To ask the Minister for Women and Equality what discussions on age discrimination against children and young people in the provision of goods, facilities and services Ministers and officials in the Government Equalities Office have held with (a) non-governmental organisations and (b) UK children’s commissioners since 2005. (221125)

The Government Equalities Office was established on 12 October 2007. Prior to this date the Discrimination Law Review Project was the responsibility of the women and equality unit in the Department of Communities and Local Government. Since 2005, Ministers for women and equality have met the Children’s Rights Alliance for England on two occasions; one of those meetings was attended by a group of young people. In late 2006, the women and equality unit hosted a roundtable discussion on children and young people, which was attended by non-governmental organisations and the children’s commissioners for England and Scotland. During the consultation period for the Equality Bill, the Children’s Rights Alliance for England organised a consultation event on behalf of the women and equality unit. Officials also met the Children’s Rights Alliance for England in August 2007 and the children’s commissioners for England and Scotland in March 2008.

To ask the Minister for Women and Equality what written representations concerning age discrimination against children and young people in the provision of goods, facilities and services Ministers and officials in the Government Equalities Office have received from (a) non-governmental organisations, (b) UK Children’s Commissioners and (c) members of the public since 2005. (221126)

The consultation paper on proposals for the Equality Bill, “A Framework for Fairness”, signalled that the Government was considering the case for prohibiting age discrimination in the provision of goods, facilities and services and for a single public sector duty extended to cover age. Over 4,000 organisations and individuals responded to the consultation, of which over 700 addressed the issue of prohibiting age discrimination in the provision of goods, facilities and services and over 50 of these responded specifically on the issue of children. The list of organisations that responded to the consultation is available on the Government Equalities Office website.

To ask the Minister for Women and Equality how many refuges for women and children have a dedicated indoor play area for children. (221654)

The Government do not hold information centrally on the number of refuges for women and children which have a dedicated indoor play area for children.

Decisions about the provision of refuge spaces and what these should contain are a matter for local authorities, but we would expect them to build services based on the needs of their communities.

To ask the Minister for Women and Equality how many days leave the chair of the Commission for Racial Equality took in (a) 2005, (b) 2006 and (c) 2007. (220721)

The chair of the Commission for Racial Equality (CRE) was Trevor Phillips from February 2003 until November 2006 and Kay Hampton from November 2006 until the CRE became part of the Equality and Human Rights Commission on 1 October 2007. The Equality and Human Rights Commission has not inherited records from the CRE about leave taken but it is clear that the chair was entitled to 24 days annual leave, in addition to public holidays and two and half privilege days per annum.

To ask the Minister for Women and Equality what measures are in place in the Government Equalities Office to monitor expenditure on alcohol for hospitality purposes. (219585)

Expenditure from the Government Equalities Office’s official hospitality account is monitored internally by its finance team and externally by the National Audit Office. It is also subject to internal audit. The GEO’s directors and deputy directors (six in total) can claim for alcohol purchased for official events and functions.

To ask the Minister for Women and Equality what purchasing process is used by the Government Equalities Office for the procurement of alcohol for hospitality purposes. (219935)

The directors and deputy directors (six in number) of the Government Equalities Office can claim expenses for alcohol purchased for hospitality at official working lunches and business gatherings. The reimbursement of these is dependent upon the provision and scrutiny of detailed receipts. Such reimbursement is subject to official departmental limits. Since the GEO was established on 12 October 2007 one such claim has been made.

To ask the Minister for Women and Equality how many individual domestic air flights were undertaken within Great Britain by representatives of the Government Equalities Office since its creation; and at what cost. (215564)

Since its creation on 12 October 2007 the Government Equalities Office has paid for one domestic flight for a member of its staff. This was a return flight to Glasgow and cost £246.40.

To ask the Minister for Women and Equality how many contracts the offices now comprising the Government’s Equalities Office awarded to consultants in 2006-07; how many contracts went out to tender in 2006-07; what the value of each was; and which contracts were not put out to tender. (219633)

[holding answer 17 July 2008]: The Government Equalities Office was established on 12 October 2007. It has taken over responsibility for equality issues from a number of different teams and Departments, including: the Disability Rights Commission Sponsorship team, based in 2006-07 in the Department for Work and Pensions; the Commission for Racial Equality Sponsorship Team, based in the Home Office in the first part of 2006-07, then transferred to the Department of Communities and Local Government; the Women and Equality Unit, based in the Department for Trade and Industry until May 2006, then in Communities and Local Government; and lawyers from DTI and HO, who transferred to CLG in May 2006. To answer the question accurately would therefore require investigation of records that are widely dispersed in a number of different Departments and locations and this could be done only at disproportionate cost.

To ask the Minister for Women and Equality on how many occasions she visited (a) Scotland, (b) Wales and (c) Northern Ireland in an official capacity in the last 12 months. (204386)

The Minister for Women and Equality visited Scotland once in February 2008 and Wales once in March 2008

To ask the Minister for Women and Equality what percentage of paper used (a) for photocopying and (b) in printed publications by the Government Equalities Office has been from recycled sources. (220736)

In the Government Equalities Office (GEO) all of the paper used for photocopying contains 100 per cent. recycled content. All GEO’s publications are printed on paper containing a minimum of 75 per cent. recycled fibre content. This is in line with the mandatory ‘Buy Sustainable—Quick Wins’ minimum environmental product standards developed by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

To ask the Minister for Women and Equality how many and what proportion of staff in the Government Equalities Office have received bonus payments since the office was established; what the total amount of bonuses paid has been; what the largest single payment has been; and if she will make a statement. (213280)

Since the establishment of the Government Equalities Office on 12 October 2007, 26 staff (32 per cent. of work force) have received special bonus payments. The total amount of special bonuses paid was £11,700, with the largest single payment being £1,000.

