To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent discussions he has had with the (a) Prime Minister and (b) Chancellor of the Exchequer on the agenda for the forthcoming G20 conference in Pittsburgh; which international development issues he expects to be discussed at the conference; whether (i) he and (ii) his senior Departmental staff will form part of the UK delegation to the conference; and if he will make a statement (291401)

I have regular discussions with the Prime Minister, the Chancellor of the Exchequer and other members of the Cabinet as part of our ongoing preparations for the G20 summit in Pittsburgh on 24 to 25 September. These discussions include a range of international development issues.

The United States has said that they will make sure that the summit gives attention to the poorest countries. An important UK objective is to ensure the summit demonstrates concrete action to mitigate the impact of the crisis on the poorest and shows significant progress with implementation of development commitments secured at the London summit in April 2009.

The Pittsburgh summit will be held at heads of state or government level and as such there are no plans for Department for International Development (DFID) Ministers or staff to attend.

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government to which organisations operating at what locations have green goddess fire engines previously used to provide emergency fire cover been (a) sold and (b) donated in each of the last five years. (291209)

[holding answer 16 September 2009]: Donations of green goddesses have been made to the following organisations:

Operation Florian, based in Lincoln, for humanitarian purposes in Zambia, Paraguay, Uruguay, Bosnia, Peru, Bolivia, Albania, Kosovo, Montenegro, Argentina and Pakistan; (2006 and 2007)

Liverpool city council for onwards transmission by the Hands Across the Sea Appeal Fund for humanitarian purposes in Sri Lanka; (2006)

Freetown Special Projects Trust, based at Hull city council, for humanitarian purposes in Sierra Leone; (2006)

Rapid UK, based in Devon for humanitarian purposes in Peru; (2005) and Gambia and Avon Fire Services Partnership, based in Bristol, for humanitarian purposes in Gambia (2007).

Donations of Green Goddesses for heritage purposes have been made to:

The Military Vehicle Trust (Kettering) (2006)

The RAF Museum (Hendon) (2006)

The Dambusters Museum (RAF Scampton) (2006)

Manston Fire Museum (Manston) (2006)

The Civil Defence and Emergency Service Preservation Trust (Airdrie) (2006)

The British Fire Services Association (Sleaford) (2007)

South East Midlands Military Vehicle Trust (Burton Latimer) (2007)

Mid and West Wales Fire Engine Preservation Group (Neath) (2006)

The AFS Vehicle Restoration Group (Midlands) (Corby) (2006)

The Fire Police Museum (Sheffield) (2006)

The National Historic Vehicle Society (Basingstoke) (2006)

The Welsh Area Fire Engine Restoration Society (Neath) (2006)

The Whitewebbs Museum of Fire (Enfield) (2006)

Devon Military Vehicle Trust (Princetown) (2006)

The Coalhouse Fort Project (East Tilbury) (2006).

With regard to sales, I will place a list of the organisations which have purchased green goddesses over the past five years in the Library of the House. This list does not contain the names of individuals who have purchased green goddesses as this information is covered by data protection legislation. In addition we are unable to provide locations for the purchasers as the information requested could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what plans she has to review the operation of the War Pensions Scheme. (291118)

[holding answer 14 September 2009]: I have been asked to reply.

Responsibility for the War Pensions Scheme was passed from the Department of Work and Pensions to the Ministry of Defence in 2000.

The scheme is kept under constant review and in June 2007, a Stewardship review, which includes the management and administration of the scheme, was announced to the Central Advisory Committee on Pensions and Compensation (CAC), the statutory body for matters relating to war pensions, made up of representatives of ex-service organisations. A package of amendments was made to the scheme in April 2009, mainly to ease administration or correct anomalies in certain areas.

The CAC will be fully consulted if any further changes to the scheme are proposed.

To ask the Minister for Women and Equality which (a) senior officials, (b) commissioners and (c) members of the Audit Committee of the Equality and Human Rights Commission have resigned in the last 12 months; and on what date each resigned. (291307)

EHRC resignation information provided in the following table:

To ask the Minister for Women and Equality whether the new public duty in the Equality Bill to address socio-economic disadvantage will be a material consideration in the assessment of (a) planning applications and (b) licensing applications by local authorities. (291242)

The new socio-economic duty will be a consideration for local authorities when they are making decisions of a strategic nature, such as when preparing their sustainable community strategies, and setting key objectives and spending priorities. The sustainable community strategy is in turn reflected in the local development framework, which is one of the documents that shapes how those objectives are delivered. The duty will therefore influence the overall strategic plans and policies in the light of which individual planning and licensing applications are considered. It may also, in particular cases, be material to individual decisions, where the local authority considers these to be of a strategic nature.

