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1 Apr 2004 : Column 1582W—continued

Organ Retention

Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when the television advertising campaign to notify people in Northern Ireland about post mortems and organ retention will commence; and how many leaflets on the subject have so far been distributed in the Province. [164578]

Angela Smith: An ongoing multi-media campaign has been running since June 2002, when the Human Organs Inquiry report was published. A sub-committee of the Department's Human Organs Implementation Steering Group is tasked with managing this campaign in conjunction with a firm of PR/Advertising consultants. No decision to use TV advertising has yet been taken but the campaign is kept under review.

Almost 700,000 of the Department's leaflet "Post Mortem Examinations and the Human Organs Inquiry—Important New Information for Everyone in Northern Ireland" have been distributed throughout Northern Ireland. These have been delivered to homes by the Royal Mail and circulated through HPSS networks.

A further 18,500 leaflets about the Human Organs Enquiry Line (NI) have also been distributed by Enquiry Line staff.

1 Apr 2004 : Column 1583W

Pulmonary Hypertension

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many pulmonary hypertension sufferers there were in Northern Ireland in each of the last five years for which figures are available. [164537]

Angela Smith: Information is not available on the number of pulmonary hypertension sufferers in Northern Ireland. Information is, however, available on the number of people admitted to hospitals in Northern Ireland each year suffering from pulmonary hypertension, and is shown for the years 1998–99 to 2002–03 and is shown in the following table.

	Numbers admitted to hospital with pulmonary hypertension
1998–99	74
1999–2000	91
2000–01	88
2001–02	122
2002–03	197

School Finance

Mr. Trimble: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland to what extent the Common Funding Formula for schools has been implemented; what the timescale is for full implementation; what criteria are being used to determine the timescale for implementation; and what steps are being taken to ensure children in the more rural board areas are not adversely affected by the timescale for implementation. [164192]

Jane Kennedy: The Common Funding Formula (CFF) has not been implemented. The plan is to consult schools on the final proposals for the CFF shortly, with the aim of implementing Common Funding in April 2005. The implementation of Common Funding will be undertaken within finite budgetary constraints, and central to this will be the issue of manageability, especially for schools facing reductions in their relative budget share. All existing Funding Formulae contain a Small School Factor to facilitate the delivery of the curriculum. Small schools with above average teaching costs may also receive additional support through the Teachers' Salary Protection Factor.

1 Apr 2004 : Column 1584W

Mr. Beggs: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland which schools in the South Eastern Education and Library Board area are (a) experiencing financial deficit and (b) projected to face a financial deficit in the next financial year. [164434]

Jane Kennedy: I understand from the Chief Executive of the South-Eastern Education and Library Board that the following schools are expected to have a deficit at 31 March 2004:

Ballycarrickmaddy Primary School

Carr Primary School

Carryduff Primary School

Castle Gardens Primary School

Comber Primary School

Cregagh Primary School

Crossgar Primary School

Donaghadee High School

Downshire Primary School

Gilnahirk Primary School

Glencraig Primary School

Groomsport Primary School

Hillhall Primary School

Holywood Primary School

Kilmaine Primary School

Lambeg Primary School

Legamaddy Primary School

Londonderry Primary School

Newport Primary School

Newtownards Model Primary School

Newtownbreda Primary School

Old Warren Primary School

Our Lady Queen of Peace Primary School

Priory College

Redburn Primary School

Sacred Heart Primary School

St. Colman's Primary School, Lisburn

St. Colman's Primary School, Moira

St. Joseph's Primary School, Carryduff

St. Joseph's Primary School, Strangford

St. Joseph's Primary School, Downpatrick

St. Joseph's Primary School, Crossgar

St. Malachy's Primary School

St. Mary's Primary School, Portaferry

St. Mary's Primary School, Killyleagh

St. Patrick's Primary School

Tyrella Primary School

Information for the next financial year is not yet available.

1 Apr 2004 : Column 1585W

TRADE AND INDUSTRY

Bogus Traders

Mr. Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many bogus traders have been reported in (a) the Jarrow constituency, (b) South Tyneside, (c) the North East and (d) England and Wales in each year since 1997. [165072]

Mr. Sutcliffe: This information is not available centrally.

Mr. Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many bogus traders have been convicted for illegal practices in (a) the Jarrow constituency, (b) South Tyneside, (c) the North East and (d) England and Wales in each year since 1997. [165074]

Mr. Sutcliffe: This information is not available centrally.

Mr. Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what estimate she has made of the average age of those targeted by bogus traders in (a) the Jarrow constituency, (b) South Tyneside, (c) the North East and (d) the UK, in each year since 1997. [165111]

Mr. Sutcliffe: No such assessment has been made.

Miners' Pension Schemes

Tony Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what the total sum is that has been taken to date by the Treasury from the miners' pension schemes under the terms of the 1994 agreement. [163241]

Nigel Griffiths: The receipts from the two schemes since payments began in 1996–97 are as follows:

£ million

	BCSSS	MPS	Total
1996–97	39.5	0.0	39.5
1997–98	39.5	113.0	152.5
1998–99	107.1	113.0	220.1
1999–2000	107.1	0.0	107.1
2000–01	110.3	315.0	425.3
2001–02	216.0	196.0	412.0
2002–03	216.0	196.0	412.0
2003–04	216.0	175.0	391.0
Total	1,051.5	1,108.0	2,159.5

The terms of the 1994 agreement have meant that similar amounts have been available to the trustees to award substantial bonuses of around 30 per cent. to the schemes' members.

Rogue Traders

Mr. Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps the Government are taking to tackle the problem of rogue traders. [165075]

Mr. Sutcliffe: The Government have introduced a number of new measures to empower and inform consumers.

1 Apr 2004 : Column 1586W

The Enterprise Act 2002 introduced a new concept of supercomplaints. It provided the legislative framework for the Office of Fair Trading to conduct an investigation of the doorstep selling market in response to supercomplaint from NACAB (now Citizen's Advice). The OFT's report is expected shortly.

The Enterprise Act also included provisions to strengthen the powers available to enforcement authorities to tackle the activities of rogue traders. The Stop Now Orders, first introduced in 2001 by implementation of the Injunctions Directive in the UK, created a new enforcement regime across a wide range of consumer protection legislation. They enabled designated enforcement authorities to apply to the courts for "Stop Now Orders" to stop the practices of rogue traders if they are acting against the collective interests of consumers. The Enterprise Act has extended that protection across an even wider range of consumer protection—particularly in the service sector.

Another way in which we are informing and empowering consumers is the development of Consumer Support Networks (CSNs). These bring together organisations to plan and deliver better, more accessible and more joined-up support for local consumers. Across Britain, the Networks are helping to raise awareness of consumer issues. This includes considerable emphasis on issues relating to sales in the home, particularly for vulnerable or older consumers.

The Government has made up to £30 million of new money available over a 3 year period to roll out a new national consumer helpline—Consumer Direct. With a single, widely publicised number, it will be a powerful tool for consumer advice across Britain. Consumers, no matter where they live, will be able to access reliable, independent help on consumer matters via their own phone, for the price of a local rate call. For those who prefer it, the service will be available on-line.

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