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Peat Compost
Mr. Paul Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what steps he is taking to phase out the use of peat compost in gardens (a) owned and (b) tended by his Department; and if he will make a statement. [110719]
Dr. Reid: My Department does not use peat compost in our gardens.
Interception Warrants
Mr. Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many interception warrants were in force in Scotland on 31 December 1999. [111133]
Dr. Reid: Full information about the number of interception warrants in force in Scotland on 31 December 1999 is not yet available. They will be published, later in the year, in the Annual Report of the Commissioner appointed under the Interception of Communications Act 1985 (currently Lord Nolan). A copy will be placed in the Library.
Mr. Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many interception warrants were authorised in respect of Scotland in 1999. [111143]
Dr. Reid: During the period 1 January 1999 to 30 June 1999, 162 telephone interception warrants were authorised in respect of Scotland. After 1 July 1999, the authorisation in respect of Scotland of interception warrants relating to serious crime was devolved to the Scottish Executive. The authorisation of national security interception warrants in respect of Scotland is reserved, but final figures on the number of national security interception warrants authorised in the second half of 1999 are not yet available. The Commissioner appointed under the Interception of Communications Act 1985 will publish this information in his Annual Report for 1999, later in the year. A copy will be placed in the Library.
Astute Submarines
Mr. Sarwar: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will make a statement on the decision to place the imaging equipment order for the Royal Navy's Astute submarines with Pilkington Optronics in Govan. [111096]
Dr. Reid: I warmly welcome the decision by BAE SYSTEMS as Prime Contractor to award the contract for the provision of visual systems for the three Astute class submarines to Pilkington Optronics. This success is a reflection of the expertise of the company in the face of strong international competition and will be good news for the company's 600 staff in Govan.
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AGRICULTURE, FISHERIES AND FOOD
Organophosphates
Dr. Gibson: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what plans he has to carry out research on organophosphates; how he will co-ordinate funding of research into organophosphates; how much he will invest in organophosphate research; and over what period he will finance research into organophosphates. [103233]
Ms Quin [holding answer 20 December 1999]: Government research on organophosphates (OPs) in relation to human health is currently co-ordinated through
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an inter-departmental liaison group on OP research. An extract of work relating to human health in the MAFF programme is shown in the table. Listings of recent and current MAFF funded projects on OP research can also be found on the MAFF internet website at http://www.maff.gov.uk/r&d/projects/pp105.htm.
The report by the Committee on the Toxicity of Chemicals in Food, Consumer Products and the Environment on organophosphates, published on 26 November, made a number of recommendations for further research. I refer my hon. Friend to the reply given to him on 20 December 1999, Official Report, column 446W, for details of how we propose to carry forward these recommendations.
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| Cost | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Code/Title | Type | Contr. | Start | End | 1998-99 | 1999-2000 | 2000-01 | 2001-02 |
| VM0261 | ||||||||
| Epidemiological study to detect well defined chronic effects in humans of dipping sheep with organophosphorous products | CT-E | IOML | 1 November 1995 | 30 April 1999 | 67,000 | 6,537 | -- | -- |
| VM0265 | ||||||||
| A study of the long term electrophysiological effects of sheep dip organophosphates in the mouse nervous system | NI | UNC | 1 September 1996 | 31 October 1998 | 41,067 | -- | -- | -- |
| VM0279 | ||||||||
| Dose effect profiles for OP sheep dips on brain electrical activity and cognitive performance in non-human primates | NI | DERA | 1 April 1998 | 24 April 2001 | 103,674 | 100,799 | 97,139 | 25,020 |
| VM0299 | ||||||||
| Review of OPIN register of suspected OP related complaints | NI | LSHTM | 21 June 1999 | 21 May 2000 | -- | 51,896 | -- | -- |
| Total | 211,741 | 159,232 | 97,139 | 25,020 | ||||
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Departmental Consultation
Dr. Tony Wright: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will list the public consultation exercises on policy matters carried out by his Department and its agencies in each of the last five years; who was consulted and by what means; how responses were analysed; how and in what form the results were transmitted to those responsible for the consultation; how the results of the consultation were published; and what analysis has been carried out of the extent and nature of policy changes resulting from the consultation. [106305]
Mr. Morley: The information requested is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
MAFF and its agencies are committed to listening to what people have to say. In addition to consulting in accordance with statutory obligations on new legislation, we regularly consult on new proposals and polices to ensure that industry, other interested parties and the general public are given the opportunity to make their views known. All responses to consultations, which are received through a variety of means, are given very careful consideration and taken into account by Ministers when making policy decisions. Responses are treated as confidential where the respondent has asked the Department to do so.
