoothed’ the accrual amounts; this radically simplifies the current system where for around the next twenty years, state second pension accruals would have been set at different levels for younger and older workers. Over the next forty years our reforms are broadly cost neutral and people’s pensions will build up in a straightforward way that they will find easier to understand.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many letters to his Department sent from hon. Members during Session 2005-06 remain unanswered, broken down by those which are (a) one, (b) two, (c) three, (d) four and (e) over six months old. (114615)

All correspondence received into my Department during the parliamentary Session 2005-06 have been replied to.

There is no outstanding correspondence.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what databases are controlled by his Department and its agencies; and what percentage of the data in each database he estimates are inaccurate or out of date. (124030)

Information in the form requested is not readily available and could be compiled only at a disproportionate cost. The Department has approximately 300 databases ranging in size from the most sophisticated (SAP and Oracle) to the simplest (MS Access). The Department is currently in the process of rationalising these databases and it is therefore likely that many will be retired within the next 12-18 months.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much money from the public purse (a) his Department and (b) its agencies gave to (i) the Smith Institute and (ii) its subsidiary SI Events Limited in each year since 1997; and for what purpose each payment was made. (123093)

Neither organisation has ever received any direct payments from the Northern Ireland Office.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what progress has been made on reinstating devolved government in Northern Ireland. (122440)

Elections to the Northern Ireland Assembly will occur on 7 March. It is the Government’s hope and expectation that this renewed mandate will, under the terms of the Northern Ireland (St. Andrews Agreement Act) 2006, pave the way for the successful restoration of the devolved institutions on 26 March.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what provision is in place to ensure equity of access within the extended schools programme for pupils attending rural schools. (123614)

The extended schools programme has been targeted at children and young people who are disadvantaged, marginalised or have the most limited access to current services. It has therefore been necessary to establish selection criteria in order to identify the most disadvantaged schools as follows:

post primary schools drawing 51 per cent. or more of pupils from neighbourhood renewal areas and 30 per cent. most disadvantaged wards;

nursery, primary, special schools located in these areas and, as a safeguard, any school not qualifying above but with a free school meal entitlement of 37 per cent. or more and in the case of nursery schools an income based job seekers allowance percentage in excess of 37 per cent.

Using this qualifying criteria almost 500 schools have been identified for Extended Schools funding of which 113 (23 per cent.) are located in rural areas.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many visits Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Prisons (HMCIP) made to prison establishments in Northern Ireland in each of the past five years; and which such establishments HMCIP visited over that period. (123456)

Her Majesty’s Chief Inspectorate of Prisons (HMCIP) has visited prison establishments in Northern Ireland a total of seven times in the last five years as follows:

Since 2004, HMCIP inspections have been carried out with the Criminal Justice Inspectorate of Northern Ireland.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many times he met local councils in Northern Ireland between January 2006 and January 2007. (123800)

I have met with many local council representatives in Northern Ireland as part of my duties including visits to Banbridge, Fermanagh and Limavady councils between January 2006 and January 2007.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what discussions he has had with the Home Secretary on housing prisoners from England and Wales in Northern Ireland. (123502)

There have been no discussions between my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland and my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary about this issue.

The National Offender Management Unit for England and Wales did make an initial informal inquiry of the Director of the Northern Ireland Prison Service as to the availability of Maze prison. He advised that Maze was no longer part of the NIPS estate, but belonged to the Office of the First Minister and Deputy First Minister and no further approaches were made to NIPS.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what percentage of prison places in Northern Ireland were occupied in each of the past five years, broken down by prison establishment. (123503)

As the prison population and the available accommodation vary on a daily basis, an average annual percentage figure would be unrepresentative. To provide a more accurate picture, statistics from establishments have been selected for the weeks beginning April and October of each year for the last five years.

These figures do not however fully reflect the level of cell-sharing, as some areas of accommodation are reserved for specific categories of prisoners such as females or life sentence prisoners.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what he estimates the cost will be to the public purse of the payments to community restorative justice schemes in Northern Ireland in the year ending April 2008. (123803)

There is no dedicated budget in 2007-08 to fund community-based restorative justice schemes’ activities. However, schemes who seek accredited status will be free to apply for funding, in the same way as any other voluntary or community organisation, from existing funding sources where they meet the appropriate grant criteria.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what plans he has (a) to pilot and (b) to introduce a road pricing scheme in Northern Ireland; and what research his Department has undertaken in relation to the feasibility of such a scheme in Northern Ireland. (123494)

The Chief Executive of Roads Service (Dr. Malcolm McKibbin) has written to the hon. Lady in response to this question.

