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Written Answers to Questions
Tuesday 28 January 2003
CABINET OFFICE
E-Government
24. Mr. Blizzard: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what progress has been made with the development of e-government. [93526]
Mr. Alexander: The Government are committed to a radical reform of public services and e-government is a powerful catalyst for bringing about the transformation necessary to deliver the Government's vision. In recognition of this commitment, we are investing £6 billion over the next three years in e-government.
Disabled People (Civil Service)
25. Miss Begg: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what progress has been made in improving the recruitment of disabled people into the civil service. [93527]
Mr. Alexander: The Government are committed to employing disabled people. As at April 2002 disabled staff accounted for 3.6 per cent. of the civil service, up from 2.8 per cent. in 1995. A service wide target has been set at 3.0 per cent. disabled people in the senior civil service by 2004–05. In April 2002 the percentage of disabled staff in the senior civil service was 1.7 per cent., up from 1.5 per cent. in 1998.
Regulatory Reform
26. Mr. Prisk: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what progress his Department is making in implementing the Regulatory Reform Action Plan. [93528]
Mr. Alexander: The Regulatory Reform Action Plan (RRAP) contains 268 reform proposals that the Government have committed itself to delivering over the next three years. So far, 27 per cent. of the items it contains have been completed.
Civil Contingency Bill
Mr. Letwin: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office when he plans to bring forward a Civil Contingency Bill. [93555]
Mr. Alexander: Work is progressing well on preparing new civil contingencies legislation. Proposals will be published this Parliamentary Session. New legislation will be introduced as soon as parliamentary time allows.
Computer Misuse
Mr. Webb: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many cases of computer misuse there were in his
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Department in each of the last five years, broken down by each category of misuse; and how many of those cases resulted in disciplinary action. [93049]
Mr. Alexander: There were a total of 35 cases of computer misuse in the Cabinet Office during the five years 1998–2002, broken down as follows. The numbers of those resulting in disciplinary action are shown in parentheses.
| Inappropriate use of internet | Using another's password | Totals | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 2(2) | 2 (2) | 4 (4) |
| 1999 | 3 (3) | 0 | 3 (3) |
| 2000 | 19 (12) | 0 | 19 (12) |
| 2001 | 8 (7) | 0 | 8 (7) |
| 2002 | 1 (1) | 0 | 1 (1) |
| Total | 33 (25) | 2 (2) | 35 (27) |
Congestion Charge
Mr. Viggers: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office whether individual passengers of the Government Car and Despatch Agency will reimburse the agency for congestion charges it incurs. [92996]
Mr. Alexander: The responsibility for the provision of ministerial cars and drivers has been delegated under the terms of the Framework Document to the Government Car Despatch Agency. I have asked its Chief Executive Mr. Nick Matheson to write to the hon. Member. Copies of his letter will be placed in the Libraries of the House.
Industrial Action/Illness
Andrew George: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many working days have been lost in the Cabinet Office owing to (a) industrial action and (b) illness in each year since 1997. [93465]
Mr. Alexander: Working days lost through industrial action are recorded as unauthorised absence for which pay is stopped. The Cabinet Office (including agencies) keeps records of unpaid absence generally but they also include authorised absence. Separating the records could be achieved only at disproportionate costs.
Sick absence figures for Government Departments are published annually in the report "Analysis of Sickness Absence in the Civil Service". The most recent report for calendar year 2001 was announced by Ministerial Statement 19 December 2002. Copies are available in the Libraries of the House. Figures for 2002 will be announced later this year.
Cabinet Office figures (including its agencies and non-departmental public bodies) are:
| Days per staff year | |
|---|---|
| 1997 | 6.6 |
| 1998 | 7.3 |
| 1999 | 6.8 |
| 2000 | 4.6 |
| 2001 | 5.7 |
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Public Appointments
Mr. Tynan: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what progress is being made in providing training for people considering making an application for public appointments. [93522]
Mr. Alexander : I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Wirral, South (Mr. Chapman) earlier today, Official Report, column 716.
TRANSPORT
Aviation Inquiry
11. John Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement on submissions to his inquiry into aviation. [93539]
Mr. Darling: The Department has so far received over 70,000 responses to the airport consultation from a wide range of interest groups and individuals.
I will shortly publish a revised south-east consultation paper which will include runway options for Gatwick airport.
The consultation will remain open for four months from the date of publication.
17. John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many responses his Department has received to the "Future of Air Transport" consultation document. [93545]
Mr. Spellar: The Department has so far received over 70,000 responses to the airport consultation from a wide range of interest groups and individuals. We will shortly publish a revised south-east consultation paper, which will include runway options for Gatwick airport. The consultation will remain open for four months from this date.
M6
12. Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make a statement on the proposed widening of the M6 motorway. [93540]
Mr. Spellar: I wrote to the North West Regional Assembly on the 10 December 2002 giving the Secretary of State's response to the 'West Midlands to North West Multi Modal Study' (MIDMAN). The study has clearly demonstrated that some road widening is a necessary component of a strategy aimed at tackling congestion on the M6 motorway. Government therefore support the study recommendation to widen the motorway from dual 3 to dual 4 lanes between Junctions lla and 19. The Highways Agency has been instructed to progress this work.
Rail Services (Scotland)
13. Mr. Luke: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make a statement on investment in the east coast main line rail services north of Edinburgh. [93541]
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Mr. Spellar: Last year the Strategic Rail Authority announced £100 million of investment for the east coast main line under a deal to extend the GNER franchise by two years. The Authority is considering how to deliver improvements to the east coast main line in order to secure greater capacity and increased line speeds.
Transport Infrastructure
14. Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what priority he gives to economic regeneration when planning new transport infrastructure. [93542]
Mr. Jamieson: My Department's method for appraising transport schemes looks at a wide range of costs and benefits including the reduction of travel times, safety, accessibility and impacts on the environment, as well as a scheme's contribution to regeneration. We take decisions on particular schemes in the light of all of these factors.
Cycling
15. Mr. Ben Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement on departmental funding for local cycling projects. [93543]
Mr. Jamieson: The Minister for Transport announced on 9 January 2003 the second round of our Cycling Projects Fund. This provides a further £1 million of funding for local, practical projects aiming to deliver an increase in cycling. The fund builds on the more than £2 million that was made available in 2002 to support 138 cycling projects.
Road Traffic
16. Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what his policy is on road traffic reduction. [93544]
Mr. Jamieson: The Government's position has consistently been that we seek to reduce the adverse impacts of road traffic, rather than the level of traffic per se.
Central Railway
18. Mr. Blunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he expects to make a decision on Central Railway's application for a hybrid Bill. [93546]
Mr. Spellar: We are considering carefully Central Railway's proposals and will respond to Central Railway in due course.
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