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1 Jul 2003 : Column 183W

Written Answers to Questions

Tuesday 1 July 2003

WORK AND PENSIONS

Employment Action Teams

Mr. Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what eligibility criteria were used to define boundaries in each Employment Action Team area; and how each ward in the local authority of each EAT area scored against those criteria. [113057]

Mr. Browne: During Phase I of the Action Teams for Jobs initiative, Action teams were allowed to focus on pockets of deprivation, often at housing estate level, rather than ward level. This meant that some Local Authority wards with high overall employment rates were still able to receive Action Team help for areas within the ward with lower employment rates.

In Phase II, a new selection method was developed to decide where Action Teams were located which focused on identifying and tackling low employment rates at ward level. The method used to identify ward employment rates used information from a number of sources such as Office of National Statistics 1998 database information on working age population; benefit administrative data; and data from the Scottish Executive and Welsh Assembly. Ward jobless estimates were thus indicative rather than authoritative, but the primary aim was to provide Action Team help to wards with employment rates of 58.5 per cent or below.

However, a number of wards with higher employment rates were included in Action Teams. In some cases this was to prevent the need to withdraw Action Team services from areas with pockets of extreme deprivation but with a high level of employment at ward level. Some wards with employment rates above the threshold were also included to ensure greater viability for those Action Teams with the attendant benefit for the clients they were serving.

The available information on the indicative employment rates of all wards in each Action Team area, and identification of wards covered by Action Team activity has been placed in the Library.

Health and Safety

Ross Cranston: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 13 February 2003, Official Report, columns 962–63W, on health and safety, whether he has received the report from the Health and Safety Commission; and if he will make a statement. [121171]

Mr. Browne: I have not yet received the report from the Health and Safety Commission on the effectiveness of the current strategy to promote directors' responsibility for health and safety, the success of the voluntary approach and the need for further legislation.

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Lone Parents

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make a statement on the Government's plans to help lone parents back to work. [119482]

Mr. Browne: We have introduced a wide range of initiatives to help lone parents gain independence by moving into work.

The New Deal for Lone Parents is delivering services tailored to meet the needs of individual lone parents and giving them the skills, support and confidence they need to move into work. By the end of March 2003, it had helped over 193,000 lone parents to find jobs.

The combination of the child care component of our new Tax Credits and the extra places created through our National Childcare Strategy are making child care affordable and accessible for parents moving into work. Since April, Childcare Partnership Managers have been introduced into every Jobcentre Plus District to work with personal advisers and Local Authorities to ensure that jobseekers with children have access to information on child care provision in their area. Lone Parents can also benefit from payments of Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit at pre-work levels for four weeks after starting work to help them through what can be a difficult transitional period.

We announced a number of measures in Budget 2003 to help lone parents overcome barriers to work. Discovery Week pilots will increase the familiarity of lone parents with the help and support available to them. From 2004 we will also introduce a new mentoring service across the country that is tailored specifically for lone parents. This will be delivered alongside child care taster pilots which allow lone parents to test whether formal child care suits their needs.

From April 2004, in 12 areas we will pilot a payment of £4 per week for 12 months on top of tax and benefits when the lone parent starts a job of more than 16 hours a week. This will be complemented, in eight pilot areas, by a weekly work search premium payment of £20 on top of benefits for lone parents who have been on income support for more than 12 months and are actively seeking work.

We have introduced compulsory Work Focused Interviews for lone parents claiming Income Support to ensure that they are aware of the wide range of help they can access to move into work. Through our programmes we are giving lone parents more choices and more help than ever before to move off welfare and into work and this has helped reduce the number of lone parents dependent on Income Support by over 175,000 since May 1997.

Mr. G. E. Morris

Mr. Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 16 June 2003, Official Report, column 92W, to the hon. Member for Croydon North, if he will request that the Inland Revenue collaborates with the Child Support Agency to investigate the income tax and child maintenance liabilities of Mr. Graham Edward Morris. [120617]

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Maria Eagle: The administration of the Child Support Agency is a matter for the Chief Executive, Mr. Doug Smith. He will write to the hon. Member.

Letter from Doug Smith to Mr. Huw Edwards, dated June 2003:




Pensioners

Mr. Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether the additional £100 paid to pensioner households that include someone aged over 80 years will be paid separately from the existing winter fuel payment. [121215]

Malcolm Wicks: No. It will be paid in accordance with the rules, which apply to entitlement to the existing winter fuel payment arrangements, subject to satisfying the additional age condition.

