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19 Dec 2005 : Column 2579W—continued

Agenda for Change

Mr. McGrady: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much has been allocated to each health board area to meet the salary commitments arising from the Agenda for Change agreement. [38142]

Mr. Woodward: The amount allocated to each health board area to meet the salary commitments arising from the Agenda for Change agreement is as follows:

	£
Eastern Board	30,645,592
Northern Board	10,078,041
Southern Board	9,134,583
Western Board	7,889,835

 
19 Dec 2005 : Column 2580W
 

Apprenticeship (Insurance Costs)

Mr. Peter Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what steps he will take to assist with insurance costs employers who wish to take on young apprentices for training. [37607]

Angela E. Smith: The Government provide a training grant to organisations for each apprentice employed. There are no plans to provide direct assistance with insurance costs.

Belfast Hospitals (Security)

Mr. Peter Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much funding each hospital in Belfast has allocated to security in each of the last five years. [37586]

Mr. Woodward: The information requested can be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Coleraine Bus/Rail Station

Mr. Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the annual change in passenger throughput at the bus/rail station in Coleraine has been since its opening. [37880]

Mr. Woodward: Translink has advised that the information requested is not readily available. As Coleraine bus and rail station was officially opened on 21 September 2001, midway through a reporting period, it is not possible to disaggregate the annual passenger numbers. Translink has, however, provided details of the numbers of passengers passing through the station in the following table:

Financial year	Bus passengers	Rail passengers	Total passengers
2002–03	522,357	546,404	1,068,761
2003–04	524,738	(119)—	n/a
2004–05	553,954	589,881	1143,835

⁽¹¹⁹⁾Due to the introduction of a new ticketing system, rail passenger figures for 2003–04 are not available.

Crime

Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what assessment he has made of the extent to which (a) paramilitary organisations and (b) organised criminal gangs have been involved in the manufacture and distribution of counterfeit (i) medical and (ii) veterinary pharmaceutical products in the Province. [36359]

Mr. Woodward: There is no evidence to suggest that Northern Ireland based paramilitary organisations, or organised crime gangs, are involved in the manufacture or supply of counterfeit pharmaceuticals or veterinary pharmaceutical products. The Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety (DHSS&PS) and the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) continue to monitor the situation closely. A small number of counterfeit veterinary pharmaceuticals were seized in a joint operation between the PSNI and DHSS&PS in April and May 2004.
 
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The Independent Monitoring Commission has reported extensively on paramilitary activity and criminality in Northern Ireland and has not identified any links from paramilitary groups, or organised crime gangs, to the manufacture or distribution of counterfeit medicines or veterinary pharmaceutical products.

Departmental Costs

Mr. Salmond: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the (a) salary bill was and (b) administrative costs were for his Department in (i) Northern Ireland and (B) region of the UK and (ii)London in 2004–05. [35869]

Mr. Woodward: All the costs of the Northern Ireland Office (NIO) relate to Northern Ireland" as per the Public Expenditure Statistical Analyses.

The salary bill and administrative costs for the NIO, excluding its Agencies and NDPBs, for 2004–05, were as follows:

	£
Salary bill	38,348,965
Administration (non-staff) costs(120)	33,617,207

⁽¹²⁰⁾Administration costs cover the costs of all central Government administration other than the costs of direct frontline service provision or support activities that are directly associated with frontline service delivery.

Departmental Property

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much was paid by his Department in rates in 2004–05, broken down by local authority; and how much was paid in rates in 2004–05 in London. [35991]

Mr. Woodward: Rates in Northern Ireland are paid to the Rates Collection Agency and distributed. It is, therefore, not possible to break the amount down by council. The amount paid in respect of buildings occupied by the Northern Ireland Office, excluding its agencies and NDPBs, in 2004–05, was:

Belfast—£509,182

London—£281,269.

Departmental Savings

Mr. Maude: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what administrative savings have beenmade by his Department in each of the last eight years. [34944]

Mr. Woodward: Administrative savings are a target in the Northern Ireland Office's (NIO) Public Service Agreement (PSA).

1998 Comprehensive Spending Review period (1999– 2000, 2000–01 and 2001–02)

Because of political uncertainties and doubts about the range of responsibilities for which the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland would be directly accountable to Parliament following devolution, the NIO did not publish a PSA in the 1998 Comprehensive Spending Review period (1999–2000 to 2001–02) and there was therefore no target to secure administrative
 
19 Dec 2005 : Column 2582W
 
savings. Actual savings made in this period were used to offset in-year pressures to allow the Department to live within its baseline allocations.

2000 Spending Review period (2001–02, 2002–03 and 2003–04)

The NIO published its first PSA as part of the 2000 Spending Review, setting out the Department's targets. This included a target of securing on-going savings of 3 per cent. in Core Departmental administration costs. This was met.

2002 Spending Review period (2003–04, 2004–5 and 2005–06)

The PSA for this period included a target of securing on-going savings of 2.5 per cent. in Core Departmental administration costs. This was met.

2004 Spending Review period (2005–06, 2006–07 and 2007–08)

During the 2004 Spending Review period, the NIO is committed to delivering 2.5 per cent. year on year efficiency targets. Efficiency Delivery Plans are in place to meet this target and the Department published an Efficiency Technical Note on 5 December.

Departmental Staff

Mr. Peter Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many staff in his Department have (a) received official warnings and (b) faced disciplinary procedures in each year since 1995. [33072]

Mr. Woodward: The following warnings issued to Northern Ireland Office staff are in relation to poor attendance, performance and conduct. It is not possible to identify the number of staff who faced disciplinary action. This could be provided only at disproportionate costs.

	Warnings
2005	25
2004	18
2003	56
2002	67
2001	31
2000	31
1999	31
1998	31
1997	36
1996	28
1995	33

Mark Durkan: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many Northern Ireland Civil Service staff in (a) Enniskillen, (b) Dungannon and (c) Ballymena are employed at (i) AA, (ii) AO, (iii)EO2, (iv) EO1, (v) Staff Officer and (vi) Deputy Principal grade. [35596]

Angela E. Smith: The information in respect of permanent and casual staff in the 11 Northern Ireland Departments as at 11 January 2005 (the latest date for which figures are available) is not available in the form requested. The information in respect of Fermanagh, Dungannon and Ballymena district council areas is contained in the following table.
 
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	District council area
Grade level	Fermanagh	Dungannon	Ballymena
DP	14	3	46
SO	37	8	88
EOI	75	22	170
EOII	72	52	64
AO	127	73	179
AA	61	39	93

Note:
Staff on career break are excluded from this analysis.

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