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2 Dec 2004 : Column 252W—continued
Public Engagements
Dr. Julian Lewis: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how many public engagements he has fulfilled since September. [201046]
Mr. Milburn [holding answer 30 November 2004]: My recent public engagements have been:
30 November 2004(Speech at the Lunch of the Association of Chief Executive of Voluntary Organisations (ACEVO), commission of Inquiry Report(the Guardian Newsroom.
In addition and from time to time I meet individuals and organisations outside Government.
2 Dec 2004 : Column 253W
Special Advisers
Dr. Julian Lewis: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (1) what responsibilities he has given to his special adviser; [201655]
(2) what hours his special adviser is contracted to work for him in his ministerial capacity; [201656]
(3) whether his special adviser is paid on a full-time basis; [201657]
(4) whether his special adviser works for (a) him other than in his ministerial capacity and (b) any other Minister; [201658]
(5) whether his special adviser takes part in non-civil service political activity during hours in which he is contracted to work for him. [201659]
Mr. Milburn: I have one full-time and one part-time special adviser. The adviser who works part-time also works for the Prime Minister. Both advisers are employed under terms and conditions set out in the Code of Conduct and Model Contract for Special Advisers. These documents set out details of working hours, involvement in political activities and duties and responsibilities.
Web Content Accessibility Guidelines
Paul Holmes: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office whether her Department monitors the compliance of .gov.uk websites with the World Wide Web Consortium's Web Content Accessibility Guidelines. [199618]
Ruth Kelly: There is no centralised system of monitoring UK Government websites for compliance with the W3C's "Web Content Accessibility Guidelines" and the accessibility levels they define.
The Cabinet Office published the "Guidelines for UK Government websites" in 2002 to assist public sector web developers with the application of the World Wide Web Consortium's Web Content Accessibility Guidelines. The Department has extensively promoted accessibility awareness and continues to keep web accessibility standards and technical developments under review. Responsibility for the application of the W3C's guidelines rests with individual Government Departments, agencies and local authorities.
We have recently updated the terms and conditions for the use of .gov.uk domain names to require all new websites to maintain the high level of accessibility detailed in the Guidelines for UK Government websites.
Paul Holmes: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office whether her Department's .gov.uk websites comply with the World Wide Web Consortium's Web Content Accessibility Guidelines adopted by the Government in 2001; and if she will make a statement. [199623]
Ruth Kelly:
The Cabinet Office is responsible for 48 .gov.uk websites. 23 of these, including the main Cabinet Office site www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk, comply with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG).
2 Dec 2004 : Column 254W
Under the Cabinet Office's Better Internet Project, all of the Department's websites will be fully WCAG compliant by mid 2006.
WORK AND PENSIONS
Benefit Fraud
Mr. Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many and what percentage of local authority detected frauds resulted in prosecutions in each year since 1997. [200117]
Mr. Pond: The number of cases of benefit fraud detected is not available. The number of cases resulting in prosecution and cases resulting in conviction is in the following table.
| Prosecutions | Convictions | |
|---|---|---|
| 1997–98 | n/a | 700 |
| 1998–99 | n/a | 800 |
| 1999–2000 | n/a | 900 |
| 2000–01 | n/a | 1,100 |
| 2001–02 | 2,101 | 1,732 |
| 2002–03 | 3,187 | 2,503 |
| 2003–04 | 4,601 | 3,747 |
Notes:
1. Figures for convictions prior to 2001–02 have been rounded to the nearest 100 because they include estimated values for non-responding local authorities.
2. Figures for prosecutions which did not lead to conviction are not available prior to 2001–02.
Source:
From 2001–02 onwards the numbers are taken from local authority subsidy claim forms. Prior to this the numbers are taken from management information returns.
Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people have claimed incapacity benefit in Pendle in each year since 1997. [201013]
Maria Eagle: The information is in the following table.
| May | Number |
|---|---|
| 1997 | 5,700 |
| 1998 | 5,800 |
| 1999 | 5,400 |
| 2000 | 5,300 |
| 2001 | 5,600 |
| 2002 | 5,400 |
| 2003 | 5,300 |
| 2004 | 5,400 |
Notes:
1. Figures are rounded to the nearest 100. Totals may not sum due to rounding.
2. Figures include all incapacity benefit (IB), severe disablement allowance and IB national insurance credits only cases.
3. Parliamentary constituencies are assigned by matching postcodes against the relevant postcode directory.
Source:
IAD Information Centre, 5 per cent. samples
2 Dec 2004 : Column 255W
Correspondence
Mr. Salmond: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when he will reply to the letter dated 26 August from the hon. Member for Banff and Buchan regarding the motability scheme. [201258]
Maria Eagle: I have replied to the hon. Member on 1 December 2004.
Disability Benefits
Tom Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people living in the London borough of Wandsworth are receiving the disability income guarantee; and if he will make a statement. [200306]
Mr. Pond: The disability income guarantee is paid by means of enhanced disability premiums through income support, jobseeker's allowance (income based), housing benefit and council tax benefit.
Housing benefit and council tax benefit information is not available below Government Office Region level.
The information for income support and income-based jobseekers allowance is in the following table.
(9) Figures are nil or negligible.
Notes:
1. Figures are based on a 5 per cent. sample and are therefore subject to a degree of sampling variation.
2. Figures have been rounded to the nearest 100.
3. Figures include claimants in receipt of income-based JSA who would also be entitled to the contributory element.
4. Local authorities are assigned by matching postcodes against the relevant ONS postcode directory.
Source:
IAD Information Centre, 5 per cent. samples
Housing Benefit Matching Service
Mr. Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, which and what percentage of local authorities have yet to implement the Housing Benefit Matching Service. [200167]
Mr. Pond: Of the 408 local authorities, Isles of Scilly is the only local authority that has not implemented the Housing Benefit Matching Service.
Low-income Households (Scotland)
David Hamilton: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether the Department is on target to reduce the number of children in low-income households by at least a quarter by 2004 in (a) Scotland and (b) Midlothian. [200220]
Mr. Pond:
The Government has a PSA target at the national level to reduce the number of children in low-income households by at least a quarter by 2004–05, as a contribution towards the broader target of halving child poverty by 2010 and eradicating it by 2020.
2 Dec 2004 : Column 256W
Between the baseline year of 1998–99 and 2002–03 the number of children in low income households has fallen by 500,000 before housing costs and 600,000 after housing costs. We will report on the target in spring 2006 when the data for 2004–05 become available. However, our assessment is that we are broadly on course to meet our PSA target.
Specific information regarding low income for the United Kingdom is available in 'Households Below Average Income 1994–95—2002–03'. Data are not available below the regional level. Only poverty rates are available at regional level rather than numbers of children in low income households. It should be noted that year on year changes in these regional poverty rates are not statistically significant. The data show that progress made in Scotland over the entire period 1998–99 to 2002–03 was in line with progress made in Great Britain over the same period.
'Measuring child poverty', published in December 2003, outlines the Government's measure of UK child poverty for the long term. This new measure will begin from 2004–05. All publications listed are available in the Library.
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