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20 Jul 2004 : Column 199W—continued
Translink
Mr. Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when Translink expects the first of its new trains to begin service. [185154]
Mr. Spellar: The first of the new trains is expected to be introduced to passenger service in October 2004.
Ulster Volunteer Force
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (1) if he will recognise the Ulster Volunteer Force as a Unionist paramilitary group; and if he will make a statement; [169174]
(2) when he will answer the question of 23 April from the hon. Member for Portsmouth South, ref 169174, about the Ulster Volunteer Force. [185216]
Mr. Pearson: I am sorry for the delay in replying.
There is no paramilitary group categorised as Unionist. The more accurate terminology is Loyalist. The Government's overall judgment is that the ceasefire of the Ulster Volunteer Force remains in place.
United States (Ministerial Representations)
David Burnside:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (1) what representations he has made
20 Jul 2004 : Column 200W
to the United States Administration to prevent Sinn Fein representatives entering the USA under the provisions of the Patriot Act following the first report of the Independent Monitoring Commission in April; [182970]
(2) what representations he has made to the State Department in the USA to place (a) the Provisional IRA, (b) Sinn Fein and (c) the Ulster Volunteer Force on the list of designated foreign terrorist organisations following the first report of the Independent Monitoring Commission in April. [182971]
DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER
Administration Fees
Mr. Edward Davey: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how much has been (a) budgeted for and (b) spent on administration fees by his Department in the last three years. [184144]
Phil Hope: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (ODPM) was created following the Machinery of Government changes on 29 May 2002. The following table shows the Office's budget and expenditure for administration costs for the financial years 2002–03 and 2003–04 and the budgets for 2004–05.
| 2002–03 1 | 2002–03 2 | 2003–04 1 | 2003–04 2 | 2004–05 1 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ODPM(C) | 180,011 | 171,648 | 177,075 | 173,737 | 181,352 |
| Government offices | 110,534 | 109,507 | 135,205 | 133,835 | 115,020 |
| Executive agencies | 43,593 | 42,584 | 37,505 | 35,510 | 39,475 |
| Total | 334,138 | 323,739 | 349,785 | 343,082 | 335,847 |
(16) Budget
(17) Expenditure
The budget figure in 2004–05 for the Government Offices is lower than in previous years, as additional work undertaken for Other Government Departments is agreed on an annual basis and the budgets transferred in year.
Arm's Length Management Organisations
Mr. David Drew: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will list arm's length management organisations which have achieved 3-star status. [184236]
Keith Hill: Five arms length management organisations have achieved 3-star status. These are Ashfield Homes, Brent Housing Partnership, Carrick Housing, Derby Homes and City West Homes (Westminster).
Audit Commission
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the (a) estimated running costs and (b) total expenditure of the Audit Commission (i) has been in each year since its creation and (ii) is expected to be in (A) 2004–05 and (B) 2005–06. [184980]
Mr. Raynsford: This is an operational matter for the Audit Commission and I will ask the Chief Executive to reply.
Council Tax
Mr. Hurst: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what proportion of pensioner households in England paid the full council tax in 2002–03. [184494]
Mr. Raynsford: The requested information is not collected centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Mr. Hurst: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the average council tax was in England in each year from 1993 to 2003. [184559]
Mr. Raynsford: The requested information is in the table.
| Average band D area council tax | Average council tax per dwelling | |
|---|---|---|
| 1993–94 | 568 | 456 |
| 1994–95 | 580 | 473 |
| 1995–96 | 609 | 498 |
| 1996–97 | 646 | 525 |
| 1997–98 | 688 | 564 |
| 1998–99 | 747 | 614 |
| 1999–2000 | 798 | 656 |
| 2000–01 | 847 | 697 |
| 2001–02 | 901 | 741 |
| 2002–03 | 976 | 804 |
| 2003–04 | 1,102 | 908 |
20 Jul 2004 : Column 201W
Departmental Accounting Practice
Mr. Bacon: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister who the Finance Director of (a) his Office and (b) Ordnance Survey is; what accountancy qualifications each Director holds; and on how many occasions there has been a qualified opinion on (i) the resource accounts and (ii) other accounts of each in the last five years. [183430]
Phil Hope: Andrew Lean is the Finance Director for the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister. He is currently studying for an Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) Diploma in Financial Management. The Office's first resource accounts for 2002–03 were not qualified.
Alastair Matthews has been the Finance Director of Ordnance Survey since July 2003. He is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales. The Ordnance Survey's Annual Accounts have been qualified on the same basis in each of the five years up to and including 31 March 2004. The qualification relates to a difference of opinion between the National Audit Office and Ordnance Survey as to whether the National Geographic Database should be capitalised on Ordnance Survey's Balance Sheet.
Departmental Annual Reports
Dr. Cable: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many copies of his Department's, and predecessor Department's annual report were printed in each year since 1997; how many were sold in each year; and what the (a) publication costs and (b) sales revenue were. [183841]
Phil Hope: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister and its executive agencies were created on 29 May 2002. Both Annual Reports issued since this date have been published by The Stationery Office (TSO Ltd.). The number of copies they printed and sold, and the revenue they made is commercial in confidence and hence the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister does not know these details.
The costs to the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister—and its principal predecessor Departments—for the past four financial years are set out as follows. Given Departmental changes, the costs of publication for the years 1997–2000 could be identified only at disproportionate cost.
The Department for Environment, Transport and Regions Annual Report cost circa £52,000 in 2000–01;
The Department for Transport, Local Government and Regions's Annual Report cost circa £38,000 in 2001–02; and
the first annual report for the Office of the Deputy prime Minister, publishing in May 2003, cost circa £17,000;
the second annual report for the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, publishing in April 2004, cost circa £49,000.
Departmental Travel Costs
Dr. Cable: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the travel costs were of civil servants in (a) his Department, (b) its predecessor Department and (c) its related agencies in each year since 1997. [183907]
Phil Hope:
The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister was formed on 29 May 2002.
20 Jul 2004 : Column 202W
(a) The travel and subsistence costs incurred by civil servants in the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister in each financial year are as follows:
| £ | |
|---|---|
| 2002–03 | 3,156,223 |
| 2003–04 | 3,187,321 |
(b) Information for the predecessor Department could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
(c) In the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister's three executive agencies, (i) the Fire Service College, (ii) the Planning Inspectorate and (iii) the Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre, travel and subsistence costs were as follows:
| £ | |
|---|---|
| 1999–2000 | 181,291 |
| 2000–01 | 176,313 |
| 2001–02 | 121,095 |
| 2002–03 | 120,127 |
| 2003–04 | 150,352 |
Figures for 1997–98 and 1998–99 are not readily available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
(ii) The Planning Inspectorate (figures rounded to the nearest £100,000):
| £ | |
|---|---|
| 1997–98 | 2,200,000 |
| 1998–99 | 1,900,000 |
| 1999–2000 | 2,100,000 |
| 2000–01 | 2,400,000 |
| 2001–02 | 2,400,000 |
| 2002–03 | 2,700,000 |
| 2003–04 | 2,600,000 |
(iii) The Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre (figures rounded to the nearest £1,000):
| £ | |
|---|---|
| 1997–98 | 39,000 |
| 1998–99 | 39,000 |
| 1999–2000 | 46,000 |
| 2000–01 | 57,000 |
| 2001–02 | 48,000 |
| 2002–03 | 46,000 |
| 2003–04 | 42,000 |
All travel is undertaken fully in accordance with the rules set out in the Civil Service Management Code.
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