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24 Feb 2003 : Column 139W—continued
Deepcut Barracks
Mr. McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence for how many days Private Steven MacNaughton was missing without leave from Deepcut Barracks from 7 November 2002; what disciplinary action was taken subsequently; and what reasons were given for his absence. [97831]
Dr. Moonie: The information requested is personal data protected by the Data Protection Act 1998, and cannot be released without the individual's consent. The information is also withheld in accordance with Exemption 12, privacy of an individual, of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information.
QinetiQ
Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list, by site, his best current assessment of the land assets of QinetiQ. [98038]
Dr. Moonie : I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave on 13 March 2002, Official Report, column 1165W, to the hon. Member for North Essex (Mr. Jenkin) on the land assets of QinetiQ. Since that answer was given, an unconditional sale agreement has been exchanged for the Aquila site in Bromley, Kent and the sale is due to be completed on 17 March 2003. No other QinetiQ sites have been sold since the company was created in July 2001.
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Llew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list each of the QinetiQ sites which have been sold since the creation of the company, indicating the value of the sale in each case. [98039]
Dr. Moonie: An unconditional sale agreement has been exchanged for the Aquila site in Bromley, Kent. The agreement is due to be completed on 17 March 2003. No other sites have been sold since the formation of QinetiQ. Details of the sale value of Aquila are currently considered commercially sensitive. I am therefore withholding that information under Exemption 13 of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information.
Royal Navy (Chilean Visits)
Mr. Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what Royal Navy vessels have been visited by Chilean Government officials or Chilean armed forces personnel in the past year. [97193]
Mr. Ingram: During the past 12 months, we are aware of the following Royal Naval vessels having been visited by Chilean Government officials or senior Chilean armed forces personnel in either British or Chilean ports: HMS Leeds Castle; HMS St. Albans; RFA Grey Rover; HMS Sheffield; HMS Boxer and HMS Brave. Information on any visits that may have been paid in locations other than British or Chilean ports is not held centrally.
Service Personnel (Gulf)
Mr. Key: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what arrangements are in place for the accurate keeping of medical records of military personnel deployed to the middle east; and what progress has been made in introducing a Smart Military Dog-Tag. [93369]
Dr. Moonie: It is Ministry of Defence policy that all treatments and vaccinations given to armed forces personnel are to be recorded on their personal medical records. Service personnel are issued with form F Med 965, the Operational Medical Record, prior to deployment and any treatment or medication administered while they are deployed should be recorded on it. The information is transferred to their personal medical records on return to their home base. In addition, electronic medical record systems are used in theatre where practicable. Although the MOD continues to examine the possible use of "smart card" technology to store medical and other personal information, as yet there are no systems available that fully meet the requirements of the armed forces.
Munition Stocks
Mr. Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the results of the Ministry of Defence's Stockpile Planning Guidance study. [97196]
Mr. Ingram: Specific information relating to planned munition stocks is withheld under Exemption 1 (Defence, Security and International Relations) of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information. However, I can confirm that the Ministry
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of Defence's stockpile planning guidance is subject to annual review, and the latest review was completed in September 2002.
Vaccine Schedule (Gulf Deployment)
Dr. Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has to obtain informed consent for vaccination for troops deploying to the Gulf. [95928]
Dr. Moonie: It is Ministry of Defence policy that vaccinations can only be administered after an individual is found fit and suitable to receive it, and has given informed consent. The administering officer is
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required to obtain informed verbal consent following an explanation of the vaccination procedure and the risks and benefits of accepting vaccination.
Wheeled Support Vehicles
Mr. Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he expects to award a contract for the Wheeled Support Vehicles programme; and what delays there have been to the originally forecast in-service date. [97188]
Mr. Ingram: An announcement on the award of a contract is planned for late 2003. There has been no delay to the approved in-service date.
