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2 Dec 2005 : Column 815W—continued
Tintwistle Bypass
Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he made of traffic levels on the (a) M62 and (b) A628 Mottram in Longdendale, Hollingworth and Tintwistle bypass immediately after the opening of the bypass. [34408]
Dr. Ladyman: The Highways Agency has estimated the traffic levels on the M62, between Junctions 22 to 23, and A628 Mottram in Longdendale, Hollingworth and Tintwistle bypass immediately after opening of the bypass in 2010. These are shown in the following table:
Transport Staff (Abuse)
Mr. Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the answer of 22 November 2005, Official Report, column 1867W, on transport staff (abuse), when his Department expects to have in place a reliable method of monitoring levels of violence on buses; and when his Department expects to resume recording this information. [33465]
Mr. Darling [holding answer 1 December 2005]: The Department for Transport is working with the Safer Travel on Buses Panel to identify a workable method of collecting and reporting reliable data on crime on buses. Once a method is fully worked up we will be in a position to say when we will resume reporting information.
PRIME MINISTER
Iraq
Tim Loughton: To ask the Prime Minister pursuant to the answer to question 33139, on how many occasions and in what locations he has visited UK military personnel in hospital who have been wounded in Iraq. [34410]
Mr. Ancram: To ask the Prime Minister on how many occasions he has visited wounded soldiers since May; and in which locations. [33403]
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The Prime Minister: I have nothing further to add to the answer I gave the hon. Member for East Worthing and Shoreham (Tim Loughton) on 29 November 2005, Official Report, column 289W.
Ministers' Salaries
Mr. Fallon: To ask the Prime Minister how many salary bands there are for Ministers; and how many Ministers are in each band. [34263]
The Prime Minister: The number and level of salaries available for ministerial posts are set out in the Ministerial and Other Salaries Act 1975, as amended.
Official Residences
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Prime Minister if he willlistthe Ministers who have occupied each of the threeflats in Admiralty House in each year since May 1997. [17494]
The Prime Minister: The three flats in Admiralty House are currently occupied by: the Deputy Prime Minister; the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs; and the Leader of the House of Commons and Lord Privy Seal. With the exception of the Leader of the House of Commons, who took up residence in 2002, the other Ministers have been in residence since 1997. Other Ministers who occupied the flats since 1997 were the then Defence Secretary (1997–79) and the then Northern Ireland Secretary and later Minister for the Cabinet Office (2000–01).
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Prime Minister if he will list Departments which pay council tax for Ministers who reside in official residences; and which Ministers do not have a personal council tax liability for official residences. [17508]
Mike Penning: To ask the Prime Minister which hon. Members are currently resident in publicly-owned grace and favour properties for which the Government are responsible; and at what cost to the public purse. [32369]
The Prime Minister: I, the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, and the Leader of the House of Commons and Lord Privy Seal declare our official residences as our main residence and are responsible for paying council tax on them. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister and HM Treasury pay the council tax on the official residences allocated to their Ministers, because their Ministers primary residences (on which they pay council tax) are elsewhere. In addition, as my right hon. Friend the Member for Sheffield, Brightside (Mr. Blunkett) made clear to me when he stepped down from office, he would make the necessary arrangements to move out of the official residence as quickly as possible.
The running costs of official residences are the responsibility of the relevant Department. For information on the costs of my residence, I refer the hon. Members to the answer I gave the hon. Member for Southend, West (Mr. Amess) on 21 July 2005, Official Report, column 1934W.
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Shrewsbury Livestock Market
Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Prime Minister if he will visit Shrewsbury for the opening of the new livestock market. [33363]
The Prime Minister: I have no current plans to do so.
CONSTITUTIONAL AFFAIRS
Adoption and Children Act
Mr. Drew: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs for what reasons the British Association of Play Therapists was not included in consultations in relation to the Adoption and Children Act 2002, with particular reference to the role to be played by adoption support agencies. [33038]
Maria Eagle: I have been asked to reply.
The British Association of Play Therapists was not excluded from consultations in relation to the Adoption and Children Act 2002 (the 2002 Act). These were full public consultations, open to all. Five consultation documents on the adoption and special guardianship regulations and guidance to be made under the 2002 Act were published for full public consultation in 2003–04: Arranging Adoptions and Assessing Prospective Adopters; Adoption Reports and Adoptions with a Foreign Element, Access to Information; Adoption Support and Adoption Support Agencies and Care Planning and Special Guardianship". The Adoption Support and Adoption Support Agencies" document set out the Government's proposals in relation to adoption support agencies (ASAs) and included draft Regulations and National Minimum Standards for ASAs. All of these consultation documents were fully accessible to the public on the Department for Education and Skills website, and consultation responses were invited from anyone who wished to express a view.
DEFENCE
Aircraft Carriers
Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will ensure that the future aircraft carriers are in service before the retirement of the current aircraft carriers. [30823]
Mr. Ingram: The in-service dates for our new aircraft carriers will not be fixed until the main investment decision is taken. It is therefore too soon to know whether there will be implications for the planned out of service dates for the Invincible class carriers.
Mr. Martyn Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on (a) progress on the Royal Navy's future aircraft carrier (CVF) programme and (b) French involvement in the CVF programme. [32558]
Mr. Ingram:
The Government remain committed to providing this important capability for our armed forces. Work is continuing to mature the design, address risks and refine costs to the point at which the main
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investment decision can sensibly be taken and we can commit to manufacture within defined time, cost and performance parameters.
Given that both we and France are embarking on major, complex carrier procurement projects, we are examining areas of mutual benefit and opportunities to deliver economies. It is for industry to put forward proposals which will be judged on their merits and in light of national policies. It has been agreed with France that for co-operation to work, it must deliver cost savings and must do so without delaying UK or French programmes.
Mr. Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what criteria the Prime Minister used in making the statement to the press that Swan Hunters should be permitted to bid for inclusion in the CVF programme. [32881]
Mr. Ingram: The Government have always said that the development of an optimum shipbuild strategy for the CVF programme will be made by all alliance participants based on cost effectiveness and best long-term value for money while taking into account the capability, capacity and resources of the United Kingdom industry. No company is ruled out, but we are not prepared to give guarantees of work that could be placed with particular shipyards, as each will need to demonstrate the capability and competitiveness required to meet our needs.
Dr. Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence for what reason the internal planning assumption for the entry into service of the first future aircraft carrier has been classified as commercially sensitive. [33052]
Mr. Ingram [holding answer 30 November 2005]: As for all projects, the in-service dates for the future aircraft carriers will only be set following the main investment decision and once they have been approved by Ministers. This decision has not yet been taken, and will only be taken when we know with confidence the risks, the costs and the associated contractual framework involved in building the carriers.
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