To ask the Minister for Women and Equality what assessment has been made of the likely effects of the introduction of the new public duty in the Equality Bill to address socio-economic disadvantage on the provision of services to Travellers. (291241)

The new duty will reduce the effects of socio-economic disadvantage. When local authorities and other key public bodies are making decisions of a strategic nature, such as deciding priorities and setting objectives, they will need to consider how their decisions could help to reduce the inequalities associated with socio-economic disadvantage.

The most recent report on the Government’s strategy for race equality and community cohesion “Improving Opportunity, Strengthening Society—A third progress report—February 2009”, highlighted the many socio-economic disadvantages suffered by Gypsies and Travellers, so they are likely to benefit from the new duty. Copies are available in the Libraries of the House.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many family intervention projects at each level of intervention have been set up in (a) England, (b) Essex and (c) Castle Point; and if he will make a statement. (291061)

[holding answer 14 September 2009]: I have been asked to reply.

There are currently 164 Family Intervention Projects (FIPs). The majority of these provide support on an outreach basis, supporting families in their own home. There are currently six projects that run core, residential units. Essex has two FIPs based in Harlow and Tendering, both of which provide an outreach service.

FIPs are a key part of Government policy to support families at risk. The projects use a twin-track approach of support alongside sanctions to provide families with the incentives to change. An assertive key worker plays a pivotal, challenging and coordinating role in the projects ‘gripping’ the whole family, and the agencies involved with them. Early evaluation of Family Intervention Projects has shown that they are helping to reduce anti-social behaviour, prevent homelessness and improve the health and education of families.

To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how much was spent from the public purse on steps to (a) encourage UK businesses to prepare for the millennium date change and (b) prevent problems attributable to the millennium bug in the public sector. (290686)

I have been asked to reply.

I refer the right hon. Member to the answer given by the then Minister for the Cabinet Office (Mr. Alexander) on 7 January 2003, Official Report, column 71W. The detailed information requested is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many children were taught in classes of more than 30 pupils in (a) the North East, (b) Tees Valley and (c) Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland constituency in each of the last 10 years. (285330)

The requested information is shown in the table:

The table covers classes in primary and secondary schools. There is a legal limit of 30 pupils for infant classes.

To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much his Department has spent on services from Royal Mail in each year since it was established. (288789)

Since the Department for Children, Schools and Families was established the amount spent on Royal Mail services has been:

To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what recent steps the Government have taken to encourage young people to enter further education. (291298)

[holding answer 16 September 2009]: We are determined to ensure that as many young people as possible continue their learning beyond the age of 16 to get the qualifications and experience they need to succeed in an increasingly competitive labour market.

Through the September Guarantee, we are providing every young person aged 16-17 with a suitable offer of a place in learning. This has helped us to make excellent progress on participation, with a record level of 88 per cent. of 16-17 year olds in education and training at the end of 2008. Additional investment of £655 million allocated in Budget 2009 has enabled the number of post-16 learning places available this academic year to increase to all time high of 1.55 million. Young people also have access to a range of financial support such as the education maintenance allowance to help them engage in learning.

To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families pursuant to the answer of 16 December 2008, Official Report, columns 747-51W, on geography: GCE A level, how many and what percentage of the maintained mainstream schools that did not enter any pupils for an A level examination in geography entered at least one pupil for an A level examination in (a) media studies, (b) communication and culture and (c) sociology. (286772)

Of the maintained mainstream schools that did not enter any pupils for an A level in geography in 2006-07:

(a) 116 (49 per cent.) entered at least one pupil for an A level in media, film and TV studies.

(b) 8 (3 per cent.) entered at least one pupil for an A level in communication studies.

(c) 141 (59 per cent.) entered at least one pupil for an A level in sociology.

Note:

The figures relate to 16-18 year olds in maintained mainstream schools that were published in the School and College Achievement and Attainment Tables in 2006-07 and had A-level candidates.

