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Local Authority Standards Committees

Mr. Gardiner: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister whether central funding is available for training for members of local authority standards committees. [163375]

Mr. Raynsford: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister funds the Standards Board for England, one of whose roles is to issue guidance to authorities on matters relating to the conduct of members of authorities. The Board has produced a range of guidance to assist members of standards boards to carry out their role. The aim is for local authorities to base the training they provide to members on guidance and advice from the Standards Board.

Mr. Gardiner: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what assessment has been made of the training offered to members of local authority standards committees. [163376]

Mr. Raynsford: Recent research commissioned by the Standards Board for England, one of whose roles is to issue guidance to authorities on matters relating to the conduct of members of authorities, has indicated a high level of satisfaction with the guidance and advice provided by the Board. For example, 82 per cent. of people questioned said they were very or fairly satisfied with the published information and guidance.

Local Government Grants

Matthew Green: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what average percentage of the total expenditure of (a) county, (b) district, (c) metropolitan and (d) London authorities was spent on the Local Government Pension Scheme in the last year for which figures are available. [162716]

Mr. Raynsford: For all local authorities in England, it is estimated that 2.2 per cent. of net current expenditure in 2001–02 was on employers' pension contributions to pension schemes other than the teachers, police and fire schemes. Most of this expenditure will be on the Local Government Pension Scheme.

23 local authorities, where authorised, also made payments to pension schemes from capital funds under section 40(6) of the Local Government and Housing Act 1989. This amounted to 1.3 per cent. of total capital expenditure and other transactions in 2001–02.

Information by class of authority is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

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Local Government Statutory Officers

Mr. Nigel Jones: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister when he last reviewed the disciplinary process for local government statutory officers; and if he will make a statement. [162879]

Mr. Raynsford: The arrangements under which a council handles any allegation of misconduct by its head of paid service, monitoring officer or chief finance officer were last amended in 2001. We have no plans to review them.

Mr. Nigel Jones: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many local government statutory officers have been (a) suspended and (b) dismissed in each year since the current disciplinary processes were enacted; and if he will make a statement. [162886]

Mr. Raynsford: The information requested is not held centrally, and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Mr. Nigel Jones: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister under what circumstances a local government statutory officer can be (a) suspended and (b) dismissed; and if he will make a statement. [162887]

Mr. Raynsford: The Local Authorities (Standing Orders)(England) Regulations 2001 set out the arrangements for councils to handle allegations of misconduct by their head of paid service, monitoring officer or chief finance officer. These arrangements provide that no disciplinary action (apart from suspension in order to allow investigation of the allegation) may be taken by a local authority in respect of such officers other than in accordance with a recommendation in a report made by an independent person appointed under the Regulations to investigate the allegation. If the authority does suspend the officer it must be on full pay and may only be for a maximum period of two months. The independent person may, once appointed, choose to extend the period of suspension if he feels it necessary to enable him to carry out his investigation.

Mr. Nigel Jones: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the (a) average and (b) longest elapsed times between initiation of the disciplinary process and (i) suspension and (ii) dismissal in cases involving local government statutory officers has been since the current regulations were enacted; and if he will make a statement. [162888]

Mr. Raynsford: The information requested is not held centrally, and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Parliamentary Questions

Mr. Brady: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many days on average his Department took in Session 2002–03 to give a substantive answer to a parliamentary Question for Ordinary Written Answer; and what the greatest number of days taken to answer such a Question was. [155914]

Yvette Cooper: The effective handling of parliamentary questions is an issue to which my right hon. Friend the Deputy Prime Minister and ministerial colleagues attach great importance. In the Session

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2002–03, the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister answered 72.3 per cent. of its Ordinary Written Questions on time. The information requested is not held in the form requested and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Regional Policy

Ann Winterton: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister whether the Government's financial guarantee for the regions post-2006 is dependent on the UK proposals for an EU framework for devolved regional policy being implemented. [163716]

Mr. Raynsford: The Government stated in its consultation document "A modern regional policy for the United Kingdom" March 2003 that the guarantee would apply

"If the Government's proposed framework for EU policy were agreed ¹ ."

¹ Page iv, foreword.

South East England Development Agency

Mr. Andrew Turner: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Isle of Wight, of 10 March 2004, Official Report, columns 1524–26W, on the South East England Development Agency, if he will provide equivalent information for each preceding period of 12 months since 1998; and if he will list the new businesses created through such programmes. [163572]

Mr. Raynsford: I will write to the hon. Member as soon as the information is collated and will make a copy of the letter available in the Library of the House

Tetra

Norman Lamb: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will investigate MM02 Airwave's activities in relation to the installation of Tetra masts for police communications. [161248]

Yvette Cooper: Parliament has entrusted local planning authorities with the responsibility for day-to-day planning control in their areas.

If there is concern that a local planning authority has not acted properly in a particular case it is possible to ask the Local Government Ombudsman to investigate whether there has been maladministration. However, it is advisable to put any complaints to the local authority's monitoring officer (through the Chief Executive's Office, if necessary) in the first place, so that the authority has the chance itself to resolve the complaint.

HEALTH

Soya Contamination

Joan Ruddock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the research carried out by Professor Denis Murphy of the Biotechnology Unit of Glamorgan University into the contamination of UK soya products by GM soya. [162175]

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Miss Melanie Johnson: The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has noted the research carried out by Glamorgan University and the conclusions drawn by Professor Murphy. The FSA published a similar survey on the genetically modified content of foods in 2002. This survey showed a small number of products contained low levels of genetically modified material.

The FSA supports practical and enforceable labelling of genetically modified ingredients to ensure that consumers are not misled.

Care Homes

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health for what reason inspection reports on care homes by the National Care Standards Commission (NCSC), together with subsequent responses by care home owners, are not published in full on the NCSC website. [162920]

Dr. Ladyman: The National Care Standards Commission (NCSC) publishes the reports of its inspections in full on its website. Responses from providers are included wherever possible, although there have been difficulties in uploading this information onto the NCSC's computer system. The website makes it clear that provider comments are available from the NCSC office that originated the inspection or from the provider directly.

Weil's Disease

Mr. Paul Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) farmers, (b) members of farming families and (c) farm workers were reported as suffering from Weil's disease in each year since 1997. [161550]

Miss Melanie Johnson: Weil's disease is a serious infection with leptospiral bacteria. Not all leptospiral infections will result in the development of Weil's disease. Data collected include, but do not distinguish between farmers and their family members. The figures for all laboratory-confirmed reports of leptospiral infections in England and Wales since 1997 are set out as follows. Figures are not yet available for 2003.

	Total Leptospirosis human infections	Infections in farmers (including family members)	Infections in farm workers
1997	39	7	4
1998	29	8	4
1999	41	3	5
2000	54	14	5
2001	27	5	3
2002	(39)47	10	3

⁽³⁹⁾ Data are provisional

Source:

Health Protection Agency Communicable Disease Surveillance Centre 1997–2002

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