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2 May 2006 : Column 1327W—continued
Service Children's Education
Dr. Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what percentage of (a) A-level and (b) GCSE pupils from service children's education schools achieved each grade of examination qualification during the academic year 2004/05. [65440]
Mr. Touhig: I have been asked to reply.
The following results were achieved by pupils attending schools operated by Service Children's Education during academic year 2004/05:
| Percentage | |
|---|---|
| Grade A | 14.4 |
| Grade B | 22.1 |
| Grade C | 27 |
| Grade D | 23.4 |
| Grade E | 11.3 |
Note:
Other (includes ungraded, no award): 1.8 per cent.
| Percentage | |
|---|---|
| Grade A* | 3.1 |
| Grade A | 10.8 |
| Grade B | 21.2 |
| Grade C | 29.3 |
| Grade D | 19.5 |
| Grade E | 10.7 |
| Grade F | 3.6 |
| Grade G | 1 |
Note:
Other (includes ungraded, no award): 0.8 per cent.
Teachers
Mr. Hollobone: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what steps are being taken to address the shortage of qualified school teachers in key subjects. [67306]
Jacqui Smith: In January 2006 the vacancy rate for teachers of most subjects, including mathematics, science, ICT and English, was lower than in 2005.
Since 2000, we have provided bursaries to PGCE trainee teachers in a range of priority subjects. We have also provided them with a Golden Hello" after their first year teaching. From September 2005 the bursary for mathematics and science trainees rose to £7,000, with a £5,000 Golden Hello". From September 2006, financial support will increase to £9,000 for all priority subject trainees. Mathematics and science teachers will also be provided with a Golden Hello" of £5,000 (£2,500 for other priority subjects).
Courses to enhance subject knowledge for those planning to train to teach mathematics and physics began in January this year, and chemistry courses will start next January. Financial incentives are offered to training providers who recruit extra trainees to teach maths and science.
The Budget announced additional funding to encourage more undergraduates to
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pursue teaching as a career, and to provide additional training to prepare a wider range of graduates to become teachers of priority subjects. It also said that the School Teachers Pay Review Body would be remitted to advise both on improving current pay flexibilities to improve the recruitment, retention and quality of science and mathematics teachers and also on whether sciences teachers should receive an incentive to complete training to enhance their ability to teach physics and chemistry.
INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Palestinian Territories (Funding)
Mr. Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether the terms and mechanism put in place by the Reform Trust Fund to protect against the diversion of EU funding to the Palestinian territories into terrorist activities are currently being reviewed; and if he will make a statement. [66235]
Hilary Benn: The Hamas-led Government have not yet met the principles for aid partnership as set out by the Quartet on 30 January. These are recognition of Israel, renunciation of violence and acceptance of previous peace agreements and obligations. The EU is a member of the Quartet, and EU member states and the European Commission are currently reviewing their programmes of support to the Palestinians.
While we will continue to do everything we can to reduce the suffering of the Palestinian people we will not be funding any organisations that we believe might divert funds to terrorist activities. In line with our standard practice, we will continue to monitor all programmes carefully to ensure that aid is used only for poverty reduction.
Mr. Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will define development support as put in place for the Palestinian people since the recent Palestinian legislative elections; and if he will make a statement. [66236]
Hilary Benn: DFID's programme of development support to the Palestinian Territories is focused on helping to meet the basic needs of the Palestinian people. This means finding ways to prevent an increase in poverty, including funding for essential services such as health, water and electricity. We believe the best way to do this would be to continue providing direct budget support to the Palestinian Authority; but we cannot do this unless the Hamas-led PA government complies with the Quartet principles. These are: the recognition of Israel; the renunciation of violence; and the acceptance of previous agreements and obligations.
DFID is in close contact with the UN and international partners to identify alternative means of supporting the basic needs of the Palestinian people.
DFID has made £30 million available to the Palestinian programme for 2006–07. This includes a £15 million contribution announced on 25 April to the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) which provides direct assistance to Palestinian refugees.
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Asian Tsunami
John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent discussions he has had with his counterparts in (a) the United States, (b) France and (c) Germany on the payment of funds pledged in aid to assist those affected by the tsunami. [65717]
Hilary Benn: In the immediate aftermath of the tsunami, the UK held discussions with the United States, France, Germany and other donors about meeting the relief and reconstruction needs of the affected countries. According to United Nations' figures, the United States pledged some $351 million to the relief effort, of which it has committed over $134 million, France pledged $61 million of which $26 million has been committed and Germany pledged $129 million and has committed the whole pledge.
The relief phase was very well funded, and many government pledges were made before the full extent of the world's generous and unprecedented response was known. Private commitments alone exceeded $4 billion. Funds that were not committed in the relief phase may have been made available for reconstruction support.
The UK has continued to discuss the ongoing response with other donors. Sufficient funds are, however, only one of the constraints to meeting the needs of those most affected by the tsunami.
Corruption
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what use his Department makes of Transparency International's evaluation of the level of corruption in particular countries. [65888]
Hilary Benn: Tackling corruption is a priority for DFID. We are working closely with Transparency International and other development partners to gain a better understanding of the true scale and impact of corruption in developing countries.
Transparency International is an important advocate in the fight against corruption, having helped to raise public awareness and create pressure for action. The Transparency International Corruption Perception Index is widely credited for putting the issue of corruption on the international agenda and its global corruption barometer is a useful tool for assessing the perceptions of the public in the sixty countries where it has undertaken research. It also publishes valuable information in its annual global corruption report.
The comparative indices produced by Transparency International, which aggregate perception-based information, cannot be used in isolation to evaluate the level of corruption in particular countries. These indices are therefore only one element of the information gathered by DFID to analyse the nature and impact of corruption.
DFID supports Transparency International's work and since 2001 has contributed over £1 million to its International Secretariat and to 11 of its national chapters (in country offices).
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Democratic Republic of the Congo
John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps are being taken by his Department to work with international child protection agencies to improve awareness of child protection issues in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. [65658]
Hilary Benn: The UK has been involved in discussions with the Democratic Republic of the Congo's (DRC) Ministry of Justice, the UN and NGOs on the subject of child protection issues in the DRC. We continue to remind the DRC Government of its responsibility to protect all its citizens, particularly vulnerable groups such as children.
DFID has funded the non-governmental organisation RCN—Justice and Democracy" to train magistrates, prosecutors, other court officials, judicial police and customary chiefs in four provinces in the DRC on a range of justice and human rights issues, including child protection and the appropriate treatment of children within the justice system. This project is being implemented in partnership with the Ministry of Justice in the DRC.
DFID has also given £3 million to the International Committee of the Red Cross for their 2006 appeal. Their programme includes tackling child protection issues in the DRC, and supporting children in vulnerable circumstances, such as those in detention, or children associated with fighting forces.
We are giving £30 million to the 2006 UN Humanitarian Action Plan for the DRC, which includes aims to address humanitarian needs throughout the DRC and includes programmes on child protection and promoting the rights of children.
John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development (1) what discussions he has had with the Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo on (a) protecting street children during the electoral period, (b) ensuring that law enforcement personnel respect the right to peaceful protest, (c) educating police officers about issues affecting street children and (d) ending the practice of arbitrary arrest and roundups of street children; [65659]
(2) what steps are being taken by his Department to provide support for street children living in Kinshasa. [65661]
Hilary Benn: The UK frequently reminds the authorities in DRC of the need to protect the rights of all vulnerable groups, including street children. We maintain close and regular contact with the DRC President's Ambassador for Children, and will continue to work with civil society groups, established churches and the Congolese Government to address this problem, push for further action to protect the DRC's vulnerable children, and bring those who abuse children to justice.
The UK is giving £30 million to the 2006 UN Humanitarian Action Plan for the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), which includes programmes on protecting and providing for vulnerable children, including street children. We also contribute to programmes through UNICEF, Save the Children and other NGOs which aim to protect children.
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DFID has supported the Government of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) to design a programme to train and equip the police to provide security during the elections. DFID has now given £9 million to support the implementation of this programme through the UN and the police service of South Africa. It includes training for the police on respecting the right to peaceful protest and how to deal with vulnerable groups, such as children. The programme also incorporates a public information campaign to ensure the Congolese people know their rights and how they should expect police officers to behave.
DFID has also funded the non-governmental organisation RCN—Justice and Democracy" to train magistrates, prosecutors, other court officials, judicial police and customary chiefs in four provinces of the DRC on a range of justice and human rights issues, including child protection and the appropriate treatment of children within the justice system. This project is being implemented in partnership with the Ministry of Justice in the DRC.
DFID has also contributed £3 million to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) 2006 Emergency Appeal. Part of the ICRC's work is to follow up vulnerable people in detention, particularly children formerly associated with armed groups, minors in general and women, and to encourage the detaining and judicial authorities to uphold the rights of detainees who are particularly at risk.
John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps are being taken by his Department to (a) support children's rights and (b) improve access to education in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. [65660]
Hilary Benn: The human rights situation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) remains poor. The UK frequently reminds the DRC's authorities of the need to protect the rights of all vulnerable groups, including children.
DFID is funding a non-governmental organisation, RCN—Justice and Democracy" to train magistrates, prosecutors, other court officials, judicial police and customary chiefs in four provinces in the DRC on a range of justice and human rights issues, including child protection and the appropriate treatment of children within the justice system. This project is being implemented in partnership with the Ministry of Justice in the DRC.
DFID is contributing £30 million to the 2006 UN Humanitarian Action Plan for the DRC, which includes programmes for the protection of vulnerable children, to rebuild schools destroyed by conflict and to continue basic education of children in communities ravaged by war.
DFID has also contributed £3 million to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) 2006 Emergency Appeal. Part of the ICRC's work is to follow up vulnerable people in detention, particularly children formerly associated with armed groups, minors in general and women, and to encourage the detaining and judicial authorities to uphold the rights of detainees who are particularly at risk.
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The Government of the DRC is at a very early stage in its planning of service delivery in the social sectors, but we are working with them, as part of the international community, to support the development and implementation of a long-term plan for the provision of education and health services to the Congolese population. In the meantime DFID is providing £641,000 to the Catholic Relief Service for school equipment and teacher training in the North Sankuru district of Eastern Kasai.
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