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Civilian Personnel

Mr. Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the salary bill was for civilians employed within the (a) Ministry of Defence and (b) armed forces in the latest year for which figures are available. [165554]

Ivor Caplin: Civilian salary costs, including National Insurance contributions, superannuation liability and redundancy and severance payments, for the last Financial Year 2002–03 were £2,584,057,000. This information was published in the Department's Annual Reports and Accounts at Note 2.2 to the acccounts. A copy is available in the Library of the House.

Army Resettlement Payments

Mr. Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many (a) soldiers and (b) ex-soldiers were (i) investigated and (ii) prosecuted in regard to fraudulent claims for payment associated with resettlement in each year since 2000. [166436]

 
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Ivor Caplin: Information for all soldiers is not held centrally and could only be provided at disproportionate cost. The investigation of ex-soldiers is a matter for the appropriate civil police authority.

Mr. Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many soldiers received payments as part of their resettlement on leaving the Army in 2003; and what the average amount was. [166437]

Ivor Caplin: The Information requested is not held centrally and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

Cap Badges

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the regiments which have the name of a county included in the cap badge. [166028]

Ivor Caplin: The following 11 regular Army regiments include the name of a county in their official titles: The Argyle and Sutherland Highlanders; The Cheshire Regiment; The Devon and Dorset Regiment; The Prince of Wales's Royal Regiment (Queen's and Royal Hampshires); The Green Howards (Alexandra, Princess of Wales's Own Yorkshire Regiment); The Prince of Wales's Own Regiment of Yorkshire; The Queen's Lancashire Regiment; The Royal Gloucestershire, Berkshire and Wiltshire Regiment; The Staffordshire Regiment; The Worcestershire and Sherwood Foresters Regiment; and The Duke of Wellington's Regiment (West Riding).

Of these 11 regiments, five feature the name of a county in their actual gap badges. They are: The Argyle and Sutherland Highlanders; The Cheshire Regiment; The Prince of Wales's Own Regiment of Yorkshire; The Queen's Lancashire Regiment; and The Duke of Wellington's Regiment (West Riding).

Wind Turbines, Guestwick

Mr. Keith Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether he intends to object, for operational flying reasons, to the erection of six wind turbines at Guestwick in Norfolk. [166043]

Ivor Caplin (holding answer 19 April 2004): An objection to the current proposals will be lodged on the basis of potential interference with the operation of both air traffic and air defence radar. The developer has been notified.

The main reasons are that the proposed development is situated within 22km and in line of sight of the Air Traffic Radar at RAF Coltishall and within 16km and line of sight of the radar at RAF Honington. The blades of wind turbines can produce false returns or mask the detection of flying aircraft. It is the view of our specialist technical advisers, who have considered the proposal,
 
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that such a development could place the safety of flight in danger and therefore pose an unacceptable risk to personnel, aircraft and people on the ground.

In addition the site lies within 27km and line of sight of the Air Defence Radar at RAF Trimingham.

However, officials from Defence Estates are discussing with the developer whether any mitigating measures might be possible which would allow a development to proceed.

Computer Services

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has to update computer (a) hardware and (b) software standard packages used in his Department. [166369]

Ivor Caplin: The Defence Information Infrastructure Integrated Project Team (DII IPT) will deliver 139,000 desktop devices across Defence. This will include the provision of standard personal productivity software, e.g. office automation. The DII (Future) Programme will be delivered incrementally commencing during 2005 and is expected to achieve a Full Operating Capability by 2009.

CABINET OFFICE

Disclosure of Information

Mr. Heath: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office in what circumstances is disclosure of Government policy to a third party considered a disciplinary offence. [166194]

Mr. Alexander: The rules on the disclosure of information by civil servants are set out in the Civil Service Code and Civil Service Management Code.

Regulatory Reform

Mr. Lazarowicz: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what steps he is taking to improve the regulatory reform process. [166195]

Mr. Alexander: As I confirmed to the Regulatory Reform Committee on 1 July 2003, we will honour the commitment given during the passage of the Regulatory Reform Bill in another place to review the workings of the order-making process in April 2004.

Regulatory Impact Assessments

Mr. Norman: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what plans he has to improve the monitoring of regulatory impact assessments. [166196]

Mr. Alexander: My right hon. Friend the Chancellor announced in the Budget on 17 March new processes for approving regulatory proposals likely to impose large additional costs on businesses.

These new arrangements mean that departments will need to agree regulatory impact assessments on major proposals with the Cabinet Office Regulatory Impact Unit.
 
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TREASURY

Tax Credits

Geraldine Smith: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people have received overpayments of tax credits in the last 12 months. [165419]

Dawn Primarolo: I refer my hon. Friend to the reply I gave my hon. Friend the Member for Jarrow (Mr Hepburn) on 22 March, Official Report, columns 663-64W.

Geraldine Smith: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what problems there have been with the tax credit computer system. [165420]

Dawn Primarolo: I refer my hon. Friend to the reply I gave the hon. Member for Birmingham, Northfield (Mr Burden) on 8 December 2003, Official Report, columns 334-35W.

Mr. Ruane: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many claimants of child tax credit there are; and what the total funding was for 2003–04 for each (a) constituency and (b) region in the United Kingdom. [166672]

Dawn Primarolo: There were 4.6 million families with an award of Child Tax Credit on 5 January this year. Because Child Tax Credit is a national system of financial support there is no separately identifiable funding for each constituency and region of the UK. However, data on the number of families receiving Child Tax Credit in each constituency and region is available on the Inland Revenue's website, at: http://www.inlandrevenue.gov.uk/stats/personal-tax-credits.

Illegal Imports

Mr. Breed: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many successful prosecutions have been brought against illegal (a) meat and (b) produce importers in the past five years, broken down by port of entry. [165718]

Mr. Healey: HM Customs and Excise have been responsible for anti-smuggling controls on illegal imports of meat since April 2003.

Customs have brought two successful prosecutions against people smuggling illegal meat in the past fortnight: one involving an American national arriving at Gatwick airport and another a Gambian national arriving at Heathrow.

In the past five years, two other successful prosecutions have been brought by Customs in regard of imports of meat, skins and dead animals (both in 2001). Records detailing the ports of entry and details of relevant prosecutions brought by local authorities are not recorded centrally.

There have been no prosecutions with regard to illegal imports of produce in the past five years.

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