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Ministerial Transport
Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what her estimate is of the cost of (a) ministerial cars and drivers and (b) taxis for her Department in each of the last four years. [27901]
Ms Hewitt: (a) I refer the hon. Member to the reply given by my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Secretary, Cabinet Office on 30 January 2002, Official Report, columns 405-06W.
(b) This information is not held centrally.
Oil Suppliers and Retailers
Ms Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what discussions she and the Office of Fair Trading have held and on what dates since September 2001 with the (a) major oil suppliers, (b) United
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Kingdom Petroleum Industries Association, (c) Institute of Petroleum, (d) Petrol Retailers Association and (e) Association of United Kingdom Oil Independents to discuss mechanisms for the supply of road transport fuels; and if she will make a statement. [35070]
Mr. Wilson: Ministers regularly meet a wide range of representatives from business. However, it is not normal practice to release details of ministerial meetings.
Accountancy Contracts
Annabelle Ewing: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will publish the (a) number and (b) value of contracts awarded by her Department to (i) Arthur Andersen, (ii) Deloitte Touche, (iii) Ernst and Young, (iv) KPMG and (v) PricewaterhouseCoopers accountants in each year since 1997. [34993]
Ms Hewitt: Information from the Department's systems indicate that contracts let by core DTI to PWC Consulting or PricewaterhouseCoopers are as follows:
| PricewaterhouseCoopers | No. Contracts | Total Value ÿ |
|---|---|---|
| 01 April 1999–31 March 2000 | 9 | 354,657 |
| 01 April 2000–31 March 2001 | 16 | 636,623 |
| 01 April 2001–04 January 2002 | 13 | 870,199 |
Contracts let by core DTI to Ernst & Young are as follows:
| Ernst & Young | No. Contracts | Total Value ÿ |
|---|---|---|
| 01 April 1999–31 March 2000 | 3 | 407,165 |
| 01 April 2000–31 March 2001 | 58 | 829,043 |
| 01 April 2001–04 January 2002 | 10 | 879,679 |
Contracts let by core DTI to Deloitte & Touche are as follows:
| Deloitte & Touche | No. Contracts | Total Value ÿ |
|---|---|---|
| 01 April 1999–31 March 2000 | 6 | 1,265,252 |
| 01 April 2000–31 March 2001 | 6 | 1,839,428 |
| 01 April 2001–04 January 2002 | 4 | 4,489,189 |
Contracts let by core DTI to KPMG are as follows:
| KPMG | No. Contracts | Total Value ÿ |
|---|---|---|
| 01 April 1999–31 March 2000 | 1 | 11,642 |
| 01 April 2000–31 March 2001 | 4 | 30,009 |
| 01 April 2001–04 January 2002 | 3 | 92,131 |
Information is not held centrally for the earlier years and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
For contracts let to Andersen I would refer to the answer given to the hon. Member for East Carmarthen and Dinefwr (Adam Price) on 14 January 2002, Official Report, column 41W, where exceptionally information was given for earlier years.
The Department's Executive Agencies will be responding separately.
Job No: 713438 Folios: 2015
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Post Office Closures
Brian Cotter: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many post offices are undergoing a consultation process for considered closure in connection with Postwatch, broken down by county. [35544]
Mr. Alexander: 73 post offices are currently undergoing consultation with Postwatch under the procedures of the Code of Practice for Post Office branch relocation, closure and conversion. The figures on a country basis are:
- England 63
- Wales 8
- Scotland 2
- Northern Ireland 0
Figures are not available on a county basis.
I understand from Post Office Ltd that the majority of these consultations concern outlets in rural areas where the subpostmaster has resigned and there are no applicants for the vacancy. The Code of Practice requires seeking alternative ways of continuing provision of post office services.
Pakistan (Imports)
Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what representations she has received from representatives of (a) industry and (b) trade unions about the effect on the UK textile industry of the removal of duty from finished goods imported from Pakistan. [36250]
Mr. Wilson: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry received representations from the British Apparel & Textiles Confederation (BATC) and the Knitting Footwear and Allied Trades Union (KFAT) last October, including at a meeting to discuss the effect on the UK textile industry of the removal of duty from finished goods imported from Pakistan. In addition, and following on from correspondence, I met with representatives from the Transport and General Workers Union (TGWU) and BATC on this subject earlier this month.
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Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how she will ensure that the decision to support Pakistan by the removal of duty from imported made up goods will not have a destabilising effect in the far eastern region. [36252]
Mr. Wilson: The Government's view is that the removal of duty on imports of made up goods from Pakistan will not have a destabilising effect on the far eastern region. Imports of most made up goods from Pakistan are currently subject to quantitative restriction by the EU under the Multi-Fibre Arrangement (MFA), limiting the effect of the removal of duty.
Gas Refuelling Points
Mr. Lazarowic: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many public refuelling points in the UK, broken down by area, sell (a) liquid petroleum gas and (b) natural gas for vehicles. [36386]
Mr. Wilson: The website of the Liquefied Petroleum Gas Association (www.lpga.co.uk) gives a regional breakdown of the number of public refuelling points in the UK. As at 13 February 2002, it is recorded as follows:
| England | 840 | |||
| Wales | 89 | |||
| Scotland | 89 | |||
| Northern Ireland | 21(1)
(1) The data for Northern Ireland were obtained from the website of the Energy Saving Trust (www.est-powershift.org.uk) as at 7 February 2002. Both websites also give further detail on regional breakdown. New sites are currently opening at more than one per day. On 14 February I launched a ÿ1 million Boost initiative, as a supplement to the DTLR's PowerShift program, which aims to increase the uptake of LPG vehicles by:
According to the Natural Gas Vehicle Association (NGVA), there are 30 sites for refuelling with natural gas in the UK, 29 in England and 1 in Scotland. According to the NGVA, third party access is possible by arrangement with the suppliers at about 50 per cent. of these sites.
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