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8 Jul 2003 : Column 672W—continued
Genetically Modified Organisms
Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what research her Department has (a) commissioned, (b) undertaken, (c) reviewed, (d) completed, (e) published or received and (f) ensured the appropriate peer review of in respect of the impact of genetically modified foods consumed by humans upon their health in the last five years. [122492]
Mr. Morley: Policy responsibility for the safety of genetically modified foods lies with the Food Standards Agency. I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my right hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Public Health on 3 July 2003, Official Report, column 483W.
Pig Farmers
Mr. Prosser: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps she is taking to ensure that pig farmers comply with Paragraph 4 of the Annex to Council Directive 91/630/EEC (as amended) to ensure that pigs are provided with straw or a similar natural material, rather than objects such as footballs and chains; and if she will make a statement. [119497]
Mr. Bradshaw: We have fully implemented the provision on environmental enrichment from Commission Directive 2001/93/EC in the Welfare of Farmed Animals (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2003, which came into force on 14 February.
The Directive gives examples of materials suitable for environmental enrichment, rather than a prescriptive list. In terms of enrichment, the choice of material is
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secondary to whether it achieves the aim of enabling the pig to satisfy its need to manipulate and to investigate and thus help to reduce aggressive behaviour. Our new pig welfare code, which provides guidance on the Regulations, stresses that straw is an excellent material, but also gives advice to those farmers where straw is not a practical solution. Objects such as chains or footballs can only be used in conjunction with other manipulable materials or when changed on a weekly basis. When tail biting occurs the code requires that a full investigation is made and also recommends that the provision of environmental enrichment is reviewed and an action plan developed which should be incorporated into the farm animal health and welfare plan. This plan should in any case be revised annually by the farmer and his veterinary surgeon or other advisers.
It is the welfare of the pig that matters. If it is found that the material used does not allow the pigs to investigate and manipulate and the pigs are tail biting, then the farmer will need to find an alternative material.
Rights of Way
Ms Atherton: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what funding was made available by her Department in (a) 2002–03 and (b) 2003–04 (i) directly and (ii) via local budgets for work to improve public rights of way. [124324]
Alun Michael: The allocation for rights of way improvement is subsumed in the unhypothecated Environment Protection and Cultural Services block, a methodology that was agreed between the Government and the Local Government Association as is supported by all four political groups in the Association rather than through direct grants or ring-fenced support to local government. So we cannot say exactly how much funding has gone to local authorities to improve the rights of way network. I confirmed with the leaders of all four groups on the LGA their agreement that this was the right approach for this funding.
PRIME MINISTER
Overseas Visits
Mr. Ancram: To ask the Prime Minister if he will list the foreign visits he has made since 1 April; what the dates were; whom he met; what the cost to public funds was of each; and what gifts were received on each. [124355]
The Prime Minister: A list of all visits overseas undertaken by Cabinet Ministers from 1 April 2002 to 31 March 2003 costing more than £500 will be published in the normal way before the House rises. The information requested concerning the Prime Minister's travel since 1 April 2003 will be published at the end of the current financial year.
For gifts, I refer the right hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Tatton (Mr. Osborne) on 12 May 2003, Official Report, column 88W.
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EDUCATION AND SKILLS
School Fires
Mr. Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the estimated cost of fires in schools was to local education authorities in each of the last three years. [123315]
Mr. Miliband: The Department does not collect these figures.
Council of Ministers
Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills on how many occasions since May 1997 the Department indicated dissent from a proposal in the Council of Ministers but did not register a vote or abstention. [117267]
Alan Johnson: We are unable to provide statistics on the details of the Department's vote in the Council of Ministers for the period before 1999 as this information is available only at disproportionate cost.
Since January 1999, there have been no occasions where the Department has indicated dissent from a proposal in the Council of Ministers but did not register a vote or abstention.
Departmental Employment Costs
Mr. Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the average cost of an employee working in his Department has been in each year since 1997. [119434]
Mr. Charles Clarke: The average cost of an employee in my Department based on mean basic pay, superannuation and employer's national insurance contributions since 1997 is given in the following table:
| £ | |
|---|---|
| 2002–03 | 30,600 |
| 2001–02 | 29,000 |
| 2000–01 | 26,800 |
| 1999–2000 | 25,900 |
| 1998–99 | 25,400 |
| 1997–98 | 24,700 |
| 1996–97 | 23,900 |
For the period 1996–97 to 2000–01 (the period for which comparisons are available), this shows a 12 per cent. increase in average cost for the Department. This compares to a 21 per cent. increase in average salary for the labour market as a whole over the period and a 19 per cent. increase in average salary for teachers in London over the same period.
EU Regulations
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many regulations originating from the EU have been implemented by the Department over each of the last five years. [120851]
Alan Johnson: Regulations are, in general, directly applicable in the member states, without the need for implementation in national law.
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As far as we have been able to verify, the Department for Education and Skills has had no regulation for implementation over the last five years.
Graduate Teachers
Mr. Cameron: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what percentage of graduates on primary school PGCE courses in 2002–03 have secured full-time permanent employment; and how many full-time vacancies for qualified teachers there are. [123400]
Mr. Miliband: Figures on the destinations of teachers who are due to complete Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) courses in 2002/03 are not yet available. The most recent data available show that of those who completed primary PGCEs in the 1999/2000 academic year, around 80 per cent. were in any service in England in March 2001.
The total number of vacancies in maintained nursery and primary schools in England fell from 1,800 in January 2002 (a vacancy rate of 1 per cent.) to 1,100 in January 2003 (a vacancy rate of 0.6 per cent.) .
Mrs. Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what percentage of graduates on primary school PGCE courses in 2002–03 have secured full time permanent employment; and how many full time vacancies for qualified teachers there are in Chesham and Amersham. [123919]
Mr. Miliband : Figures on the destinations of teachers who are due to complete Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) courses in 2002–03 are not yet available. The most recent data available is for those who completed primary PGCE courses in calendar year 2000 where around 80 per cent were in service in England in any sector as at March 2001.
Vacancy information is not available at constituency level. The most recent vacancy data available for Buckinghamshire LEA is for January 2002, which show that there were 53 vacancies in the maintained schools sector (a vacancy rate of 1.6 per cent).
The total number of vacancies in the maintained schools sector in England fell from 4,540 in January 2002 (a vacancy rate of 1.2 per cent) to 3,400 in January 2003 (a vacancy rate of 0.9 per cent).
Higher Education
Mr. Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what action he is taking to assess the (a) compliance costs and (b) regulatory impact of the White Paper, "The Future of Higher Education" on higher education institutions; and if he will (i) publish such assessments and (ii) subject them to external audit. [123429]
Alan Johnson: Officials in my Department are currently developing a Regulatory Impact Assessment, which will consider the compliance costs and the impact of the proposals in the higher education White Paper on higher education institutions.
The Regulatory Impact Assessment will be published on our website in the summer.
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From this year the National Audit Office has a new role in independently evaluating a selection of RIAs, focusing on the quality of analysis, and the thoroughness with which it has been undertaken. The NAO's findings and recommendations of best practice will be fed back to Departments.
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