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11 Nov 2004 : Column 908W—continued
Departmental Staff
Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many full-time equivalent jobs (a) his Department and (b) its executive agencies had in (i) Yorkshire and the Humber and (ii) the City of York in (A) 1997 and (B) the latest year for which figures are available. [191845]
Maria Eagle: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given by my hon. Friend, the Minister of State for the Cabinet Office (Ruth Kelly) on 25 October 2004, Official Report, column 1053W.
My hon. Friend's reply gave figures collected via the Cabinet Office mandate system. The figures in the following table are not collected by the mandate system and are in addition to those published. Figures are not available prior to April 2002.
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| Jobcentre Plus | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 |
|---|---|---|---|
| City of York | 100 | 90 | 90 |
| Elsewhere in Yorkshire and Humberside | 3,950 | 4,190 | 4,000 |
| Total | 4,050 | 4,280 | 4,090 |
Notes:
1. Figures are full time equivalents and are consistent with Cabinet Office definitions.
2. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10.
3. Temporary staff are not included.
4. Figures are as at 30 April for 2002 and 31 March for 2003 and 2004.
Farm Machinery (Child Accidents)
Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many children under 16 were injured in accidents involving (a) tractors and (b) farm machinery in the last year for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement. [196458]
Jane Kennedy: There were no reported injuries to children under 16 years involving tractors and three injuries to children under 16 involving other farm machinery in 2002–03. There was one fatality to a 12-year-old boy involving a tractor during the same period. Two children were run over and killed by farm vehicles in 2003–04. The latest provisional non-fatal injury figures for 2003–04 will be published on 18 November 2004.
The small number of child farm deaths in recent years reflects the considerable effort invested by HSE and the farming community to tackle this problem, and the wider health and safety problems of the agricultural industry where deaths among the self-employed are a particular concern.
Greek Presidency
Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many times during the Greek presidency of the EU the Restricted Committee of the Safety and Health Commission for the mining and other extractive industries met; when and where these meetings took place; which UK Government expert was present at each meeting; what (a) technical and (b) financial issues were raised by the UK Government expert at each meeting; what recommendations the Committee produced during that period; what actions were (i) proposed and (ii) taken by (A) the EU and (B) the UK Government as a result of the Committee's recommendations; and if he will make a statement. [194876]
Jane Kennedy: The Restricted Committee of the Safety and Health Commission for the Mining and Other Extractive Industries (SHCMOEI) met once, in Luxembourg on 4 June 2003, during the Greek presidency of the EU.
A member of the Health and Safety Executive represented the UK Government at the 4 June 2003 Restricted Committee of the SHCMOEI.
The UK Government representative raised technical issues relating to: the minutes of the previous meeting; proposed changes to the draft 2002 Annual Report of the Safety and Health Commission; a "Coal Worker Pneumoconiosis" document tabled for adoption and commented on the cancellation of a planned meeting of the Committee on Underground Workings.
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The UK Government representative did not raise any financial issues at the Restricted Committee of SHCMOEI on 4 June 2003.
The Restricted Committee made the following recommendations: amended and approved the minutes of the previous meeting, agreed representation for the Advisory Committee planning group; amended and adopted the 2002 Annual Report of the Safety and Health Commission and agreed the date for their next meeting.
I am not aware of any proposals for action or actions that were taken by either (A) the EU or (B) the UK Government as a result of the Restricted Committee's recommendations made by the SHCOMEI committee meeting on 4 June.
Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many times during the Greek presidency of the EU the Advisory Committee on employment met; when and where these meetings took place; which UK Government expert was present at each meeting; what (a) technical and (b) financial issues were raised by the UK Government expert at each meeting; what recommendations the Committee produced during that period; what actions were (i) proposed and (ii) taken by (A) the EU and (B) the UK Government as a result of the Committee's recommendations; and if he will make a statement. [194877]
Mr. Pond: There were four meetings of the Employment Committee during the Greek Presidency, on 28 January 2003 in Brussels, on 20/21 February in Vasilitsa (Greece) and on 23 April 2003 and 14–15 May 2003, both in Brussels.
Officials from the Department for Work and Pensions attended all of these meetings. In addition: an official from the Department for Education and Skills attended one meeting; an official from the United Kingdom Permanent Representation to the EU attended another. An official from the Department for Work and Pensions chaired two of these meetings.
During the Greek Presidency the Committee produced Opinions on: the preparation to the spring 2003 European Council; Commission proposals for a Council Decision on Guidelines for member states' employment policies; a Commission recommendation for a Council Recommendation on the implementation of member states' employment policies; and on a Commission recommendation on the Broad Economic Policy Guidelines. The Committee also agreed the work programmes for subsidiary Committees (the Committee on Employment Incentive Measures and the Indicators Group). The Employment Committee discussed several other issues, without making any formalised recommendations.
Contributions by UK officials primarily focused on ensuring that outcomes reflected the broad policy principles of the Lisbon reform agenda, rather than specific financial or technical issues. The UK delegation consistently argued for a set of guidelines that reflected the reform agenda and were clear, simple and outcome focused.
The EU and the UK took forward Committee's conclusions in the context of applying Article 128 of the Treaty establishing the European Community. The
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Council therefore takes the Committee's Opinion into account when agreeing the Employment Guidelines in accordance with Article 128.2, which the United Kingdom subsequently takes into account in national employment policies. On the basis of these Guidelines, the government produced the annual report referred to at Article 128.3 (ie the National Action Plan for Employment for 2004, copies of which were placed in the Library of the House on 19 October 2004.)
For general information on the Greek Presidency please see Cm 6097 'Developments in the European Union, January to June 2003, the Greek Presidency' which was laid before Parliament in January 2004.
Guarantee Credit
Mr. Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many households were in receipt of the guarantee credit at the end of each of the past 12 months. [195526]
Malcolm Wicks: The information is given in the following table.
Note:
Figures are rounded to the nearest five.
Jobseeker's Allowance
Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 1 November 2004, Official Report, column 124W, on jobseeker's allowance, when figures will be available for 2003–04. [196975]
Mr. Pond: We expect to publish estimates of the number of incorrect payments of jobseeker's allowance in 2003–04 in spring 2005.
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