To ask the Minister for Women and Equality what steps the Government Equalities Office has taken to monitor the cost of its mail services since its establishment. (221476)

The Government Equalities Office (GEO) was established on 12 October 2007. Since then it has been based in Department of Communities and Local Government (CLG) buildings and CLG have been providing mail services for GEO as part of wider rental agreements. CLG monitor these mail services and are concerned to minimise costs. For example, all post is sent second class.

To ask the Minister for Women and Equality how many reviews of regulation the Government Equalities Office has conducted or commenced since its establishment, and in which areas. (215629)

The Government Equalities Office has carried out a far-reaching review of the entire discrimination legislative framework in the Discrimination Law Review. We announced the headline results last month, and published a comprehensive response on 21 July (The Equality Bill: Government Response to the consultation). The Equality Bill to streamline and strengthen discrimination law, decluttering the current complexity of legislation and guidance.

To ask the Minister for Women and Equality what the standard retirement age in the Government Equalities Office is; and how many people worked beyond the standard retirement age since the Office’s inception. (214136)

Until the Government Equalities Office agrees its own set of terms and conditions its staff are on loan from other Departments and they, therefore, work under the terms and conditions they agreed with in their parent Departments. However the majority of GEO staff are drawn from the Departments for Communities and Local Government and Work and Pensions both of which have removed the retirement age for all staff below senior civil servant (SCS) grade. At present the latter can continue to work until they reach the age of 65 but this age limit is due to be reviewed in 2011. To date, the GEO has not received any requests from SCS staff who want to work beyond the mandatory retirement age.

To ask the Minister for Women and Equality how many and what proportion of Parliamentary questions for answer on a named day to the Government Equalities Office received a (a) holding and (b) substantive answer on the named day in each year since 2001. (190292)

The Government Equalities Office (GEO) was established in October 2007. However, it has been answering parliamentary written questions on issues relating to women and equality since July 2007. A total of 30 named day questions have been answered in that time, of which six (20 per cent.) received a substantive reply by the named day and 24 (80 per cent.) received a holding reply on the named day.

To ask the Minister for Women and Equality how long on average the Government Equalities Office took to answer (a) ordinary written and (b) named day questions since its creation. (215475)

The Government Equalities Office (GEO) was officially established in October 2007, but it has been answering parliamentary written questions since July 2007. Since then, it has taken an average of 12.6 working days (days when the House is sitting and when parliamentary questions can be tabled) and 9.5 working days to answer named day questions.

To ask the Minister for Women and Equality what estimate she has made of the pay gap between men and women in each of the last three years. (219925)

The gender pay gap is calculated annually by the Office for National Statistics (ONS), using information from their Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings. The ONS recommends measuring the pay gap using the median value of hourly earnings.

The full-time gender pay gap is the percentage difference between men and women’s median hourly pay (excluding overtime) for full-time jobs. The full-time gender pay gap over the last three years is in the following table:

The part-time pay gap is the percentage difference between women’s median hourly part-time pay (excluding overtime) and men’s median hourly full-time pay (excluding overtime. The part-time gender pay gap figures for the last three years is in the following table:

To ask the Minister for Women and Equality pursuant to the answer of 26 February 2008, Official Report, column 2831W, on equality, whether individual commissioners are required to give assurances that they support each of the objectives and statutory duties of the Equality and Human Rights Commission as a requirement of (a) appointment and (b) re-appointment. (220005)

Commissioners of the Equality and Human Rights Commission have a collective responsibility clause in their code of conduct and, when speaking as representatives of the Commission, are required to express the views of the Commission as a whole.

To ask the Minister for Women and Equality whether the draft single Equality Bill will be subject to pre-legislative scrutiny in the House. (201392)

No. The Government are committed to introducing an Equality Bill during this Parliament. The further policy consideration that our comprehensive consultation provoked, and our ongoing engagement with stakeholders, means that we have no plans to publish the Bill in draft.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what meetings he has had with representatives of the banking industry since the onset of the credit crunch; what agreements were reached at such meetings; what steps the (a) Government and (b) banking industry undertook to take at those meetings; whether proposals to (i) restructure the remuneration packages of banking industry employees and (ii) amend the accountability regime affecting banking activities were made at such meetings; and if he will make a statement. (223997)

The Chancellor of the Exchequer and other Treasury Ministers regularly meet with representatives of the banking industry. As was the case with previous Administrations, it is not the Government's practice to provide details of all such meetings.

The Government support the April 2008 Financial Stability Forum report recommendation that the financial services industry should take steps, working with regulators and supervisors, to adjust compensation models so as to mitigate the risks arising from inappropriate incentive structures.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer with reference to the Valuation Office Agency’s local authority liaison meeting of 23 July, what assessment (a) his Department and (b) the Valuation Office Agency has made of the effect of council tax backdating on budgeting by billing authorities. (224078)

No such assessments have been made.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what research (a) his Department and (b) the Gambling Commission has (i) commissioned and (ii) published since March 2008 on the effects of the availability of high-stake, high-prize gaming machines on problem gamblers. (224047)

I have been asked to reply.

On 14 March 2008 my hon. Friend the Minister for Sport wrote to the chair of the Gambling Commission, asking the Commission to prioritise its planned research into the impact of high-stake, high-prize gaming machines on problem gambling. The Gambling Commission replied on 31 July 2008, setting out the outcomes of some internal research which looked at the evidence surrounding this issue. A summary of the evidence reviewed will be published later in 2008. In the letter the Commission set out a programme of small projects that it would undertake to help establish a better understanding of the evidence. Among other things it will set up an expert panel and work with the gambling industry to explore player data, with a view to understanding how this data can be used in future research. The Commission will report to my Department again in June 2009 on progress with this programme of work.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much was raised in national insurance contributions in (a) the UK, (b) England, (c) Wales, (d) Scotland and (e) Northern Ireland in each of the last 11 years. (224076)

Information on UK receipts of national insurance contributions is published in National Statistics Table 1.2 on the Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs website.

