Previous Section Index Home Page


17 Dec 2003 : Column 925W—continued

Teenage Cycling Safety

Mr. Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much his Department has spent on the teenage cycling safety campaign in 2003; how much was spent on preparing a television advertisement campaign on cycle helmets; and what plans he has to promote the wearing of cycle helmets by teenagers in 2004. [144544]

Mr. Jamieson [holding answer 16 December 2003]: Expenditure on the teenage cycle safety campaign in 2003 was £123,000. Expenditure in financial year 2003–04 will be £173,000 in total once a TV public information film promoting cycle safety is completed.

The Department has no plans to make a TV advertisement on cycle helmets separate to the public information film. We are however running advertisements in 40 secondary school homework diaries to promote cycle safety, which will appear until June 2004.

In 2004, provisional plans include liaison with TV stations to show the public information film when they have a suitable gap between programmes; distribution of posters that promote cycle helmet wearing and the website cyclesense.net to road safety officers in local councils and maintaining the website cyclesense.net.

CULTURE, MEDIA AND SPORT

Analogue Broadcasting

Mr. Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many households are unable to receive analogue television reception in (a) England, (b) Wales, (c) Scotland and (d) Northern Ireland. [144897]

Estelle Morris: According to figures given by the ITC, the percentage of households unable to receive BBC1, BBC2, ITV and Channel 4 or S4C via analogue reception are (a) England, 0.4 per cent., (b) Wales, 2.4 per cent., (c) Scotland, 1.9 per cent. and (d) Northern Ireland, 1.5 per cent. Analogue coverage for Five is not available on a per country basis, however, 20 per cent. of UK households do not currently have access to Five.

Children's Broadcasting

Mr. Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what action she is taking to encourage growth of children's broadcasting on radio. [144479]

Estelle Morris: I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave the hon. Member for Bath (Mr. Foster) on 4 December 2003, Official Report, column 163W.

Give As You Earn Scheme

John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many and what percentage of staff in her Department contribute to a charity through the Give as You Earn scheme; how much money is donated to charity per month by staff in

17 Dec 2003 : Column 926W

her Department through the scheme; and what steps she is taking to encourage greater participation in the scheme by staff in her Department. [143907]

Mr. Caborn: The number of staff contributing to charities through the Give as You Earn scheme is 20 which represents 4 per cent. of staff in DCMS. The current contribution is £181.99 per month.

We are promoting the Give as You Earn scheme through our intranet and will be featuring the scheme in our staff newsletter in order to encourage greater participation.

National Lottery

Ms Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what sustainable development objectives are taken into account when lottery distributors consider applications for grants for lottery-funded projects in relation to pleasure piers; and if she will make a statement. [144248]

Estelle Morris: The Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) is the main distributor for lottery-funded projects relating to pleasure piers. HLF does not have separate criteria for assessing pier applications, but has a policy which states that:


SCOTLAND

Civil Service

Annabelle Ewing: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland on what dates he has had discussions with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on civil service job dispersal to Scotland since he became Secretary of State for Scotland. [142723]

Mrs. McGuire: My right hon. Friend is in regular contact with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on a wide range of issues, including civil service job dispersal.

Foundation Hospitals

Annabelle Ewing: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what written representations he has received from the British Medical Association (Scotland) on the subject of foundation hospitals. [142732]

Mrs. McGuire: In common with all Members from Scottish constituencies, my right hon. Friend and I received representations from the BMA (Scotland) addressed to us as constituency MPs.

Job Losses

Mr. Lazarowicz: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what steps he is taking in response to the loss of jobs in Scotland as a result of out-sourcing to other countries. [142710]

17 Dec 2003 : Column 927W

Mrs. McGuire: The Government consider that the best response to low cost overseas competition is to encourage the development of higher quality, added value services. Our economic policies are creating an environment where this transition can occur.

The labour market in Scotland is healthier than it has been for decades. Employment is close to a record high and unemployment is around its lowest level since the 1970s. The prospects for the Scottish economy are good.

TRADE AND INDUSTRY

Supermarkets

Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what progress has been made on the Supermarket Code of Practice. [143653]

Mr. Sutcliffe: The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) is currently reviewing the Code of Practice governing supermarkets' relations with their suppliers. They have taken views from supermarkets, individual suppliers and trades associations representing suppliers. Once the OFT have delivered the results of the review to my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, she will take whatever action is appropriate.

Accountancy (Tax Avoidance Schemes)

Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what information her Department has supplied to the US authorities in connection with investigations into accountancy firms' tax avoidance schemes in the past 12 months. [144184]

Jacqui Smith: The Government have not had any requests from the US authorities to supply them with information in connection with investigations into accountancy firms' tax avoidance schemes in the past 12 months.

Age Discrimination

Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how her Department is working with the (a) EU and (b) Foreign and Commonwealth Office to ensure that all EU member states implement the law against discrimination in employment on the grounds of age. [143928]

Jacqui Smith [holding answer 16 December 2003]: The European Employment Directive provides a general framework for combating discrimination in employment and vocational training, and lays down minimum requirements for outlawing discrimination on grounds of age, among other matters. It is for individual member states to decide how to implement the requirements in their own state.

The Government are committed to introducing legislation to outlaw age discrimination that is clear and workable in the UK. In order to achieve this, we are working with all appropriate stakeholders across Whitehall and wider.

17 Dec 2003 : Column 928W

Fibrecycle Waste Processing Method

Mr. Keetch: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry (1) what her Department's policy is on the Fibrecycle waste processing method; [144368]

Mr. Timms: I am not aware of any discussions between the Department and Estech Europe Limited. The Department does not have specific policies relating to the Fibrecycle waste processing method.

Free-fall Height Regulations

Sir Teddy Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry (1) what the purpose is of the free-fall height regulations proposed by the EU; whether they are being considered by majority vote; and what assessment she has made of their impact on manufacturers of (a) rocking horses, (b) trampolines and (c) climbing frames; [143846]

Mr. Sutcliffe [holding answer 15 December 2003]: The safety of toys is covered by the Toys (Safety) Regulations 1995 which are supported by European harmonised standards. A new part eight to the BSEN 71 series of toy standards, which introduced a maximum saddle height of 600mm for carousels and rocking activity toys, was recently agreed by the European technical committee which develops the standards. The primary intention of this measurement is to identify which toys need to undergo stability testing and it was not intended as a restriction on the maximum height of rocking horses. It has been accepted that an unintentional oversight has occurred and steps are being taken to rectify the matter. In the meantime, the DTI and LACORS (the Local Authorities Co-ordinators of Regulatory Services) have issued advice to local authority enforcement departments and testing laboratories on the current legal situation, emphasising that rocking horses with a saddle height greater than 600mm have not 'become' unsafe as a result of the new standard nor are any already on the market now unsafe for use.

Although trampolines are not covered by the standard, it does specify safety requirements for toys incorporating crossbars eg climbing frames and swings.

The BSEN 71 series of standards are a means of meeting the essential safety requirements of the toys safety Regulations. Those Regulations apply to all toys supplied on the UK market for use in play by children under 14 years of age.


Next Section Index Home Page