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1 Sept 2004 : Column 774W—continued
Course Cancellation
Mr. Willis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will list higher education institutions in England which have cancelled (a) undergraduate and (b) postgraduate courses for academic years (i) 2003–04 and (ii) 2004–05; which courses were affected; what the reasons for the course cancellation were in each case; how many students were affected in each case; and if he will make a statement. [185810]
Mr. Miliband [holding answer 22 July 2004]: Decisions on courses are a matter for individual HE Institutions: information on course closures is not held centrally.
Data Protection Act
Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills whether he intends to make (a) the pupil identification number and (b) the identifier used in relation to children in the Children Bill a general identifier as defined under the Data Protection Act 1998; and if he will make a statement. [185955]
Margaret Hodge: There are no current plans to make the pupil identification number a general identifier. A unique identifying number will be important for the successful operation of the databases for which provision is made in the Children Bill. Feasibility work is underway to identify the best source of such a unique identifying number. This will include advice as to whether the number will need to operate as a general identifier as described in the Data Protection Act 1998.
Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills in what way the provisions of the Children Bill in relation to the security of personal information held in the child database about children extend the security afforded under the Seventh Principle of the Data Protection Act 1998; and if he will make a statement. [185956]
Margaret Hodge: The databases to be established and operated under clause 9 of the Children Bill will operate in accordance with all eight principles of the Data Protection Act 1998. The seventh data protection principle concerns appropriate technical and organisational measures against unauthorised or unlawful processing of personal data and against accidental loss or destruction of, or damage to, personal data. Detailed arrangements for how such measures should operate for databases will be set out in regulations, guidance and directions to be made under clause 9 of the Children Bill.
Dentistry
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what steps he is taking to make academic dentistry more attractive to dental graduates. [181641]
Ms Rosie Winterton: I have been asked to reply.
On 16 July, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State, announced that we are to provide 170 additional training places for undergraduates in dentistry from October 2005. The increase will be supported by capital investment of £80 million over the next four years and
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additional revenue funds reaching £29 million by 2010–11. Not only will this expansion increase the pool of dentists from which trainees are drawn, but, by improving the environment in dental schools and teaching hospitals, it will make academic dentistry a more attractive career.
Departmental Administration Costs
Mr. Letwin: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the total administration costs were in his Department in financial years (a) 1996–97 and (b) 1997–98. [186077]
Mr. Stephen Twigg [holding answer 22 July 2004]: Details of the Department's gross running costs for 1996–97 and 1997–98 are contained in Table 5.5 of Public Expenditure Statistical Analyses 2000–01 (Cm 4601). These figures are on a cash basis and include the former Employment Service and Ofsted. From Public Expenditure Analyses 2001–02 (Cm 5101), departments' administrative expenditure was reported on a resource basis, as administration costs.
Copies of Public Expenditure Statistical Analyses are in the Library of the House and are on HM Treasury's public website (www.hm-treasury.gov.uk).
Departmental Staff
John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how much money his Department expects to save as a result of the job cuts in his Department announced in the 2004 spending review. [184740]
Mr. Stephen Twigg [holding answer 21 July 2004]: The spending review announcement included a reduction of 1,460 posts in DfES. These will be achieved by April 2008 and equate to a steady state paybill reduction for the Department of £38 million at today's prices.
Departmental Staff (Upper Age Limits)
Mr. Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills whether (a) his Department and (b) agencies for which it is responsible (i) have a set retirement age which applies to all or most personnel and (ii) have a maximum age beyond which applications for employment will not be considered; and what the age is in each case. [186080]
Mr. Stephen Twigg: Within my Department all staff below the Senior Civil Service can choose when they retire between age 60 up to a maximum retirement age of 65. This is subject to satisfying normal fitness and efficiency requirements. Staff in the Senior Civil Service normally retire at age 60.
My Department has no maximum age beyond which applications for employment will not be considered.
Departmental Staffing
Mr. Bacon:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many people were employed in the Department (a) in 1997 and (b) at the latest date for which information is available, broken down by job title; if he will list the job functions performed by those holding each job title; and for how many people
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the primary function was (i) human resource or personnel functions, (ii) finance and accounting functions, (iii) information technology functions and (iv) other support, back office or administrative functions (A) in 1997 and (B) at the latest date for which information is available. [183459]
Mr. Charles Clarke [holding answer 14 July 2004]: As at 1 July 2004, 4,440 people were employed in my Department. The numbers employed in the functions listed were:
(i) 239 (5 per cent.) in human resources;
(ii) 67 (1.5 per cent.) in finance and accounting;
(iii) 248 (6 per cent.) in information technology, and
(iv) 359 (8 per cent.) in other support, back office or administrative functions.