Estimates of national insurance contribution receipts for Scotland are prepared by the Scottish Government.

No other estimates are available of national insurance contribution receipts in the separate countries of the UK.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his most recent estimate is of the level of compliance with national minimum wage requirements in the agricultural sector; and if he will make a statement. (224234)

I have been asked to reply.

The Statistics Digest for 2008 provides data on farm labour and wages. This includes data on workers paid below the statutory agricultural minimum wage rate. The table below shows the proportion of people according to the grades set out in the Agricultural Wages Order being paid below the set minima during the last full AWO year (October 2006-September 2006).

These data are collected from the Department for Environment’ Food and Rural Affairs’s Earnings and Hours Survey and are based on a sample of 939 workers and only include people who are 20 years or over.

DEFRA is responsible for enforcing the Agricultural Wages Order and will investigate complaints about underpayment of the minimum wages rate.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will arrange for a substantive reply to be sent to the hon. Member for Walsall, North to his letter of 13 August to the tax credit office, Preston, concerning a constituent, ref JA121568A. (224017)

I have arranged for the Tax Credit Office to send a substantive reply to my hon. Friend about his constituent by 19 September.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much each HM Revenue and Customs office spent on (a) alcohol and (b) entertainment in the last three months, broken down by region. (224260)

Expenditure, including that on entertaining, is subject to audit and the principles of Managing Public Money and the Treasury handbook on Regularity and Propriety. £2,192 was spent within HMRC (excluding the Valuation Office Agency) on entertaining during the three months June 2008 to August 2008. Obtaining information on the amount spent on alcohol within this figure is available only at disproportionate cost.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the percentage of home purchase transactions that will benefit from the stamp duty exemption for properties between £175,000 and £125,000 in each of the next two years. (224207)

I refer the right hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr. Hammond) on 15 September 2008, Official Report, columns 2155-56W.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to use tax incentives to encourage energy conservation. (224057)

Government use a range of policy instruments to encourage energy efficiency, including spending, regulatory and voluntary approaches.

The Government keeps all taxes and reliefs under review.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has for the introduction of a tax on energy companies in relation to windfall profits. (224212)

The Government keep all taxes under review.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether an invitation to tender document has been published for the Valuation Office Agency’s new geographic information system. (224085)

No.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will place in the Library a copy of the specification for the Valuation Office Agency’s new geographic information system, redacting any commercially sensitive information. (224079)

The specification for the geographic information system is still being finalised.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer with reference to the Valuation Office Agency’s Management Board meeting minutes of 19 June 2008, what conclusion the Board reached in relation to (a) the renewal of the Rightmove contract and (b) the use of third party information to support the automated valuation model. (224080)

The Valuation Office Agency Management Board approved further work to identify cost-effective approaches to gathering information to support its work.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 19 June 2008, Official Report, columns 1106-07W, on the Valuation Office Agency: Rightmove, what the contractual deadline and timetable are for the Agency to make a decision on whether to extend or continue with the contract. (224084)

The initial term of the contract between Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs and Rightmove.co.uk Ltd. expired on 31 March 2008. On the question of a timetable for a decision on whether to extend or continue with the contract, I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 19 March 2008, Official Report, column 1225W.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what overseas countries and cities have been visited by representatives of the Valuation Office Agency during the last 12 months at public expense; and what the cost of such visits was. (224086)

During the last 12 months Valuation Office Agency staff have visited the following overseas cities and countries at public expense:

The cost of these visits was £7,006.

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate his Department has made of the revenue that will be raised from VAT on domestic energy as a result of increases in fuel prices in 2008-09. (224043)

No estimate has been made.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what purchasing process is used by his Department for the procurement of alcohol for hospitality purposes. (219944)

DFID does not encourage expenditure on or consumption of alcohol in relation to hospitality. Therefore there are no specific processes for the purchase of alcohol. All entertainment and hospitality expenditure is made in accordance with published departmental guidance on financial procedures and propriety, based on the principles of Managing Public Money and the Treasury Handbook on Regularity, Propriety and Value for Money.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what account his Department takes of the level of energy efficiency of buildings before entering into agreements to (a) rent and (b) purchase those buildings. (221109)

The Department for International Development (DFID) has only two buildings in the United Kingdom, and has not taken on any properties in the last seven years. We have no plans to rent or purchase further properties.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what IT contracts his Department has entered into in the last two years. (215137)

Copies of the document entitled "IT Contracts Awarded 2006-07 and 2007-08" which provides details of IT contracts entered into by the Department for International Development (DFID) in the last two years, have been placed in the Libraries of the House.

A limited number of low value IT purchases made by our overseas offices are not recorded centrally and would incur disproportionate cost to collate.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps his Department has taken to monitor the cost of its mail services in the last 12 months. (221484)

All items sent through the UK post are through the Royal Mail, or in the case of items sent directly between our two offices, under a contract with TNT (Express) UK Ltd. Expenditure is monitored against budget in each location, and last year reduced overall by 12 per cent. over the preceding year.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many staff in his Department have had five or more periods of sickness absence of less than five days in two or more of the last five years. (218969)

There have been 90 home civil service staff in the Department for International Development (DFID) who have had five or more periods of sickness absence of less than five days in two or more years since 2003.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what the cost of overseas visits by each Minister in his Department has been since 1997. (214648)

Since 1999, the Government have published the total cost of all overseas travel by Ministers and a list of all overseas travel by Cabinet Ministers costing over £500. Information for the last financial year was published on 25 July 2007, Official Report, column 1112W. Details for the financial year 2007-08 will be published before the summer recess and will include details of overseas visits undertaken by all Ministers. All ministerial travel is undertaken in accordance with the “Ministerial Code”.

