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INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Third World Debt
Dr. Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development (1) what progress has been made with the launch of a joint IMF and World bank fund to focus on alleviating the debts of the heavily indebted poor countries by the end of 2000; [119049]
- (2) what progress has been made with proposals to speed up the HIPC II debt cancellation programme. [119336]
Clare Short: So far, five countries have qualified for relief under the enhanced Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Initiative. This is disappointing because the target was for 11 countries to have qualified by the Spring Meetings of the World bank and the IMF. The Government remain strongly committed to the G7 target of three-quarters of eligible countries getting to Decision Point by the end of 2000. We are pressing the bank and Fund to speed up the process.
Discussions are also continuing to agree the financing arrangements for the multilateral development banks' participation in the Initiative. Further contributions to the HIPC Trust Fund will be required. UK has made the largest commitment to date--over $350 million. This includes our share of European Community contributions to the Trust Fund.
Primary Education
Dr. Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to her answer of 2 February 2000, Official Report, column 619W, on primary education, how much each heavily indebted poor country received from the UK's bilateral aid budget for the provision of primary education for each of the last three years. [118350]
Clare Short: The following table indicates UK bilateral development assistance expenditure on primary education in heavily indebted poor countries over the last three financial years for which data are available. These data refer only to projects and programmes aimed solely at primary education. There is also expenditure on this area included in wider projects and programmes, or funded through NGOs, which cannot be separately identified.
(7) Initial expenditure against DFID's commitment of £67 million to Uganda's Education Strategic Investment Programme (1998-2003), one of the prime objectives of which is to achieve universal primary education by 2003.
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EDUCATION AND EMPLOYMENT
Departmental Properties
Mr. Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will list those properties held by his Department and agencies responsible to him which are (a) wholly and (b) mainly unoccupied at present, giving locations and when they became so unoccupied in each case. [105308]
Mr. Wills [holding answer 19 January 2000]: A list of those properties which are wholly, or have been mainly, unoccupied that are held by my Department and agencies has been placed in the Library.
Jobseeker's Allowance
Sir Brian Mawhinney: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment how many claims under the special payments category of the Jobseeker's Allowance were made in 1999; and how many of these were refused on the grounds of inadequate contribution payments. [108450]
Ms Jowell: Responsibility for the subject of the question has been delegated to the Employment Service agency under its Chief Executive. I have asked him to arrange for a reply to be given.
Letter from Leigh Lewis to Dr. Brian Mawhinney, dated 17 April 2000:
As the Employment Service is an Executive Agency, the Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question concerning special payments relating to Jobseeker's Allowance in 1999. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Chief Executive of the Agency.
The Employment Service has arrangements to consider claims for compensation from jobseekers who claim to have suffered a financial loss or severe worry and distress, gross inconvenience or embarrassment as a result of errors by our staff, under the terms of a Department of Social Security compensation scheme.
In the period 1 January 1999 to 31 December 1999, we received 391 claims for special payments as a result of alleged error in connection with Employment Service administration of Jobseeker's Allowance. Of these claims for compensation, 16 were in connection with advice concerning the National Insurance Contribution conditions for Jobseeker's Allowance, of which two were refused.
I should add that the Benefits Agency also make special payments as a result of alleged errors with their administration of Jobseeker's Allowance. Therefore, I have asked for the Chief Executive of the Benefits Agency to reply to you direct on the number of special payments they have made in relation to Jobseeker's Allowance.
I hope this is helpful.
17 Apr 2000 : Column: 343W
Lawyers
Mr. Ieuan Wyn Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment how many lawyers are employed by his Department; and how many were employed in 1995. [117814]
Mr. Wills: The Department for Education and Employment (DfEE) does not directly employ lawyers but obtains them from Treasury Solicitor's Department (TSD). The lawyers are employed by TSD and allocated to DfEE. The figures given represent the number of lawyers allocated as at 31 March for the years in question.
As at 31 March 2000, 24 lawyers were allocated by TSD to DfEE.
DfEE came into existence following Machinery of Government changes in July 1995. The figures given for 1995 are for the number of lawyers allocated by TSD to its two predecessor Departments: the Employment Department Group (EDG) and Department for Education (DfE).
As at 31 March 1995, 13 lawyers were allocated to the former EDG and 10 to the former DfE, making a total of 23.
Meaningful comparisons between the numbers for 1995 and 2000 will be difficult to establish as DfEE's responsibilities do not precisely equate with those of its predecessor Departments.
For example, the Health and Safety Executive and the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service were both part of EDG in March 1995 but transferred to the Department of Environment and the Department of Trade and Industry respectively as part of the Machinery of Government changes later that year.
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Vulnerable Adults
Mr. Martyn Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what plans he has to introduce police checks on employees in education working with vulnerable adults. [118739]
Ms Hodge: My right hon. Friend the Home Secretary has announced his intention to implement part V of the Police Act 1997. As a result, criminal records information will become more readily available to employers recruiting people to work with children or vulnerable adults. Details of how this is to work in education are being developed currently and announcements will be made at a later date.
Disabled People
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment when he will make an announcement about the national implementation of the personal adviser service part of his New Deal for the Disabled. [118599]
Ms Hodge: I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave to the hon. Member for Daventry (Mr. Boswell) on 12 April 2000, Official Report, column 186W.
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment how many personal advisers work for the personal adviser section of the New Deal for the Disabled; and what the average care load is in each (a) constituency, (b) local authority area and (c) county. [118609]
Ms Hodge: The information is not available in the precise form requested. Personal advisers are not allocated to specific constituencies, local authorities or counties. The table sets out the coverage and average caseload per personal adviser (as at 25 February) for each pilot area.
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| Pilot area | Communities covered | Numbers of personal advisers per pilot area | Caseload | Average caseload per PA per pilot area |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lanarkshire: Clyde Valley and Coatbridge | Hamilton, Motherwell, Coatbridge and Bellshill | 11.6 | 284 | 24.5 |
| Eastern Valleys | Aberdare, Blackwood, Caerphilly, Ebbw Vale, Merthyr Tydfil | 10.7 | 408 | 38.1 |
| Sandwell | Smethwick, West Bromwich | 7 | 224 | 32 |
| Bolton | Bolton | 7.6 | 285 | 37.5 |
| Central Sussex | Brighton, Hove | 9.3 | 184 | 19.8 |
| Bristol East and Bath | Bristol East and Bath | 8 | 262 | 32.8 |
| Newham | Plaistow, Stratford, Canning Town | 9 | 243 | 27 |
| South Tyneside | Gateshead, South Shields | 12 | 661 | 55.1 |
| Mercia East | Boston, King's Lynn, Skegness | 8 | 281 | 35.1 |
| South Devon | Plymouth, Saltash, Torbay, Tavistock, Totnes, Kingsbridge | 10 | 349 | 34.9 |
| Bedfordshire | Bedford, Luton | 8 | 117 | 14.6 |
| North Yorkshire | Harrogate, Scarborough, York, Northallerton | 10 | 343 | 34.3 |
17 Apr 2000 : Column: 343W
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment how much the personal adviser section of the New Deal for the Disabled has cost in each month since the start of the scheme. [118608]
Ms Hodge: The information requested is shown in the table.
17 Apr 2000 : Column: 344W
17 Apr 2000 : Column: 345W
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