To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what proportion of students in comprehensive schools achieved GCSE English, English literature and mathematics at grade C or higher in (a) 1997, (b) 2002 and (c) the last year for which figures are available. (283466)

Of those pupils at the end of Key Stage 4 in comprehensive schools in England in 2008, 227,380 (42.4 per cent.) achieved a GCSE in all of English, English Literature and Mathematics at grade C or above.

Prior to 2005 statistics are available only for those pupils aged 15 (age at start of academic year, i.e. 31 August), rather than at the end of Key Stage 4.

Of those pupils aged 15 in comprehensive schools in England in 2002, 184,966 (36.7 per cent.) achieved a GCSE in all of English, English Literature and Mathematics at grade C or above.

Of those pupils aged 15 in comprehensive schools in England in 1997, 114,678 (29.8 per cent.) achieved a GCSE in all of English, English Literature and Mathematics at grade C or above.

The source for this answer is the Achievement and Attainment Tables database.

To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what percentage of pupils who achieved a GCSE in core science and one of (a) geology, (b) psychology, (c) electronics, (d) astronomy, (e) environmental science, (f) environmental and land-based science and (g) human physiology and health at each grade were educated in the (i) maintained mainstream and (ii) independent sector in each year since 2007. (286853)

In this answer all of the given subjects have been interpreted to mean their scientific GCSE syllabuses only. For example, electronics does not include D&T and Electronics or any vocational electronics qualifications. Human physiology and health has been interpreted to mean human biology.

In 2007, there were only 17 pupils at the end of Key Stage 4 achieving a GCSE in core science and at least one GCSE in geology, environmental science or human biology, both at grade A*-G. All of these pupils were educated in the maintained sector.

In 2008, pupils at the end of Key Stage 4 achieving a GCSE in core science and at least one of the requested subjects, both at grade A*-G, are counted in the following table:

As can be seen from the table, only very small numbers of pupils in the independent sector are counted. Because of those small numbers, it is not possible to give figures for a breakdown into separate grades.

No pupils at the end of Key Stage 4 achieved passes in both core science and either psychology as a science or environmental and land-based science.

To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many students achieved Grade B or above in both GCSE English and mathematics in 2008. (287384)

154,276 pupils at the end of key stage 4 achieved a grade B or above in both GCSE English and mathematics in 2007/08.

To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families in which five non-core curriculum subjects the number of GCSE entries was highest in each (a) comprehensive, (b) selective and (c) partially selective local education authority area in 2009. (291134)

[holding answer 14 September 2009]: For this answer, a comprehensive local authority has been defined as one where all pupils in the maintained sector are attending comprehensive schools, whereas a partially selective local authority has been defined as having between 0 per cent. and 25 per cent. of 13-year-old pupils on roll attending one or more selective schools. Finally, a selective local authority has been defined as having 25 per cent. or more 13-year-old pupils on roll attending one or more selective schools.

Excluding English, maths and science GCSEs, the five subjects with the most entries by pupils at the end of Key Stage 4 in 2008 (the latest year for which figures are available) are given in the following table, for local authorities that are comprehensive, selective and partially selective.

Only full GCSEs are included in this analysis. English Literature has been included as a non-core curriculum subject because it extends beyond the literature content in core National Curriculum English programme of study. English GCSE covers both the literature and language content of National Curriculum English.

To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what proportion of pupils eligible to receive free school meals have been entered for GCSE history in each year since 1997. (284579)

The information available can be found in the following table:

Figures prior to 2003 are not available on a comparable basis.

The figures for 2003 and 2004 are for pupils aged 15. The figures for 2005-08 are based on pupils at the end of KS4.

To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what proportion of (a) persistent truants and (b) all pupils gained fewer than five A* to C grades at GCSE in 2008. (287224)

In 2008, 226,351 pupils at the end of Key Stage 4 did not achieve five A*-C grades at GCSE or equivalent qualifications. This represents 34.7 per cent. of pupils at the end of Key Stage 4.

Work is ongoing to link pupil-level absence data to achievements. The GCSE achievements of persistent absentees are therefore not yet available.

To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many head teachers left the profession for reasons other than retirement in each of the last 10 years. (287223)

Due to data quality issues figures are not available for head teachers only.

To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families (1) how many pupils in (a) independent and (b) maintained comprehensive schools achieved a grade A history A level in 2008; (286701)

The information requested is given as follows:

3,425 pupils aged 16-18 in independent schools achieved a grade A in A-level history in 2008. This represents 46.4 per cent. of A-level history candidates in independent schools.