Information in respect of overseas visits by all Ministers for the period 1997-99 could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps his Department has taken to work in partnership on AIDS prevention with government bodies in those countries to which his Department provides aid to reduce the incidence of AIDS. (215414)

National Governments have responsibility for resourcing, coordinating and delivering effective AIDS responses, but they need support from a wide range of other stakeholders. The Department for International Development (DFID) supports countries to develop and implement evidence-informed HIV prevention strategies that promote and protect human rights; that are relevant to the local epidemic context; and that promote comprehensive approaches to HIV prevention based on the realities of people’s lives.

There is strong evidence for the effectiveness of many approaches to HIV prevention, including condom use, family planning, methods to prevent mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT), and for people who inject drugs, comprehensive harm reduction services, particularly needle and syringe exchange and drug treatment programmes, including non-injectable substitutes.

In countries with strong commitments to development, we focus on supporting the implementation of comprehensive country-led HIV and AIDS strategies, directly funding governments and working with civil society partners and donor agencies. In more fragile states, where governments are less effective, we provide technical support to strengthen government capacity as well as direct support for service delivery by civil society organisations.

A copy of the updated strategy “Achieving Universal Access—the UK’s strategy for halting and reversing the spread of HIV in developing world” and supporting evidence paper have been placed in the Libraries of both Houses. These are also available on the DFID website:

www.dfid.gov.uk

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what projects and programmes his Department funds (a) to address critical health worker shortages and (b) to secure long-term sustainable financing to strengthen health systems in countries where HIV positive and AIDS are endemic. (215485)

The Department for International Development (DFID) provides flexible funding to back national plans and priorities and to help strengthen health systems as a whole. UK Government health spend in developing countries was £750 million in 2006-07. Addressing the shortage of health workers in these countries is a high priority for DFID. For example, in Ethiopia DFID is contributing to the massive scale-up of community health workers—from fewer that 3,000 in 2004 to 24,000 now and 30,000 by 2009. In Malawi, DFID is contributing to the Emergency Human Resources Programme, which aims to double the number of nurses and triple the number of doctors. DFID has also provided £1 million to the Global Health Workforce Alliance from 2007-09.

In "Achieving Universal Access—the UK's Strategy for Halting and Reversing the Spread of HIV in the Developing World" the Government have committed £6 billion to strengthen health systems and services over seven years to 2015 in poor countries where HIV and AIDS are a major problem. We have also committed £1 billion to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria by 2015. A copy of the updated strategy 'Achieving Universal Access—the UK's strategy for Halting and Reversing the Spread of HIV in the Developing World' and supporting evidence paper have been placed in the Libraries of both Houses. These are also available on the Department for International Development (DFID) website:

www.dfid.gov.uk

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much was spent by his Department on (a) food and (b) food of British origin in each of the last five years. (214881)

The Department for International Development (DFID) has budgeted to spend £279,000 on food through our catering contracts for our two UK offices in the current year. Information on the breakdown of food based on country of origin is not collated, and could not be obtained without incurring disproportionate cost. Information for previous years is not available as DFID changed its catering contractors at the beginning of 2008.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development from which five countries of origin the greatest amount of food was procured by his Department in the last year for which figures are available; and what the (a) cost and (b) quantity procured was in each case. (214882)

The Department for International Development is unable to answer this question as we do not require our catering contractors to maintain records of the country of origin of food procured, and to obtain this information would incur disproportionate cost.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assistance his Department has provided to enable Kenyan families displaced by post-election violence to return to their homes. (215410)

The UK Government's Department for International Development has committed £2.5 million in humanitarian assistance to Kenya for those displaced by the crisis.

In May, the Government of Kenya launched an operation to assist those who voluntarily wished to return home, providing transport, food, shelter and household items.

Although DFID has currently not committed funds to the resettlement of internally displaced people, we are working with the international community and the Government of Kenya to ensure resources are allocated to meeting the needs of those displaced and in finding ways of successful resettlement.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development pursuant to paragraph 7.53 of his Department's 2008 Annual Report, which Millennium Development Goals his Department is not on track to meet by 2015. (217228)

The official assessment of progress towards the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) is made by the United Nations (UN) each year. The last assessment was published last autumn in the UN's annual report "The Millennium Development Goal Report 2007", which is available at:

http://mdgs.un.org/unsd/mdg/Resources/Static/Products/Progress2007/UNSD_MDG_Report_2007e.pdf.

This assessment of progress was also reproduced in Annex 3 of the Department's 2008 annual report. The next update of global progress towards the MDGs is expected to be published later in September by the United Nations.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what scenario and contingency planning his Department has employed in its country programmes relating to fragile states; what the cost of such planning was; and what dialogue it has promoted with other Government departments, with reference to paragraph 8.10 of his Department's Annual Report 2008. (220384)

Scenario and contingency planning has been carried out by Department for International Development (DFID) country offices in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Ethiopia, Kenya, Nigeria, Nepal, Pakistan, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen. DFID has also participated in joint UK Government scenario planning exercises in Kosovo and Iraq. Scenario and contingency planning has helped DFID develop a better, shared understanding of context within country offices and with other Government Departments, particularly the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) and Ministry of Defence (MOD). It has helped DFID think through the mix of aid instruments and partnerships we should use, improve risk assessment and management, and define and test options for country plans and HMG strategies.

