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19 Nov 2002 : Column 52W—continued
Southern Africa
Mr. Sarwar: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what emergency aid has been provided to Southern Africa in recent months. [80751]
Clare Short: We have made the following bilateral commitments since September 2001 in response to the humanitarian crisis in Southern Africa:
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| Country | |
|---|---|
| Malawi | 25.25 |
| Zimbabwe | 40.3 |
| Lesotho | 2.56 |
| Swaziland | 0.25 |
| Zambia | 8.92 |
| Regional | 3.95 |
In addition, our contribution to commitments by the European Commission to date is about #21.3 million.
Zimbabwe
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether her Department has detailed contingency plans for delivering food to the people of Zimbabwe in the event of an emergency. [80575]
Clare Short: The humanitarian situation in Zimbabwe is already an emergency to which my Department has been responding for over a year. To date we have committed more than #38 million for emergency food provision, health care, agricultural inputs, and monitoring. This has been successfully channelled through UN agencies and non-governmental partners.
We are working closely with the internationally mandated organisations to ensure that appropriate contingency plans are in place for a number of scenarios, including the displacement of people. In the event of deterioration in the situation, we will continue to work with agencies already operational on the ground, with the capability, capacity, and access to deliver assistance.
HOME DEPARTMENT
Correspondence
David Winnick: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he will reply to the letter from the hon. Member for Walsall, North of 17 October regarding a constituent, ref: 517205. [81071]
Beverley Hughes [holding answer 18 November 2002]: I regret that I am unable to trace this letter from the details given. If further information on the constituent's name and address could be forwarded to me, I will be happy to investigate the matter further.
David Winnick: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he will reply to the letter from the hon. Member for Walsall, North of 16 September, regarding a constituent, ref: 19031/2. [81094]
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Beverley Hughes [holding answer 18 November 2002]: A reply to the letter was sent on 12 November. I apologise for the delay in replying.
National Asylum Support Service (Liverpool)
Mrs. Ellman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what progress has been made with the inquiry conducted into NASS supervision of Landmark Co. in Liverpool; and what change he proposes to make in relation to NASS. [81100]
Beverley Hughes [holding answer 18 November 2002]: The independent inquiry team has completed its investigation and I am expecting to receive the final report shortly. Until I have seen and considered the report I cannot say whether any changes will be made in relation to National Asylum Support Service (NASS).
Police Officers (Nottinghamshire)
Patrick Mercer: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to change the number of police officers in Nottinghamshire Constabulary's 'B' Division. [80704]
Mr. Denham: The deployment of Nottinghamshire Police officers is a matter for the Chief Constable to determine. At the end of March 2002 Nottinghamshire Police had 2,330 police officers, 55 more than in March 2001. The force also had 1,087 civilian support staff at the end of March, 48 more than in March of last year.
EDUCATION AND SKILLS
School Transport
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what quality standards are in place for home-to-school transport; and what changes to these standards (a) have taken place and (b) are planned. [81731]
Mr. Stephen Twigg: LEA contracted home-to-school transport services are covered by Best Value, which was introduced in the Local Government Act 1999 as a means of securing greater value for money from local government services. Best Value is a statutory requirement for local authorities.
Should schools choose to purchase their own transport services DfES has produced the 'Purchasing Guide for Schools' which offers a working guide for
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school managers to help them set high quality standards when procuring and managing school transport contracts.
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills (1) what funding mechanisms are available directly from his Department to (a) local authorities and (b) other education bodies for improving school transport in order to improve child truancy rates; and what the total amount paid from his Department was for improving school transport in each year since 1992; [81735]
- (2) what research has been conducted and is planned by his Department on the implications on child truancy rates of changes in home-to-school transport which have taken place and which could arise from additional improvements in home-to-school transport. [81734]
Mr. Stephen Twigg: We are currently conducting research into the causes of absence from school in order to fully understand the issues. We are not specifically looking at truancy in relation to home-to-school transport, as previous research has not shown there to be a link. There is no funding directly available for improving school transport in order to improve child truancy rates.
The DfES has spent the following amounts on home-to- school transport since 1992:
| Total (# million) | Percentage annual rise in expenditure | |
|---|---|---|
| 1992–93 | 293 | — |
| 1993–94 | 288 | — |
| 1994–95 | 319 | 11 |
| 1995–96 | 345 | 8 |
| 1996–97 | 382 | 11 |
| 1997–98 | 418 | 9 |
| 1998–99 | 444 | 6 |
| 1999–2000 | 485 | 9 |
| 2000–01(2) | 532 | 10 |
(2) provisional
Classroom Assistants (Ilford, North)
Linda Perham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what plans he has to improve the (a) pay, (b) training and (c) career prospects of classroom assistants in Ilford, North. [80538]
Mr. Miliband: The pay of teaching assistants is a matter for local authorities and schools to determine. A consultative document XDeveloping the role of school support staff" was published on 22 October, and sets out plans for career routes and the creation of standards and training for a new higher level role for teaching assistants. Copies have been placed in the Library of the House.
Departmental Website
Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills whether the Department's website is managed internally or externally of the Department. [80593]
Mr. Stephen Twigg: A small core team within the Department for Education and Skills, run the Department's website, including managing a range of
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key partners who provide particular website services, for example: hosting of the website; design and building of new sub sites; user research and site measurement.
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