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Consultation exercises are, in the main, carried out by the issue of documents, on which comments are invited, to interested parties known at the Department or agency. As a matter of course, consultation documents, along with lists of recipients and respondents, are placed in the Libraries of the House, with the exception of the individual responses which are available for viewing, by appointment, in MAFF's Whitehall Place library. The MAFF library can also supply copies of consultation responses on request to personal callers or telephone inquirers for a small administrative charge.
Details of current and recent MAFF consultations can also be found on the MAFF website at http://maff.gov.uk/corps/consexer/default.htm.
Beef Exports
Mr. Davidson: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, pursuant to his answer of 25 January 2000, Official Report, column 180W, if he will list those countries to which British beef has been exported within the last three months and those countries which do not have an import ban on British beef. [108484]
Ms Quin: Information about the destination of British beef export is commercially confidential as long as there are only two establishments approved to export it. From
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information currently available, countries which do not have a ban on British beef include all EU member states other than France and Germany, and the following:
- Ascension Island
Australia
Bermuda
Bolivia
Botswana
Brunei
Burundi
Cambodia
Cuba
Cyprus
Ecuador
Ethiopia
Falkland Islands
Faroe Islands
- Fiji Islands
Guatemala
Guyana
Hong Kong
Iceland
Iran
Kenya
Lesotho
Malawi
Mauritius
Mongolia
Montserrat
Mozambique
Namibia
Norway
Paraguay
Philippines
Seychelles
Solomon Islands
- St. Helena
St. Kitts and Nevis
St. Lucia
Tonga, Kingdom of Vanuatu
Zimbabwe.
Departmental Staff
Caroline Flint: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what provisions are made available to (i) departmental staff and (ii) employees of executive agencies under the control of his Department, for (a) maternity leave, (b) maternity pay, (c) paternity leave, (d) parental leave, (e) flexible working hours, (f) part-time work, (g) job sharing, (h) leave to care for sick children, (i) home-working, (j) term-time contracts, (k) annual
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hours contract, (l) child care allowances, (m) careers' leave and (n) career break schemes; and what criteria are used to judge eligibility in each case. [108848]
Mr. Morley: My hon. Friend the Parliamentary Secretary, Cabinet Office, set out in his reply of 15 February 2000, Official Report, columns 518-20W, the importance of family friendly policies to the Civil Service Reform programme. MAFF shares this commitment to develop policies to enable staff to achieve a better balance between their work and private lives. Provisions already exist in core MAFF for flexible working practices and patterns and we will be building on these in taking forward work on diversity. These provisions are set out in a Staff Handbook to which all employees in the Department have easy access. They apply to both full-time and part-time staff. Requests are generally considered in accordance with these provisions. Where there is discretion, requests are dealt with on their merits on an individual basis. The maternity and paternity arrangements are provided in conjunction with the statutory entitlements available to employees, as are the arrangements for time off to care for dependents. I will write to my hon. Friend with fuller details of the provisions available.
In respect of MAFF Agencies, responsibility for such matters is delegated to Agency Chief Executives. Similar policies to core MAFF operate in the Farm and Rural Conservation Agency, the Pesticides Safety Directorate and Veterinary Medicines Directorate. I have asked the Chief Executives of the Central Science Laboratory, Veterinary Laboratory, Meat Hygiene Service and the Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science Agencies to reply to my hon. Friend Direct.
Letter from Peter Stanley to Caroline Flint, dated 21 February 2000:
- The Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food has asked me to reply, in respect of the Central Science Laboratory (CSL), to your question concerning maternity and paternity provisions and other family friendly policies.
- With the exception of the maternity leave provision, CSL presently follow the existing MAFF provisions for flexible working practices and patterns which are set out in the MAFF Staff Handbook. On 1 August 1999, paid maternity leave within CSL was increased to 16 weeks at full pay.
Letter from T. W. A. Little to Caroline Flint, dated 21 February 2000:
- The Minister has asked me to responde to your questions on provisions available to employees of the Veterinary Laboratories Agency and the proportion of women returning to work after maternity leave.
- In responding to these questions the Cabinet Office have indicated that the Civil Service as a whole is striving for an improved balance between work and family life. This is reflected in several aspects of the Report on Civil Service Reform by Sir Richard Wilson to the Prime Minister.
- The availability of the provisions you mention are set out in the MAFF Staff Handbook to which all employees in this Agency have access. They apply to both full-time and part-time staff. A VLA Staff Handbook is to be completed and issued to staff shortly. Maternity arrangements are provided in conjunction with the statutory entitlements available. Where provisions in this Agency differ from those in MAFF, information is readily available, for example, on the holiday playscheme.
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- The proportion of women returning to work after childbirth over the last five years is given in the table below:
| 1995 | 1996 | 1997 | 1998 | (19)1999 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total returned to work | 67 | 74 | 61 | 70 | 86 |
| Returned to part-time work | 42 | 49 | 22 | 40 | 72 |
(19) The figures for 1999 do not represent a full response as not all women have returned from maternity leave
A significant proportion of women elect to take a Career Break of up to five years rather than return to work directly after maternity leave.
Further information requested could not be readily provided and would incur disproportionate costs to obtain.
- As Chief Executive of the Meat Hygiene Service (MHS) your question to the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food requesting information regarding the provision of various benefits to staff has been passed to me to reply as regards this Executive Agency.
- MHS provisions and eligibility criteria with regard to these benefits are outlined below:
- (i) Maternity Leave
- Main provisions--Paid time off for ante-natal care regardless of service. 18 weeks maternity leave if service less than 1 year and a further 29 weeks after confinement if service more than 1 year.
- Eligibility criteria--As indicated above.
- (ii) Maternity Pay
- Main provisions--As per statutory scheme i.e. Maternity Allowances (MA) or Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP) applies. For employees who qualify for SMP the first 6 weeks of maternity leave is at 9/10ths of pay. Subsequent 12 weeks at ½ pay (subject to return to work for more than 3 months following maternity leave) plus SMP.
- Eligibility criteria--As per statutory scheme.
- (iii) Paternity Leave
- Main provisions--Paternity/Maternity Support Leave of 5 days with pay granted to father, partner or nominated carer.
- Eligibility criteria--Available to all employees.
- (iv) Parental Leave
- Main provisions--As per statutory provisions. MHS policy is this area currently under review. Requests of paid/unpaid leave currently considered under the MHS Special Leave policy provisions.
- Eligibility criteria--As per statutory provisions and individual needs.
- (v) Flexible Working Hours
- Main provisions--A formal flexitime scheme does not exist but some MHS Departments do operate flexitime and where not in place flexibility is exercised where operational service requirements allow.
- Eligibility criteria--Not appropriate as no formal scheme in place.
- (vi) Part-time Work
- Main provisions--All applications considered with regard to operational service requirements. Terms and conditions applied pro-rata to those of full-time employees.
- Eligibility criteria--Suitability of proposed part-time work pattern in relation to operational service requirements.
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- (vii) Job Sharing
- Main provisions--All applications considered with regard to operational service requirements. Terms and conditions applied equally between job-sharers.
- Eligibility criteria--Suitability of proposed job share assessed with regard to whole job and operational service requirements.
- (viii) Leave to Care for Sick Children
- Main provisions--All applications considered with regard to individual needs and operational service requirements. Paid/unpaid time off work available under the MHS Special Leave policy provisions.
- Eligibility criteria--Each case carefully considered on merit, and with regard to statutory entitlements and individual needs.
- (ix) Home Working
- Main provisions--Applies to certain groups of management employees who have been authorised to work from home for operational reasons.
- Eligibility criteria--Employees only eligible to work from home when specifically authorised to do so by the MHS and only designated as home workers with the approval of the Inland Revenue.
- (x) Term Time Contracts
- Main provisions--Term time contracts not in operation within the MHS. Requests for paid/unpaid leave considered under the MHS Special Leave policy provisions.
- Eligibility criteria--Each case carefully considered on merit, and with regard to statutory entitlements and individual needs.
