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8 Mar 2006 : Column 1575W—continued
CONSTITUTIONAL AFFAIRS
Asylum Seekers (Legal Services)
Ms Abbott: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how much funding has been made available for legal services for women asylum seekers in the UK in the last three years for which figures are available. [56618]
Bridget Prentice: It is not possible to split asylum expenditure from overall expenditure in the immigration and asylum category. Also the gender of those seeking advice and representation does not form part of the eligibility criteria and so is not always recorded. Overall spending on immigration and asylum during the last three years in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, including administration 1 was as follows:
| £ million | |
|---|---|
| 2002–03 | 176.2 |
| 2003–04 | 200.5 |
| 2004–05 | 177.4 |
The figures do not include funding in Scotland as funding is approved separately by the Scottish Parliament.
Cemetery Safety
Mr. Spring: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs pursuant to her answer of 27 February 2006, Official Report, column 110W, on cemetery safety, under what legal authority burial authorities test private cemetery memorials; what penalties are imposed on burial authorities which do not check the safety of memorials; and what percentage of burial authorities have not yet taken steps to check memorials. [56459]
Ms Harman: Under the Local Authorities' Cemeteries Order 1977, local authorities have a general power to do whatever they consider necessary or desirable for the proper management, regulation and control of their cemeteries, and may put and keep in order any tombstone or other memorial.
Such authorities also have duties under health and safety legislation to ensure the safety of their employees, the visiting public or contractors. Safe systems of work are an essential element. Failure to comply with statutory duties can lead to prosecution and a penalty.
Information on the extent to which local authorities have so far undertaken the testing of memorials is not recorded centrally.
Census 1911
Mr. Arbuthnot: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs pursuant to the answer of 27 February 2006, Official Report, column 111W, on the 1911 census, whether there have been recorded instances in the last 30 years of an individual making representations against the publication of information contained in the 1911 census. [56897]
8 Mar 2006 : Column 1576W
Ms Harman: The 1911 census returns have not been published and the National Archives has not, therefore, received any representations from members of the public against their publication over the last 30 years. It is intended to release these records on the first working day of 2012, in accordance with long-standing Government policy.
Citizenship Curriculum
Ed Balls: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs whether she has plans to extend the citizenship curriculum in schools. [52650]
Jacqui Smith: The citizenship curriculum is very broad, giving teachers the scope to adapt the programme of study to respond to the needs of their pupils and local circumstances. Citizenship education helps pupils to develop a full understanding of their roles and responsibilities as citizens in a modern democracy. There are no plans to expand the national curriculum requirements for citizenship at this time.
The Government's priority in citizenship education is to support teachers and to equip them with the skills and knowledge to deliver the subject well. We are doing this through both initial teacher training and continuing professional development initiatives. In parallel, in line with recommendations from Ofsted and the Adult Learning Inspectorate, we are commissioning a support programme (to be managed by the new Quality Improvement Agency) which will promote the best practice lessons from the successful Post 16 Active Citizenship Development Programme (which ends in March) to practitioners across schools, colleges, work-based and community-based training.
Departmental Telephone Numbers
Anne Milton: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs if she will list the (a) 0800, (b) 0845 and (c) 0870 telephone numbers for the public administered by (i) her Department and (ii) public bodies which report to the Secretary of State for Constitutional Affairs. [56533]
Ms Harman: The Department, including its Agencies, has a total of eleven 0800 numbers; fifty four 0845 numbers and fifty three 0870 numbers. A list of the numbers is as follows.
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