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15 Jun 2004 : Column 816W—continued
Electricity Generation/Supply
Mr. Tynan: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry on what basis her Department includes (a) generators subject to transmission constraints and (b) inherently intermittent generators in aggregated totals of generation capacity when comparing levels of installed generation capacity against possible levels of electricity demand. [178351]
Mr. Timms: National Grid Transco (NGT) reports the level of installed generating capacity relative to forecast levels of electricity peak demand in its annual "Seven Year Statement" (SYS) and the associated quarterly Updates.
NGT do not currently differentiate the capacity of intermittent generators directly connected to the system from other forms of installed capacity. The registered capacity of any transmission-constrained generator is adjusted to the limit of the constraint in question.
Export Credits Guarantee Department
Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry pursuant to her answer of 13 January 2004, Official Report, column 696W, on the Export Credits Guarantee Department (ECGD), what information her Department can provide within reasonable cost that will not prejudice ECGD negotiations. [177722]
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Mr. Mike O'Brien: We are able to provide a breakdown of all of ECGD's unrecovered claims on a market-by-market basis (see following table). This information is updated regularly on ECGD's website at www.ecgd.gov.uk. These figures do not include our assessment of what claims are or are not recoverable. To disclose these figures would prejudice ECGD's attempts to recover claims outstanding.
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Flexible Working
Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment she has made of the merits of allowing employment tribunals to test the business case for the refusal of a request for flexible working; and if she will make a statement. [178115]
Mr. Sutcliffe: The flexible working law was designed by the Work and Parents Taskforce to be light-touch and is based on employer best practice. In translating the Taskforce proposals into legislation, the Government accepted their recommendation on handling unresolved requests. As the law currently operates, the facts on which the business case is based can be contested in an employment tribunal, as long as the appeal stage has been exhausted.
Since its introduction in April 2003, we have been constantly monitoring the impact of the law. We are committed to not making any changes to the laws for working parents until after their impact is reviewed in 2006. We continue to work with stakeholders and intermediaries, as well as engaging the views of both employers and parents directly to build up a strong evidence base for the review.
Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many requests for flexible working from (a) women and (b) men were for (i) shorter working hours and (ii) compressed working hours. [178116]
Mr. Sutcliffe:
The DTI published results of the first flexible working employee survey in April 2004. The survey reported the types of flexible working requested by male and female employees since the introduction of the new employment rights in April 2003.
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| Male employees | Female employees | All employees | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Part-time | 31 | 41 | 38 |
| Flexitime | 30 | 23 | 25 |
| Reduced hours for a limited period | (2)— | 12 | 13 |
| Work from home on a regular basis | 17 | (2)— | 10 |
| Compressed working week | (2)— | (2)— | 8 |
(2) Sample size too small for a reliable estimate. Percentage of those employees surveyed who had requested flexible working.
Notes:
1. Respondents could give multiple responses.
2. Respondents also stated other types of flexible working, but sample sizes were too small to report above.
3. All employees who requested flexible working since April 2003. Total of 456 employee responses.
Source:
ONS Omnibus Survey, September to November 2003 and February 2004.
In total an estimated 56,000 men and 294,000 women have requested shorter working hours, although the sample size was not large enough to include the number of men requesting reduced hours for a limited period, so this has not been included.
The sample sizes were too small to reliably estimate the number of women or men requesting compressed working hours.
Industrial Development Grants (Crosby)
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how much public funding from industrial development grants has been spent in Crosby. [177946]
Jacqui Smith: There have been two offers made to businesses in Crosby since 1997 worth £154,401.
Minerals
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will estimate the total gross value added to the economy from the mining and quarrying of minerals in each year between 1994 and 2004. [178661]
Jacqui Smith: The gross value added of mining and quarrying of minerals and of the whole economy from 1994 to 2002 (latest available) are:
| Gross value added at basic prices (£ billion) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Mining and quarrying of minerals | Whole economy | Minerals share of whole economy (percentage) | |
| 1994 | 1.2 | 608.7 | 0.2 |
| 1995 | 1.4 | 639.9 | 0.2 |
| 1996 | 1.6 | 680.2 | 0.2 |
| 1997 | 1.7 | 720.4 | 0.2 |
| 1998 | 1.6 | 762.4 | 0.2 |
| 1999 | 1.7 | 797.8 | 0.2 |
| 2000 | 1.8 | 839.2 | 0.2 |
| 2001 | 1.9 | 880.9 | 0.2 |
| 2002 | 2.3 | 925.6 | 0.2 |
Note:
Minerals comprise subsection CB of the Standard Industrial Classification—Mining and Quarrying Except Energy Producing Materials.
Sources:
1. Office for National Statistics.
2. UK National Accounts (the Blue Book), 2003 edition, table 2.3.
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