| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
7 Jul 2003 : Column 632W—continued
University Premium
Mr. Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will list the areas in respect of which universities will receive a 20 per cent. premium for admitting students therefrom; and if he will list the other criteria which will result in the payment of a premium for admitting students. [122817]
7 Jul 2003 : Column 633W
Alan Johnson: Funds to help with the additional costs to higher education institutions (HEIs) of recruiting and retaining certain students are allocated by the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE). This Widening Participation allocation is determined partly by the neighbourhood classification of the student's home address. HEFCE uses four classifications related to average rate of participation in higher education:
- 1. Neighbourhoods with below 50 per cent. of average participation
2. Neighbourhoods with 50–75 per cent. average participation
3. Neighbourhoods with 75–100 per cent. average participation
4. Neighbourhoods with above average participation
University Tuition Fees
Mr. Martlew: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, what the cost would be of abolishing university tuition fees in 2003–04. [113971]
Alan Johnson: Pursuant to the reply by my hon. Friend of 17 June 2003, Official Report, column 134, clarification is required to the answer which sated that the standard tuition fee contribution for full-time home and EU students of £1,125 is estimated to raise around £887 million for English institutions and around £60 million for Welsh institutions. The reply does not make clear that the sum of £456 million, given as the public contribution to fees in England for 2003–04, includes public funding of approximately £40 million allocated to support postgraduate study through the Research Councils. Correspondingly, the sum of £31 million given as the public contribution to fees in Wales for 2003–04, includes public funding of approximately £3 million allocated to support postgraduate study through the Research Councils.
An amended table is set out below:
| 2003–04 Estimate | England(£ millions) | Wales(£ millions) |
|---|---|---|
| Public contributions to fees | 416 | 28 |
| Private contributions towards the cost of tuition | 431 | 29 |
| Total | 847 | 57 |
The amount of private contribution to fees (£431 milliion in England) is not altered by this and so
7 Jul 2003 : Column 634W
there is no change to the figure of 90,000 places, referred to in the earlier answer, that would be lost if the private contribution were to be abolished.
Young Carers
Mr. Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many teachers have taken part in courses to raise awareness of young carers since 1999. [123340]
Mr. Miliband [holding answer 3 July 2003]: This information is not collected centrally.
CABINET OFFICE
Civil Servants
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many staff at each civil service grade within each Department were aged (a) 16 to 25, (b) 26 to 35, (c) 36 to 45, (d) 46 to 60 and (e) over 60 in each of the last five years. [123422]
Mr. Alexander: The figures for the Cabinet Office are based on headcount for the number of permanent staff as follows:
| Age | April 1998 | April 1999 | April 2000 | April 2001 | April 2002 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 16 to 25 | 9 | 21 | 37 | 75 | 116 |
| 26 to 35 | 199 | 276 | 392 | 494 | 623 |
| 36 to 45 | 357 | 476 | 532 | 586 | 697 |
| 46 to 60 | 454 | 519 | 545 | 606 | 710 |
| Over 60 | 101 | 105 | 93 | 84 | 50 |
The departmental figures are in tables and represent the data reported to Mandate over the last five years. Copies of the tables have been placed in the Libraries of the House. Mandate is a central computer based record of information for almost all civil servants in the Home civil service. For some Departments and agencies, summary figures are provided in a manual return, which may not always be fully consistent with Mandate information, for example, because of minor differences in timing. Breakdowns by age are purely figures reported to Mandate. Departments and agencies are responsible for their own grading structures, but these have been allocated to broad responsibility levels to give a common basis for tabulation.
Figures are on a headcount basis, for the number of permanent staff in each Department. The figures are based on the Departments following the structural changes made following the 2001 election.
7 Jul 2003 : Column 635W
HOME DEPARTMENT
Animal Cruelty
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many convictions there have been for cruelty to (a) dogs, (b) cats and (c) sheep in (i) the UK and (ii) Sefton in (A) 2001, (B) 2002 and (C) 2003. [122316]
Paul Goggins: Offences connected with cruelty to dogs, cats and sheep cannot be distinguished from cruelty to other animals in the statistics collected centrally in England and Wales.