3,573 pupils aged 16-18 in comprehensive schools achieved a grade A in A-level history in 2008. This represents 17.8 per cent. of A-level history candidates in comprehensive schools.

7,376 pupils at the end of Key Stage 4 in independent schools achieved a grade A* in GCSE history in 2008. This represents 31.1 per cent. of GCSE history candidates in independent schools.

11,048 pupils at the end of Key Stage 4 in comprehensive schools achieved a grade A* in GCSE history in 2008. This represents 6.9 per cent. of GCSE history candidates in comprehensive schools.

To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families (1) how many pupils are studying for the International Baccalaureate at each school which provides the course; (287252)

Information on the qualifications that are offered or the numbers studying for qualifications in schools is not available.

To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what proportion of maintained mainstream schools offering A level tuition in (a) German, (b) French and (c) Spanish did not enter any pupils for an A level examination in each of those subjects in the latest period for which figures are available. (286801)

The Department only holds information on entries and attainment, not on which schools offer particular A-level subjects.

To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many pupils in each index of multiple deprivation decile achieved a Level 4 or above in reading, writing and mathematics in Key Stage 2 tests in the latest period for which figures are available. (286800)

The requested information is shown in the following table.

To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what the average expenditure per school pupil in (a) primary and (b) secondary schools in each local education authority area in England was in each year since 1997; and what the per pupil funding from his Department was in each area in each such year. (291110)

[holding answer 14 September 2009]: The Department collects figures of public expenditure from local authorities via the Section 52 Outturn statements. The Department does not hold figures by constituency. The Department has placed the relevant information which shows the per school pupil expenditure for primary and secondary schools in each local authority in England from 1997-98 to 2007-08 in the House libraries.

Further information on the public expenditure figures can be found in the Section 52 Outturn statements which the Department publishes on our website at:

http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/localauthorities/section52/subPage.cfm?action=section52.default&ID=64

Per pupil revenue funding figures for pupils aged 3-19 for all local authorities for years 1997-98 to 2005-06 have been placed in the House Libraries.

Please note that these figures are in cash terms and that have not provided figures for City of London or Isles of Scilly:

The revenue per pupil figures shown in the following table is taken from the new Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG). They are not comparable with those for the years 1997-98 to 2005-06 because the introduction of the DSG in 2006-07 fundamentally changed how local authorities are funded.

The 1997-98 to 2005-06 figures are based on Education Formula Spending (EFS) which formed the education part of the Local Government Finance Settlement, plus various grants. This was an assessment of what local authorities needed to fund education rather than what they spent. The DSG is based largely on an authority’s previous spending. In addition, the DSG has a different coverage to EFS. EFS comprised a schools block and an LEA block (to cover LEA central functions) whereas DSG only covers the school block. LEA block items are still funded through DCLG’s Local Government Finance Settlement but education items cannot be separately identified. Consequently, there is a break in the Department’s time series as the two sets of data are not comparable. An alternative time series is currently under development.

To provide a comparison for 2006-07 DSG, the Department have isolated the schools block equivalent funding in 2005-06; as described above this does not represent the totality of ‘education’ funding in that year.

The per pupil revenue funding figures for years 2005-06 to 2008-09 for all local authorities are provided in the following table. The figures for all funded pupils aged 3-19 have been placed in the House Libraries and are in cash terms.

To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many schools have been closed for each reason for closure since 1997. (287221)

The following table sets out the numbers of school closures, and their reason for closure in each year since 1999. We do not have reliable information about decisions made prior to 1999.

The data on the table is recorded on our Statutory Proposals Information (SPI) database. SPI provides information from 1999 but is only accurate from 2001, when local decision making came into force and we started recording decisions on SPI.

There are various reasons for school closures. We categorise these under six different proposal ‘types’:

“Cease to maintain” indicates cases where a school is not proposed to be established on the site of the closing school;

“Change of religious character” is where a school must close and re-open in order to add, change or remove a religious character;

“Due to amalgamation” indicates cases where schools are being closed and a new school established—usually on the site(s) of the closing school(s)—or where one or more closes and an existing school makes prescribed alterations e.g. enlarge, change age range etc;

“For academy” indicates schools that are closing and are being replaced by Academies;

“For fresh start” is where an existing school closes to be replaced by a new school under fresh start policy; and

“To allow for a new establishment” are ‘miscellaneous’ closure proposals. No school has been closed under this category since 2006. (Miscellaneous closure included changing the category of a school—regulations now allow for this.)

To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what the allocation for (a) Redbridge and (b) Waltham Forest for (i) dedicated school grant and (ii) guaranteed funding per pupil is for (A) 2009, (B) 2010 and (C) 2011; what the change in per pupil funding was in (1) cash and (2) percentage terms between 1997 and 2009; and what (x) total and (y) per pupil funding allocation for (X) Redbridge and (Y) Waltham Forest for 2009-10 is for (aa) school development grant, (bb) school standards grant, (cc) school standards grant (personalisation), (dd) ethnic minority achievement grant, (ee) extended schools, (ff) primary strategy, (gg) school lunch grant, (hh) music services, (ii) harnessing technology (ICT) and (jj) devolved formula capital. (291366)

[holding answer 16 September 2009]: The Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG) for 2008-09 to 2010-11 (indicative) for Redbridge and Waltham Forest local authorities is shown in table 1. This covers pupils aged three-15.

The guaranteed unit of funding for 2008-09 to 2010-11 for Redbridge and Waltham Forest local authority is shown in table 2.

Per pupil revenue funding figures for pupils aged three-19 for Redbridge and Waltham Forest local authorities for years 1997-98 and 2005-06 are shown in table 3. These figures are in cash terms.

The revenue per pupil figures shown in table 4 are taken from the Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG). They are not comparable with those for the years 1997-98 to 2005-06 (in table 3 above) because the introduction of the DSG in 2006-07 fundamentally changed how local authorities are funded.

The 1997-98 to 2005-06 figures are based on Education Formula Spending (EFS) which formed the education part of the Local Government Finance Settlement, plus various grants. This was an assessment of what local authorities needed to fund education rather than what they spent.

The DSG is based largely on an authority’s previous spending.

In addition, the DSG has a different coverage to EFS. EFS comprised a schools block and an LEA block (to cover LEA central functions) whereas DSG only covers the school block.

LEA block items are still funded through DCLG’s Local Government Finance Settlement but education items cannot be separately identified. Consequently, there is a break in the Department’s time series as the two sets of data are not comparable.

To provide a comparison for 2008-09 DSG, the Department have isolated the schools block equivalent funding in 2005-06 (the baseline); as described above this does not represent the totality of ‘education’ funding in that year.

The per pupil revenue funding figures for 2005-06 and 2008-09 for Redbridge and Waltham Forest local authorities are provided in table 4. The figures are for all funded pupils aged three-19 and are in cash terms.

The figures for Standards Funds are recorded according to allocation per authority not per pupil, the following table shows the total allocations that Redbridge and Waltham Forest have been awarded in 2009-10 for grants that the honourable member for Leyton and Wanstead requested.

To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families pursuant to the answer of 26 February 2009, Official Report, column 1073W, on GCE A level, how many and what percentage of schools did not enter any pupils for a science A level in 2006-07. (286773)

The information requested is given as follows:

66 maintained schools did not enter any pupils aged 16-18 for any science A-level in 2006/07. This represents 4 per cent. of maintained schools that had A-level entries in 2006/07 and were published in the School and College Achievement and Attainment Tables.

Note:

A-level subjects included as science are: applied science (single and double awards), biological sciences, chemistry, physics, electronics, environmental science, geology and ‘psychology as a science’.

To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families pursuant to the answer of 26 February 2009, Official Report, column 1073W, on GCE A level, (1) how many and what percentage of the 115 schools that did not enter any pupils for an A level examination in biology entered at least one pupil for an A level examination in applied science in 2006-07; (286774)

The information requested is as follows:

18 (16 per cent.) of the 115 schools that did not enter any pupils for an A level in biology entered at least one pupil for an A level in single or double award applied science in 2006-07.

8 (8 per cent.) of the 96 schools that did not enter any pupils for an A level in mathematics entered at least one pupil for an A level in single or double award applied science in 2006-07.

Note:

The figures relate to 16-18 year olds in maintained schools that were published in the School and College Achievement and Attainment Tables.

To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what percentage of pupils who achieved a GCSE in double award science at each grade were educated in the (a) maintained mainstream and (b) independent sector in each year since 2005. (286802)

The double award in science was no longer available to pupils in 2006 and therefore the only pupils counted in the 2008 figures are those who began their studies before 2006 and have been held back.