- (xi) Annual Hours Contracts
- Main Provisions--MHS Annualised Hours policy applies where the workload fluctuates and/or job requirements are seasonal.
- Eligibility criteria--Employees are contracted to work annualised hours only where significant variations in the work pattern are anticipated.
- (xii) Child Care Allowances
- Main Provisions--Some MHS employees utilise MAFF child-care facilities. No child-care allowances are paid.
- Eligibility criteria--Available to all MHS employees but child-care places very limited.
- (xiii) Careers' Leave
- Main provisions--The MHS does not have a formal policy in this area, although special extended leave has been granted in some cases to facilitate career development.
- Eligibility criteria--Each case carefully considered on merit, and with regard to operational service requirements and individual/organisational benefits arising.
- (xiv) Career Break Schemes
- Main provisions--The MHS does not have a formal policy in this area.
- Eligibility criteria--Not applicable.
Letter from P. W. Greig-Smith to Caroline Flint, dated 21 February 2000:
- The Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food has asked me to reply to your question regarding provision of various benefits to staff. I am replying on behalf of the Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (CEFAS).
- With regard to maternity leave and maternity pay, CEFAS provides 16 weeks leave with pay, one week more than core MAFF. Eligibility for these benefits is the same as core MAFF.
- For paternity leave, parental leave, flexible working hours, part-time work, job sharing, leave to care for sick children, home working, term-time contracts, annual hours contracts, child care allowances, careers' leave and career break schemes, CEFAS' allowances are exactly the same as those of core MAFF. Eligibility is the same as core MAFF.
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Caroline Flint: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food in each of the last five years, what proportion of women employees in (i) his Department and (ii) executive agencies under the control of his Department (a) returned to work after childbirth, (b) returned to work after childbirth before the end of maternity leave, indicating the (1) time-range and (2) mean time, (c) returned to work after childbirth on reduced working hours, indicating the average hours worked and (d) returned to work after childbirth full-time and subsequently reduced their hours. [108970]
Mr. Morley: Absence details for individual staff (including those on maternity leave) are maintained for the core-Department, the Pesticides Safety Directorate and the Veterinary Medicines Directorate Agencies centrally through a combination of paper records and the computerised payroll system. But, unfortunately, aggregated information in the form precisely requested is not readily available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
In respect of the remaining MAFF Agencies, responsibility for such matters rests with Agency Chief Executives. I have asked the Chief Executives of the Central Science Laboratory, Meat Hygiene Service, the Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Service and Veterinary Laboratory to reply to my hon. Friend direct.
Letter from Peter Stanley to Caroline Flint, dated 21 February 2000:
- The Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food has asked me to reply, in respect of the Central Science Laboratory (CSL), to your question concerning the proportion of women employees that have returned to work after childbirth.
- Information on the number of women returning to work after childbirth and those who returned to work part-time is given in the following table:
| 1995 | 1996 | 1997 | 1998 | 1999 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total number of women taking maternity leave | 12 | 7 | 9 | 6 | 12 |
| Number returned to work | 11 | 6 | 9 | 5 | 12 |
| Of which part-time | 3 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 8 |
More detailed information in the form requested could only be provided at disproportionate cost.
- As Chief Executive of the Meat Hygiene Service (MHS), your question to the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food requesting statistics on various aspects of maternity leave provision, has been passed to me to reply as regards this Executive Agency.
- The information that you requested is summarised in the attached table. Please note that it has only been possible to provide data for the years 1997-1999 inclusive. Prior to this, the MHS's payroll provision was outsourced and obtaining the relevant information for 1995 and 1996 could only be achieved at disproportionate cost.
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| Number | |
|---|---|
| Duration of maternity leave (weeks): | |
| Minimum | 18 |
| Maximum | 38 |
| Average length of maternity leave taken (weeks) | 25 |
| Average hours worked by those who returned on reduced hours | 20 |
Letter from P. W. Greig-Smith to Caroline Flint, dated 21 February 2000:
- The Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food has asked me to reply to your question requesting statistics on staff returning to work after childbirth for each of the last five years. I am replying on behalf of the Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (CEFAS), which, prior to April 1997, was the MAFF Directorate of Fisheries Research (DFR).
- DFR/CEFAS' staff records are held in a way that would entail extracting this information from individual staff files, and provision of this information could only be made at disproportionate cost.
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