Six DFID country offices have drawn on some support from external experts as part of the work (Bangladesh, Sudan, Somalia, Iraq, Pakistan, Afghanistan) and the estimated cost of this work has been £130,500. The majority of country offices have carried out the work in-house. A cross-Whitehall scenario planning group (comprising DFID, FCO, MOD, Stabilisation Unit and the Horizon Scanning Centre) has also been established centrally, and this group is sharing lessons and experiences of scenario planning work. DFID's new country planning guidance (issued on 14 July 2008) requires all country offices to include scenario and contingency planning as part of the process.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what progress has been made in meeting the objectives of the Millennium Development Goals Call to Action; what steps have been taken to increase the number of countries supporting the Call to Action; how much his Department has spent on Call to Action; what administrative costs his Department has incurred; and what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of Call to Action. (220496)

Progress to date against objectives on the Call to Action has included:

45 countries and the EC have signed up to the Call to Action, showing their dedication to achieving the MDGs. We expect the number of signatories will continue to grow.

The G8 and the EU in its Agenda for Action have reaffirmed their commitments on aid and agreed ways of accelerating progress on the MDGs.

Over 60 private sector leaders have signed up to the Business Call to Action. Some of these set out in the Business Call to Action event organised with UNDP in May how they will contribute through their core business to reaching the MDGs. Others will do the same at the UN meeting on the MDGs in September.

Civil society and faith groups are engaging in support of the Call to Action.

We have seen close co-operation by countries and others in co-ordinating partnership events that will help shape a common vision of how to accelerate action on the MDGs.

In order to help increase the number of signatory countries, UK Government representatives, working closely with our partners, have sought to raise the Call to Action with bilateral partners in a range of meetings over the past year.

The Department for International Development (DFID) has so far spent approximately £375,000 from its programme budget.

Based on salary costs, the administrative spend so far on the CtA, has been approximately £300,000 for the core team. In addition to this there are unquantified costs for the time of a range of other staff, who provide support as part of their wider responsibilities, and in-country costs incurred by the UK Mission in New York.

The CtA has been very effective in engaging a broad set of players to harness their potential to help achieve the MDGs. However there is still much to be done and we will continue to work closely with the UN and others.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much her Department spent to support the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs in each of the last five years. (223151)

[holding answer 10 September 2008]: The Home Office allocated the following sums of money in each of the last five years to support the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs:

In addition the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs secretariat staff and other civil servant costs have not been allocated as such costs are subsumed within normal salaried remuneration and within existing budgets.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department on what date the Airwave system will be implemented for police forces in the London area. (223508)

[holding answer 15 September 2008]: The Airwave service is already being used operationally throughout both City of London Police and the Metropolitan Police Service. Migration to Airwave from the previous radio systems was completed by September 2007.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the guaranteed lifespan of the aerials used in the Airwave project is; and what preventative maintenance programme for these aerials has been put in place. (223509)

[holding answer 15 September 2008]: The Airwave service is provided by Airwave Solutions Ltd. (ASL) and is paid for by the National Policing Improvement Agency and police authorities by means of a service charge. The responsibility for aerials and any associated preventative maintenance rests with ASL. The Airwave contract does not make specific reference to either aerial life or aerial maintenance but ASL are obliged to maintain service levels as specified in the Airwave contract.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what options her Department has considered for integrating talk groups within the Airwave system; and what estimate it has made of the cost of implementing the preferred option. (223510)

[holding answer 15 September 2008]: Talk groups are a basic component of the Airwave service and as such are included in the core charge for the service. They exist within every police force and have been implemented progressively ever since Lancashire Constabulary first started using Airwave in September 2001.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what discussions her Department has had with construction industry representatives on the inclusion of Airwave technology in large construction projects. (223511)

[holding answer 15 September 2008]: There is no legal requirement for Airwave to be installed within large construction projects and the service is usually provided on a bespoke basis at the behest of the local force under a provision in the Airwave contract for Special Coverage Solutions. In such situations, the cost is borne by the appropriate police authority. We are not aware of any discussions that have been held on this issue with the construction industry.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) supplying, (b) breeding and (c) scientific procedure establishments designated under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 there were in Scotland on 31 December 2007. (223096)

[holding answer 10 September 2008]: As at the 31 December 2007 in Scotland there were 11 supplying, 18 breeding and 32 user establishments designated under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many regulated procedures under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 were carried out in Scotland in 2007. (223196)

[holding answer 10 September 2008]: During 2007, in Scotland there were 392,671 regulated procedures carried out under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many project licences were (a) granted under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 in 2007 and (b) in force at the end of 2007 in respect of work to be carried out in Scotland. (223197)

[holding answer 10 September 2008]: During 2007 102 project licences were granted under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 in Scotland. On 31 December 2007 there were 482 project licences in force in Scotland.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of the regulated procedures conducted in Scotland in 2007 under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 were performed in (a) public health laboratories, (b) universities and medical schools, (c) national health service hospitals, (d) Government Departments, (e) other public bodies, (f) non-profit making organisations and (g) commercial organisations. (223198)

[holding answer 10 September 2008]: During 2007, in Scotland, based on the numbers of procedures, universities and medical schools carried out 68 per cent. of the regulated procedures under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986, Government Departments 1 per cent., other public bodies 13 per cent. and commercial organisations 18 per cent.

Non-profit making organisations accounted for less than ½ per cent of procedures whilst public health laboratories and NHS hospitals did not carry out any regulated procedures.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of the regulated procedures conducted in Scotland in 2007 under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 were carried out for (a) fundamental and applied studies other than toxicology and (b) toxicity tests or other safety and efficacy evaluation. (223199)

[holding answer 10 September 2008]: During 2007, in Scotland, 84 per cent. of the regulated procedures conducted under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 were carried out for fundamental and applied studies other than toxicology and 16 per cent. for toxicity tests or other safety or efficacy evaluation.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many individual support orders were issued in (a) 2006 and (b) 2007; and what proportion of all antisocial behaviour orders issued to 10 to 17 year olds individual support orders represented in each year; (223153)

[holding answer 10 September 2008]: The available information on the number of Individual Support Orders (ISOs) issued is shown in the following table. ISO Data for 2007 will be available in 2009.