The following figures are based on the school at which the pupil was registered at the time they sat their exams. It is possible, by moving schools, that some pupils were educated in both sectors.

The requested information is given in the following tables:

To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what proportion of pupils who achieved a GCSE in double award applied science at each grade in 2007 were educated in the (a) maintained mainstream and (b) the independent sector. (286807)

All pupils at the end of key stage 4 that achieved grades in double award applied science are counted in the following table which is broken down by grade and the education sector attended by the pupil.

To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what percentage of pupils who achieved a GCSE in core science and one of (a) biology, (b) chemistry and (c) physics at each grade were educated in the (i) maintained mainstream and (ii) independent sector in each year since 2007. (286852)

The following figures are based on the school at which the pupil was registered at the time they sat their exams. It is possible, by moving schools, that some pupils were educated in both sectors.

In 2007, there were only seven pupils at the end of Key Stage 4 achieving a GCSE in core science and at least one GCSE in biology, chemistry or physics both at grade A*-G. All of these pupils were educated in the maintained sector.

In 2008, pupils at the end of Key Stage 4 achieving a GCSE in core science at grade A*-G and one or more of the separate sciences are counted in the following tables.¹

¹ Pupils that have passed core science will appear in each row for which they have passed a separate science. Pupils are counted once in the final row by their highest grade in the separate sciences.

The following tables give the percentages of the pupils achieving particular grades in the maintained and independent sector.

To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families with reference to the answer of 10 November 2008, Official Report, column 900W, on specialist schools: science, how many of the 433 specialist schools that have chosen science as one of their specialisms entered one or more pupils for (a) a GCSE and (b) an A level in applied science in 2008. (286895)

Of the 433 schools identified as having a specialism in sciences, 77 entered at least one pupil for a vocational GCSE in applied science in 2008.

Of the 433 schools identified as having a specialism in sciences, 269 teach pupils to Key Stage 5 and, of these, 47 entered at least one pupil for an A-level in applied science in 2008.

The source for this answer is the Achievement and Attainment Tables' database.

To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families with reference to the answer of 10 November 2008, Official Report, column 900W, on specialist schools: science, how many of the 433 specialist schools that have chosen science as one of their specialisms entered one or more pupils for GCSE biology in 2008. (286896)

Of the 433 schools identified as having a specialism in sciences, 317 (73.2 per cent.) entered at least one pupil for GCSE biology in 2008.

Source:

The source for this answer is the Achievement and Attainment Tables’ database.

To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families with reference to the answer of 10 November 2008, Official Report, column 900W, on specialist schools: science, how many of the 433 specialist schools that have chosen science as one of their specialisms entered no pupils for a science A level in 2008. (286897)

Of the 433 schools identified as having a specialism in sciences, 269 teach pupils to Key Stage 5 and, of these, three did not enter any pupils for an A-level in the science subjects in 2008.

Note:

A-level subjects included as science are: applied science (single and double awards), biological sciences, chemistry, physics, electronics, environmental science, geology and “psychology as a science”.

Source:

The source for this answer is the Achievement and Attainment Tables’ database.

To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families whether his Department plans to make a submission to the Scottish Executive’s National Conversation consultation on Scotland’s constitutional future. (288961)

The Department for Children, Schools and Families has not submitted evidence to the Scottish Government’s National Conversation.

The Commission on Scottish Devolution was established by majority vote in the Scottish Parliament and with the full support of the UK Government. UK Departments submitted evidence to the Commission during its First phase of evidence gathering.

The Commission recently published its Final Report, which can be found at the following website:

http://www.commissiononscottishdevolution.org.uk/uploads/2009-06-12-csd-final-report-2009fbookmarked.pdf

A Steering Group has been established under the Chairmanship of the Secretary of State for Scotland to help the UK Government and the Scottish Parliament plan how to take forward the Calman recommendations and deliver stronger devolution within a stronger United Kingdom.

To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what estimate his Department has made of the number of students educated to GCSE level in the independent sector taking up places in maintained school sixth forms or colleges for 16-19 education in each of the last five years for which figures are available. (291133)

[holding answer 14 September 2009]: The table shows estimates of the numbers and percentages of young people who attended independent schools in the academic year when they reached 16 and who then went to study at a maintained school or college the following year.

The source of the data is matched administrative data which is used to track progress in the early years of post-compulsory education. The estimates have been rounded to the nearest thousand.

