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Jobcentre Plus

Mr. Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will list the changes that individual benefit offices in the Jobcentre Plus areas have been asked to make to ensure they are accessible to incapacity benefit claimants, with specific reference to changes to (a) buildings, (b) furniture and (c) printed materials. [24219]

Mr. Nicholas Brown: Jobcentre Plus is currently being delivered in 56 pathfinder offices. In the seven offices where providing entirely equal physical access to services has not been possible, alternative arrangements are in place to ensure that disabled people can still access these services. At Halifax, Darwen, Derby Normanton Road, and Wellington, there is restricted access to the first floor of these buildings, however all public services can be provided on the ground floor. At Pyle and Hoylake space restrictions mean there are some restrictions to staff movement. Only at Harlesden has public access been severely compromised by steps to the public entrance. Planning consent is being sought for a ramp. Alternative arrangements are in place to ensure service access for disabled people including home visits and assisted access at the office itself. The nearby office at Kilburn is fully accessible.

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Internally, Jobcentre Plus offices and furniture have been designed to enable full and equal access for all Jobcentre Plus customers. Adviser workstations enable both customers and staff to view the information on the monitor screen. The shape of the worktop allows wheelchair users the same access as able-bodied customers. The newly introduced self-service job vacancy terminals, known as "Jobpoints", have been designed specifically to enable access by wheelchair users.

All Jobcentre Plus leaflets are available in alternative formats, including Braille and audiocassette. In addition to alternative formats for printed material, Jobcentre Plus offers textphone facilities and British Sign Language interpreters or other suitable communicators to help deaf or hard of hearing customers.

Job Vacancies

Mr. Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what use is made of (a) Jobpoints and (b) Employer Direct for the advertisement of vacancies in Government Departments. [18041]

Mr. Nicholas Brown: All vacancies notified to the Employment Service through Employer Direct are shown on Jobpoints. Many Government jobs are advertised on Jobpoints and the internet job bank. Government Departments advertising their vacancies in this way include the Employment Service, Benefits Agency, Office for National Statistics and the Inland Revenue. Discussions are taking place with both the Cabinet Office and NHS Executive regarding advertising vacancies on the ES website.

Departmental Staff

Mr. Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many employees of (a) his Department and (b) agencies sponsored by his Department work in (i) London, (ii) areas benefiting from EU objective 1 status, (iii) areas with objective 2 status and (iv) other areas. [16113]

Mr. McCartney [holding answer 19 November 2001]: The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) currently covers 2,500 locations. The list of objective 2 status areas in England contains 1,700 areas. The information required for objective 2 status is therefore not easily available and could be produced only at disproportionate cost.

The figures available for London and objective 1 status areas are:

	Number of staff in DWP
London	17,334
Objective 1 areas	12,654
Other areas	109,678
Total	139,666

Retirement Statistics

Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many men and women over the age of retirement are in employment; what allowances there

28 Jan 2002 : Column 48W

are for men and women over the age of 60 looking to (a) remain in and (b) return to work; and what plans he has to raise the retirement ages of men and women. [29843]

Mr. McCartney: Employers are responsible for setting the retirement age of their employees. They often use the age at which the State pension becomes payable, or base the decision around their occupational pension scheme. State pension age will be equalised at 65 for both men and women from 6 April 2020. Women's state pension age will be increased gradually from 60 to 65 between the years 2010 and 2020.

The Department for Work and Pensions does encourage employers, through the Code of Practice on Age Diversity in Employment, and the Age Positive campaign, to value the contribution of older workers and to adopt flexible approaches to retirement which benefit both them and their employees.

TRANSPORT, LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND

THE REGIONS

Landfill Tax Credit Scheme

Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions which community projects based in the Buckingham constituency have benefited from the landfill tax credit scheme since its inception; and if he will indicate the amount of funding granted for each project. [30059]

Mr. Boateng: I have been asked to reply.

