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Departmental Staff

Mr. Flight: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many (a) special advisers, (b) press officers, (c) civil servants, (d) advisers to civil servants and (e) permanent staff were working for his Department in each year since 1996. [126479]

Yvette Cooper: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister was established on 29 May 2002.

Staffing information is available in Table C of the annual publication 'Civil Service Statistics', which covers Permanent Staff numbers in each department

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and agency from 1995 to 2002. Copies of the publication are laid in the Libraries of both Houses. The latest edition, based on April 2002 data, was published on 24 July 2003. These figures include press officers.

Alternatively, this information is available at the following address on the Cabinet Office Statistics website http://www.civil-service.gov.uk/statistics/css.htm

The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister currently employs three special advisers: two full-time and one part-time. The term "advisers to civil servants" is not a recognised job title.

Elected Regional Assemblies

Mr. Hammond: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what mechanisms he has put in place to ensure that public money spent on information campaigns in the three English regions due to hold referendums on elected regional assemblies is not used to promote a particular view. [139122]

Mr. Raynsford: The Government's Information Campaign is in accordance with the requirements of the Civil Service Code and Guidance on the Work of the Government Information Service. Its purpose is to inform people of the key issues and to stimulate debate, not to influence the referendum outcome. Guidance on what civil servants can and cannot do in the run up to the referendum will be issued nearer the time.

English Partnerships

Geraldine Smith: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what criteria English Partnerships uses in reaching decisions on funding priorities; and what account English Partnerships takes of the North West Regional Housing Strategy in its decision-making process. [138719]

Keith Hill: English Partnerships' priorities for new projects focus on:

The 20 per cent. most deprived wards in the country;

The Coalfields programme ;

Urban Regeneration Company areas;

Housing Market Renewal Fund pathfinder areas;

Target areas for major housing growth in the South East of England;

Strategic brownfield sites in or close to any of the above priority areas or in areas of housing pressure or housing abandonment;

Other discretionary projects where funding constraints allow and which would promote wider regeneration benefits, particularly where EP can add significant value.

English Partnerships is represented on the North West Regional Housing Board and takes the strategy into account when making decisions on specific projects in the region.

Geraldine Smith: To ask the Deputy (1) Prime Minister for what period Lancaster City Council has requested funding from English Partnerships for the West End housing regeneration project in Morecambe; and for what sums for that project over that period the Council has applied; [138720]

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(2) what discussions English Partnerships has held with Lancaster City Council regarding funding for (a) West End Housing Regeneration Project, Morecambe and (b) Luneside Development, Lancaster; and what decisions were reached; [138721]

(3) what funding English Partnerships is providing to Lancaster City Council to fund (a) a masterplan for the West End Housing Generation Project in Morecambe and (b) annual costs of a project team for the project. [138722]

Keith Hill: The Chief Executive of English Partnerships (EP) met members and officers of Lancaster City Council in October to discuss EP's role in both the West End of Morecambe and the Luneside redevelopment. English Partnerships is working with Lancaster City Council to find appropriate regeneration solutions for both areas.

(a) West End of Morecambe: EP has already committed £100,000 for a masterplanning study to determine the precise scope, cost and timetable for the regeneration of this area. As a result of last month's visit, EP has also agreed to fund the £200,000 cost of a project team for the next 12 months. The Council has made no additional requests for funding from English Partnerships.

EP is working actively with the Council to facilitate the appointment of the masterplanning organisation as soon as possible, hopefully in December.

(b) Luneside: the Council is currently finalising its proposals for the regeneration of this site and a submission is expected to go forward to English Partnerships shortly.

Environmental Health Officers

Norman Baker: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many people in each year since 1997 (a) were in professional training to become environmental health officers and (b) entered the profession as environmental health officers. [139178]

Phil Hope: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister does not hold this information centrally, and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. The Employers Organisation for local government has provided some limited information taken from the Environmental Health Workforce Survey 2002. This survey shows that during 2002–03 129 student environmental health officers were due to qualify in England. During 2003–04 this figure is expected to increase to 159

During the 12 months up until 1 January 2002, 118 Environmental Health Officers entered English local authorities as first appointments.

Data for other years since 1997 is not available.

Norman Baker: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what steps he is taking to increase the number of environmental health officers. [139179]

Phil Hope: The Local Government Association set up the Regulatory Services Partnership in July this year, in order to find ways of addressing the need to recruit and retain environmental health officers. The partnership includes the Local Government Association, the Welsh Local Government Association, the Local Authority

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Coordinators of Regulatory Services, the Improvement and Development Agency, the Employers' Organisation, the Trading Standards Institute and the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health.

The Partnership's programme of actions is aimed at raising the profile of local authority public protection regulatory services with the community and within local and central government. The actions also aim to improve these services generally and address the recruitment and retention issues concerning Environmental Health Officers and Trading Standards Officers.

The need to improve local government recruitment, including that of environmental health officers, has been recognised in the Pay and Workforce Strategy for Local Government. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister is working with the Local Government Association and Employers Organisation to take forward the implementation of the strategy.

Norman Baker: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many environmental health officers were employed in each year since 1997 (a) in England and (b) broken down by local authority area. [139198]

Phil Hope: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister does not hold this information centrally. The Employers Organisation for local government has provided some limited information taken from the "Environmental Health Workforce Survey 2002". This survey shows that in January 2002 there were 4,565 environmental health officers employed in English local authorities. Data for other years since 1997 is not available.

The survey provides a breakdown by type of authority and shows that 678 were employed in London boroughs, 880 employed in metropolitan districts, 2,299 employed in Shire districts and 708 employed in English unitaries.

Essex Fire and Rescue Service

Mr. Francois: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the total number of vacancies for retained firefighters in the Essex fire and rescue service was on 1 September. [139616]

Mr. Raynsford: There are currently 49.25 full-time equivalent (FTE) vacancies for retained firefighters in Essex fire and rescue Service.

Mr. Francois: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many retained firefighters were employed by the Essex Fire and Rescue Service on 1 September 2003. [139662]

Mr. Raynsford: On 31 March 2003 (the latest available figures), there were 379 retained firefighters in post (expressed in 24-hour units). The actual head count figure was 472.

Mr. Francois: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many control room staff were employed by the Essex Fire and Rescue Service on 1 September 2003. [139664]

Mr. Raynsford: On 31 March 2003 (the latest figures available), there were 39 control room staff in post in full-time equivalents (FTE). The actual head count figure was 43.

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Mr. Francois: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many fire engines were retained by the Essex fire and rescue service on 1 September. [139666]

Mr. Raynsford: As at 31 March 2003 (the latest figures available) there were 72 front-line pumping appliances (fire engines), with 15 reserve pumping appliances.

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