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Paper and Timber Products
Mr. Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what steps he has taken to ensure that paper and timber products purchased by his Department come from a sustainable source. [110198]
Mr. Bayley: The Government, through the Green Ministers Committee, has issued a model framework which departments have used as the basis for preparing their own environmental strategies. Among its key aims is to: conserve resources and minimise waste by reducing our reliance on virgin materials and ensuring that any products derived from wildlife--such as paper and timber--are from sustainable sources and comply with EU and international trading agreements such as the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES).
This Department's policy statement/improvement programme which closely follows the model requires that all virgin paper used in products supplied to the Department, whether in its own right or as a consequence of recycled material, is obtained from sustainable managed forest sources. It also provides for timber, wood and plywood to be obtained from sustainable sources. With ownership of the Department's estate having been transferred to the private sector under the Prime contract
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the Department ensured that these commitments are enshrined in the outsourcing arrangements. The contract states:
Mr. Reed:
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will ensure that paper and timber products purchased by his Department are independently certified by the Forest Stewardship Council as coming from a sustainable source. [110199]
Mr. Bayley:
The FSC label is accepted by buyers as demonstrating that timber and timber products have come from sustainably managed sources.
However it is not practicable to require that all paper and timber products purchased by the Department are independently certified by the Forest Stewardship Council because this might discriminate against any equally valid schemes and therefore be against public procurement rules.
Specifying just the FSC label might also result in us failing to meet all our requirements as only a tiny percentage of timber products are currently FSC certified. This is why the Department's policy statement for greening its operations contains a requirement to ensure that suppliers of paper and paper products have in place an acceptable Environmental Policy and requires satisfactory evidence of compliance with published trade or other acceptable environmental standards and guidelines. It also provides for documented proof or, if available, adequate validation under an internationally recognised certification or ecolabelling scheme to ensure that timber, wood or plywood acquired by the Department, or its contractors come from sustainable resources.
Mr. Baker:
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what was the average cost of issuing a media release from his Department in 1999. [110271]
Mr. Rooker:
The average cost of issuing a media release by this Department in 1999 was £51. This figure includes the costs incurred by Headquarters and Agencies.
The figure given is the cost charged to us by the Central Office of Information who distribute media releases on our behalf to the national media.
The circulation spread covers all national and regional newspapers; broadcast--both visual and radio; and specialist magazines including the specialist ethnic and disability press. In addition, Benefits Agency releases are also distributed to local newspapers including free news sheets.
Mr. Baker:
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what is his Department's advertising budget for (a) 1999-2000 and (b) 2000-01. [110258]
Mr. Rooker:
Information is not available in the format requested as the Department does not allocate an annual budget specifically for advertising. Any expenditure on advertising is included in the publicity budget. Such information as is available is as follows.
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For the current financial year the budget for Headquarters and the Benefits Agency was £10,155 million. This amount covers the publicity for the whole range of Social Security benefits in addition to information about pensions and fraud. The amount includes the production of information leaflets, helplines, advertising, exhibitions, research and other marketing activity.
The publicity budget for 2000-01 is still under discussion and not yet finalised.
Mr. Lilley:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will publish figures showing the index for patients who waited less than two hours for emergency admission in (a) 1997-98 and (b) 1998-99 for (i) England, (ii) East and North Hertfordshire, (iii) West Hertfordshire and (iv) the health authority in the prospering growth area with the (1) lowest figure and (2) highest figure. [109747]
Ms Stuart:
The 1998-99 figures showing the index for patients who waited less than two hours for emergency admissions were published in "Quality and Performance in the NHS: High Level Performance Indicators" in June 1999, copies of which are available in the Library. 1998-99 was the first year for which information on emergency admissions was published using this format.
Mr. Field:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will publish the latest available data on the indicators relating to (a) intensive home care for people aged over 65 years in England and (b) community based care for people over 65 years in England, in the Personal Social Services Performance Assessment Framework. [109848]
Mr. Hutton
[holding answer 11 February 2000]: The data for indicators in the Personal Social Services Performance Assessment Framework were published on 24 November 1999 in a summary form in "Social Services Performance 1998-99" and in detail in the form of computer tables on the Department of Health's internet site (reference: www.doh.gov.uk/paf/). Final revisions to this data notified to the Department by local authorities will be incorporated into the computer tables by the early summer of this year. Data for 1999-2000 will be published in autumn 2000.
Ms Coffey:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to amend the Department of Health departmental expenditure limit/running cost limit for 1999-2000. [110675]
Mr. Milburn:
Subject to Parliamentary approval of the necessary Supplementary Estimates for Class II, Votes 1 and 2 the Department of Health Departmental Expenditure Limit for 1999-2000 will be increased by £302,308,000 from £40,455,019,000 to £40,757,327,000. The increase is the net effect of changes to Class II, Vote 1 (Hospital, community health, family health and related services, England) of £261,646,000 made up of £113,671,000 in respect of the take up of end year flexibility for NHS
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trusts, £134,000,000 from the reserve for the cost of generic drugs and clinical negligence claims and £14,000,000 from the capital modernisation fund. In addition the following transfers will take place; £1,094,000 from Northern Ireland for out of area treatments; £177,000 from the National Assembly for Wales general practitioner drug costs and £155,000 from Class III, Vote 1 (Environment, Transport and the Regions: Housing, construction, regeneration, countryside and wildlife, England) for the Victoria Pilot Project. The overall increase is partially offset by transfers of £1,250,000 to Class XII, Vote 3 (Department of Social Security: administration) for the road traffic accident element of the Compensation Recovery Unit; £190,000 to Class XIII, Vote 1 (Scottish Executive) for student bursaries and £11,000 to Class XIV, Vote 1 (National Assembly for Wales) for the Dental Service Increment for Teaching.
The increase of £40,662,000 for Class II, Vote 2 (Department of Health, administration, miscellaneous health and personal social services, England) is the net effect of transfers (detailed below) and £16,460,000 take-up of end year flexibility (as announced by the Chief Secretary to the Treasury on 27 July 1999, Official Report, column 393 and £25,000,000 for claims in respect of asylum seekers grant; £580,000 (£60,000 running costs) from Class IV, Vote 1 (Home Office: administration, police, immigration and other services, England and Wales) for teenage pregnancy unit, publicity and drug project development work; £60,000 (running costs) from Class I, Vote 1 (Department for Education and Employment: programmes and central services), £60,000 (running costs) from Class III, Vote 5 (Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions: administration) and £60,000 (running costs) from Class XII, Vote 3 (Department of Social Security: administration) for the teenage pregnancy unit; £67,000 (running costs) from Class XIII, Vote 1 (Scotland and transfers to the Scottish Consolidated Fund) for the National Screening Committee; £4,000 (running costs) from Department of Health and Social Services, Northern Ireland for the National Screening Committee and Human Genetics
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Commission. The overall increase is partially offset by transfers of £1,629,000 (£138,000 running costs) to Class X, Vote 2 (Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food) for BSE Inquiry costs.
The Department's gross running cost limit will be decreased by £117,000 from £280,450,000 to £280,333,000 made up of an increase of £173,000 (detailed above) offset by and a transfer within DH DEL to programme expenditure of £290,000 for surveys and research.
"the Prime contractor's purchasing policy will exclude the use of unsustainable timber".
The Department and its contractors monitor performance on these and other aspects of its operations and reports on progress made.
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