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20 May 2003 : Column 713W—continued
Export Control Act
Mr. Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether her Department has received a submission from the National Criminal Intelligence Service in the consultation on the draft secondary orders for the Export Control Act 2002. [114528]
Nigel Griffiths: A submission has not been made to the DTI from the UK National Criminal Intelligence Service to the consultation on the Export Control Act 2002 draft secondary legislation.
Fuel Poverty
Mr. Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many, and what proportion, of households living in fuel poverty have included a person aged 80 or over in each year since 1997. [114412]
Mr. Wilson: The Government published "The UK Fuel Poverty Strategy 1st Annual Progress Report" on 4 March 2003. This showed that the number of households in fuel poverty in the UK is estimated to have fallen from about 5.5 million in 1996 to about 3 million in 2001.
Information is available for persons aged 75 or more in fuel poverty. The available information for England is set out in the following table.
| Number of households (millions) | Percentage | |
|---|---|---|
| 1996 | ||
| Oldest person in household aged 75 or more | 1.0 | 24 |
| Total fuel poor households | 4.3 | |
| 1998 | ||
| Oldest person in household aged 75 or more | 1.1 | 32 |
| Total fuel poor households | 3.3 | |
| 2001 | ||
| Oldest person in household aged 75 or more | 0.6 | 32 |
| Total fuel poor households | 1.8 |
1. For England the main source of information is the five yearly English House Condition Survey (EHCS). The latest figures on fuel poverty from this survey relate to 2001. Figures for fuel poverty in 1998 have been produced from the Energy Follow Up Survey to the 1996 English House Condition Survey.
2. Fuel poverty is defined as when a household needs to spend more than 10 per cent. of its incoming (including housing benefit and income support for mortgage interest) on fuel in order to maintain a satisfactory heating regime.
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Gas
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry (1) what representations have been made by Ministers in (a) 2002 and (b) 2003 to Transco about access to gas supplies; [113986]
- (2) what targets have been set for the number of households accessible to gas supply by (a) 2005 and (b) 2010. [113980]
Mr. Wilson: The regulation of gas transportation, including connections to the mains gas network, is the responsibility of the Office of Gas and Electricity Markets (OFGEM). The Government have not set targets for the numbers of households connected to the network. However, since 2001, in the context of its Fuel Poverty Strategy, the Department of Trade and Industry has been in discussion with Transco and other interested parties about connections to the mains gas network, with a view to promoting industry-led projects to extend the network. I expect the first industry-led projects to begin this year.
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry (1) how many pensioners do not have access to gas supplies; [113987]
- (2) how many properties in (a) Bassetlaw and (b) the UK do not have access to gas; [113985]
(3) how many pensioners receiving concessionary fuel do not have access to gas supply. [113981]
Mr. Wilson: Around 4.5 million households in Great Britain do not use mains gas, although some could have access to a gas connection. The Government do not hold information on the number of pensioners or the number of households in individual constituencies that do not have access to gas, nor on whether individual recipients of concessionary fuel have access to a gas supply.
Hawk
Mr. Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what discussions she has had with (a) industry and (b) ministerial colleagues concerning BAE Systems' bid to supply Her Majesty's Government with Hawk 128 trainer aircraft; and if she will make a statement. [113906]
Alan Johnson: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry has been kept informed of how discussions with MoD are progressing on the potential supply of Hawk 128 trainer aircraft to the RAF, both by officials and by the senior management of BAE Systems.
The DTI has always seen selection of Hawk for the UK's advanced jet trainer requirement as offering the greatest benefits for the UK's industrial base. But we
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have also accepted MoD's need to evaluate any proposal carefully and buy an aircraft that meets their needs and offers value for money.
International Coffee Organisation
Dr. Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what financial resources her Department has allocated to monitoring the International Coffee Organisation quality scheme. [111580]
Mr. Morley: I have been asked to reply.
The International Coffee Organisation (ICO) secretariat administers the quality coffee scheme . A part of the subscriptions of member countries is used to monitor the scheme, primarily by gathering information from exporting members. The Department does not have data on the amount of resources allocated by the ICO to the monitoring aspects of its work.
Ministerial Visits
Mr. Sayeed: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry which waste management facilities have been visited by the Minister of State for Energy and Construction during his membership of the Inter-Departmental Ministerial Group. [113676]
Mr. Wilson: During the very short period that this group met, I was not able to visit any waste management facilities. However, I was asked to open the London Remade Eco Industrial Site for reprocessing glass, construction and demolition wastes in the London Borough of Greenwich.
National Minimum Wage
Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what the estimated cost is in 2003–04 to her Department, agencies and the non-departmental public bodies for which she is responsible of the increase in the national minimum wage from £4.20 per hour to £4.50 per hour. [110431]
Ms Hewitt: For permanent employees, there will be no cost implications for the Department, its agencies and its NDPBs.
It is too early to assess the implications of the increase on the cost of contracts.
Regulations
Mr. Paul Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many new regulations on business have been introduced in each year since 1997. [111923]
Ms Hewitt: The number of Statutory Instruments (SIs) that this Department has passed is as follows:
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Sizewell Power Station
Mr. Gummer: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will visit the Suffolk Coastal constituency to inspect the measures taken to protect Sizewell A and B power stations from attack and afterwards address local constituents on this issue. [112880]
Mr. Wilson: There are no plans for a Ministerial visit to the Sizewell nuclear power station in the foreseeable future. However I can assure those who are employed at, or live near the facilities that the UK's civil nuclear sites apply stringent security measures regulated by the Office for Civil Nuclear Security (OCNS), the security regulator. The security regulator works closely with the Health and Safety Executive, the safety regulator, which provides advice on the safety implications of events, including external hazards such as plane crashes, at nuclear installations. Security at nuclear sites is kept under regular review in the light of the prevailing threat and has been significantly enhanced since the terrorist attacks in the USA on 11 September 2001. It is not Government policy to disclose details of these measures, which could potentially be of use to terrorists.
However, with specific regard to the Sizewell B nuclear power station, I can say that subsequent to the incursions by Greenpeace in October 2002 and January 2003, the Office for Civil Nuclear Security have reviewed security and some security enhancements were identified which are being implemented as soon as is practicable.
Mr. Gummer: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what plans she has for alerting local people to subsequent danger in the event of a terrorist attack on Sizewell A and B power stations. [112882]
Mr. Wilson: Emergency preparedness is a well established feature of the safety regime for civil nuclear sites. Co-ordinated plans are prepared by first tier local authorities, in the case of Sizewell Power Station by the Suffolk County Council, under the Radiation (Emergency Preparedness and Public Information) Regulations 2001. These plans include arrangements for alerting local people. Since 11 September 2001, the arrangements to respond to terrorist incidents at nuclear sites have been enhanced. An exercise programme, which has been running over many years, helps ensure emergency response plans are kept up to date and ready at any time.
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