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Non-native Species
Mr. Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions when the review of non-native species policy outlined in the Government's rural White Paper will commence. [156758]
Mr. Meacher: A review group, consisting of Government and non-Government organisations, will start work early next month to carry out the review of non-native species policy. The review process will:
- Evaluate the effectiveness of current statutory or non-statutory procedures for dealing with the introduction and establishment of non-native species and identify examples of current best practice within the United Kingdom and abroad.
Identify the main vectors for the introduction and spread of non-native species.
Put forward practical and proportionate costed proposals for improving measures to limit the ecological and economic impact of non-native species in Great Britain and recommend measures to limit the impact of the introduction of native species beyond their natural range. These could include proposals for statutory or non-statutory measures in areas of research and monitoring, trade, and control of non-native species.
Identify appropriate organisations to take forward any measures recommended.
Water Industry
Mr. Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will make a statement on the progress of the Government's review of competition in the water industry in England and Wales. [156760]
Mr. Meacher: Following further work on the options for extending competition in the water industry in England and Wales, the Government have decided to boost the opportunities for competition. Our proposals will bring customers the prospect of more choice, keener prices and better services. We propose to license new entrants into the market for production and retail activities, while the incumbent water companies will remain vertically integrated statutory undertakers, retaining their important strategic water resource and environmental duties. Companies will be given clearer rights to enter the water market, providing the opportunity for innovation and efficiency gains to give customers better deals. We will continue to ensure that public health, the natural environment, and the high quality of drinking water is safeguarded, and that water services remain affordable for customers. We will publish a consultation paper on the proposed legislative and regulatory framework in the summer.
Local Authority Housing
Mr. Watts: To ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will make a statement on arm's length management of local authority housing in response to the consultation paper, "Arms Length Management of Local Authority Housing". [156817]
Mr. Raynsford: I am today placing in the Library of the House the text of guidance on arm's length management of local authority housing and on the availability of the additional resources made available in
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the spending review. This will very shortly be made available on the Department's website, and printed copies will be available in due course.
I am grateful to those who responded to the consultation paper; I am placing a summary of responses in the Library of the House. We have made a number of changes to the proposals set out there in the light of comments.
Many authorities asked for a pre-allocation of resources so that they could proceed to plan and to consult their tenants in the knowledge that, if they meet all the requirements, a known amount of additional resources will be available. We will be setting up such a system, and will be making the resources available over two years so that authorities will have longer to spend the resources they have been allocated. The guidance suggests that authorities wishing to seek resources for 2002-03 should aim to let the Department have an early indication of their intention to seek a place on the list by July 2001 and full supporting information by the end of September.
Many authorities have expressed concern that the requirement to obtain a 3* (excellent) rating from the Housing Inspectorate is very demanding. We are, however, quite clear that additional resources should be linked to the highest standards of service. But we recognise that those authorities that develop the first arm's length proposals will face a particularly challenging task, and are prepared, for 2002-03, to make a part payment to those authorities that demonstrate that services are well on the way to achieving a 3* rating. In such cases a 2* (good) rating together with an assessment of "likely to improve" or "will improve" will attract 50 per cent. of the full amount subject to an agreed plan to achieve 3* standard. The full amount will be payable once the 3* standard is reached.
We have made a number of other changes to the proposals in the consultation paper to reflect concerns expressed in responses and to give further detail on some points. In particular, the guidance makes clear that there will be some flexibility in the limit of 12,000 dwellings for an individual company; that tenant representatives on company boards should be elected; and that there should be clearly defined responsibilities between a local authority and a company in relation to the authority's strategic functions.
I believe that arm's length management is an exciting new opportunity for authorities and tenants. I am encouraged by the enthusiasm with which the idea has been received, and I hope that many authorities will give it serious consideration. The Department will be working closely to establish template documentation with those who are looking to be the leaders in this field.
EDUCATION AND EMPLOYMENT
Physical Education
Ms Kelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment how many students graduated from a physical education teaching course in each year since 1995. [154481]
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Ms Estelle Morris: The numbers of people obtaining qualified teacher status in England who had physical education as a recorded subject in their teaching courses are as follows:
| Year | BEd | PGCE |
|---|---|---|
| 1995 | 737 | 721 |
| 1996 | 747 | 678 |
| 1997 | 847 | 711 |
| 1998 | 684 | 848 |
| 1999(27) | 678 | 769 |
(27) Provisional
The numbers of regular teachers (excluding short-term supply) in the maintained schools sector in England at January 2000 was 404,600, the highest for 10 years and 6,900 higher than January 1998.
There was a growth of 2,300 in the number of people recruited to train as teachers between 1999-2000 and 2000-01, the first such increase since 1992-93.
From April 2001 new graduate recruits can expect to earn £17,000 a year (up 6 per cent. from the previous year) and starting salaries in Inner London will rise to £20,000 (up 9 per cent. from the previous year).
Education (St. Ives)
Mr. Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment how many vacancies for teachers there were in the St. Ives constituency in (a) 1992, (b) 1997 and (c) 2001. [155741]
Ms Estelle Morris: The information requested is not held centrally. The number of vacancies at January each year and the vacancy rate for the local authorities Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, in which the constituency of St. Ives lies, are given in the table.
| Year | Number of vacancies | Vacancy rate (Percentage) |
|---|---|---|
| 1992 | 3 | 0.1 |
| 1997 | 10 | 0.3 |
| 2000 | 11 | 0.3 |
The number of regular teachers (excluding short-term supply) in the maintained schools sector in England at January 2000 was 404,600, the highest for 10 years and 6,900 higher than January 1998.
There was a growth of 2,300 in the number of people recruited to train as teachers between 1999-2000 and 2000-01, the first such increase since 1992-93.
From April 2001 new graduate recruits can expect to earn £17,000 a year (up 6 per cent. from the previous year) and starting salaries in Inner London will rise to £20,000 (up 9 per cent. from the previous year).
Mr. Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment what percentage of full time students stayed in education in the St. Ives constituency after the age of (a) 16 and (b) 18 in (i) 1992, (ii) 1997 and (iii) 2001. [155743]
Mr. Wicks: At the heart of our drive to improve participation and attainment is the new Connexions Service which we will be phasing in from April this year.
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The service will provide information, advice, support and access to personal development opportunities for all 13-19 year olds, whatever their needs and circumstances, to keep them learning. Latest figures show that the numbers of 16 to 18 year olds not in education, employment or training in England fell by 28,000 from 185,000 in 1998 to 157,000 1999.
Data on the percentage of students continuing in post-compulsory education at age 16 are not calculated for areas smaller than LEAs, and participation rates by LEA are only available for 16 and 17 year olds.
The percentage of 16 year olds in full-time education for Cornwall LEA, which includes the constituency of St. Ives, was 78 per cent. in 1992-93, 75 per cent. in 1997-98 and 76 per cent. in 1998-99, the latest year for which figures are available.
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