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9 May 2006 : Column 159W—continued
Asylum Seekers (Local Franchises)
27. Jim Cousins: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what criteria the Legal Services Commission will use to award local franchises for services to asylum seekers. [68827]
Vera Baird: The Commission may award a contract where a supplier has obtained its Specialist Quality Mark, has an accredited supervisor and intends to provide legal services in an area of unmet need. Next year the Commission may introduce a contract performance requirement for 40 per cent. success rate at appeal.
Electoral Turnout
28. Julie Morgan: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what steps his Department is taking to increase voter turn-out. [68828]
Bridget Prentice: The Government have embarked on a number of initiatives to promote participation in democracy. It is the role of The Electoral Commission to promote participation in elections and we fully support them in this work.
Human Rights Act
29. Mr. Dismore: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what guidance his Department has issued on the applicability of the
Human Rights Act 1998 to residential homes for the elderly in the context of private providers of public functions. [68829]
Bridget Prentice: As recommended by the Joint Committee on Human Rights, the Government issued guidance last year to local authorities on the use of contractual conditions to ensure that services delivered on behalf of the local authority are provided in a way that takes account of the Human Rights Act 1998.
NGOs (Financial Initiatives)
Mr. Love: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what initiatives his Department and its non-departmental bodies support to promote (a) financial education, (b) financial advice, (c) financial inclusion and (d) financial capability; which organisations are involved in delivering each initiative; and how much funding is provided for each by (i) his Department and its non-departmental public bodies, (ii) other Government Departments, (iii) the private sector and (iv) the voluntary sector. [66579]
Bridget Prentice: The Legal Services Commission (an NDPB of the Department for Constitutional Affairs) is working with the Department of Trade and Industry and Department for Work and Pensions as part of a national agenda to tackle rising levels of debt. The Commission is currently piloting a number of innovative new advice services to help people facing financial exclusion, following a £6 million grant from the Treasury's Financial Inclusion Fund.
During 2004-05 the Legal Services Commission spent approximately £17.5 million on specialist debt advice through its contracts with both solicitors and not for profit agencies.
The Public Guardianship Office is an Agency of the Department for Constitutional Affairs responsible for ensuring the financial well-being of people who lack the capacity to manage their own financial affairs. It does this by supporting the Court of Protection (CoP) in the appointment of Receivers, and through the registration of Enduring Powers of Attorney (EPA). The PGO also undertake checks to establish that appointed Receivers are carrying out their duties in an appropriate manner.
Exceptionally, when no suitable relative or friend wishes to act as a Receiver, the PGO try to find someone else to take on this role, or as a last resort, the Chief Executive of the PGO may be appointed.
In carry out its role the PGO provides practical guidance for people appointed by the CoP to make financial decisions for people who lack mental capacity to do so themselves. The PGO also undertakes awareness initiatives to inform the public on how to make provision in the event that someone may lose their mental capability—due to dementia, illness or accident—and may no longer be able to make their own decisions.
The PGO currently recovers 82 per cent. of its full costs from fees, which results in approximately a net cost to DCA of £5 million of which £1 million is in respect to fee remission. This work is not an 'initiative' as such, as it is part of the core work of the Agency.
Recruitment
Mr. Jenkins: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how much (a) his Department and (b) its agencies spent on recruitment, search and selection agencies in each of the last five years. [68347]
Bridget Prentice: The answer is as follows:
Recruitment below the senior civil service
My Department does not hold this information centrally and it is, therefore, not possible to collate this without incurring disproportionate costs. For DCA recruitment below the SCS we do not routinely use search or selection agencies. All recruitment is managed in house in accordance with the civil service commissioners code.
Senior civil service recruitment
No central information is held about the costs of campaigns as individual business areas pay their own recruitment costs. However, during the last five years we ran 24 campaigns to recruit 39 Senior Civil Servants. The average cost for each of these campaigns would be approximately £40,000, which includes the advertising and assessment centre costs.
House of Commons Commission
Portcullis House
34. Norman Baker: To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission what plans the Commission has to review the use of voice messages in the lifts in Portcullis House. [68811]
Nick Harvey: There is currently a programme to ensure that all lifts on the parliamentary estate comply with disability best practice. The voice messages in the lifts in Portcullis House are being reviewed as part of this programme. Messages will cover the opening and closing of the doors, the direction of travel and the floor at which a lift stops.
House Expenditure
35. Mr. Andrew Turner: To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission what the procedures are for approving expenditure by the House of between £100,000 and£1 million; and if he will make a statement. [68812]
Nick Harvey: Approval procedures and financial delegations to officials are set out in the House of Commons Resource Framework, a copy of which has been placed in the Library. Significant investment decisions?over £500,000 on works and £150,000 on non-works?require a full business case and formal approval by the Clerk of the House. Decisions on overall funding and on major individual expenditure proposals are overseen by the Commission, advised as appropriate by the Finance and Services Committee.
Recycling
36. Mr. Hollobone: To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons
Commission what steps the Commission has taken to increase the recycling of office waste on the House estate. [68813]
Nick Harvey: Since the beginning of the year recycling of glass, cans and plastic bottles is being introduced on a trial basis in Portcullis House (Atrium and photocopier rooms), outside the Terrace Cafeteria and in 7 Millbank. These trials will highlight any issues and allow them to be addressed before the scheme is rolled out, first into outbuildings and then into the Palace.