Letter from Dr. Malcolm McKibbin, dated 1 March 2007:

You recently asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland a Parliamentary Question regarding what plans he has to (a) pilot and (b) introduce a road pricing scheme in Northern Ireland; and what research his Department has undertaken in relation to the feasibility of such a scheme in Northern Ireland. As this issue falls within my responsibility as Chief Executive of Roads Service, I have been asked to reply.

The Secretary of State has made it clear that he wants Northern Ireland to be fully engaged in the road pricing agenda.

In Great Britain, officials in the Department for Transport are considering legislative proposals to be taken forward in a draft Road Transport Bill. The Bill would reform the existing powers of local authorities in England and Wales to introduce pilot road pricing schemes. It would give greater freedom to local authorities to implement schemes whilst ensuring that schemes in different places are consistent and interoperable. Pilot schemes could tackle congestion where it is already a problem, or predicted to be, and could support the Government's work to explore the potential for a national system of road pricing.

Northern Ireland roads legislation does not at present contain any powers enabling the introduction of road pricing or road pricing pilot schemes. However, Roads Service officials are currently liaising with their counterparts in the Department for Transport to determine whether it would be appropriate to introduce similar legislative provision to Northern Ireland either through the proposed Road Transport Bill or by a separate Order in Council.

Turning to the matter of research, Roads Service officials have been actively involved in the development of the Department for Transport's Road Pricing Feasibility Study and in the outworkings of Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs’ Lorry User Charging proposals. We continue to monitor developments in road user charging in England and Wales.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many of his Department’s civil servants work full-time to support departmental special advisers; and what the salary is of each such civil servant. (106504)

Two civil servants currently work in support of my special advisers, one supporting NIO work, the other, the work of the Northern Ireland Departments. They are paid on the B2 pay band range from £20,869 to £28,620.

I apologise for the lateness of this answer which was due to an administrative oversight.

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland pursuant to the answer of 5 February 2007, on “on the runs”, what measures the Government are considering to deal with “on the runs” other than further legislation or an amnesty. (121773)

None. As I explained in my previous answer to the hon. Member for North Down, the Government continue to accept that the position of “on the runs” is an anomaly, and we believe that the anomaly will need to be addressed at some stage. However, the Government do not have any current proposals for doing so.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills on how many occasions his Department has been represented at a meeting of the Missing Persons Strategic Oversight Group since May 2004; and on what dates this occurred. (124097)

[holding answer 28 February 2007]: The establishment of a Missing Persons Strategic Oversight Group was a recommendation of the Nove Review of the Police National Missing Persons Bureau in 2005, which proposed the establishment of a permanent oversight group drawn from statutory bodies and the voluntary sector. The group is chaired by the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) and supported by the Home Office.

DfES fully recognises the importance of the group’s work and we are represented on it by officials, as part of our continuing commitments to cross-Government liaison on runaways and missing persons matters.

There have been two official group meetings, in March and November 2006. DfES attended in November. An ‘extraordinary’ meeting in April 2006 enabled us to catch up on issues from the March meeting.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the sickness rates for children and family court advisory and support services practitioners in (a) public law and (b) private law were in each of the last three years. (122548)

[holding answer 22 February 2007]: This is a matter for the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (CAFCASS). Anthony Douglas, the chief executive, has written to the hon. Member with this information requested and a copy of his reply has been placed in the House Library.

Letter from Anthony Douglas, dated 22 February 2007:

I am writing to you in response to Parliamentary Question 122548.

PQ 122548—To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, if he will give details of the sickness rates for children and family court advisory and support services in both public law and private law in each of the last five years.

CAFCASS does not have sickness absence rates broken down between different staff groups, such as private law practitioners and public law practitioners. The sickness absence rates for the entire CAFCASS workforce from 1 April 2004 are detailed in the table below. The figures represent the level of working days lost in each financial year, expressed as a percentage of total working days.

Data on sickness absence prior to 2004 have not been included because the data collection systems were not robust enough to enable reliable information to be collected.