Intervention Orders became available in October 2006. The Office for Criminal Justice Reform started collecting data on the number of Intervention Orders from 1 October 2007. Data for 2007 are due to be published in early 2009.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps her Department has taken to reduce antisocial behaviour in Blackpool since 2005. (223128)

[holding answer 10 September 2008]: We are strongly committed to tackling, not tolerating, antisocial behaviour. That is why local crime and disorder reduction partnerships were introduced under the Crime and Disorder Act 1998. These enable the police, local authorities and other agencies representing the local community to work together to identify the crime and disorder problems in their area and take action to tackle them.

Blackpool was confirmed as one of 40 areas in January 2007 to lead the Respect Area programme by the strong track record in tackling antisocial behaviour and a willingness and capacity to do more.

As a Respect Area, Blackpool signed up to:

Family Intervention Projects

More Parenting Classes for parents struggling with troublesome children.

Face the People sessions where the police, local authorities and others can be accountable to their local public.

Keep up the relentless action to tackle anti-social behaviour by using the full range of tools and powers available.

Using the Respect Housing Standard to prevent and deal with any problems in social housing.

The work of the Respect Task Force is now being undertaken by the Youth Taskforce—established at the Department for Children, Schools and Families to focus on delivering positive outcomes for young.

Blackpool utilises the full range of the tools and powers available to tackle antisocial behaviour as set out in their ASB strategy.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many appeals against decisions made in legacy asylum claims had been heard by the Asylum and Immigration Tribunal as of 31st July 2008. (223994)

[holding answer 17 September 2008]: The reference to "legacy asylum claims" is taken to mean those which have not been processed through the new asylum model since the former Home Secretary John Reid's legacy announcement on 19 July 2006. Our records show that there have been 5,545 such appeals heard by the Asylum and Immigration Tribunal.

Note:

The information provided in this response is taken from local management data and is not a national statistic. It should therefore be treated as provisional and is subject to change.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate her Department has made of the number of asylum seekers who had been waiting more than two months to be paid section 4 support at 31 July 2008. (223328)

[holding answer 10 September 2008]: Provision for failed asylum seekers eligible for support under section 4 of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 is in the form of accommodation and vouchers. Cash payments are not made.

No decision was recorded on or before 31 July in respect of 101 applications made before 1 June 2008 for support under section 4.

This is based on management information which is subject to change.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) Zimbabwean and (b) Darfuri asylum seekers of each (i) age group and (ii) sex are in each UK immigration removal centre; and how long each has been there. (219964)

[holding answer 21 July 2008]: The following table shows the number of Zimbabwean and Sudanese asylum seekers (including dependants) detained solely under Immigration Act powers as at 29 March 2008, broken down by centre and sex; all detainees were adults.

Following a change in the system in which information is collected, published statistics on all persons detained under sole Immigration Act powers by length of detention are not available.

The UK Border Agency does not electronically record the region from which asylum applicants originate; this information would only be available by examination of individual case files at disproportionate cost.

It is therefore not possible to say how many Darfuri asylum seekers are in immigration detention centres.

Further national statistics on persons detained solely under Immigration Act powers are available from the Library of the House and the Home Office's Research, Development and Statistics website at:

http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration-asylum-stats.html

The decision to detain is made on a case by case basis and may be appropriate in one or more of the following circumstances: to effect removal; to establish a person's identity and claim; where a person presents a risk of abscond or where the application is capable of being considered quickly.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what use the UK Border Agency will make of data collected during biometric fingerprint checks at airports. (214145)

A broad range of biometrically enabled measures have already been introduced or are planned for deployment by the UK Border Agency. These include:

The processing of 1^st and 2^nd generation e-travel documents (passports and ID cards) at the Border;

The recording of the biometrics of all individuals applying for a visa or entry clearance to travel to the UK;

The enrolment of biometrics of foreign nationals in the UK and issuance of biometric residence permits;

The verification of visa holders’ identity by the scanning and checking of their fingerprints; and

The issuing of biometric identity documents to individuals recognised as refugees, granted humanitarian protection etc.

The enhanced use of biometrics will enable individuals to be locked down to a single identity, preventing the opportunity for multiple identities to be created and used, and helping to ensure that UKBA's strategic objectives to secure our border and tackle immigration crime are met.

Legal powers have extended our capability to capture fingerprints from other categories of passengers. This includes, among others, those who have been detained; those for whom removal directions have been set and those who have been granted temporary admission, and where there have been doubts about their compliance with such a grant.

The use of biometrics in border control processes supports UKBA's strategic objectives to strengthen our borders. Increasingly, biometrics are used to confirm a person's identity for law enforcement purposes.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether there are any circumstances in which it makes a material difference to the inheritance of British citizenship by descent whether the citizenship is inherited from the maternal or the paternal side. (224106)

[holding answer 17 September 2008]: The British Nationality Act 1981 makes no distinction between men and women in terms of their ability to pass on the benefits of their status under the Act to their children. Nor does it distinguish, so far as British citizens by descent are concerned, between those whose ancestral connection with the United Kingdom is traced through the male line and those whose connection is traced through the female line.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what powers (a) private companies and (b) other organisations participating in community safety accreditation schemes have in each police force area. (223545)

[holding answer 15 September 2008]: It is for the Chief Constable of a police force to decide which of the powers available under the community safety accreditation scheme are given to individuals working for private companies and other organisations. The Home Office has carried out an audit of the powers accredited under CSAS in each police force which can be found on the Home Office website at:

http://police.homeoffice.gov.uk/communitypolicing/citizenfocusedpolicing/communitysafety-accredit-scheme/.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department which (a) private companies and (b) other organisations are in the community safety accreditation scheme in each police force area; and how many people have been accredited by each such scheme to date. (223546)

[holding answer 15 September 2008]: The Home Office does not collect data on which private companies and other organisations are in the community safety accreditation scheme (CSAS). However, a Home Office audit on the CSAS found there to be 1,406 people accredited under the scheme across England and Wales.

