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Regulation Costs

Mr. Heald: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what estimate he has made of the (a) recurring and (b) non-recurring costs for (i) a typical business and (ii) all business of the regulations passed so far this Session. [160045]

Mr. Alexander: All proposals which have a potential impact on business, charities or voluntary bodies must be accompanied by a regulatory impact assessment determining whether the costs of the proposal are justified by its benefits. Costs of individual regulations can be found in the published regulatory impact assessments, available in the House Library.

Regulatory Impact Assessments

Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office (1) what percentage of regulatory impact assessments recommended that the regulatory instruments under examination should not proceed in the last year for which figures are available; [160123]

(2) how many regulatory instruments have failed to proceed following the negative conclusion of the regulatory impact assessments in each year since 2000. [160143]

Mr. Alexander: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave the hon. Member for North Norfolk (Norman Lamb) on 2 February 2004, Official Report, column 715W.

Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office (1) what estimate he has made of the number of regulatory impact assessments conducted in 2003 which included a statement of what the respective department expected to happen in the absence of regulation; and what guidance his Department has issued on this subject; [160138]

(2) what assessment he has made of the possible effect on the net benefits of regulation of including a do nothing option in regulatory impact assessments; [160137]

(3) how many regulatory impact assessments conducted in 2003 contained a do nothing option. [160136]

Mr. Alexander: The Government are committed to regulating only where necessary and promoting the use of alternatives to regulation. This includes the do nothing option, which provides a useful baseline against which to judge the potential impact of a proposal. As set out in Cabinet Office guidance 'Better Policy Making: A Guide to Regulatory Impact Assessment', Departments are required to consider alternatives as part of the RIA process. RIAs are published and placed in the Libraries of the House.

Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what assessment he has made of the finding in the Evaluation of Regulatory Impact Assessments Compendium Report 2003–04, published

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by the National Audit Office, that none of the sample regulatory impact assessments concluded that the costs to small business would be disproportionate. [160139]

Mr. Alexander: The Government welcome the National Audit Office's (NAO) Compendium Report on the Evaluation of Regulatory Impact Assessments (RIA), and is currently in the process of looking at the findings and recommendations of the report.

Secondments

Mr. Heald: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many private sector workers are seconded to (a) the Strategy Unit and (b) the Office of the e-Envoy; and if he will make a statement. [160026]

Mr. Alexander: There is at present one private sector worker seconded to the Strategy Unit and none to the Office of the e-Envoy.

Service Denial

Mr. Jenkins: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many (a) denial of service and (b) distributed denial of service attacks have been recorded on Government department and agency computer networks and websites in each of the last five years. [160058]

Mr. Alexander: IT infrastructure, including IT security arrangements, is the responsibility of individual departments. The information requested is not, therefore, collected centrally.

The Government have a continuous programme of work to identify vulnerabilities and prevent damage to critical national infrastructure, public sector networks and other inter-dependent information systems.

Special Advisers

Mr. Heald: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what powers special advisers within his Department have (a) to give direct orders to civil servants and (b) to exercise other executive powers; and if he will make a statement. [159585]

Mr. Alexander: The duties and responsibilities of special advisers are set out in the Code of Conduct for Special Advisers. Under the terms of the Civil Service Order in Council, up to three special adviser posts in the Prime Minister's office can have executive powers. Only one special adviser currently has such powers.

Mr. Heald: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the total cost has been of special advisers accompanying Ministers on visits (a) abroad and (b) within the United Kingdom in the last 12 months. [159569]

Mr. Alexander: The Government publishes on an annual basis the cost of all Ministers' visits overseas. The cost figure includes the costs of any special advisers accompanying the Minister overseas. The cost for the financial year 2003–04 will be published as soon as it is ready after the end of the current financial year. The detailed information requested is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

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All travel complies with the requirements of 'Travel by Ministers' and the 'Civil Service Management Code' as appropriate.

Mr. Heald: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the total cost has been of provision of Government cars to special advisers in the last 12 months. [159570]

Mr. Alexander: Special advisers are not provided with allocated Government cars. As with all civil servants, special advisers are entitled to use official pool cars if departmental rules allow.

Mr. Heald: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office (1) what the total cost has been of provision of Government office facilities to special advisers (a) in the last 12 months and (b) since 1997–98; [159571]

(2) which Government-owned properties are used by special advisers for official business purposes; and if he will make a statement. [159574]

Mr. Alexander: Special advisers provide advice to Ministers. They will normally be located in the same building as the appointing Minister. The cost of providing office facilities to special advisers will not normally be separately identifiable from the cost of Ministers' private offices.

Mr. Heald: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many special advisers are employed (a) within his Department and (b) across Government as a whole; and if he will make a statement. [159572]

Mr. Alexander: Within the Cabinet Office, the Minister without Portfolio currently employs one special adviser.

As of 8 March, there are 77 special advisers employed across Government as a whole.

Strategy Unit

Mr. Heald: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what inquiries the Strategy Unit is undertaking. [159332]

Mr. Alexander: The Strategy Unit's current projects include:

Alcohol Misuse—producing an alcohol harm Reduction Strategy for England;

A study of the medium to long-term issues facing the UK Fishing industry;

A project on "Improving the prospects of people living in areas of multiple deprivation in England";

A project on "Improving the Life Chances of Disabled People";

A study of the long-term issues facing London and its role as the UK's capital and as a world city;

A joint analytical study with the Home Office on police reform; and

An analysis of the challenges raised by Countries at risk of Instability and how the UK should improve its strategic response to them.

Details of the Unit's work can be found on its website: www.strategy.gov.uk

Mr. Heald: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many (a) special advisers and (b) staff in total are employed in the Strategy Unit. [160028]

Mr. Alexander: (a) No special advisers are employed in the Strategy Unit. (b) There are currently 79 members of staff employed in the Strategy Unit.

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Mr. Heald: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office (1) what assessment he has made of the impact of the Strategy Unit; and if he will make a statement; [160029]

(2) how many projects have been undertaken by the Strategy Unit (a) in the last 12 months and (b) since it was established; if he will make an assessment of their impact; and if he will make a statement. [160032]

Mr. Alexander: The Strategy Unit carries out long-term strategic reviews and policy analysis across a range of areas. It works with departments to improve strategic capability across government.

The Government Chief Social Researcher's Office, which is based in the Strategy Unit, also provides strategic leadership to social research across departments.

Details of the Strategy Unit's work can be found on its website www.strategy.gov.uk.

Mr. Heald: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many people have been employed on each project undertaken by the Strategy Unit since its inception. [160031]

Mr. Alexander: The Strategy Unit was formed in June 2002. Strategy Unit staff work across a number of project issues. Staff numbers usually average between 70 and 90 depending upon the workload.

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