Figures for Scotland are a matter for the Scottish Office and those for Northern Ireland for the Northern Ireland Office.
Animal Experiments
Mr. Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to change the regulations on the use of animals in (a) scientific and (b) other experiments; and if he will make a statement. [123977]
Caroline Flint: Under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986, the Home Office regulates the use of protected animals in any experimental or other scientific procedure that may have the effect of causing that animal pain, suffering, distress or lasting harm. The Home Office does not regulate the use of animals in experiments or procedures not covered by the 1986 Act.
The 1986 Act provides a strong regulatory framework and an effective means by which to balance the need to protect animals from unnecessary suffering with the legitimate requirements of the scientific community (and the public) for medical and other essential research and safety testing. The system set up under the 1986 Act has proved flexible and responsive to changing circumstances and requirements, and its enabling provisions allow changes to be made quickly and easily by administrative means, or using secondary legislation.
The Animal Procedures Committee (APC) review of the operation of the Act, published in its Annual Report for 1997, concluded that the Act provides a good framework for a well-regulated and responsible use of animals in scientific procedures in the United Kingdom. A number of recommendations arising from the APC review to enhance the effectiveness of the Act have subsequently been implemented and further improvements are continually being sought. The APC has also recently provided advice on the cost benefit assessment conducted under by section 5(4) of the 1986 Act, which we will consider carefully. Section 24 of the 1986 Act is also currently being reviewed. Proposals are also awaited from the European Commission for the revision of Directive 86/609/EEC, which the 1986 Act transposes into United Kingdom law. These may result in the need for the 1986 Act to be amended in due course. However, we have no immediate plans for legislative change.
7 Jul 2003 : Column 636W
Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Act
Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what progress has been made in considering the appeals of prisoners detained under the Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001; and if he will make a statement. [121950]
Mr. Blunkett: 15 foreign nationals have so far been detained using powers in Part 4 of the Anti-terrorism, Crime and Security (ATCS) Act 2001. Of the total detained, two have voluntarily left the United Kingdom. The other 13 remain in detention.
On 19 May 2003, individual appeals for eight of the ATCS Act detainees who were certified in December 2001, and two of the subsequent detainees, began being heard before the Special Immigration Appeals Commission (SIAC). This first batch of appeals will continue throughout the summer.
At this time, five of the individual appeals have been heard by SIAC. Determinations have yet to be issued by SIAC in these cases.
The remaining appeals are expected to be heard by SIAC in the autumn. The timing of these appeals is a matter for the Government.
Antisocial Behaviour Orders
Mr. Bailey: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many Anti-social Behaviour Orders have been granted in England and Wales. [122780]
Ms Blears: Anti-social Behaviour Orders (ASBOs) were introduced from 1 April 1999. The number of notifications received by the Home Office of ASBOs granted within England and Wales, up to 30 November 2002 (latest available), is 785.
We are aware that the numbers of ASBOs made nationally have been consistently under-reported in returns made by magistrates courts and are considering how reporting can be improved.
Ms Oona King: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many members of black and ethnic minority communities in each local authority area have (a) been served with an ASBO and (b) been found in breach of an ASBO; and if he will make a statement. [119681]
Ms Blears: Information collected centrally on the number of civil Anti-Social Behaviour Orders (ASBOs) issued and refused within England and Wales does not identify the ethnicity of the persons concerned.
For persons dealt with for breach of ASBOs, and ASBOs made on conviction in criminal proceedings from December 2002, the ethnicity has been provided to the Home Office by the courts on a voluntary basis up to 31 March 2003 but the quality of the ethnic data provided is not sufficiently robust to allow publication. The requirement to provide details of ethnicity was made mandatory from 1 April 2003.
7 Jul 2003 : Column 637W
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |