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29 Nov 2005 : Column 382W—continued
Retirement Age
Dr. McCrea: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what plans the Government have for the retirement age in Northern Ireland. [31028]
Angela E. Smith: Plans for retirement age in Northern Ireland are outlined in the draft Employment Equality (Age) Regulations (Northern Ireland) which are currently subject to public consultation. A copy of the consultation document has been placed in the Library.
Railways
Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland which railway stations in Northern Ireland fall below the standards required by the Disability Discrimination Act 2005; and if he will make a statement. [32105]
Mr. Woodward: The Disability Discrimination Act 2005 does not apply to Northern Ireland. However, an Order in Council, the Disability Discrimination (NI) Order, will shortly be laid. At present none of Northern Ireland Railways stations currently fully comply with the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (DDA 1995). However, Translink have embarked on a project, funded by Government, to upgrade railway stations and halts in accordance with the DDA 1995 and they are working closely with Disability Action to ensure that those standards are met. The project is expected to be complete by September 2008.
Illegal Taxis
David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many people in Northern Ireland have been prosecuted for operating an illegal taxi service in each of the last 10 years. [32228]
Angela E. Smith: Unfortunately the requested information is not available prior to April 2003.
The following information is however available:
| Number of taxi operators prosecuted | |
|---|---|
| April 2003 to March 2004 | 336 |
| April 2004 to March 2005 | 212 |
| April 2005 to November 2005 | 95 |
Judges (Northern Ireland)
Mr. Peter Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many judges have been appointed in Northern Ireland in each year since 1990. [31981]
Bridget Prentice: I have been asked to reply.
Since 1990, 77 judicial appointments have been made in Northern Ireland.
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(32) Of these appointments two were part-time.
In addition 272 lay magistrates were appointed in April 2005.
Respect
Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what steps are being taken to educate (a) primary and (b) post-primary school children about the need to treat people from different ethnic backgrounds with respect; what budget has been allocated for such work; and if he will make a statement. [32100]
Angela E. Smith: Schools are currently required to teach the cross-curricular themes of Education for Mutual Understanding and Cultural Heritage, which aim to foster respect for others and improved community relations. This will continue with the introduction of Citizenship Education as a key theme of the revised curriculum.
The Department of Education does not allocate resources for specific areas of the curriculum.
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The Department has funded a number of relevant publications for use in schools. These are: a Guide for School Management to the Human Rights Act 1998 (Human Rights Commission) and Human Rights Awareness for School Managers (Children's Law Centre).
Medical Instruments
Mr. Peter Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much money was spent by each health board on medical instruments for use in each year since 1998; and what the projected spend in Northern Ireland is in (a) 2006 and (b) 2007. [31956]
Mr. Woodward: The expenditure on the purchase and maintenance of medical and surgical equipment incurred by each health board (including the spend for the board itself and the trusts within the host board area) for the period 1998–99 to 2003–04 is given as follows:
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The estimated expenditure for 2004–05, 2005–06 and 2006–07 could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Northern Ireland Civil Service (Transfers)
David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what plans he has to permit civilians employed by the Home civil service and working in the Royal Irish Regiment to transfer to the Northern Ireland civil service; and if he will make a statement. [31281]
Angela E. Smith: The Northern Ireland civil service is facing its own efficiency pressures as a result of 'Fit for Purpose' and other current initiatives. However, the Northern Ireland civil service has agreed, in principle, an arrangement whereby staff from UK Departments based in Northern Ireland who have been earmarked for compulsory redundancy could seek appointment to the Northern Ireland civil service at administrative entry grades. It is planned to agree a protocol between the NICS, the relevant UK Departments and the Civil Service Commissioners for Northern Ireland.
Music (Support Staff)
Mark Durkan: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many permanent curriculum support staff for music are employed by each education and library board; how many were employed by each board in 2004; and what numbers are projected for 2006–07. [31329]
Angela E. Smith:
It is a matter for each education and library board to determine the number of curriculum support staff to be employed. The number of permanent
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curriculum support staff for music employed by each of the five education and library boards is set out in the following table. The information relates to the Boards' Curriculum Advisory and Support Services (CASS) and the figures provided are the full-time equivalent (FTE) number of permanent staff in 2004–05 and current estimates for 2005–06 and 2006–07.
| Board | 2004–05 | 2005–06 | 2006–07 |
|---|---|---|---|
| BELB | 5 | 1 | 1 |
| NEELB | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| SEELB | 0.7 | 0.7 | 1, 2— |
| SELB | 3.5 | 3 | 3 |
| WELB | 6 | (35)0 | 1, 2— |
(33) Undetermined at present.
(34) SEELB and WELB are unable to determine the level of provision for 2006–07 at this time.
(35) staff were redeployed within the Curriculum Advisory and Support Service and three took early retirement.
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