Information about the types of projects that have received funding under the landfill tax environmental bodies credit scheme is a matter for the regulator for the scheme, Entrust. I have therefore asked them to provide such data as they hold and will place a copy of their response in the Library.

Railtrack

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what interest liability the Railtrack administrator has incurred under the commercial loan agreement. [26304]

Mr. Spellar: The interest which is paid to the Secretary of State, accrued up until 15 January under the commercial loan agreement, is of the order of £14.2 million. It will be rolled up into the loan and paid at the same time that principal is repaid.

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he estimates that increased operating costs that Railtrack has experienced post-Hatfield will have an impact on the financial projections in the SRA strategic plan. [28545]

Mr. Jamieson: We will assess any impact on the SRA financial projections once the administrator or railtrack's successor has obtained a clearer picture of its underlying cost base and its operational needs.

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what powers he has to end the Railtrack administration through a refinancing package for the existing company. [30026]

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Mr. Jamieson: The powers of the Secretary of State in respect of a railway administration are set out in the Railways Act 1993 and the Railway Administration Order Rules 2001. My right hon. Friend's answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Preston (Mr. Hendrick) on 23 October 2001, Official Report, columns 195–97W set out the basis for a proposal for a private sector company limited by guarantee as a successor to Railtrack. We have no plans to develop other proposals.

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what assessment he has made on the impact of (a) Railtrack administration and (b) the move to two year franchise extensions on levels of new orders for rolling stock. [28552]

Mr. Jamieson: There are a number of mechanisms available to the SRA to secure investment under short franchise extensions, including rolling stock commitments under section 54 of the Railways Act 1993 where appropriate. I am not aware of any adverse effect on rolling stock orders caused by Railtrack going into administration.

Rail Electrification

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many miles of railway he expects to be electrified under the 10-year plan. [26465]

Mr. Jamieson: No specific targets have been set. Electrification in itself is not a priority aim of the SRA when considering investment in the railways. The authority are more interested in the benefits delivered for the passenger and freight customer than in the particular form of traction used.

Rail Safety

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions what proportion of track has been inspected in each of the last five years for which records are available under Railtrack's preventative maintenance scheme; and what proportion will be inspected in the current 12-month period. [26068]

Mr. Jamieson: I understand that all track owned by Railtrack has been inspected in each of the last five years; and will be inspected in the current 12-month period. The frequencies and methods of inspection reflect the speed and annual tonnage of trains using the track and are set out in Railway Group Standard GC/RT 5021.

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions how many children died in railway accidents (a) as passengers and (b) through trespass misadventure in each of the last five years for which figures are available in the age groups (i) zero to seven, (ii) eight to 13 and (iii) 14 to 18 years. [29744]

Mr. Jamieson: The number of fatalities to young people on the railway reported to the Health and Safety Executive's Railway Inspectorate (HMRI) over the last five years are shown in the following three tables. For statistical purposes HMRI classify children as between the ages of one to 15 years. Further information on railway fatalities to children can be found in the Chief Inspector of Railways annual reports on Railway Safety, copies of which are available in both House Libraries.

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Table 1: Passenger fatalities

	Age
1 April to 31 March	0–7 years	8–13 years	14–18 years
1996–97	0	0	1
1997–98	0	1	1
1998–99	0	0	4
1999–2000	0	0	0
2000–01	0	0	0

Table 2: Trespasser and suicide fatalities

	Age
1 April to 31 March	0–7 years	8–13 years	14–18 years
1996–97	2	4	16
1997–98	1	4	18
1998–99	0	2	16
1999–2000	1	1	9
2000–01	1	4	19

Table 3: Other member of the public fatalities (eg Level Crossings)

	Age
1 April to 31 March	0–7 years	8–13 years	14–18 years
1996–97	0	0	0
1997–98	0	0	1
1998–99	0	0	1
1999–2000	0	0	0
2000–01	0	0	0

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