The audit shows, among other things, the number of accredited people per force and can be found on the Home Office website at:

http://police.homeoffice.gov.uk/communitypolicing/citizenfocusedpolicing/communitysafetyaccredit-scheme/.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many non-UK citizens have been accredited under community safety accreditation schemes since the inception of such schemes, broken down by nationality. (223548)

[holding answer 15 September 2008]: The Home Office does not collect information on the number of non-UK citizens accredited under community safety accreditation schemes.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police community support officers there were in the London boroughs of (a) Newham, (b) Hackney and (c) Tower Hamlets in each of the last five years. (223531)

[holding answer 15 September 2008]: Information on the number of Police Community Support Officers has been collected since 2005 and the figures for Newham, Hackney and Tower Hamlets are set out in the following table.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what her most recent estimate is of the annual cost to the British economy of crime. (223555)

[holding answer 15 September 2008]: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 9 July 2008, Official Report, column 1537W.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what her most recent estimate is of the number of crimes committed against business in each of the last three years. (223152)

[holding answer 10 September 2008]: The term “business crime” is not specifically used within the recorded crime offence series. The offences that may be attributed to business crime are: robbery of business property, theft by an employee, shoplifting, and fraud by a company director. The available statistics are given in the following table.

Our strategy is to encourage business to work closely in partnership with the police and local authorities through the Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnerships (CDRPs) to inform local crime reduction strategies.

Partnership working is perhaps the single biggest success in tackling crime over the past 10 years. We funded the Action Against Business Crime Group to set up and maintain 200 business crime reduction partnerships in towns and cities across England and Wales. These partnerships have proved remarkably successful.

The Home Office is committed to working with our retail partners to ensure that we find effective solutions and responses to retail crime.

Shops and stores are at the heart of most of our communities and crime against those outlets affects us all.

A key strand of the work to address business crime is to ensure that partnerships and stakeholders have the right “tools” and knowledge to deal with retail crime effectively.

As an example of this, the Home Office has funded the Perpetuity Group, which is led by Professor Gill, to devise an audit tool which retailers can apply to their stores and significantly lower the opportunities for shop thieves to operate.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many waste disposal offences were recorded in England and Wales in each of the last 10 years, broken down by (a) type of offence and (b) police force area. (223666)

[holding answer 15 September 2008]: The information requested is not collected centrally. Offences prohibiting the unlicensed disposal of waste come under the Control of Pollution Act 1974 and are summary offences. As such they do not form part of the recorded crime statistics collected by the Home Office.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proposals are under discussion at EU level to enable access to the criminal records of one EU member state by the authorities of another. (217321)

We welcome EU-wide initiatives to exchange criminal record information for criminal investigation and vetting purposes.

The European Union is currently discussing a proposal for a Council decision on the establishment of the European Criminal Record Information System (ECRIS). The ECRIS proposal is designed to provide a standardised format for the electronic exchange of information extracted from criminal records, in particular information on the offence for which a person has been convicted and the sentence passed by the court. When adopted the ECRIS proposal will allow swifter exchange of criminal conviction information between member states than is the case now.

The ECRIS proposal will allow the application of Article 11 of Framework Decision 2008/xx/JHA on the organisation and content of the exchange of information extracted from criminal records between member states. The EU has agreed a general approach on this proposal and we expect it to be adopted by the end of 2008 with an implementation deadline of three years from the date of agreement. When the Framework Decision comes into force it will be mandatory to notify other EU countries of convictions of its nationals and it will also be mandatory to respond to requests for the criminal records of EU national being proceeded against in another member state.

The United Kingdom already can, in the context of criminal proceedings in the UK, request the criminal record of an EU National using Council Decision 2005/876/JHA of 21 November 2005. While the Council Decision is not mandatory a number of EU member states, including the UK, Germany and Poland are already using the Council Decision to obtain criminal record information from other member states.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what her Department’s policy is on improving the energy efficiency of the buildings which it (a) rents and (b) owns; what changes there have been in the energy efficiency of such buildings in the last (i) five and (ii) 10 years; and whether her Department has adopted targets on energy efficiency improvements in the buildings it occupies over the next (A) five and (B) 10 years. (221083)

The Department is committed to the Sustainable Operations on the Government (SOGE) targets which include a requirement to improve energy efficiency per m² by 15 per cent. by 2010, and then 30 per cent. by 2020, based on 1999-2000 levels. Energy efficiency performance in 2006-07, the latest year for which data is available, compared to 1999-2000 is given in the following table. No earlier data is available. This shows a 12.9 per cent. improvement in energy efficiency over the period.

The reporting period 2007-08 is the first for which we will have performance data on the much reduced departmental estate, following the transfer of the National Offender Management Service, incorporating the probation and prisons estates, to the Ministry of Justice. Once this data is finalised we will use it to assess current performance and to identify what improvement activity may be required to enable us to achieve the SOGE energy efficiency targets by 2010 and then 2020, as well as actions required to reduce emissions from energy use in the same period.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what account her Department takes of the level of energy efficiency of buildings before entering into agreements to (a) rent and (b) purchase those buildings. (221099)

The Department is committed to acquiring accommodation which minimises carbon emissions and provide lowest achievable energy costs. When purchasing or leasing buildings, the Department seeks to choose those that offer the best available certification under the BRE environmental assessment method which also meet operational needs and provide best value for money.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether personal data for which her Department is responsible is (a) stored and (b) processed overseas; and if she will make a statement. (176019)

Some personal data provided by individuals to the Criminal Records Bureau and to UK Visas is temporarily stored for processing purposes overseas.

