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2 Feb 2006 : Column 733W—continued
Industrial Development (East Midlands)
John Mann: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what are the biggest three industrial development sites available in the East Midlands. [45746]
Yvette Cooper: Many sites allocated for industrial use within the region are subject to planning permission being issued and/or the provision of major infrastructural improvements before becoming readily available. With this proviso, the three largest sites in the region are all in Derbyshire, at Markham Vale (Chesterfield), Stanton Works (Erewash) and Castlewood (Pinxton/South Normanton).
Jewish Festivals
David T.C. Davies: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what his Department did to (a) celebrate Hanukkah and (b) mark Yom Kippur in 2005. [46755]
Jim Fitzpatrick: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister values the diversity of its staff and promotes awareness of religious festivals and events. The equality and diversity unit provide information on the ODPM intranet about six major faiths: Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, and Sikhism. This includes information about the major festivals which is regularly reviewed and updated. The equality and diversity unit make available to staff a number of SHAP calendars of religious festivals every year and the ODPM has organised a programme of seminars which have included seminars on faith communities.
Local Government Finance
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister (1) whether it is his Department's policy that a business premises partly used as a domestic residence for individuals should be liable for council tax; [48058]
(2) whether it is his Department's policy that a domestic residence part used for business purposes by the occupiers should be liable for business rates. [48059]
Mr. Woolas: Primary legislation provides that a property used partly for non-domestic purposes and partly for domestic purposes shall be liable for business rates and council tax. Legislation also ensures that only the non-domestic and the domestic elements of the property are valued for business rates and council tax respectively.
London Resilience Strategic Emergency Plan
James Brokenshire:
To ask the Deputy Prime Minister whether Rainham in the London borough of
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Havering has been identified as one of the (a) primary and (b) back-up (i) landfill and (ii) bulk debris examination sites referred to in the London Resilience Strategic Emergency Plan. [47037]
Jim Fitzpatrick: A contingency plan exists for the clearance, removal and disposal of debris post catastrophic incident in London. A landfill site located in Rainham has been identified as one of the primary landfill and bulk debris examination sites referred to in the London Resilience Strategic Emergency Plan.
This plan is due to be reviewed and updated to reflect new national guidance on the development of a site clearance capability in England and Wales, published by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister in October 2005. As part of this work landfill sites identified in the London plan will be reviewed for their continuing suitability.
MORI Poll
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the cost of the MORI poll was in respect of (a) perceptions of the effectiveness of his Department held by board members and unit heads within the Department and (b) perceptions of the effectiveness of his Department held by external stakeholders of the Department; and if he will make a statement. [47408]
Jim Fitzpatrick: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Member for Meriden on 25 January 2006, Official Report, column 2190W.
Overcrowding (London)
Mr. Khan: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what his latest estimate is of the number of households in London living in overcrowded housing conditions. [42921]
Yvette Cooper: The number of households in London that do not meet the bedroom standard over the three-year period 2002–03, 2003–04 and 2004–05 was 194,000.
Information on compliance with the statutory overcrowding standard is not collected systematically and reliable estimates for London on this basis are not available. However, in the autumn of 2001, it was estimated that 25,000 households across the whole of England were living in conditions that breached these standards. This was based on data from the Survey of English Housing" for the period 1997–98 to 1999–2000 and from the 1996 English House Condition Survey".
2 Feb 2006 : Column 735W
RNIB Talking Books
Mr. Wills: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what percentage of local authorities meet the costs of the Royal National Institute of the Blind talking books for users scheme. [46778]
Mr. Lammy: I have been asked to reply.
The Government do not hold this information centrally; however, according to the Royal National Institute of the Blind (RNIB), 131 English local authorities subscribe to the RNIB talking books scheme.
Sex Offenders Register
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister (1) whether his Department has responsibilities in relation to the vetting of registered sex offenders in relation to employment in local authorities; [47032]
(2) what advice the Government have issued to local authorities on the employment of staff on the sex offenders register whose work involves contact with the public. [47031]
Mr. Woolas: Local authorities are independent bodies responsible to their electorates who work within the framework of law as laid down by Parliament.
Valuation Office Agency
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will list the property-based taxes in which the Valuation Office Agency has an involvement other than council tax, business rates, inheritance tax and capital gains tax. [47145]
Dawn Primarolo: I have been asked to reply.
The Valuation Office Agency will provide valuations and advice to Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs, through its District Valuer Services business stream, where requested, for Corporation Tax, Income Tax, Stamp Duty Land Tax and VAT.
TREASURY
Breast Cancer
Steve Webb: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what data sources are used by his Department to estimate the number of cases of breast cancer each year; and what the latest estimate is of the number of such cases. [47988]
John Healey: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician who has been asked to reply.
Letter from Colin Mowl, dated 2 February 2006:
The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your recent parliamentary question concerning what data sources are used by his department to estimate the number of cases of breast cancer each year; and what the latest estimate is of the number of such cases. I am replying in her absence. (47988)
Information on newly diagnosed cases of cancer is collected and registered by the nine regional cancer registries in England. Extracts from the registration information are then submitted to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Annual figures for the incidence of cancer in England (based on newly diagnosed cases) are published by ONS in the series 'MB1, Cancer statistics registrations', which is available on the National Statistics website:
The most recent available information on registration of newly diagnosed cases of breast cancer is for the year 2003. There were 36,509 newly diagnosed cases of breast cancer in females and 295 in males in England in 2003 (code C50 in the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision).
Child Trust Funds
Mr. Davey: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what (a) research and (b) analysis his Department has conducted relating to the income level of eligible families who do not open child trust fund accounts; and if he will place the results in the Library. [47928]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: A statistical and distributional analysis of the child trust fund will be published in 2007 and placed in the Library.
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