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16 Jun 2003 : Column 48W—continued
Construction Industry
Mr. Hurst: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many people were (a) employed and (b) self-employed in the construction industry in England and Wales in (i) 1973, (ii) 1978, (iii) 1983, (iv) 1988 and (v) each year from 1990 to 2002. [118825]
John Healey: I have been asked to reply.
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
Letter from Len Cook to Mr. Alan Hurst dated 16 June 2003:
- As National Statistician I have been asked to reply to your recent question (198) about how many people were (a) employed and (b) self-employed in the construction industry in England and Wales in (i) 1973, (ii) 1978, (iii) 1983, (iv) 1988 and (v) in each of the years from 1992 to 2002.
- The information requested on employee jobs in construction is set out below. Data for England and Wales are not available for 1973 and 1978.
| Thousands | |
|---|---|
| June 1983 | 1,013 |
| June 1988 | 1,043 |
| June 1992 | 883 |
| June 1993 | 808 |
| June 1994 | 795 |
| June 1995 | 784 |
| June 1996 | 771 |
| June 1997 | 835 |
| June 1998 | 948 |
| June 1999 | 947 |
| June 2000 | 1,010 |
| June 2001 | 1,011 |
| June 2002 | 977 |
The table below shows the number of self-employment jobs in construction in Great Britain (separate figures for England and Wales are not available). The relevant data are only available under the current Standard Industrial Classification (1992) from 1994.
| Thousands | |
|---|---|
| June 1994 | 757 |
| June 1995 | 766 |
| June 1996 | 770 |
| June 1997 | 677 |
| June 1998 | 625 |
| June 1999 | 618 |
| June 2000 | 608 |
| June 2001 | 619 |
| June 2002 | 665 |
16 Jun 2003 : Column 49W
Energy Efficiency
Mr. Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what targets her Department has for improving energy efficiency; and how she intends to achieve these targets. [116646]
Nigel Griffiths: In common with all other Government Departments, DTI is working towards the interim energy target for the Government Estate—an on-going 1 per cent. per annum reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from buildings, expressed in terms of carbon savings.
To help meet this target, DTI undertook an estate-wide energy audit to identify areas where further savings could be made. This resulted in the enhancement of a DTI Building Energy Management System and the installation of Inverter Variable Speed Drives.
Other measures which contribute to this target include; ISO 14001 certified Environmental Management Systems across the DTI HQ estate; 33 per cent. of electricity in the DTI HQ estate is purchased from renewable sources; promoting environmental and energy awareness to DTI staff through 'Green Teams' who disseminate green and energy issues to their colleagues; and a number of specific measures such as installation of solar film for windows.
Post Office
Mr. David Stewart: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what plans she has to transfer responsibilities for Government activities to the post office. [118350]
Mr. Timms [holding answer 10 June 2003]: There are no plans to transfer responsibilities for Government activities to the post office network.
Mr. Robathan: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether she or her Ministers have received documents issued by Royal Mail relating to (a) bonuses and (b) incentives for post office managers who achieve targets for closures of post office branches. [118726]
Mr. Timms: Staff management and remuneration arrangements are operational matters for Post Office Ltd. Documents relating to such matters are not seen by either Ministers or officials in the Department.
Mr. Robathan: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will make a statement on European Commission state aid approval for the subsidy for rural post offices. [118774]
Mr. Timms: On 27 May the European Commission approved the package of funding for Post Office Ltd. I announced on 2 December. This is great news for our rural post offices and the wider post office network. The cash provides a vital life-line to the rural network and will secure access to rural post office services over the next three years.
Postage Stamps (Discounted Sales)
Mr. Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry under what conditions supermarkets may sell postage stamps at less than their face value. [118229]
16 Jun 2003 : Column 50W
Mr. Timms: Retailers may purchase books to stamps on a wholesale basis from the Royal Mail for resale in their outlets. I have asked the Chief Executive of Royal Mail to reply direct to the hon. Member on the conditions under which stamps may be sold at a discount.
Post Offices, including rural sub-Post Offices, receive a supply of stamps to sell on behalf of Royal Mail and cannot sell stamps at a discounted price. The issue of the competitive implications of selling at discounted prices is a matter for the regulator, Postcomm.
Postwatch Scotland
Mr. Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will make a statement on the process for appointments to the Postwatch Scotland Committee. [118258]
Mr. Timms: The Regional Chair for Scotland is a member of Postwarch Council and thus an appointment made by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry.
Other appointments to the Postwatch Scotland Committee are a matter for Postwatch and I have therefore asked the Chairman to reply direct to the hon. Member setting out the appointments procedure.
Trade Tariffs
Mr. Wray: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what trade tariffs and restrictions are placed on UK exports to non-EU countries owing to European Union legislation. [115167]
Ms Hewitt: None other than those restrictions relating to the strategic controls, illegal goods or trade sanctions.
CABINET OFFICE
Pay Audits
Angela Eagle: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what progress has been made on completing a pay audit in his Department and its non-departmental public bodies to measure any disadvantage in terms of remuneration for (a) women, (b) ethnic minorities and (c) people with disabilities; and if he will publish the results of such an audit. [117443]
Mr. Alexander: The Cabinet Office, Central Office of Information (COI) and the Government Car and Despatch Agency (GCDA) have separate delegated pay arrangements and have therefore been carrying out their own pay audits. All three organisations have completed their audits and I intend to place the results in the Library of the House once internal discussions have been completed.
Playing Fields
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office whether the Government have strategy for the (a) management and (b) disposal of playing fields owned by Government departments. [112668]
John Healey: I have been asked to reply.
16 Jun 2003 : Column 51W
Each department is responsible for the management and disposal of its own assets in accordance with its Departmental Investment Strategy. However, school playing fields owned by local authorities are excluded. Guidance for departments on the disposal of assets is contained in Government Accounting.
DEFENCE
A400M
Mr. Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence why he appointed OCCAR to enter into the contract for A400M aircraft on behalf of the United Kingdom; what direct control and influence he will exercise over the conduct and outcome of the project; what the arrangements are for this; and what power the UK has to withdraw from the contract if progress is not satisfactory. [117507]
Mr. Ingram: The Organisation for Joint Armament Co-operation (OCCAR) was established by France, Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom with the primary aim of providing improved management of co-operative defence equipment programmes. OCCAR uses management processes and procedures that have been developed in conjunction with the founder nations and which follow international best practice. In this light, the nations participating in A400M concluded that OCCAR provided the optimum route for managing the programme.
The A400M partner nations have jointly agreed the high level objectives for the programme and the boundaries within which the OCCAR Executive Administration (EA) will operate. The working parameters are set out in the mandate that assigns the responsibility for managing the programme to OCCAR. Under this mandate, the Director of the OCCAR-EA is directly accountable to the A400M Programme Board, on which the nations are represented by their National Armaments Directors, for the delivery of this programme.
The A400M contract provides the nations with termination rights in a number of circumstances, including failure to achieve a critical milestone or deliver an individual aircraft within a set period.
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