To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many qualified teachers have left the maintained sector since 1997. (287228)

Provisional estimates show that by March 2008 297,300 full and part-time teachers who had been in full or part-time regular service in local authority maintained schools in England in any March between 1997 and 2007 had left. The figure includes teachers who have left temporarily, for example on unpaid maternity leave. Teachers who have retired are also included and those who have gone on to teach outside the English maintained sector.

The source of the information is the Database of Teacher Records. The figure provided may be a slight underestimate because it is known that service details for around 10 to 20 per cent. of part-time teachers are not recorded in the data.

To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many qualified (a) teachers and (b) male teachers under the age of 60 years are not teaching. (287229)

Provisional information for March 2008 shows that there were 404,600 teachers under the age of 60 with qualified teacher status in England or Wales who were not recorded in service of whom 123,000 were men. This information is from the Database of Teacher Records.

There will be some teachers in the totals provided who will be in service outside of England and Wales or teaching in sectors that are not recorded in the data source. These will include some of the higher education sector and independent schools who are not part of the Teachers Pensions Scheme.

To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families with reference to paragraph C. 76, page 242 of Budget 2009, if he will place in the Library a copy of the actuarial advice he received on the teachers' pension scheme; and if he will make a statement. (289104)

The net expenditure projections for the teachers' pension scheme, used to build up the financial statement and Budget report, reflect assumptions set by the Department, after taking into account comments from their actuarial advisers. The actuarial assumptions for the scheme can be found in the latest valuation report published in November 2006 and available in the House Libraries.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the meaning is of each (a) acronym and (b) abbreviation used on the editorial policy section of her Department's CabWeb intranet site. (287261)

I have placed in the Library a document expanding each acronym and abbreviation in the editorial policy section of CabWeb.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many times (a) Mr Derek Draper and (b) Mr Charlie Whelan has visited the Cabinet Office/Downing Street complex in the last six months. (287211)

I am not aware of any meetings involving Derek Draper or Charlie Whelan.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many people aged more than 50 years old were claiming jobseeker’s allowance in each (a) region and (b) Jobcentre Plus district in each month of the last five years. (289151)

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

Letter from Jil Matheson, dated September 2009:

As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking how many people aged more than 50 years were claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance in each (a) region and (b) Jobcentre Plus district in each month of the last five years. (289151)

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) compiles the number of claimants of Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA) from the Jobcentre Plus administrative system. Table 1 shows the number of people aged 50 and over resident in each region who has claimed JSA in each of the last 5 years. Table 2 shows the number of persons aged 50 and over resident in each Jobcentre Plus district who has claimed JSA in each of the last 5 years. A copy of the tables are available in the Library of the House.

National and local area estimates for many labour market statistics, including employment, unemployment and claimant count are available on the NOMIS website at:

http://www.nomisweb.co.uk.

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office if she will place in the Library a copy of the Office of the Third Sector guidelines on Criminal Records Bureau checks for volunteers issued to local authorities. (287285)

The Office of the Third Sector’s guidance on Criminal Records Bureau checks was published in June 2008 and is available on the following websites.

The Office of the Third Sector

www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/third_sector.

The Criminal Records Bureau

www.crb.gov.uk.

Volunteering England

www.volunteering.org.uk.

Following comments from Third Sector stakeholders a copy of the guidance was distributed to local authorities by the Local Government Association in May 2009.

The guidance document has been placed in the Libraries in the House.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many staff from his Department are based in the provincial reconstruction team base in Lashkar Gar; what proportion of such staff (a) have left the perimeter of the base by road during their tour and (b) are performing roles which could be undertaken at Camp Bastion; and if he will make a statement. (291094)

[holding answer 14 September 2009]: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for International Development (Mr. Alexander) on 14 September 2009, Official Report, column 2109W.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many contacts there were between British forces and anti-coalition militia in Afghanistan in each month since June 2006. (251650)

The Ministry of Defence is currently collating and validating the data needed to answer this question. I will write to the hon. Member when his work is complete, and place a copy of my letter in the Library of the House.

Substantive answer from Bob Ainsworth to Liam Fox:

I am writing to provide you with the information promised in my predecessor’s holding replies to your Parliamentary Questions regarding contacts between British forces and anti-coalition militia in Afghanistan on 24 February 2009, (Official Report, column 520W).

