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Written Answers to Questions
Wednesday 7 November 2001
FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS
British Consulate (Punjab)
Ann Keen: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what progress has been made to establish the British Consulate Office in Jallander, Punjab. [12540]
Mr. Bradshaw: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave my hon. Friend the Member for Leicester, East (Mr. Vaz) on 31 October 2001, Official Report, column 667W.
Visas
Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many applications for a visa to visit family members in the UK were refused in each month since 1 October 2000. [13056]
Mr. Bradshaw: Statistical information on the number of family visit applications refused on a monthly basis is only available from those posts that provide monthly statistical information (107 largest posts in 2000 and 110 in 2001). These figures are as follows:
| Month | Received | Refused |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | ||
| October | 11,850 | 2,022 |
| November | 14,334 | 1,897 |
| December | 12,470 | 1,283 |
| 2001 | ||
| January | 13,612 | 2,276 |
| February | 16,182 | 1,775 |
| March | 20,811 | 4,205 |
| April | 22,486 | 3,978 |
| May | 32,143 | 5,177 |
| June | 32,168 | 5,610 |
| July | 36,866 | 5,870 |
| August | 28,820 | 5,129 |
| September | 15,737 | 3,225 |
| Total | 257,479 | 42,447 |
The remaining posts submit information on an annual basis, which is not broken down into months. To answer this question for all 165 posts we would have to ask those additional posts manually to extract the information requested. This could be done only at disproportionate cost.
New Partnership for African Development
Dr. Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what financial commitments the Government have made to the New African Initiative; and if he will make a statement. [13120]
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Mr. Bradshaw: The New Partnership for African Development (NEPAD—formerly known as the New African Initiative) will require a broad international response, ranging from support to some of NEPAD's programmatic elements to action in the EU, OECD, UN and other international forums. No specific financial commitments have yet been made.
The Prime Minister has appointed Baroness Amos as his Personal Representative in developing a G8 Action Plan for Africa to be adopted at the 2002 G8 Summit in Canada. The first meeting of G8 Heads of State Personal Representatives was held in London on 17–19 October. They agreed to consult widely with other development partners, with the private sector, civil society and international organisations. They have further meetings planned which will include dialogue with African partners. The elements in the Action Plan will be evolved in the context of these meetings.
Afghan Women (Suicides)
Dr. Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has (a) received and (b) made concerning the number of suicides among Afghan women. [13121]
Mr. Bradshaw: Although we have received no specific representations on this issue, we have, through our High Commission in Islamabad, made numerous and regular representations to the Taliban on women's rights in Afghanistan.
International Criminal Court
Mrs. Anne Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what arrangements are being made to publicise the United Kingdom's policies on international humanitarian law, with particular reference to the International Criminal Court. [13195]
Peter Hain: On 4 October the Foreign and Commonwealth Office issued a publication entitled "United Kingdom and International Humanitarian Law", whose appearance was timed to coincide with United Kingdom ratification of the Rome Statute establishing the International Criminal Court. The publication, which has been placed in the Libraries of both Houses, describes the United Kingdom's policy regarding the International Criminal Court itself, in addition to a number of other important areas of international humanitarian law.
EDUCATION AND SKILLS
Education Funding
Mr. Chaytor: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will list the proportion of total education spending on primary and secondary education delivered through (a) Education Standard Spending assessment allocations and (b) other central Government funding streams for each of the last five years. [10820]
Mr. Timms: The table provides the information requested. It compares funding through the primary, secondary and post-16 sub-blocks of Education Standard Spending with DfES grant funding through the Standards
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Fund (DfES revenue grant only), School Standards Grant, Teachers' Pay Grants, Education Action Zone programme, School Budget Support Grant and Education Budget Support Grant.
| Year | Primary, secondary, and post-16 ESS sub-blocks | DfES grant funding |
|---|---|---|
| 1997–98 | 99 | 1 |
| 1998–99 | 98 | 2 |
| 1999–2000 | 96 | 4 |
| 2000–01 | 91 | 9 |
| 2001–02 | 88 | 12 |
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, pursuant to her answer of 26 October 2001, Official Report, column 456W, on education spending, what proportion of total spending on education was devolved to schools and colleges in each of the past 10 years. [12163]
Mr. Timms: The information requested is not available on a comparable basis across this period.
Performance-related Pay
Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the total cost of performance-related pay is to date, divided between (a) payments to staff and (b) administration costs; how many teachers have received performance-related pay; how many teachers who applied for performance-related pay failed to meet the necessary criteria; and if she will make a statement. [11486]
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Mr. Timms [holding answer 5 November 2001]: Over 200,000 teachers in England applied to cross the performance threshold in the first round, some 80 per cent. of those who were eligible to apply. Of these, nearly 195,000 were assessed as meeting the threshold standards and are now receiving over £400 million per year in associated pay increases.
The Department has contracts with Cambridge Education Associates (CEA) for the provision of threshold assessors and external advisers to governing bodies on heads' performance and with the Centre for British Teachers (CfBT) for training in threshold assessment and performance management. For the first round CEA contract costs have been around £22 to £24 million and CfBT contract costs about £12 to £14 million.
Free School Meals
Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills in each local authority which retains grammar schools, what proportion of children received free school meals (a) in that local authority as a whole, (b) in each grammar school within the authority and (c) in other secondary schools within the authority, at the latest date for which figures are available. [11627]
Mr. Timms [holding answer 5 November 2001]: Information showing free school meals figures for grammar schools and other secondary schools for each local education authority is contained in the following tables.
It is not departmental policy not to release individual school data unless the school has had the opportunity to check it. Schools have not had the opportunity to check their free school meals data.
(1) These local education authorities only have one specialist secondary school. It is Departmental policy not to release individual school level information unless the school has had the opportunity to check or confirm that information. Schools have not had the opportunity to check their free school meals data.
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