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National Minimum Wage
Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many calls have been received by the Minimum Wage Hotline (a) nationally and (b) from the Yorkshire and the Humberside Region since it was opened. [98024]
Mr. Alan Johnson [holding answer 10 November 1999]: Since the introduction of the national minimum wage on 1 April 1999, the National Minimum Wage Helpline has dealt with some 90,000 calls. There are no figures for individual regions, as most enquiries are dealt with over the telephone without the need to take such details.
Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many employers have been found to be in contravention of national minimum wage legislation since its inception. [98037]
Mr. Alan Johnson [holding answer 10 November 1999]: Since the introduction of the national minimum wage on 1 April 1999, National Minimum Wage Compliance Officers have received some 3,200 complaints concerning workers being paid less than the minimum wage. Following investigations, officers found that, in around 50 per cent. of the cases, employers were not complying with the legislation. Action is taken in every case where underpayment is detected.
Consultants
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how much his Department spent on external consultants and advisers in each of the last four financial years. [97420]
Mr. Byers [holding answer 10 November 1999]: The value of contracts let centrally to external consultants and advisers for 1997-98 was £0.94 million and for 1998-99 was £0.64 million.
For information on contracts let centrally in 1995-96 and 1996-97, I refer to the answer given to the hon. Member for Gordon (Mr. Bruce) on 19 February 1998, Official Report, column 816.
| Financial year | Expenditure £ |
|---|---|
| 1995-96 | 138,000 |
| 1996-97 | 124,000 |
| 1997-98 | 39,000 |
| 1998-99 | 8,000 |
Letter from Desmond Flynn to Mr. Don Foster, dated 11 November 1999:
11 Nov 1999 : Column: 723
Letter from T. L. Lonsdale to Mr. Don Foster, dated 11 November 1999:
The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question about external consultants by The Insolvency Service.
The Insolvency Service Executive Agency of the Department of Trade and Industry has spent the following amounts on external consultants and advisors in the last four financial years:
Year £000
1995-96 502
1996-97 12
1997-98 Nil
1998-99 5
I have been asked to reply to your recently tabled Parliamentary Question to the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry on external consultants and advisors. The information you require for Companies House is as follows:
| Year | £000 |
|---|---|
| 1995-96 | 130 |
| 1996-97 | 1,000 |
| 1997-98 | 1,300 |
| 1998-99 | 2,600 |
The major component in more recent years has been for IT contractors, substantially to secure Millennium readiness for IT systems.
| Financial year | £ |
|---|---|
| 1995-96 | 256,000 |
| 1996-97 | 761,768 |
| 1997-98 | 2,478,987 |
| 1998-99 | 2,602,017 |
| Year | Spend £ |
|---|---|
| 1998-99 | 3,800.00 |
| 1997-98 | 0.00 |
| 1996-97 | 0.00 |
| 1995-96 | 68,862.87 |
Letter from Ian Jones to Mr. Don Foster, dated 11 November 1999:
11 Nov 1999 : Column: 724
You tabled a Parliamentary Question on 3 November to the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry about expenditure on external consultants and advisors in each of the last four financial years. I have been asked to reply in respect of the Employment Tribunals Service (ETS) which is an executive agency of the DTI.
The Service spent £3k on consultants in 1997-98 and £117k in 1998-99. Expenditure in years before 1997-98, when the Service was established as an agency, will be included in the figures given by the DTI. The increase in expenditure last year was largely a result of our use of IT consultants in developing a longer term IT strategy for the Service.
Greenhouse Gas Emissions
Dr. Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what penalties will be applied to the United Kingdom if it fails to meet the legally binding Kyoto greenhouse gas emission targets; and if he will make a statement. [97626]
Mr. Meacher: I have been asked to reply.
My right hon. Friend the Deputy Prime Minister and I have recently returned from the Fifth Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. The issue of the development of a compliance system for the Kyoto Protocol was one of the key points of discussion at that meeting.
The UK, along with other EU member states, believes that there should be a strong, robust and comprehensive system of compliance for ensuring Parties meet their emissions reductions targets and other commitments undertaken under the Kyoto Protocol. The detailed design of the compliance system for the Protocol, including a full range of actions for failure to meet the Kyoto targets, is still being discussed.
Dr. Kumar:
To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment he has made of the likely effect on carbon dioxide emissions of the conversion of oil to gas; and if he will make a statement. [97627]
Mrs. Liddell:
No such assessment has been made. Compared with the combustion of oil, the combustion of natural gas to meet a particular energy demand usually produces lower emissions of carbon dioxide, due to its lower carbon content.
Mr. Gibb:
To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what plans he has to revise the Working Time Regulations. [97817]
Mr. Alan Johnson:
Draft regulations to amend the Working Time Regulations, in respect of the requirement to keep records for workers who have opted out of the working time limit and extending the scope of the unmeasured working time exemption, were laid before Parliament on 19 October. They have now been debated in both Houses and will be made shortly.
There is no proposal to revise any other part of the Working Time Regulations at this time.
Mr. Hancock:
To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment he has made of the impact
11 Nov 1999 : Column: 725
on the world's forests of steps to reduce and eliminate tariff and non-tariff barriers to the trade in wood products. [98072]
Mr. Byers:
With UK support, the European Commission is currently undertaking a Sustainability Impact Assessment of the new Round of trade negotiations within the WTO which are due to be launched at the third Ministerial meeting in Seattle (30 November to 3 December). This study will consider the range of possible sustainability impacts in trade sectors likely to be affected by the Round, including forest products, and will be used to help inform the UK and EU position on this issue.
Mr. Hancock:
To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what representations he has received on the impact on the world's forests of steps to reduce and eliminate tariff and non-tariff barriers to the trade in wood products. [98073]
Mr. Byers:
The Department has issued a consultation document on UK priorities for tariff reductions in the new Round of multilateral trade negotiations. Replies have been received from a number of interested parties including those concerned with forest preservation and those representing trade in forestry products.
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