| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
14 Mar 2005 : Column 117W—continued
Water Charging
Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what comparative studies have been carried out by his Department into the proposed water charging system for Northern Ireland and those operated in England and Wales; and if he will make a statement. [221504]
Mr. Spellar: In developing water and sewerage charging options for Northern Ireland, careful consideration was given to the existing regimes in Great Britain. As in the rest of the United Kingdom, the proposed self-financing arrangements will mean that customers' bills will, in general terms, reflect the costs which that customer imposes on the water and sewerage systems for a supply of clean water and the disposal of dirty water. Details of the approach taken to developing the proposed water and sewerage charging regime are set out in the Integrated Impact Assessment Policy Proposals Paper published on 29 November 2004 http://www.waterreformni.gov.uk/consult2004.asp
In England and Wales, unmeasured domestic charges, in general, consist of a standing charge and a charge based on the property's rateable value. It is proposed in Northern Ireland that charges will consist of a standing charge and a charge based on the property's capital value—which will be the basis for calculating domestic rates in NI from 1 April 2007. In Scotland unmeasured charges are based on the council tax band which, in turn, is based on the property's capital value.
CABINET OFFICE
Departmental Catering
Mr. George Osborne: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many departmental (a) canteens and (b) bars there are; and how much has been spent on the (i) running, (ii) staffing and (iii) supply costs of each in each year since 1997. [213630]
Mr. Miliband:
There are currently three staff canteens and no bars on the Cabinet Office's central London estate. There are two canteens and two bars at the Centre for Management and Policy Studies (CMPS) College residential training centre in Berkshire and one canteen at the non-residential training centre in London. The Emergency Planning College (EPC), who
14 Mar 2005 : Column 118W
transferred to the Cabinet Office in June 2001, has a canteen and bar at its residential training centre in York. The Cabinet Office's sole Executive Agency, The Government Car and Despatch Agency (GCDA), has one canteen at its London Headquarters.
Since 2002, canteen facilities at the Cabinet Office's central London estate have been provided on a nil subsidy basis by the Cabinet Office's Total Facilities Management provider. Prior to 2002 there was only one staff canteen and no bars. Spending on specific running, staffing and supply costs in each year since 1997 and prior to 2002 cannot be readily retrieved and separately identified without incurring disproportionate costs.
Canteen and bar facilities at the CMPS Colleges and the EPC are provided as part of a PPP/PFI and Facilities Management contract, respectively. Specific spending on running, staffing and supply costs cannot be readily retrieved and separately identified without incurring disproportionate costs.
For 2002–03 and 2003–04, the GCDA incurred expenditure of £35,000 in each year for the running of its canteen. Spending on specific running, staffing and supply costs prior to 2002–03 cannot be readily retrieved without incurring disproportionate costs.
Intestacy
Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how many people in the Duchy died intestate in 2003–04. [220376]
Mr. Milburn: During the calendar year of 2003, there were 354 intestate cases reported to the Duchy of Lancaster. Similarly, in the year 2004, 291 cases were reported.
Job Relocation
Mr. Andrew Turner: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what steps he has taken to co-ordinate Government policy on whether Government-funded agencies compete to attract jobs from less wealthy parts of the UK. [221564]
Regional Offices
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office which (a) non-departmental public bodies and (b) executive agencies within the remit of the Cabinet Office have regional offices based on the Government Offices for the Regions' regional structure; and when the regional offices were established in each case. [219887]
Mr. Miliband: None of Cabinet Office's non-departmental public bodies or executive agencies have regional offices based on the Government Offices for the Regions' regional structure.
Targets
Mr. Bercow:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office (1) what recent progress has been made towards the public service agreement target to promote standards that ensure good governance, including adherence to the ministerial and civil service codes; [220219]
14 Mar 2005 : Column 119W
(2) whether the public service agreement target to achieve a 2.5 per cent. efficiency saving each year on administrative resources was met in 2004; [220220]
(3) what recent assessment he has made of whether the public service agreement target to achieve a 2.5 per cent. efficiency saving each year on administrative resources will be met in 2005; [220221]
(4) what recent progress has been made towards the public service agreement target to co-ordinate security, intelligence and civil contingencies matters to protect the UK against disruptive challenges; [220222]
(5) what recent progress has been made towards the public service agreement target to improve services by working with departments to embed the four principles of public service reform. [220223]
Mr. Miliband: The Cabinet Office's role is outlined in our public service agreement (PSA). Work in support of the Cabinet Office objectives and targets included in the PSA is accounted for in the departmental report, autumn performance report and the annual report and resource accounts, all of which are published annually.
The latest assessment of progress against the Cabinet Office's PSA targets was made in the 2004 autumn performance report (Cm 6414). The next assessment will be made in the 2005 departmental report, due to be published later this spring.
Copies of the publications referred to are available in the Library of the House.
Transport Subsidies
Mr. Andrew Turner: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what steps he has taken to co-ordinate Government policy in relation to subsidy to (a) airports, (b) ports and (c) passenger ferries across the UK; what his objectives were; and what the outcome of his action was. [221409]
HEALTH
Ambulance Response Times
Mr. Spring: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average response time for ambulances attending 999 calls was in (a) Suffolk and (b) England in each year since 1997. [221322]
Ms Rosie Winterton: This information is not collected centrally in the format requested. Data on response times for East Anglian Ambulance Service National Health Service trust and for all ambulance services in England is shown in the table.
Data is only available from the date trusts introduced call prioritisation. East Anglian Ambulance Service introduced call prioritisation in 2000–01. All ambulance services in England had introduced call prioritisation by 2001–02.
14 Mar 2005 : Column 120W
Further information can be found in the statistical bulletin, Ambulance services, England: 2003–04." A copy is available in the Library and on the Department's website at www.publications.doh.gov.uk/public/sb0411.htm
n/a=not available.
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |