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28 Mar 2006 : Column 847W—continued
SCOTLAND
Labour Statistics Employment/Unemployment Trends
13. Mr. MacDougall: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will make a statement on the most recent Scottish employment rate. [60668]
14. Ms Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what assessment he has made of the most recent Labour Market statistics for Scotland; and if he will make a statement. [60669]
Mr. Darling:
I refer my hon. Friends to the answer Igave earlier today to questions 2, 3 and 7.
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Mr. Davidson: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what recent assessment he has made of trends in employment and unemployment in Scotland. [60657]
Mr. Darling: The Scottish labour market is at its strongest position in decades with more people in work and fewer unemployed than ever before.
BCCI
15. Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what representations he has received from local authorities that lost money in the Bank of Credit and Commerce International collapse of 1991. [60670]
David Cairns: My right hon. Friend has received no such representations.
Small Firms
Mr. Prisk: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what definition the Department uses of a small firm. [59281]
David Cairns: There is no single definition of a small firm with terms such as small firm" and SME" (Small and Medium sized Enterprise) being used interchangeably. The Scotland Office uses definitions based on the European Commission recommendation of May 2003 and the Companies Act 1985.
HOUSE OF COMMONS COMMISSION
Souvenir Shop (Fairtrade Products)
35. Jo Swinson: To ask the hon. Member for NorthDevon, representing the House of Commons Commission how many products sold in the souvenir shop are Fairtrade products. [61517]
Nick Harvey: At present, the souvenir shop sells two ranges of ethically traded products: embossed leather goods and embroidered Christmas tree decorations. 95 per cent. of souvenirs sold in the House of Commons shops are produced in the UK.
Westminster Hall
36. Mr. Evans: To ask the hon. Member for NorthDevon, representing the House of Commons Commission whether Westminster Hall is on scheduleto be reopened on time; and if he will make a statement. [61518]
Nick Harvey:
The building works are progressing satisfactorily and the Hall is currently on programme to re-open in early October at the end of the summer recess period as originally planned. The Hall has been closed since the beginning of the year to allow the reconstruction of the steps at the south end of the Hall to take place. General enabling works took place beneath the steps (to remove asbestos and secure building services) out of sight of visitors. Work has now
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commenced inside the Hall including removal of the steps, flooring slabs and archaeological exploratory operations. The works may be viewed through windows inserted in the safety hoarding across the top of the steps at St. Stephens entrance.
Bottled Water
Mr. Spellar: To ask the hon. Member for NorthDevon, representing the House of Commons Commission if the Commission will arrange for jugs of water to be provided in committee and meeting rooms as a replacement for or alternative to bottled water. [60177]
Nick Harvey: The Administration Committee considered a suggestion that tap water be provided in place of bottled water in committee and meeting rooms at its meeting on 17 January 2006 and decided to take no action. Further consideration is being given to the provision of water in committee and meeting rooms.
LEADER OF THE HOUSE
Parliamentary Calendar
37. Mr. Mackay: To ask the Leader of the House what plans he has to review the parliamentary calendar. [61519]
Nigel Griffiths: There are no present plans for a formal review of the parliamentary calendar, although my right hon. Friend is always open to representations on this as on other matters.
Capita Group
Chris Grayling: To ask the Leader of the House how much business his office has placed with (a) Capita Group plc and (b) its subsidiaries in each of the last five years; what the total value is of outstanding contracts placed with Capita Group plc and its subsidiaries by his office; for which current tenders issued by his Office (i)Capita Group plc and (ii) its subsidiaries have been invited to bid; and whether (A) Capita Group plc and (B) its subsidiaries have seconded staff (1) temporarily and (2) on a longer-term basis to his office. [61068]
Nigel Griffiths: The Office of the Leader of the House of Commons has used the Capita Group once within the last five years. The details are set out as follows. There are no outstanding contracts or current tenders issued by my office to Capita Group or its subsidiaries and no staff from Capita have been seconded to the office.
| Service—one-off instant recruitment | Cost (£) |
|---|---|
| November 2003 | 910.63 |
SOLICITOR-GENERAL
Efficiency Targets
Mrs. Villiers:
To ask the Solicitor-General how much is expected to be saved as a result of meeting the Civil
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Service workforce reductions targets for his Office set out in the 2004 Spending Review; and whether these savings count towards the agreed efficiency target for his Office set out in the Review. [52797]
The Solicitor-General: The Treasury Solicitor's Department's target is 36 by 31 March 2008, assuming a constant level of business activity. When fully implemented, associated savings in a full year will be £900,000. These savings achieved will count towards the TSol's efficiency target in Spending Review 2004.
The Revenue and Customs Prosecutions Service 1 , Legal Secretariat to the Law Officers, Crown Prosecution Service, HM Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate and the Serious Fraud Office do not have workforce reductions targets.
1 RCPO came into existence after the Spending Review 2004 workforce reduction targets were set but the target (10 equating to £400,000) for its predecessor (the Customs and Excise Prosecutions Office) had already been met.
Mrs. Villiers: To ask the Solicitor-General what total efficiency savings were achieved by the Law Officers' Departments in 2004–05; and whether these count towards the agreed efficiency target for the Departments set out in the 2004 Spending Review. [52861]
The Solicitor-General: The Crown Prosecution Service achieved £20.5 million efficiency savings in 2004–05, which contributed early progress towards the Department's agreed efficiency savings target set out in the 2004 Spending Review.
The Revenue and Customs Prosecutions Office was not established 18 April 2005 but the headcount target (10) set for its predecessor, the Customs and Excise Prosecutions Office, was achieved in 2004–05.
The Treasury Solicitor's Department 1 achieved efficiency savings of £0.6 million in 2004–05 and these sums will continue during the 2004 Spending Review period, contributing to the Department's Spending Review target.
The Serious Fraud Office did not have an efficiency targets in 2004–05.
1 Including the Legal Secretariat to the Law Officers and HM Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate.
Sexual Harassment
Ben Chapman: To ask the Solicitor-General how many cases of sexual harassment were brought in which the defendant was subsequently acquitted of all charges in the last year for which figures are available. [61566]
The Solicitor-General: The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) holds no discrete record of proceedings for sexual harassment. The term comprises a range of different behaviours, some of them representing offences under the criminal law while others are covered by various provisions of the civil law.
With effect from September 2004, CPS sources provide a record of the number of defendants prosecuted for sexual offences, and of the outcome of proceedings. The table shows these figures for the last two years; however, the figures comprise all prosecutions for sexual offences, not just those for harassment. The table shows, together with the number
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and proportion of defendants acquitted, those whose case did not proceed, and those whose case resulted in conviction.
(5)September 2004 to March 2005
(6)April 2005 to 22 March 2006
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