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25 May 2004 : Column 1512W—continued
Pensions
Chris Ruane: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the number of mis-sold pensions in each of the last 25 years. [175071]
Ruth Kelly: Neither we nor the Financial Services Authority (the FSA) hold data in this form. The FSA do hold data on the Pensions Review, which covers pensions that were sold between 29 April 1988 and 30 June 1994.
1,618,686 cases of mis-selling were identified under the review, of which 1,118,885 cases involved consumers suffering loss as a result.
The Financial Services Compensation Scheme (the FSCS) have informed the FSA that they have, in addition, offered compensation in 18,746 further cases. The FSCS has also rejected 10,117 claims.
These rejections may include cases where pensions were mis-sold but where claims for compensation were rejected on the grounds that an advisor was solvent and
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able to meet a claim directly. Some, but very few, of these rejections will be included already in the figures above.
Mr. Willetts: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his latest estimate is of the value of the Exchequer's liabilities to (a) the basic state pension, (b) SERPS and (c) the state second pension; and if he will make a statement. [171583]
Malcolm Wicks: I have been asked to reply.
The future cost of basic state pensions and SERFS/State Second Pension over the next 50 years, as a proportion of GDP, is published on the DWP website at: http://www.dwp.gov.uk/asd/asd4/Table3 Long Term Projections.xls and shows that expenditure in the United Kingdom on these elements of pension provision is expected to remain in the range 4.1 per cent. to 4.5 per cent. of GDP during the period.
Scrap Aluminium
Mr. Page: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to tax export of scrap aluminium to sources outside the EU. [174979]
Dawn Primarolo: None. The legality of an export tax to protect a domestic industry is extremely doubtful under the terms of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (1947).
Transport Taxes
Mr. Martyn Jones: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the paper, "Reforming Transport Taxes", published by the European Conference of Ministers of Transport. [150883]
John Healey: The Chancellor notes the contents of this report, which looks at the options for transport taxation in general, and more specifically at the tax treatment of the road haulage industry.
The report will be considered along with other evidence and analysis as the Government takes forward their agenda on lorry road-user charging, and national road-user charging, as outlined in Budget 2004.
Labour Statistics (East Riding)
David Davis: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many young people in the East Riding of Yorkshire were not working, studying or in training in 2003. [171788]
Ruth Kelly: The Office of National Statistics estimate from the Labour Force Survey, for the twelve months ending in February 2003, that 4,000 young people aged 16 to 24 resident in East Riding of Yorkshire were networking and were not in full-time education or in Government-supported training schemes. This compares to around 4800 young people in 1997.
Since 1997 the Government have introduced a wide range of support for young people who are not working, studying or training. Most young people leave unemployment in under six months. The New Deal for Young People and other support is in place for those aged 18–24 who do not. In Budget 2004 the Chancellor announced reforms to the financial support system for 16–19 year olds to improve the support and incentives
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available to young people to remain in education and training. These reforms build on the introduction of Education Maintenance Allowances from September 2004 to improve the financial support available to the hardest to reach to stay in education. Young people can also access advice and support on education and training through either the Connexions Service or Job Centre Plus.
INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Administration Costs
Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what targets exist for the achievement of savings in administration costs within his Department; and if he will make a statement. [175769]
Mr. Gareth Thomas: DFID is committed to tight control of Administration Costs. For 2004–05 to 2005–06, the main administration costs target is to hold back office costs to the same cash level as in 2003–04. Between 2002–03 and 2005–06, total administration costs will have fallen from 5.8 per cent. of programme costs to 5.1 per cent. Targets for both back-office costs and total administration costs for 2006–07 and 2007–08 will be agreed as part of the 2004 Spending Review, along with an implementation plan to ensure projected efficiencies are realised.
Chad
Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will list the programmes aimed at institution building in Chad (a) run by his Department, (b) fully financed by his Department, (c) partially financed by his Department within the framework of EU initiatives, (d) partially financed by his Department within the framework of UN initiatives and (e) partially financed by his Department within the framework of the World Bank initiatives; when they were initiated; for how long they are planned to continue; and what aspect of institution building is being addressed by each. [175116]
Mr. Gareth Thomas: DFID does not have a direct development assistance programme in Chad and is not involved in running or providing either full or partial funding for any institution building programmes there. DFID's assistance to Chad is mainly channelled through it's contributions to multilateral agencies, including the EC, World Bank and UN Agencies, of which the UK's imputed share was estimated at £7.3 million in 2001.
Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment his Department has made of the (a) scale and (b) nature of corruption within the public institutions of Chad; what measures to fight this problem his Department proposes to provide as part of its development aid to Chad; and if he will make a statement. [175184]
Mr. Gareth Thomas:
DFID does not have a direct development assistance programme in Chad. DFID's assistance is mainly channelled through our contributions
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to multilateral agencies, including the EC, World Bank and UN Agencies, of which the UK's imputed share was estimated at £7.3 million in 2001.
DFID has not conducted its own assessment of public sector corruption in Chad and is not directly involved in any measures to deal with this problem. However, DFID does support the efforts of the World Bank and the European Commission in helping to tackle corruption, in particular through the monitoring of the revenues from the Chad-Cameroon Petroleum Development and Pipeline project to ensure they are mainly used for poverty reduction.
Far East
Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what aid projects his Department plans to develop in the Far East during the next three years; and if he will make a statement. [173540]
Mr. Gareth Thomas: The breakdown for our project spend on bilateral programmes in Far East Asia is as follows:
| 2003–04 Estimated Outturns | 2004–05 Plans | 2005–06 Plans | |
|---|---|---|---|
| China | 31,000 | 45,000 | 35,000 |
| Vietnam | 26,000 | 40,000 | 60,000 |
| Total: Far East | 57,000 | 85,000 | 95,000 |
For details of our projected spend in the rest of Asia I refer the hon. Member to the written answer of 7 May 2004 to his question on DFID's development plans in Asia, Official Report, 10 May 2004, column 57W.
In addition to this bilateral spend, FCO posts administer a DFID funded Small Grants Scheme for poverty reduction, which covers some countries of the Far East. This is allocated on an annual basis. The total grant values for 2002–03 in the Far East were as follows:
| £000 | |
|---|---|
| China | 124 |
| Vietnam | 121 |
| Mongolia | 97 |
| Total Asia: Far East | 342 |
DFID also provides humanitarian assistance to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, focusing on water and sanitation and disaster preparedness. This is allocated in response to humanitarian need. In 2003–04, DFID channelled a total of £1,223,000 through the United Nationals Children Fund (UNICEF) and the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC).
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