The CRB data processed overseas is only stored for the duration of time taken to input it, determine that quality criteria are met and transfer it back to the United Kingdom. Thereafter, the data is destroyed. The overseas site in India is ISO27001 certified and is subject to CRB audit and accreditation reviews.

The processing of visa applicant data overseas is carried out either by Foreign and Commonwealth Office staff in diplomatic or consular premises or, in certain countries, by commercial partners. In these countries, commercial partners are only responsible for the basic collection of visa application data, under the supervision of UK-visas staff.

In all circumstances the Home Office seeks to handle personal data in a way that complies with our obligations under UK law.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether personal data held by her Department has been transferred to compact discs and sent to external agencies in the last 12 months. (180399)

In line with current Cabinet Office guidance, the Home Office has used compact discs to transfer personal data to external agencies in the last year. Since 22 November 2007, the Home Office has been undertaking a review of its technical, process and procedural arrangements to ensure the risk of data being compromised is managed and reduced to a minimum.

I also refer the hon. Member to the statement made by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister on 21 November 2007, Official Report, column 1179:

"...I have asked the Cabinet Secretary and security experts to ensure that all Departments and all agencies check their procedures for the storage and use of data.."

An interim progress report on the review was published by the Cabinet Office through a written ministerial statement on 17 December 2007, Official Report, column 98WS. This included a recommendation to enhance the transparency with Parliament and the public about the action taken to safeguard information, and the results of that action, through publication of results, departmental annual reports and an annual report to Parliament.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what instructions are issued to staff in her Department on how to (a) collect, (b) use and (c) delete personal information on members of the public. (219354)

The information is as follows:

(a) and (b)

Data collected by the Home Office are held on systems secured to Government standards and are managed according to the Data Protection Act (1998). Those managing these information assets are "trusted stewards" with an obligation to protect it. Any transmission of protected personal information is performed according to the Data Handling Review recommendations and with the security of the of the information in mind.

(c)

The Home Office disposal of personal information is governed by the Data Protection Act and the Home Office review and retention policies. These policies are based on the standards set by The National Archive, which specifies time limits for the retention of information. The Department's security policy governs the classification of information and the disposal policies that control the appropriate methods of destruction.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether (a) companies based in the United States and (b) UK subsidiaries of US companies have been contracted by her Department and its agencies to provide services involving the use, storage, processing or analysis of databases of personal information held by the Government on UK citizens in the last five years. (188219)

The Home Office including its agencies has engaged UK subsidiaries of US-registered service providers to manage aspects of storage, processing or analysis of personal information.

The Data Protection Act 1998 includes provisions to ensure that personal data benefits from adequate protection when it is transferred outside the European Economic Area by UK data controllers. Contracts are based on UK contract law with the applicable statutory safeguards.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many staff in her Department were (a) dismissed, (b) made subject to disciplinary procedures short of dismissal, (c) moved to different duties as a result of a performance assessment and (d) offered early retirement in each of the last five years. (219182)

The number of staff (a) dismissed and (b) subject to formal disciplinary procedures for poor performance within Home Office headquarters, the UK Border Agency, Identity and Passport Service, and the Criminal Records Bureau, is set out in the following table.

The information contained in the table has been drawn from centrally held databases at this time.

Information prior to 2005, or on the number of staff moved to different duties as a result of poor performance, is not held centrally within Home Office HQ or the UK Border Agency and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. Where fewer than five members of staff were dismissed, disciplined or moved to different duties, further information has been withheld on grounds of confidentiality.

The number of staff given early retirement within Home Office headquarters, the UK Border Agency, Identity and Passport Service, and the Criminal Records Bureau in each of the last five financial years is set out in the following table.

The numbers are calculated on the basis of last day of service.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many staff in (a) her Department and (b) her Department's agencies have taken early retirement in the last two years. (217381)

The following table shows the numbers of staff in the Home Office and its agencies who have taken early retirement in the last two full financial years and the current year to date.

The numbers are calculated on the basis of last day of service.

A more detailed breakdown, including distinguishing between Home Office headquarters and the UK Border Agency and between different types of retirement, could be obtained only by running additional, tailored, reports and this would incur disproportionate cost.

The following table shows the number of staff taking early retirement from the Home Office and its agencies by financial year since 2006-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the (a) start date, (b) original planned completion date, (c) current expected completion date, (d) planned cost and (e) current estimated cost is for each information technology project being undertaken by her Department and its agencies; and if she will make a statement. (180570)

Following is a table of information technology projects currently being undertaken by the Home Office and its agencies. Please note that, due to the large number of IT projects run by the Home Office we have limited the scope of this response to projects valued at more than £5 million.

In addition to the above, the Home Office is also the lead department for the cross Government Interception Modernisation Programme, announced by the Prime Minister in February 2008

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many of her Department's personal digital assistants were (a) lost and (b) stolen in each of the last five years; and what the value of those items was. (185283)

Since 2005, Home Office IT Shared Services have enabled access to the Home Office IT infrastructure via the use of Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs) for personnel in Home Office HQ and UKBA.—the UK Border Agency.

Numbers reported lost and stolen are given in the following table.

The devices are provided by a third party supplier, to whom the Department pays a service charge. Hence, the value of any losses would be borne by the supplier.

The devices are security protected. Attempted use by unauthorised persons results in the device being locked or the data being completely erased after three failed password attempts.