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21 Dec 2004 : Column 1708W—continued
School Finance
Mr. Todd: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the (a) average primary formula spending share per pupil and (b) average secondary formula spending share per pupil was in each local education authority in 1996–97, listed in descending order of secondary formula allocations. [206899]
Mr. Stephen Twigg: Changes to the funding system in 2003–04 and local authority boundary changes resulting from the local government reorganisation mean that figures comparable to the formula spending share are not available for 1996–97.
School Meals
Dr. Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills (1) what steps she is taking to restrict the amounts of (a) salt, (b) fat and (c) sugar in school meals; [206816]
(2) what assessment she has made of the implications of introducing a national healthy school meals menu. [206817]
Derek Twigg: Government introduced regulations setting minimum school lunch nutritional standards in April 2001. Subject to meeting the standards, it is for local education authorities or, where the budget for lunches is delegated to them, a school's governing body to decide the ingredients to be used and dishes to be served.
£1.1 million is being provided by DfES, the Food Standards Agency (FSA), the Department of Health and DEFRA to fund initiatives to improve school meals. We are:
revising the secondary school lunch standards to reduce pupils' salt, sugar and fats intake and increase their fruit and vegetable consumption;
Sickness Absence
Mr. George Osborne: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many days sick leave were taken by civil servants in the Department in each year since 1997; and what the sickness absence rate was in each year. [204508]
Mr. Stephen Twigg: My Department remains committed to managing sickness absence effectively and to putting in place the recommendations of the recently published report "Managing Sickness Absence in the Public Sector".
I would refer the right hon. Member to the figures contained in the annual report "Analysis of Sickness Absence in the Civil Service" published by Cabinet Office. Table A of the report gives details of both the
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average number of working days lost through sickness for each staff year and the number of staff years on which the calculation is based. The most recent report is for calendar year 2003 and was announced by Written Ministerial Statement on 1 November 2004, Official Report, 1WS and copies placed in the Libraries of the House. Reports for 1999, 2000, 2001 and 2002 are available on the Cabinet Office website at: http://www.civilservice.gov.uk/management_information/ conditions_of_service/caje/publications/index.asp# sickness.
Special Advisers
Mr. Tyrie: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many complaints were made by departmental civil servants regarding the conduct of special advisers between 31 March 2003 and 31 March 2004. [203466]
Mr. Stephen Twigg: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given by the then Minister for the Cabinet Office on 13 December 2004, Official Report, column 946W.
Mr. Tyrie: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills (1) whether departmental special advisers have been responsible for authorising instances of departmental spending since May 1997; [203910]
(2) whether departmental special advisers have given instructions to permanent civil servants without the explicit authorisation of Ministers since May 1997. [203971]
Mr. Stephen Twigg: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given by the Minister for the Cabinet Office on 16 December 2004, Official Report, column 1258W.
Mr. Tyrie: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills whether departmental special advisers have written to external (a) bodies and (b) individuals in their official capacity since May 1997. [204287]
Mr. Stephen Twigg: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given by the then Minister for the Cabinet Office on 14 December 2004, Official Report, column 1004W.
Mr. Tyrie: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills whether departmental special advisers have made appearances before parliamentary select committees in their official capacity since May 1997. [204306]
Mr. Stephen Twigg: No special advisers from the Department for Education and Skills or its predecessor, the Department for Education and Employment, have made appearances before parliamentary select committees in their official capacity since May 1997.
Student Drop-outs
Mr. Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what estimate he has made of the cost of students dropping out of their first degree courses in the latest year for which figures are available. [204660]
Dr. Howells:
The Higher Education Funding Council (HEFCE) teaching funding method provides funding for students who complete their course of study. Students who do not complete their course are not fundable. Figures for the public costs of student support
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for higher education students who do not complete their courses are not available: but student loans are, of course, repayable by them on the same terms as other students.
The latest data, for student starting courses in 2001–02, show that non-completion rates are somewhat lower than those starting courses in 1997–98.
Figures published in 2004 by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) show that the UK as a whole has one of the lowest non-completion rates among OECD countries.
Student Finance
Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the expected future income stream to the Treasury from university tuition and top-up fees is in each of the next 15 years; and if he will make a statement. [204781]
Dr. Howells: University tuition fees are paid to higher education institutions (HEI), not the Treasury. That will continue to be the case when variable deferred fees are introduced. From 2006, either the student will pay their fees direct to the HEI or (for students opting to take out the new loan for fees) the Student Loans Company will pay the HEI on the student's behalf. Because of the nature of the variable scheme, the income generated by HEIs will vary considerably, depending on their pricing and marketing strategies and the take-up of places by potential students.
Mr. Edward Davey: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the Government's actual expenditure on the interest subsidy on student loans was in the academic years (a) 2001–02, (b) 2002–03, (c) 2003–04 and (d) 2004–05. [204931]
Dr. Howells: The Secretary of State for Education and Skills only has responsibility for student loans paid to higher education students domiciled in England and Wales and this answer provides data relating to those students.
The following table provides the expected future interest subsidy over the loan's life for each year's loan issues. This represents the anticipated whole resource cost of the loans advanced during the year in question. The table also gives the actual amount by which the Government subsidised the interest charged on student loans annually. This represents the resource consumed in the financial year in question of subsidising the whole outstanding loan book. Calculations are based on financial rather than academic years:
| Financial year | Future interest subsidy charge | Annual interest subsidy |
|---|---|---|
| 2001–02 | 773 | 376 |
| 2002–03 | 959 | 544 |
| 2003–04 | 600 | 427 |
Source:
DfES Resource Accounts
The Government's cost of capital rate changed from 6 per cent. to 3.5 per cent. on 1 April 2003, therefore, the earlier years are not comparable with later years. Actual figures for 2004–05 are not yet available.
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