A copy of this reply will be placed in the House Library.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills (1) how many independent schools there were in each year since 1997; (123184)

Figures provided here relate to pupils of compulsory school age (aged five to 15). Pupils aged 15 on 31 August will become 16 during the school year.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how much each independent music service provider received from his Department for the purpose of providing music education in each year since 1997; and if he will make a statement. (123857)

The Music Standards Fund (MSF) has been paid to local authorities since 1999/2000. Local authorities are responsible for procuring music services for their schools with this funding and some choose to do this by contracting with independent music service providers. Information is not held centrally on which authorities use these services.

In addition to the MSF, the Music and Dance Scheme provides funding for music education and training through the Aided Pupil Scheme at four independent specialist boarding schools and new national grants available at nine regional centres for advanced training (£12.5 million in 2006-07). The money includes outreach/partnership grants for working with state schools. From 2006/07, we will be providing additional funding to strengthen these partnerships.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what guidance is in place in relation to a child who runs away from their home local authority area into another authority area. (124095)

[holding answer 28 February 2007]: It is a statutory responsibility for every local authority children's services to safeguard children in their area, including runaways, and local authorities have a duty to promote co-operation between all those who work with children.

Government issued ‘Children Missing from Care and Home—a guide to good practice’ in tandem with the Social Exclusion Unit's report ‘Young Runaways’, in 2002. This includes information for local authorities and their partner agencies on responding both to children in care who go missing from their placements and also to children who go missing from their homes. This guidance states that where runaways from one area present themselves in another local authority area, it will be important that the “receiving” authority negotiates with their “home” authority so that, if necessary, these children can be linked back into appropriate services that are local to their families.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills (1) what assessment he has made of the document “Towards Greater Understanding: Meeting the needs of Muslim pupils in state schools” produced by the Muslim Council of Britain and launched by the Chief Advisor for London Schools on 21 February; (123790)

The Muslim Council of Britain sent a draft copy of the document to the Secretary of State last autumn. The Secretary of State has made no specific assessment or endorsement of the document and there is no expectation on schools to adopt any of the specific recommendations made by the Muslim Council for Britain. Government believe that all schools have an ethos which encourages social responsibility, high aspirations, good citizenship and mutual understanding; and that schools recognise the cultural and faith needs of all pupils.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills pursuant to the answer of 20 February 2007, Official Report, columns 709-10W, on secondary education: curriculum, (1) what steps he expects schools to take to evaluate the effectiveness of any innovative curriculum plan they adopt; (123300)

It is for schools to decide the way in which they will evaluate the effectiveness of any innovative curriculum plan they undertake. All school activities are subject to inspection by Ofsted, and one of the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority's specific responsibilities is to monitor the curriculum and to report on developments in the national curriculum subjects.

There are a number of key elements of the curriculum that have stood the test of time and which will remain at the forefront of what the next generation learn. For example:

in English, children will continue to read classical literature and will study Shakespeare and pre-20th century writers;

in history, they will continue to learn about the importance and impact of events in the last century, such as the world wars and the holocaust;

children will continue to learn to read music and will be taught about classical traditions;

in science, children will continue to learn about energy, electricity, reproduction, astronomy and space; and

in maths, we have retained statistics, algebra, geometry and equations, while putting more emphasis on the use of maths to solve real problems.

The recent changes to the science curriculum at Key Stage 4 give teachers more flexibility to communicate the excitement of science. The new Key Stage 3 science curriculum has been reviewed to complement the key Stage 4 programme of study so that science teaching for all age groups is integrated and engaging for pupils. There are no plans to change the format of the Key Stage science programme of study.

Cross-curricular themes will not be a statutory requirement of the revised secondary curriculum. It will be for schools to decide how best to deliver the new curriculum to meet the needs of pupils.

The guidance for teachers which will help them track the progress of their pupils, including how well they have grasped the key concepts and skills in each curriculum subject, will be developed by the QCA with input from other experts. There are no plans for a consultation on the guidance.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills pursuant to the answer of 20 February 2007, Official Report, columns 709-10W, on secondary education: curriculum, in what way removing overlap and highlighting connections between subjects will create time for teachers to personalise their teaching. (123301)

Eliminating overlaps between subjects allows scope for teaching key concepts and themes such as sustainability and diversity across the whole curriculum.

Reducing the amount of overly detailed factual content in the curriculum will free up time in the school timetable. Schools and teachers can use that time to give more lessons in English and mathematics to pupils struggling with the basics, and to give opportunities for other pupils to extend their learning in areas in which they have particular interests and aptitudes. This moves us away from a one-size-fits-all curriculum to one that offers more flexibility to tailor teaching to pupils' needs and aspirations.