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13 Dec 2005 : Column 1828W—continued

Departmental Staff

Mr. Pelling: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps are taken by the Department to support staff with mental ill-health. [36277]

John Healey: The Treasury has taken the following steps to provide support to staff with mental ill-health: advice and practical support from the Department's
 
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welfare officer providing access, where necessary, to accredited counsellors, psychotherapists and referrals to mental ill health units via the NHS; alternative working patterns as part of the department's work-life balance policy; phased and monitored return to work after sick-absence; and adjustments to workloads and objectives.

All employees benefit from the Department's work-life balance policy and have access to the welfare officer and to the Treasury's Supporters Network—a group of staff, independent of management, trained to support and offer advice to colleagues. Additional support is available from the Department's Disability Advisory Group, and other staff representative groups as well as from a confidential helpline administered by an external company.

The Treasury has an effective disability strategy in place to support all employees with disabilities and to provide for reasonable adjustments as required under the Disability Discrimination Act. The next Department-wide disability awareness-raising seminar in January 2006 is on stress awareness and mental health.

Domestic Fuel Bills

Chris Huhne: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will estimate (a) the yield of an extension of the climate change levy to domestic household fuel bills in the 2005–06 financial year and (b) the average increase in such bills which would result. [37056]

John Healey: Extending climate change levy, at full current rates, to all taxable fuel use by the domestic sector in 2005–06 would have yielded approximately £1 billion. The average increase in fuel bills would have been around £40 per household.

Early Retirement

Mr. Hollobone: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many of his Department's employees have taken early retirement in each year since 1997. [34043]

John Healey: The number of HM Treasury's employees who have taken early retirement in each year since 1997 is as follows:

	Number
1997	4
1998	7
1999	6
2000	9
2001	6
2002	7
2003	8
2004	8
2005	8

These figures include those who have retired early on compulsory, flexible, ill-health or approved grounds.

e-Government

Mr. Liddell-Grainger: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps HM Revenue and Customs has taken in the last 12 months in conjunction with the US Administration to advance electronic government. [36280]

 
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Dawn Primarolo: HMRC is a member of the OECD(Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) and an active participant in the Forum on Tax Administration's Taxpayer Services group. Through this forum, we share information and best practice with other fiscal authorities including the U.S. Internal Revenue Service.

In addition, in July 2005 I asked Lord Carter of Coles to advise Ministers on measures to further increase the use of HMRC's key online services, building on his previous review of payroll services.

During the course of the review, Lord Carter and his team met a wide range of customers and agents, and spoke to those overseas tax authorities where there are high levels of online filing and some interesting and innovative approaches. This included discussions with the US Internal Revenue Service.

Lord Carter has completed his review but wishes to assess the progress of HMRC's online services over the next few months, before finalising his conclusions by early spring 2006.

Employment (Forest of Dean)

Mr. Harper: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the level of employment was in Forest of Dean constituency in each of the last five years; and how many people in the constituency were not in education, employment or training in each year. [36871]

John Healey: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician who has been asked to reply.

Letter from Colin Mowl, dated 13 December 2005:

The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question about employment. I am replying in her absence. (36871)

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) compiles statistics of employment from the Labour Force Survey following International Labour Organisation definitions. Table 1 shows the estimated number of people aged 16 and over in employment resident in the Forest of Dean constituency.

Table 2 shows the number of people of working age resident on the Forest of Dean constituency who are not in full-time education, employment or training.

Both tables cover the 12 month periods ending in February each year from 2001 to 2004 and the 12 month period ending in March 2005.

These estimates, as with any from sample surveys, are subject to a margin of uncertainty. Changes in the estimates from year to year should be treated with particular caution.

Table 1: Number of persons aged 16 and over in employment resident in the Forest of Dean constituency

Thousand
12 months ending	In employment
February
2001	41
2002	41
2003	41
2004	42
March
2005	40

Source:
Annual local area Labour Force Survey;
Annual Population Survey





 
13 Dec 2005 : Column 1831W
 

Table 2: Number of persons of working age resident in the Forest of Dean constituency who are not in education, employment or training

Thousand
12 months ending	Not in education, employment or training
February
2001	10
2002	10
2003	9
2004	9
March
2005	10

Source:
Annual local area Labour Force Survey;
Annual Population Survey

Equitable Life

Mr. Holloway: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what discussions he has had with the parliamentary ombudsman on the time scale for the completion of his investigation into the prudential regulation of Equitable Life. [37452]

Mr. Ivan Lewis: The parliamentary ombudsman's investigation into the prudential regulation of Equitable Life is, like all such investigations, being conducted in private. The Treasury is co-operating fully with the investigation.

The timetable for the completion of the parliamentary ombudsman's investigation is a matter for her.

EU Budget (UK Rebate)

Mr. Bone: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on the future of the UK rebate within the EU Budget. [36698]

Mr. Ivan Lewis: I refer the hon. Gentleman to the statement given by my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary to the House on 5 December.

Game Rearing Farms

Mark Lazarowicz: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 10 October 2005, Official Report, column 292W to the hon. Member for Portsmouth, South, (Mr. Hancock) on game rearing farms, what estimate he has made of the amount of revenue which has been lost due to game farms in Scotland not being accurately registered for non-domestic rates. [36801]

Dawn Primarolo: This is a matter for the Scottish Executive.

Gershon Review

Mr. Hollobone: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what progress has been made in reassigning 13,500 civil service posts to frontline services as identified by the Gershon Review. [36622]

 
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Mr. Des Browne: The PBR 2005 announced that over 5,700 reallocations to the frontline had been made by the end of September 2005. The Department for Work and Pensions made 4,211 reallocations and Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs made 1,560 reallocations.

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