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Employment Agencies
Mr. Flight: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry (1) what assessment he has made of the change in costs of employing self-employed carers as a result of regulating secretarial and employment agencies; and if he will make a statement; [94373]
- (2) what assessment he has made of the impact on self-employed carers of his policy of regulating secretarial and other employment agencies; and if he will make a statement. [94372]
Mr. Alan Johnson:
Carers supplied by employment bureaux, whether self-employed or not, are protected by existing regulations on employment agency standards. We have been consulting on replacement regulations, including a proposal that workers (including carers) supplied by a bureau on a staff hire basis should have a
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contract with that bureau instead of the hirer with whom they are placed. Care workers who are self-employed could remain so. The consultation document published on 31 May contains a regulatory impact assessment of possible cost consequences to those hiring staff through employment bureaux. We are also considering representations on costs.
Mr. McNamara:
To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry which organisations have been or will be consulted in drawing up the terms of reference for research to assess the degree of consistency between tribunals in various parts of the UK as reported in the Government response to the review of anti-discrimination legislation conducted by the Better Regulation Task Force; and what steps he is taking to ensure that the project has expert advice on potential solutions in the field of information technology. [93529]
Mr. Alan Johnson:
I propose to consult widely on the planned research project into the operation of tribunals which, as indicated in the Government's response to the Better Regulation Task Force Report, is likely to provide information on the consistency of employment tribunal decision-making. The exact terms of reference of the project are not yet determined. Given their interest, anti-discrimination bodies, the Equal Opportunities Commission and others will all be included in that consultation. Expert advice on the use of information and communication technologies in this project will be commissioned as necessary.
Mr. Gibb:
To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will list the statutory instruments introduced into Parliament by his Department in (a) 1997, (b) 1998 and (c) 1999. [93838]
Mr. Byers:
My Department has introduced 280 Statutory Instruments into Parliament since 1 May 1997. A list detailing these has been placed in the Libraries of both Houses.
Mr. Gibb:
To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when he will reply to the letter of 26 May from the hon. Member for Bognor Regis and Littlehampton regarding Mr. M. P. Dickson, a constituent. [93737]
Mr. Byers:
The Minister of State, my right hon. Friend the Member for Makerfield (Mr. McCartney), replied to the letter on 26 July 1999. A copy will be made available in the Library of the House.
Dr. Julian Lewis:
To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will list the dates in July when the Minister of State, the right hon. Member for Makerfield (Mr. McCartney), was not performing ministerial duties. [94147]
Mr. Byers:
There were no such dates.
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Mr. Mackinlay:
To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when the Government proposes to introduce legislation to safeguard the privacy and security of e-mails; and if he will make a statement. [94577]
Ms Hewitt:
In July the Government published the draft Electronic Communications Bill, which facilitates privacy and security of electronic communications, including e-mail, within the existing framework of legislation. It will be introduced into Parliament in the next session.
Mr. Mackinlay:
To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when he proposes to publish the E-Commerce Bill. [94576]
Ms Hewitt:
The Electronic Communications Bill was published in draft on 23 July and announced by my hon. Friend the Member for North Swindon (Mr. Wills) on 23 July 1999, Official Report, columns 681-83, as part of a consultation. I am pleased to say that we have received over 80 responses to the consultation.
The Government will introduce the Bill to Parliament in the next session.
Mr. Mackinlay:
To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will make a statement on UK support for the Ilisu Dam project in Turkey. [94386]
Mr. Caborn:
No decision has been made on the provision of ECGD support for this project. The case for such support is being considered in consultation with the contractors and governments from a number of countries.
Mr. Mackinlay:
To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what action he proposes to take to ensure fair competition between low cost airlines; and if he will make a statement. [94572]
Dr. Howells:
Responsibility for ensuring that competition laws are not broken lies with the competition authorities, the Office of Fair Trading within the UK or the European Commission for activities which affect trade between member states. I look to these bodies to ensure fair competition, and for those with concerns to put them to the competition authorities for investigation.
Mr. Mitchell:
To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what contribution was made to the Consolidated Fund by the Post Office in each of the last 10 years at (a) actual and (b) 1999 retail index prices; and if he will initiate a study of how future payments could be used to fund future investment in the postal services. [94637]
Mr. Alan Johnson:
The Post Office does not make payments to the Consolidated Fund, as it does not pay a dividend. However, its contribution to the Exchequer can be measured by its negative External Financing Requirement, through which it is obliged to invest in
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gilt-edged stock or National Loan Fund deposits. In each of the last 10 years its contributions in both actual and in 1998-99 RPI values were as follows:
| Actual | 1998-99 RPI | |
|---|---|---|
| 1989-90 | 102 | 142 |
| 1990-91 | 0 | 0 |
| 1991-92 | 74 | 90 |
| 1992-93 | 80 | 94 |
| 1993-94 | 182 | 211 |
| 1994-95 | 235 | 265 |
| 1995-96 | 245 | 267 |
| 1996-97 | 285 | 304 |
| 1997-98 | 338 | 349 |
| 1998-99 | 321 | 321 |
In the White Paper "Post Office Reform: A World Class Service for the 21st Century", the Government confirmed that under the new financial regime for the Post Office an equivalent of a commercial dividend would be set at 50 per cent. of expected post-tax profits in the current financial year and at 40 per cent. in subsequent years. This will more than halve the rate at which profits are removed from the business and increase the funds available to the Post Office to fund future investment. Once the Post Office has been established as a plc, it will pay an annual dividend to the Exchequer rather than build up its deposits.
Timeshare
Mr. Sarwar: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry (1) if he will make a statement on the regulation of the timeshare industry in the United Kingdom; [94435]
- (2) what statutory provisions govern the regulation of timeshare operations in the United Kingdom. [94434]
Dr. Howells: Regulation of timeshare operations in the United Kingdom are governed by the Timeshare Act 1992, as amended by the Timeshare Regulations 1997.
Mr. Sarwar: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the Timeshare Act 1992 and Timeshare Regulations 1997 in relation to the regulation of the timeshare industry. [94436]
Dr. Howells: I believe that the Timeshare Act has been effective and that timeshare in the UK is generally well run. Since the Act came into force in 1992, the level of complaints about timeshare made to the Office of Fair Trading has fallen significantly from over 11,500 in 1991-92 to less than half that number today--but there is no room for complacency with over 5,000 complaints every year. I intend to use the forthcoming consultation exercise to assess whether aspects of the legislation need updating.
Mr. Sarwar:
To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what plans he has to strengthen the regulations, under the Timeshare Act 1992 and Timeshare Regulations 1997, in respect of claims made by individuals against timeshare operators. [94437]
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Dr. Howells:
As set out in the Consumer White Paper "Modern Markets: Confident Consumers", the Government plans to review timeshare legislation to see whether aspects of it need updating. My Department will consult interested parties on our proposals before the end of this year.
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