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UN Environment Programme

Mr. Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the annual grant from her Department to the United Nations Environment programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre was in each financial year from 2000; and how much the grant from each other donor nation was in each year. [218000]

Mr. Morley: The Department, on behalf of the UK Government has contributed £4.2 million per annum to the main United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Environment Fund since 2000. UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC) receives direct income from UNEP, as well as project funding.

The Department does not provide an annual grant to UNEP-WCMC. However DETR made a contribution to the Centre when it was incorporated into UNEP. This payment of £750,000 was to pay off the mortgage on the premises to give UNEP-WCMC a secure financial basis for their new beginning.

Defra, and other Government Departments, make use of the Centre's expertise and services to deliver specific products and services. Defra/DETR funding for projects in the years since 2000 is as follows:

	£
2000	500.00
2001	1,000,228.77
2002	109,096.00
2003	340,543.84
2004	180,183.00

UNEP-WCMC has also undertaken work for DFID and FCO.

We do not have information on other states contributions to UNEP-WCMC.

Mr. Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when she last held discussions with the management of the United Nations Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre on (a) staff levels at its establishment in Cambridge and (b) the level of her Department's financial support to it; and what the outcomes of those discussions were. [218001]

Mr. Morley: I met Dr. Klaus Toepfer, the Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), at the Eighth Session of UNEP's Governing Council in Nairobi (held 21–25 February 2005) and discussed the UNEP-World Conservation
 
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Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC) among other issues. Dr. Toepfer and I expressed our commitment to securing the short and long term future of the Centre.

In addition, my officials are in regular discussions with UNEP, WCMC Trustees and staff of the Centre to explore ways to secure the Centre's short and long term future.

These discussions have embraced a range of issues relating to the Centre's organisation including its financing. Staff levels are a matter for the management of the Centre and UNEP.

Waste Incineration

Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what (a) local, (b) regional and (c) national targets have been set on levels of incineration of waste. [217822]

Mr. Morley: Government have set no specific targets for levels of waste incineration.

Dr. Murrison: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on what dates since June 2001 Ministers have met (a) the Environment Agency and (b) the cement industry to discuss the burning of waste in cement kilns. [218015]

Mr. Morley: Ministers have met the Environment Agency (EA) on two occasions since June 2001 to discuss the burning of waste in cement kilns.

On 15 July 2004 I met the Environment Agency for that purpose together with representatives of the waste treatment company Cleanaway.

On 9 September 2004 I again met the Environment Agency for that purpose together with representatives of the British Cement Association.

Waste Management Regulations

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) when the Waste Management Licensing (England and Wales) Regulations 2005 will come into force; [216808]

(2) what account is being taken of differences in size and resources of different composting operations when defining the tonnage brackets under the Waste Management Licensing (England and Wales) Regulations 2005; [216809]

(3) what steps she will take to ensure that charges for composting sites proposed under the Waste Management Licensing (England and Wales) Regulations 2005 do not place a disproportionately high financial burden on small scale organisations composting less than 150 tonnes of organic waste per annum. [216810]

Mr. Morley: The Government have taken account of comments made during the consultation process by representatives of smaller community composting schemes and is considering amending the original proposal.

Details of the scheme will be available when the regulations are published. This is expected to be in late spring/early summer 2005.
 
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Flood Defence (York)

Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will make a statement on flood defence in the City of York. [217063]

Mr. Morley: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave her on 24 January 2005, Official Report, column 10W, which I hope will answer this question also. The Environment Agency's plans for the City of York remain unaltered.

Zoos

Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what plans she has to review the licensing of zoos. [218279]

Mr. Morley: The terms of reference of the Zoos Forum, the Government's independent advisers on zoo matters, include keeping the operation and implementation of the zoo licensing system continually under review and advising Government as necessary.

EDUCATION AND SKILLS

Commonwealth Working Holiday Scheme

Mr. Willis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many (a) teachers, (b) teaching assistants and (c) other school staff from Commonwealth countries are working in the UK under the Commonwealth working holiday scheme on two year visas; and if she will make a statement on the effect on recruitment in the education system of changing the scheme to one year visas. [218043]

Mr. Browne: I have been asked to reply.

Working holidaymakers are required to obtain entry clearance prior to coming to the United Kingdom. This allows them to take relevant employment, including as teachers, teaching assistants and as other school staff. No central record is kept by the Home Office of the numbers of working holidaymakers in each part of the work force, including teaching and other jobs in educational establishments, because they do not need separate permission to work after arrival.

After 12 months in the United Kingdom working holidaymakers are eligible for work permit employment in any of the occupations on the list of designated shortage occupations maintained by Work Permits (UK). These include all teaching posts that relate to the provision of compulsory schooling. Working holidaymakers were eligible to switch into these occupations after 12 months in the United Kingdom before the changes announced on 7 February. The effect of these changes on recruitment into teaching roles in the education system is therefore neutral. Non-teaching roles in schools are not generally shortage occupations and so will not feature, but it is unlikely that there will be difficulty in filling such posts.

Curriculum

Mr. Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills whether any changes have been made to (a) the primary school curriculum and (b) the secondary school curriculum in the past year. [219018]

 
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Derek Twigg: We introduced new flexibilities to Key Stage 4 of the secondary curriculum in September 2004 to enable schools to offer programmes that better meet young people's individual needs and strengths. Pupils are no longer required to learn modern foreign languages and design and technology. Instead schools are required to provide access to a minimum of one course in each of the following areas: the arts; design and technology; the humanities; and foreign languages. Students within Key Stage 4 are able to follow a course of study in a subject within each of these entitlement areas if they wish to do so. We also introduced a new statutory requirement for work-related learning at Key Stage 4.

There have been no other statutory changes to the primary and secondary curriculum in the last year.

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