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Radio Devices

Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what representations she has received on the use of iTrips and similar such devices; and if she will make a statement. [188626]

Ms Hewitt: I am not aware of any representations about the use of iTrips or similar devices.

Research and Development

Sue Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what proportion of public investment in research and development went to projects for which all or part of the results are kept from publication on grounds of commercial confidentiality in the latest period for which figures are available; and what trends the Government have identified relating to past and future variations in this proportion of public investment in research and development in the UK. [188077]

Ms Hewitt: The information is not available. In general, the Government tries to keep to a minimum results produced from publicly funded projects which are kept from publications on grounds of commercial confidentiality.

Rural Phone Boxes

Mr. Peter Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will make a statement on Government policy on BT's proposed withdrawal of rural phone boxes. [188454]

Mr. Timms: The regulation of the provision of public call boxes is a matter for Ofcom. Ofcom is due to consult publicly on the matter this autumn in the context of universal service provision of telecoms services.

Science and Innovation Investment Framework

Sue Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what definition of the terms (a) public sector and (b) business research and development used in the paper Science and Innovation Investment Framework 2004–2014, published in July, with particular reference to table 1.1 of that paper. [188075]

Ms Hewitt: The sources for the statistics quoted in the Science and Innovation Investment Framework 2004–2014 paper are the UK Office for National Statistics R&D surveys for the UK data and OECD for international comparisons. R&D statistics for OECD countries are compiled in line with guidelines set out in the OECD's Frascati Manual.
 
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(a) Public sector includes:

All UK-based departments, offices and other bodies which furnish, but normally do not sell to the community, those common services, other than higher education, which cannot otherwise be conveniently and economically provided, as well as those that administer the state and the economic and social policy of the community;

UK-based non-profit institutions controlled and mainly financed by government, but not administered by the higher education sector; and

UK-based non-market, private non-profit institutions serving households.

(b) The business sector includes:

All UK-based firms, organisations and institutions whose primary activity is the market production of goods or services (other than higher education) for sale to the general public at an economically significant price;

The UK-based private non-profit institutions mainly serving them.

The public sector is essentially composed of UK Government Departments, the Research Councils, Higher Education Institutions and private non-profit institutions. The business sector is all private enterprises in the UK.

Sellafield

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will make a statement on the court action being taken by the European Commission in respect of access arrangements for nuclear inspections at Sellafield, with particular reference to pond B30. [188054]

Nigel Griffiths: The Commission issued a press release dated 3 September 2004. The Department continues to seek a formal response on the detailed basis for the Commission's action, but I understand as of 10 September has yet to receive this. We have also continued to emphasise that the UK remains keen to engage in a full and co-operative dialogue with the Commission aimed at satisfactorily resolving the remaining Euratom Treaty safeguards issues at the B30 plant.

Access for nuclear safeguards inspections is provided according to the terms of Chapter 7 of the Euratom Treaty and the UK's safeguards agreements with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). The European Commission's published reports on its implementation of Euratom safeguards show that there is very considerable inspection effort in the UK (some 2400 days in 2002)—about half of which effort is at the Sellafield site. Safeguards inspectors have not been denied access for their verification and inspection activities at the Sellafield site, or elsewhere in the UK. Safeguards inspectors, as much as anyone else, have of course to be protected by UK regulations relating to radiological dose/safety—this is a factor in their access to the B30 plant. It has also been clearly acknowledged that poor visibility caused by the condition of the material in the B30 pond hinders safeguards verification there.

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what discussions she has had relating to the termination of fuel reprocessing at Sellafield, with particular reference to (a) the timescale and (b) the cost to public funds. [188061]

 
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Mr. Mike O'Brien: Discussions have taken place as part of the wider process of restructuring BNFL. BNFL expects to complete their existing order book for reprocessing spent fuel at THORP by around 2010. Operation of THORP beyond completion of the existing order book would be dependent on there being new contracts for reprocessing further spent fuel at the plant which, in the first instance, is dependent on there being customer demand.

The Government's position on the future of THORP was set out in the July 2002 White Paper on Managing the Nuclear Legacy. We expect existing THORP contracts to be honoured. There are currently no proposals for new contracts for reprocessing further spent fuel at THORP. Before any such new THORP contracts could be concluded or changes made to existing contracts that increased the volume of spent fuel to be reprocessed at THORP, the approval of the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry would be required. Before making a decision on any such future proposal, the Government would review it against the specific criteria that were set out in the White Paper and would consult publicly.

Small Businesses

Mr. Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what research her Department has commissioned on reducing the administrative burden for small businesses. [186664]

Nigel Griffiths: In August 2004, the Department commissioned Kingston University to undertake the first stage of a research project designed to identify the effects of regulation on small businesses at different stages of growth.

Mr. Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what recent action her Department has undertaken to support small businesses in the City of Newcastle upon Tyne. [186842]

Nigel Griffiths: Businesses can also access various DTI funding streams via Business Link Tyne and Wear.

Tyne and Wear Small Business Fund, through the Regional Development Agency's Single Programme Funding, (managed by Tyne and Wear Development Company and delivered by each local authority) is a 50 per cent. Capital Equipment Grant of between £500 and £2,500 available to pre-start and new businesses—up to 12 months old.

The core funding provided to Business Link Tyne and Wear, has provided a foundation on which the Business Link has sourced additional funding projected at £14.5 million for the benefit of businesses in Tyne and Wear, for the year 2004–05. In 2003–04 around £7.5 million was made available to SME's based in Tyne and Wear as part of projects managed by Business Link Tyne and Wear. One of these projects offers a subsidy of up to 50 per cent. for management development training and upskilling the workforce to SME's across Tyne and Wear.

The Employer Training Pilot, was piloted in Tyne and Wear during financial year 2003–04, and has been made available to businesses throughout the north east from
 
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April 2004. This helps businesses to improve the skills of their workforce by providing training tailored to their needs.

Ross Cranston: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what representations she has received following the cross-cutting review of Government services for small businesses about (a) lack of consumer focus and (b) inefficiency charged to recipients of Government grants through expensive collateral costs, including consultants' and accountants' fees; and if she will make a statement. [188814]

Nigel Griffiths: I have received many representations from businesses and business representative organisations about improving the customer focus of Government services, in particular by simplifying and improving the accessibility of the support available.

The Department has responded to this customer feedback in a number of ways. For example, following DTI's recent work on its business support portfolio, the range of support available has been rationalised to nine easy to use and easy to access products. Information on the website and in brochures is written in plain English, explaining what the products are and how to access them. Application processes have also been reviewed to make them easier for the customer to comply with. The changes mean that it is no longer necessary for businesses to make use of external professional advice or intervention to apply for and use the business support products.

Responding to concerns expressed by small businesses that they find it difficult to establish their regulatory responsibilities, my Department has published a "No-Nonsense Guide to Government rules and regulations for setting up your business". This brings together in one place, information about all the regulatory requirements applying to start-up and developing businesses.

Working with other Departments, the DTI has also improved the customer focus of its e-services through the launch of the businesslink.gov web portal in April. The site joins up national e-government services for the UK's four million small and medium-sized businesses, providing a single access point to information from all Departments that are important to small businesses, such as the Inland Revenue and the Health and Safety Executive. The site is currently securing about 100,000 visitors each week, and has recently won the International Visual Communication Association's Gold Award for the best website of 2004.

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