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Islamabad
Mr. Rooney: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when the explanatory statement for Islamabad, reference ISB/N7692, will be forwarded to the Home Office. [29239]
Mr. Bradshaw: The Joint Entry Clearance Unit are seeking information on this case from the High Commission at Islamabad and will write to my hon. Friend about this case in the next few days.
Zimbabwe
Mr. Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when the British High Commission in Zimbabwe last met Mr. Mugabe; and what was discussed. [28858]
Mr. Bradshaw: The British High Commissioner last met President Mugabe on 25 October, when he accompanied my noble Friend Baroness Amos on a call, as part of the visit by Commonwealth Foreign Ministers to Zimbabwe from 25–27 October. The meeting focused on implementation of the Abuja agreement.
Kenya
Mr. Wyatt: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1) what action he has taken to ensure that the EU observers will be in situ for the Kenyan elections later this year; [28944]
- (2) what measures he intends to take to ensure fair and free elections in Kenya in 2002. [28964]
Mr. Bradshaw: We are working closely with our development partners, and in consultation with key Kenyan stakeholders, to establish a comprehensive monitoring effort for the elections.
21 Jan 2002 : Column 581W
Mr. Wyatt: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a formal complaint to the High Commission for Kenya over the plans to deforest part of the Mau area in Kenya. [28957]
Mr. Bradshaw: The British High Commissioner and representatives from the Department for International Development have consistently raised with the Minister of Environment and Natural Resources and other members of the Kenyan Government UK concerns over plans to excise forest reserve.
EDUCATION AND SKILLS
Ring-fenced Funds
Andrew Selous: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what funds allocated by (a) her Department and (b) its executive agencies are ring-fenced for specific purposes; and if she will list the allocations of funds involved. [22955]
Estelle Morris [holding answer 18 December 2001]: Most of the Department's funding is not ring-fenced for any particular programme. The exceptions to this are initiatives running with support from specifically targeted funds. Details of initiatives running in 2001–02 with funding which cannot be diverted into any other programme without Treasury permission are listed:
| Initiative | |
|---|---|
| Student Loans | 818 |
| New Deal for Schools | 293 |
| Capital Modernisation Fund | 232 |
| Of which: | |
| UK Online Centres | 141 |
| City Learning Centres | 44 |
| Computers for Teachers | 5 |
| School Laboratories | 30 |
| University for Industry | 2 |
| The Cybrarian | 2.5 |
| Specialist Schools | 7 |
| Child care | 162 |
| Sure Start | 184 |
| Children's Fund | 100 |
| Invest to Save Budget | 2 |
The Department provides grant funding for local education authorities (LEAs) for targeted initiatives, such as literacy and numeracy strategies, the National Grid for Learning, and capital support for schools, through the Standards Fund.
The Department provides funding for non-departmental government bodies. In a number of cases there is a large amount of discretion for these bodies in how they deploy funds. Such organisations include the Higher Education Funding Council for England, the Learning and Skills Council and the Teacher Training Agency.
Most support for schools and local education authorities (LEAs) flows through the Education Standard Spending Assessment and Revenue Support Grant. This funding is not ring-fenced.
21 Jan 2002 : Column 582W
Newspaper Advertising
Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what has been the expenditure of her (a) Department, (b) agencies and (c) non-departmental public bodies on newspaper advertising by title for each year since 1997. [26990]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: For details of the advertising spend of the Department from 1996–97 I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to the hon. Member for Bath (Mr. Foster) on 26 February 2001, Official Report, columns 379–80W. Department press expenditure during 2000–01 amounted to £7,323,331.
Each advertising campaign may use national and regional media. In addition to regional newspapers, advertising space may also be taken in a large number of local newspapers.
A breakdown on advertising by title could only be supplied at disproportionate cost.
Information on advertising expenditure by agencies and non-departmental public bodies is not held centrally.
School Internet Access
Mr. Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many schools in the north-east are equipped with internet access. [28067]
John Healey: Statistics published by the Department for Education and Skills in October 2001 show that 97 per cent. of schools in England were connected to the internet in April of that year; significant progress from a position where only 28 per cent. were connected in 1998. Our target is that every school should have access to the internet in 2002.
The Department does not maintain information about internet access in schools on a regional or local basis.
Education SSA (Swindon)
Ms Drown: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how much of Swindon's standard spending assessment per pupil was allocated on the basis of pupil numbers alone for the years (a) 1999–2000, (b) 2000–01, (c) 2001–02 and (d) 2002–03. [28356]
Mr. Timms: The information requested is in the following table.
| SSA per pupil allocated on pupil numbers only(6) | Total education SSA per pupil(6) | |
|---|---|---|
| 1999–2000 | 1,871 | 2,513 |
| 2000–01 | 1,958 | 2,624 |
| 2001–02 | 2,024 | 2,681 |
| 2002–03 | 2,134 | 2,811 |
(6) For pupils aged four to 19
Data for 2002–03 are provisional.
21 Jan 2002 : Column 583W
Teacher Recruitment Agencies
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what information she has collated on the costs of commission paid by schools to recruitment agencies. [28529]
Mr. Timms: This information is not collected centrally.
Sixth-form Education (Worcestershire)
Mr. Luff: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills when she will announce the amount of the additional payment she will make to the Worcestershire local education authority to compensate for the amount transferred to the Learning and Skills Council for sixth-form education in Worcestershire; and if she will make a statement. [28596]
Mr. Timms: The transfer of sixth-form funding to the LSC from April 2002 will be cost neutral at LEA level—the adjustments to individual SSAs to take account of the transfer will match the payments that LEAs get back from the LSC.
But we propose to pay a special grant to a minority of LEAs where the changes being made to the funding methodology would not fully eliminate the impact of the funding changes in 2002–03.
I expect details of the special grant to be released after consultation on the Local Government Finance Settlement has been completed at the end of the month.
Learning and Skills Councils
Mr. Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what guidance was given to local Learning and Skills Councils on the cost and location of their office accommodation. [28854]
Margaret Hodge: Decisions on the location of local LSC offices were taken by Ministers in February 2000, before the LSC became operational. Factors taken into consideration included the need to get best value for public money by using, where appropriate, premises then occupied by Training and Enterprise Councils, regard was also had to ensuring locations that would facilitate effective operation of the LSC. Since it became operational the LSC has been responsible for its local office locations and costs.
Standards Funds
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will list the Standards Funds received by schools in Hampshire in (i) 2000–01 and (ii) 2001–02. [28864]
Mr. Timms: The following table shows allocations for the Standards Fund for Hampshire local education authority in 2000–01 and 2001–02. The figures include both Government and local authority contributions. The amount actually paid to schools depends on local expenditure decisions by schools and the local authority.
21 Jan 2002 : Column 584W
| £ | |
|---|---|
| Administrative Support for Small Schools | 608,000 |
| Advanced Skills Teachers | 136,500 |
| Beacon Schools | 341,450 |
| Best Practice Research Scholarships | 75,675 |
| Class Size Initiative | 4,245,393 |
| Developing and Extending Maintained Nursery School Services | 24,945 |
| Devolved Formula Capital for Schools | 7,605,169 |
| Early Excellence Centres | 98,228 |
| Early Years Training and Development | 303,077 |
| Education and Health Partnerships | 97,995 |
| Ethnic Minority Pupils and Traveller Achievement | 397,838 |
| Key Stage 3 Numeracy: Secondary Schools Conference | 61,812 |
| Literacy and Numeracy: Summer Schools and Key Stage 3 | 176,000 |
| Local Education Authority Music Services | 1,085,380 |
| Maintained Nursery Capital | 11,613 |
| National Grid for Learning | 3,858,095 |
| New Models for LEA Services | 45,000 |
| New National Curriculum | 431,400 |
| Performance Management Training | 907,454 |
| Primary Literacy and Numeracy Strategies | 2,792,848 |
| Qualifications | 197,363 |
| School Improvement | 7,239,927 |
| School Laboratories for the 21st Century | 550,813 |
| School Leadership | 449,904 |
| School Security | 510,545 |
| Secondary School Learning Support Units | 239,741 |
| Seed Capital Challenge | 593,728 |
| Small School Support Fund | 440,681 |
| Social Inclusion, Drugs and Youth | 1,776,297 |
| Special Educational Needs | 741,547 |
| Specialist Schools | 756,016 |
| Study Support | 160,640 |
| Summer Schools for Gifted and Talented Pupils | 63,000 |
| Support for Parent Governor Representatives | 1,200 |
| Supported Early Retirement Scheme for Heads | 180,399 |
| Teacher Incentives | 82,555 |
| Teaching Assistants | 2,806,098 |
| Working Environment Fund | 485,925 |
| Year 6 Literacy and Numeracy Booster Classes | 873,277 |
| Total | 41,453,528 |
21 Jan 2002 : Column 585W
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