By 2008, we have plans in place to reduce these to:
(i) 145 in human resources;
(ii) 51 in finance and accounting;
(iii) 183 in information technology, and
(iv) 299 in other support, back office or administrative functions.
On 1 April 1997, 33,662 people were employed in the former Department for Education and Employment, of whom 29,181 were in the Employment Service Agency. My Department does not hold numbers by the listed functions as at this date.
A breakdown of people by job title and job function could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Education (Islington)
Mr. Chris Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what funding has been made available in each year since 1997 and for projected future years for education in schools within the area of the London Borough of Islington; whether these amounts include those sums made directly to headteachers of both primary and secondary schools; and whether it is possible to provide a breakdown of overall funding on a school-by-school basis. [184722]
Mr. Miliband: The Department does not produce projected figures for future years. The available information about funding in Islington local education authority is contained in the following tables.
| Aged 3–10 | Aged 11–15 | |
|---|---|---|
| 1997–98 | 45.2 | 30.9 |
| 1998–99 | 48.7 | 32.7 |
| 1999–2000 | 54.2 | 34.8 |
| 2000–01 | 60.6 | 40.8 |
| 2001–02 | 66.1 | 44.2 |
| 2002–03 | 70 | 46.6 |
| 2003–04 | 75.9 | 51 |
| 2004–05 | 79.5 | 54.3 |
Notes:
1. The funding and budget figures quoted are derived from different sources and are not directly comparable.
2. The funding figures in the table are not available by sector as this is not how allocations are made to LEAs.
3. Therefore, these figures are not those sums given directly to headteachers, but the funding allocated to LEAs in terms of Education Formula Spending for pupils fading into age groups 3–10 and 11–15.
4. Figures reflect education Standard Spending Assessment/Education Formula Spending settlement (all sub-blocks), plus all revenue grants in DfES Departmental Expenditure Limits relevant to EFS pupils aged 3–10 and 11–15.
5. Figures exclude Education Maintenance Allowance and grants not allocated at LEA level and the pensions transfer to EFS and Learning and Skills Council for 2003–04 and 2004–05.
6. The pupil numbers used are those underlying the SSA/EFS settlement calculations plus PLASC 3-year-olds maintained pupils and estimated 3–4 year olds funded through state support in maintained and other educational institutions where these are not included in the SSA pupil numbers.
7. 1997–98 figures for LEAs subject to Local Government Reorganisation in that year have been estimated, pro-rata to their post LGR figures.
8. 2003–04 and 2004–05 figures are provisional as some grants have not yet been finalised/audited.
9. Figures are rounded to the nearest £0.1 million.
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Notes:
1. The funding and budget figures quoted are derived from different sources and are not directly comparable.
2. The total funding figure for 2000–01 comprises the following grants: Budget share (excludes SSG), Standards Fund Devolved (includes EiC grant).
3. The total funding figure for 2001–02 comprises the following grants: Budget share (excludes SSG), Standards Fund Devolved (includes EiC grant).
4. The total funding figure for 2002–03 comprises the following grants: Budget share (excludes SSG), Standards Fund Devolved (includes EiC grant).
5. The total funding figure for 2003–04 comprises the following grants: Budget share (excludes SSG), Standards Fund Devolved (includes EiC grant), School Standards Grant.
6. The total funding figure for 2004–05 comprises the following grants: Budget share (excludes SSG), Standards Fund Devolved (includes EiC grant), School Standards Grant, Devolved EiC Grant.
7. Data are as reported through the Section 52 statements and do not capture all grant funding. Data for budget 2003–04 and 2004–05 are likely to change.
8. Table 2 of the section 52 statements records the amounts of grants allocated to schools and the amount unallocated at the point at which the section 52 return was compiled. In budget 2004–05, Table 1 indicates that Islington had allocated £463,000 for "support for schools in financial difficulty" and £300,000 for "advance of transitional grant" but this was not broken down to school level on Table 2.
9. All data are as reported by LEAs as at 20 July on the Section 52 budget statements and does not capture all grant funding.
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