All small offices should now have two waste bins; one for general waste and another for paper only. Larger offices and open-plan offices have general waste bins and a large cardboard bin for paper only. General waste and paper is collected separately, with the general waste sent for incineration and the paper sent for recycling.
In addition, a new waste management contract is currently being let. The specification of this contract sets targets for continuous improvement in recycling throughout the life of the contract.
Leader of the House
Back-Bench Debates
33. Sir Nicholas Winterton: To ask the Leader of the House if he will bring forward proposals to allocate parliamentary time on the floor of the House for debates on motions to be chosen by Back-Bench hon. Members. [68810]
Mr. Straw: There are no current plans to do this but the Procedure Committee is looking at the handling of Early Day Motions at the moment and I will of course consider their report with interest.
Parliamentary Questions
37. Ben Chapman: To ask the Leader of the House what recent discussions he has had with ministerial colleagues regarding tabling of parliamentary questions during recesses. [68814]
Mr. Straw: I remain open to representations onthis issue.
Education and Skills
English Teaching
Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what proportion of posts for teaching English in secondary schools are (a) vacant and (b) held by someone without a first degree in English. [67439]
Jim Knight [holding answer 2 May 2006]: Provisional information on teacher vacancies in secondary schools by subject for January 2006 was published in table 6 of the School Workforce in England Statistical First Release, on 27 April 2006. This publication is available on the department's website at the following URL: http://www.dfes.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000653/index.shtml
This shows that the provisional vacancy rate for English in January 2006 was 0.8 per cent. down from 0.9 per cent. in 2005. The overall secondary classroom vacancy rate in secondary schools was 0.7 per cent. in January 2006.
Information on the number of teachers teaching English in secondary schools by post A level qualification was last collected in November 2002. This was published in Statistics of Education, School Workforce in England Volume, 2005 edition, on26 January 2006. Tables D8 and D9 refer. This publication is available on the department's website at the following URL: http://www.dfes.gov.uk/rsgateway/DBA/OL/v000633/index.shtml
This showed that an estimated 73 per cent. of secondary teachers teaching English held a degree-level (1) qualification in the subject. However, they delivered an estimated 83 per cent. of the curriculum time.
Copies of these publications have been placed in the House of Common's Library.
(1) Degree level qualification includes degree, B.Ed and PGCE.
Examination Results
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the (a) GCSE, (b) A-level and (c) key stage results were for the 100 (i) primary and (ii) secondary schools with the (A) highest and (B) lowest percentage of children receiving free school meals in each of the last three years. [66090]
Jim Knight: The information requested has been placed in the House of Commons Library.
Extended School Provision
Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what funding is available for extended school provision for children in (a) Tameside metropolitan borough and (b) Stockport metropolitan borough. [67889]
Beverley Hughes: Over 2003 to 2008 we are making available £840 million nationally to support the development of extended services accessed in or through schools. £110 million of this was allocated in 2005-06. Tameside local authority received £500,135, and Stockport local authority received £539,129.
Of the £680 million to be allocated across 2006 to 2008, £250 million will go direct to schools through the School Standards Grant. The formula for announcing each school's allocation for 2006-07 was announced on 7 December. The remaining £430 million will be distributed to local authorities through the Standards Fund and the General Sure Start Grant. Of this, Tameside local authority will receive £821,066 in 2006-07 and £1,006,162 in 2007-08. In the same period, Stockport local authority will receive funding of £908,857 in 2006-07 and £1,056,525 in 2007-08. Funding will be released to schools in accordance with each local authority's strategy for extended services.
Foreign Languages
Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many unfilled vacancies there are for teachers of modern foreign languages in secondary schools. [67438]
Jim Knight [holding answer 2 May 2006]: Provisional January 2006 figures released in Statistical First Release 18/2006 show that there were 40 language vacancies in local authority maintained secondary schools in England. This equates to a vacancy rate of 0.3 per cent., down from 0.5 per cent. in 2005. The overall provisional January 2006 vacancy rate for secondary schools (all subjects) is 0.7 per cent. compared to 0.9 per cent. in January 2005.
This publication is available on the Department's website at the following URL:
http://www.dfes.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000653/index.shtml
GCSEs
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what percentage of children educated at home achieved five GCSEs graded at A* to C by the age of 16 in each of the last five years. [67406]
Jim Knight [holding answer 2 May 2006]: The Department is unable to distinguish the GCSE results of children educated at home.
Head Teachers
Mr. Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills (1) how many (a) primary schools and (b) secondary schools did not have a permanent head teacher in the course of each of the past 10 years; [66034]
(2) how many temporary head teachers have been in post in each of the past 10 years. [66038]
Jim Knight: Information is not collected on the number of schools that were without a permanent head at any time during a year.
Some information on full time temporary filled head teacher posts is available from the annual survey of teachers in service and teacher vacancies held in January each year. This only covers posts that were temporarily filled on the date of the survey.
Table 9 of Statistical First Release 18/2006 provides a snapshot of temporarily filled head teacher posts as at January for each year available. This publication is available on the department's website at the following URL: http://www.dfes.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000653/index.shtml
A copy has been placed in the House of Common's Library.
Healthy School Status
Dr. Murrison: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what proportion of schools in each local authority have achieved healthy school status. [67415]
Jim Knight: The information requested is contained in the following table:
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