The Ministry of Defence has recently completed a review of the data required to answer this question, and has revised the manner in which we classify and present data to ensure consistency.

The numbers of troops in contact events (regardless of the instigator) involving the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) and insurgents in Helmand province as part of Task Force Helmand for each complete month from June 2006 to February 2009 for which verified data is available are shown below.

ISAF forces operating in Helmand come from a number of different nations, which often operate closely alongside each other and alongside Afghan Army and Police units. Without undertaking a detailed assessment of each engagement, it is not possible precisely to define in every case whether an attack was aimed at UK forces, at our ISAF partners, or against Afghan units. Data is therefore collected on the number of incidents involving ISAF forces in Helmand without attempting to identify the nationality of the forces actually being attacked. The environment in which forces are operating makes it extremely difficult precisely to distinguish between incidents initiated by insurgent forces and those initiated by ISAF.

This data is based on information derived from a number of sources and can only be an estimate, not least because of the difficulties in ensuring a consistent interpretation of the basis for collating statistics in a complex fast-moving multinational operational environment.

I hope that the above information addresses your concerns on this matter.

I will place a copy of this letter in the Library of the House.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) between what dates the reported 84 per cent. increase in helicopter hours available to UK forces in Afghanistan was achieved; (289130)

The 60 per cent. increase in the number of helicopters and the 84 per cent. increase in helicopter hours available to UK forces in Afghanistan relate to the period from November 2006 to April 2009. These increases do not include helicopters or helicopter hours provided by other coalition forces.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many Defence Medical Service personnel were based in (a) Scotland, (b) Wales, (c) England, (d) Northern Ireland, (e) Cyprus and (f) Germany in each of the last five years.

Mr. Kevan Jones: The number of Defence Medical Service personnel¹ based in each location as at 1 April each year is provided in the following table. The data before 2007 can be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Due to ongoing validation of data from the Joint Personnel Administration System all strength statistics are provisional and subject to review.

¹ Some Army Medical Service personnel are excluded from these figures as some will work outside of the Army Corps that were used to identify Army Medical Service personnel.

Figures are rounded to the nearest 10. (290781)

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many personnel from the Royal Naval Medical Services were based in (a) Scotland, (b) Wales, (c) England, (d) Northern Ireland and (e) other countries in each of the last five years. (291378)

The number of Royal Naval Medical Service personnel based in each location as at 1 April each year is provided in the following table. The data before 2007 can be provided only at disproportionate cost.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many personnel from the Army Medical Services were based in (a) Scotland, (b) Wales, (c) England, (d) Northern Ireland and (e) other countries in each of the last five years. (291379)

The number of Army Medical Service personnel¹ based in each location as at 1 April each year is provided in the following table. The data before 2007 can be provided only at disproportionate cost.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many personnel from the Royal Air Force Medical Service were based in (a) Scotland, (b) Wales, (c) England, (d) Northern Ireland and (e) other countries in each of the last five years. (291382)

The number of personnel posted to the Royal Air Force Medical Services based in each location as at 1 April each year is provided in the following table. The data before 2006 can be provided only at disproportionate cost.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) how many (a) psychologists, (b) psychiatrists, (c) mental health nurses and (d) occupational therapists in Defence Medical Services have been employed in (i) Scotland, (ii) England, (iii) Wales, (iv) Northern Ireland and (v) other countries in each year since 1997; (291383)

[holding answer 16 September 2009]: The majority of mental health personnel are employed in MOD’s 15 Departments of Community Mental Health (DCMHs) in the UK, (with additional centres in Germany, Cyprus and Gibraltar), with a small number at other MOD locations. The DCMHs are located in areas of major military population, and include 11 in England, three in Scotland and one in Northern Ireland.

The number of personnel employed in the specified regions as at July 2009 are provided in the table. These include both military and civilian personnel.

Historical figures back to 1997 are not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Funding provision is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence with reference to paragraph C.76, Page 242 of the Financial Statement and Budget Report 2009, if he will place in the Library a copy of the actuarial advice he received on the armed forces' pension scheme; and if he will make a statement. (289105)

The armed forces pension scheme is advised by the Government's Actuary's Department. The last formal valuation was carried out as at 31 March 2005 and the results of which form the basis for the actuarial statement in the resource accounts for 2005-06 and for subsequent years to date. The resource accounts, which include these actuarial statements for 2005-06 to 2008-09 have been placed in the Library of the House.