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EDUCATION AND SKILLS
"Opportunity and Excellence" White Paper
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the cost is of printing and collating his Department's White Paper on 14–19 year olds "Opportunity and Excellence"; what that cost would have been if it had been produced as a single document; and what the cost was of printing "The Future of Higher Education". [95134]
Mr. Stephen Twigg [holding answer 3 February 2003]: The recently produced policy document 14–19: opportunity and excellence was not classified as a White Paper. It was published in two parts, a main document and separate annexes, in order to make the document accessible to the wide range of audiences with an interest in 14–19 education and training. This allows the wider audience, such as parents and employers, with a more general interest in 14–19 reform, to order only the smaller main document, while practitioners, for example, can order the detailed annexes in addition. To reflect anticipated demand, we were able to print fewer copies of the annexes.
The main document and annexes were printed at a cost of £36,100. Summary versions and young people's versions were also printed, tailored in style andpresentation to different target audiences, and folders to allow collation of the different versions as required. The cost of producing these elements was £29,400, and collation costs were around £2,200.
It is not possible to estimate accurately the cost of producing a single document to the same timescales as the two volumes produced. It is likely that the cost would have been less than those incurred producing two documents, but this is offset against accessibility considerations and the lower quantity of annexes produced. Printing a larger 120 page document also requires different, more expensive, binding techniques. Collation costs would also have been incurred as different combinations of main document, summary and young people's version would have had to be collated fordistribution.
The cost of printing the main and summary versions of "The Future of Higher Education" was £67,625.
Beacon Schools
Mr. Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will make a statement on plans to extend and develop the Beacon schools initiative. [97150]
Mr. Miliband: For secondary schools the Beacon school initiative will be replaced by the Leading Edge Programme, which aims to extend active collaboration and develop cutting edge innovation to raise standards across the school system.
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There will be no further expansion of a centrally funded Beacon school programme for primary, nursery and special schools. This is in line with the general wish of head teachers to reduce the proportion of funding delivered through ring-fenced grants and to devolve more funding decisions to local communities. Schools and LEAs will be able to broker and fund collaborative partnerships from within the substantial overall increase in resources provided as a result of the 2002 Spending Review. We are encouraging LEAs to fund this activity. My Department intends to explore arrangements for endorsing local programmes through a Beacon recognition scheme.
Computer Fraud
Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many laptop computers were used by (a) Ministers and special advisers and (b) officials in his Department in each year since 1995; how many were (i) lost and (ii) stolen; what their cost was; and if he will make a statement. [97496]
Mr. Charles Clarke: The number of laptop computers in use in the Department for Education and Skills since 1995 is shown in the table.
| Financial year | Ministers | Special advisors | Officials |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1995–96 | — | — | 11 |
| 1996–97 | — | — | 375 |
| 1997–98 | — | — | 690 |
| 1998–99 | — | — | 1,172 |
| 1999–2000 | 3 | 1 | 1,586 |
| 2000–01 | 3 | 2 | 1,940 |
| 2001–02 | 3 | 1 | 2,105 |
| 2002–03 | 3 | 1 | 1,861 |
The following tables detail the equipment stolen and lost from the Department for Education and Skills since 1 May 1997 along with the approximate value of the stolen equipment. Information is not available for earlier years.
| Financial year | Number of laptops | Approximate value per item (£) | Total approximate value (£) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1997–98 | 5 | 1,000 | 5,000 |
| 1998–99 | 7 | 1,000 | 7,000 |
| 1999–2000 | 5 | 1,000 | 5,000 |
| 2000–01 | 2 | 1,000 | 2,000 |
| 2001–02 | 3 | 1,000 | 3,000 |
| 2002–03 | 9 | 1,000 | 9,000 |
Notes:
Electronic secutity tags are fitted to all portable IT equipment held in London. The tags raise an alarm at Reception if an unauthorised person attempts to remove the kit. The level of theft outside London is so low that it is not justified to extend tagging to the Darlington, Runcorn and Sheffield sites of the Department.
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Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many cases of computer (a) hacking, (b) fraud and (c) theft his Department recorded in 2001–02; and on how many occasions computer systems have been illegally accessed by computer hackers (i) within and (ii) outside his Department. [97557]
Mr. Charles Clarke: During the financial year 2001–02 there have been:
- (a) no detected cases of computer hacking, either by insiders or by persons outside of the Department;
- (b) no cases of computer fraud; and
(c) three cases of theft of IT equipment by persons outside the Department for Education and Skills.
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