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Teaching Assistants

Mr. Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what his definition is of a High Level Teaching Assistant; and what the (a) minimum qualification levels, (b) training requirements and (c) salary scales are. [91584]

Mr. Miliband: The term "higher-level teaching assistant" has been used in my Department's recent consultation document "Developing the role of support staff" to describe individuals without Qualified Teacher Status who could assist classroom teachers with higher-level tasks directly associated with teaching and learning. Details of their training and qualifications will be developed following the end of the consultation period on 22 January 2003, but the consultation document proposes that they should be trained to a level between that of the existing NVQ level 3 qualification for teaching assistants and the level of Qualified Teacher Status. Decisions about pay for all school support staff are made at a local level by schools and LEAs but the consultation document also indicates that my officials will work with local government employers and support staff unions to ensure that greater responsibilities are reflected in pay.

Top-up Fees

Mr. Beggs: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland regarding the introduction of university top-up fees. [90018]

Margaret Hodge: My right hon. Friend meets the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland from time to time in the course of normal business. There have also been specific discussions during the higher education review, including on the issue of top-up fees.

Unused School Rooms

Mr. Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what incentives he gives to local education authorities to find alternative uses for unused rooms in schools. [85555]

Mr. Miliband [holding answer 5 December 2002]: Through the Asset Management Planning process, we encourage local education authorities and schools to make best value use of school buildings. For example, as part of the development of Asset Management Plans, we are currently surveying all school buildings to give schools and authorities up-to-date information on their school buildings, including the split of space between

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teaching and non-teaching areas and space not used directly for education. We also plan shortly to advise all headteacher and governing bodies on best practice in estate management. We encourage schools and authorities to develop community use of school buildings.

Youth Crime

Mr. Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what measures he is taking to educate young people about the penalties for shop theft. [90263]

Mr. Miliband: Pupils learn about the penalties of crime as part of Citizenship education—now a statutory subject in secondary schools—and as part of the national framework for Personal, Social and Health Education and Citizenship in primary schools. Detailed guidance sent to all schools by the QCA includes specific units to help teachers to develop pupils' understanding of issues of crime, including the role and operation of the criminal and civil justice system. For example, the unit 'Respect for property' helps pupils in KS 1 and 2 (age 5–10) to discuss and learn about the consequences of crime and the concept of taking responsibility for property in the community. In another unit 'Crime' pupils in KS3 (age 11–14) build on what they have learned in primary schools to explore how crime affects young people, victims of crime and their communities.

Mr. Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills when he last met the Home Secretary to discuss crimes by schoolchildren. [90264]

Mr. Stephen Twigg: My right hon. Friend has regular meetings with my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary about this and other relevant issues.

DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER

Private Letting

Keith Vaz: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what legal advice, in addition to that provided by the Citizens Advice Bureaux, is available to tenants whose landlord breaches the letting agreement. [90999]

Mr. McNulty: Tenants can seek legal advice from a solicitor in all legal matters. Advice is also available from community law services such as the Citizens Advice Bureau, Law Centres, or the local authority's housing advice centre.

Keith Vaz: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will establish an official body responsible for tenants' deposits and able to act as an authoritative third party in private letting contracts. [90997]

Mr. McNulty: Currently the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister has no plans to intervene in the contractual relationship between private landlords and their tenants by legislating for a third party to intervene and adjudicate in their disputes. However, the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister has issued a consultation paper "Tenancy money: probity and protection", in which views were requested on whether to move to a mandatory system for the protection of tenancy deposits; and, if so, what arrangements should provide

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for it. The deadline for responses is 28 February. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister will consider whether and how to legislate in the light of responses received.

Audit Commission

Mr. Liddell-Grainger: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many PSA targets the Audit Commission has. [91510]

Mr. Leslie: The Audit Commission has no PSA targets. However, the work of the Commission contributes to the achievement of my Department's target of improving the delivery and value for money of local services.

Mr Liddell-Grainger: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister whether people who work for the Audit Commission are required to declare other jobs. [91511]

Mr. Leslie: The Audit Commission's code of conduct requires employees to obtain prior approval for external work for which they will be paid, for other work which they will undertake in the Audit Commission's time or which is connected with their work for the Commission.

Consultation Exercises

Mr. Pickles: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister which of the non-departmental public bodies sponsored by his Department (a) hold public meetings, (b) conduct public consultation exercises, (c) conduct consultation exercises with outside commercial interests, (d) publish a register of members' interests, (e) publish agendas for meetings and (f) publish the minutes of meetings; and whether in each case this is a statutory requirement. [91625]

Mr Leslie: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister sponsors a range of executive, advisory or tribunal non-departmental public bodies. Of these:

(a) the Audit Commission, English Partnerships, Housing Action Trusts, the Parliamentary Boundary Commissions and the Rent Assessment Panels hold public meetings. This is a statutory requirement for the Parliamentary Boundary Commissions and the Rent Assessment Panels;

(b) the Advisory Panel on Beacon Councils, Audit Commission, English Partnerships, Housing Action Trusts, Housing Corporation, the Parliamentary Boundary Commissions and the Standards Board for England conduct public consultation exercises. This is a statutory requirement for the Audit Commission in some cases, the Housing Action Trusts and the Parliamentary Boundary Commissions;

(c) the Audit Commission, English Partnerships, Housing Corporation and the Rent Assessment Panels conduct consultation exercises with outside commercial interests. This is a statutory requirement for the Audit Commission in some cases;

(d) the Community Forum, English Partnerships, Housing Action Trusts, Housing Corporation, Parliamentary Boundary Commissions, Rent Assessment Panels and the Standards Board for England publish

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aregister of members' interests. In addition the Advisory Panel on Beacon Councils, Audit Commission, Building Regulations Advisory Committee and the Property Advisory Group also keep a register which can be made available on request. This is not a statutory requirement for any of these NDPBs;

(e) Housing Action Trusts and the Housing Corporation publish agendas for meetings, expect where items may be of a confidential nature. This is not a statutory requirement;

(f) Housing Action Trusts publish minutes of meetings except for confidential items. This is not a statutory requirement.

Departmental Staff

Mr. Cousins: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the distribution of his Office's whole-time equivalent staff including the staff in agencies and other bodies reporting to him was in each Government office region and nation of the UK (a) in 1996 and (b) at the most recent available period. [90480]

Mr. Leslie: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister was established following machinery of Government changes in May 2002. I refer my hon. Friend to the answer given by my hon. Friend the Minister of State, Cabinet Office on 15 January 2003, Official Report, column 609W, which sets out the number of staff for the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister's predecessors bodies.

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