CABINET OFFICE

Construction Industry

Brian Cotter: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office if he will make a statement on the work being carried out by his Department to assist regulatory compliance in the construction industry; and if he will make a statement. [122821]

Mr. Alexander: The Regulatory Impact Unit's Business Regulation Team engages directly with the business community to identify unnecessary or excessive regulatory burdens and works closely with other Government Departments and Agencies to broker reform. The team is built on a core of high quality secondees from industry.

April's Budget Report set out plans for the Business Regulation Team to investigate regulatory burdens in three sectors, including the construction industry, as part of its 2004 work programme. Preliminary research will begin this autumn.

ENVIRONMENT, FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

CAP Reform

Mr. Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of the effect of CAP reform negotiations upon the (a) timetables for the productions of forms for 2003–04 by the Rural Payments Agency and (b) payments by the Agency. [122519]

Alun Michael: Timetables for the production of forms for 2003–04 by the Rural Payments Agency will not be affected by the CAP reform negotiations, as any new schemes do not take effect until 2005. Payments by the Agency will not be affected.

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European Councils

Mr. Hood: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the outcome was of the Environment council on 13 June 2003; what the Government's stance was on the issues discussed, including its voting records; and if she will make a statement. [119887]

Margaret Beckett: I represented the UK at Environment council on 13 June 2003. The council reached a provisional political agreement on one important legislative measure and agreed a general approach on another. The council also considered a number of other issues.

The council reached agreement on a framework for a common position on the Environmental Liability directive. This measure will require polluters to bear the cost of remedying environmental damage, in line with the 'polluter pays' principle. Following intensive negotiation, the agreement reflects key UK concerns. First, there will be no obligation for compulsory financial security (to be reviewed within five years of implementation). Second, Member States will retain discretion to decide whether or not to remedy damage in the absence of the polluter. Third, Member States may choose to allow exception from liability on the basis that operations comply with a permit or were not judged harmful by the best scientific knowledge at the time. Some of the technical detail of the proposal remains subject to further discussions before an agreement is finalised. The text did however include a review of the coverage of damage falling within the scope of international conventions and of GMO damage. It should be noted that the Directive is intended to cover damage caused by the deliberate release or contained use of GMOs.

Austria and Ireland opposed the agreement because it did not cover nuclear damage, and Germany was also opposed because of disagreement with major features, notably the permit and state of the art exceptions.

The council also agreed a general approach on gaseous and particulate emissions from non-road mobile machinery. This included an exemption for lifeboat launchers from the scope of the Directive, an issue pressed by the UK in negotiations. I indicated that my intention at this stage was to abstain, pending European Parliamentary consideration, and that I had concerns about the second phase of the proposals. Germany was unable to support the general approach.

Council debated a decision for establishing a monitoring mechanism for greenhouse gas emissions. I, together with Ministers from a number of other Member States, emphasised the need to clarify Member State and Community responsibilities in implementing certain obligations under the Kyoto Protocol, particularly with respect to establishing the assigned amount, and in exercising certain rights, including participation in the flexible mechanisms. There was general agreement to aim for political agreement in October.

We also discussed a presentation from the Commission about progress towards its new system for registering and approving Chemicals. Draft proposals are currently subject to an internet consultation by the Commission.

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Several Ministers emphasised the need to have the right balance in the proposals between environmental protection and industrial competitiveness. The Commission hoped to bring forward its full proposal by October, to enable progress to be made before the European parliamentary elections.

Together with Denmark, the UK tabled a paper drawing attention to the Commission's Communication on Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade and calling for rapid progress on measures to address illegal logging and its associated trade. The council also noted written contributions on the recent Environment for Europe Conference in Kiev, Environmental Technologies, Sustainable Development in an enlarged Union, Natura 2000, vehicle emissions, sensitive sea areas, flood prevention and the herbicide Paraquat.

The Presidency reported that it had written to key members of the Convention on the Future of Europe, setting out the concerns with the inadequate treatment of the environment in the draft Constitutional Treaty. I circulated a letter to colleagues at council, highlighting my continuing concerns on these points, and about the negative impact of the proposal for a Single Legislative council. The Presidency considered that the latest draft Treaty text on environment and sustainable development was a significant improvement.

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