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8 Jun 2006 : Column 825W—continued
Constituency Visits
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Prime Minister if he will list the constituencies he visited between 5 May 2005 and 5 May 2006. [75538]
The Prime Minister: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave the hon. Member for Southend, West (Mr. Amess) on 2 May 2006, Official Report, columns 1385-87W.
Departmental Budget
Mr. Amess: To ask the Prime Minister how much of the budget allocated to his Office remained unspent in each of the last 3 financial years for which figures are available; what use was subsequently made of each amount unspent; and if he will make a statement. [75646]
The Prime Minister: For accounting purposes my office forms part of the Cabinet Office. I have therefore asked my right hon. Friend the Minister for the Cabinet Office (Hilary Armstrong) to reply. A copy of the reply will be placed in the Library of the House.
Dorneywood
Mr. Laws: To ask the Prime Minister which Minister will be the official resident of Dorneywood from June; and if he will make a statement. [75797]
The Prime Minister: I refer the hon. Member to the press briefing given by my Official spokesman on 5 June. A transcript of this is available on the No. 10 website and a copy has been placed in the Library of the House.
Hinduja Brothers
David T.C. Davies: To ask the Prime Minister what official meetings he has had with one or more of the Hinduja brothers since taking office. [75390]
The Prime Minister: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave the hon. Member for Lewes (Norman Baker) on 20 July 2001, Official Report, column 468W.
House of Lords
Mr. Amess: To ask the Prime Minister if he will make a statement on the operation of section (a) 2 and (b) 3 of the House of Lords Act 1999; and what recent representations he has received about the operation of this Act. [70378]
The Prime Minister: I refer the hon. Member to the Labour party manifesto, which sets out our views on reform of the House of Lords. Copies are available in the Libraries of the House. I have recently received two letters on hereditary peers in the House of Lords.
Ministerial Appointments
Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Prime Minister if he will ensure that the next Minister for Agriculture is a member of the House of Commons. [74766]
The Prime Minister: As with previous Administrations, I make appointments which best meet the needs of the Government.
Ministerial Travel
Norman Baker: To ask the Prime Minister if he will list all journeys he undertook on official business in 2005 about which he concluded on the basis of (a) chapter 10 of the Ministerial Code and (b) the accompanying guidance document, “Travel by Ministers”, that travel by train was the most efficient and cost-effective arrangement. [72428]
The Prime Minister: My travel arrangements are conducted in accordance with the requirements of chapter 10 of the Ministerial Code, and the accompanying guidance document, “Travel by Ministers”, and on the basis of advice from the security authorities.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Prime Minister who is responsible for overseeing the Travel by Ministers Guidance; what grade he or she is; what the details are of his or her career to date; who appointed him or her; whether the post was advertised; how many persons applied for the post; how many were short listed for interview; and if he will make a statement. [75637]
The Prime Minister: The covering note to “Travel by Ministers” sets out the relevant responsibilities in relation to Ministers’ travel arrangements. Copies are available in the Library of the House.
Official Publications
Mr. Graham Stuart: To ask the Prime Minister what guidance is issued to Ministers on the use and disposal of official publications provided in the course of their official duties. [74644]
The Prime Minister: Advice to Ministers on using official documents is set out in Section 6 of the Ministerial Code.
The arrangements for managing Ministers’ official papers, including their disposal, can be found in “Guidance on Managing Private Office Papers” published on the National Archives website (www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/recordsmanagement/advice/pdf/popapersguidance.pdf) and a copy has been placed in the Library of the House.
Parliamentary Questions
Mr. Amess: To ask the Prime Minister when he will answer Question 70378, on the House of Lords Act 1999, tabled on 11 May by the hon. Member for Southend, West; what the reason is for the delay in replying; and if he will make a statement. [75635]
The Prime Minister: I have replied to the hon. Member today.
Resignation Honours
Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Prime Minister if he will make it his policy to submit his resignation honours list to the House of Lords Appointments Commission for scrutiny and approval. [75937]
The Prime Minister: The House of Lords Appointments Commission will continue to scrutinise any names put to them as appropriate, in the usual way.
Russell Chambers
Chris Grayling: To ask the Prime Minister what Russell Chambers’ current role is; how much he is paid; how many meetings he has held with Mr. Chambers since his appointment; and whether Mr. Chambers has declared potential conflicts of interest. [72323]
The Prime Minister: Russell Chambers has no Government appointment.
Simon Stevens
Tim Farron: To ask the Prime Minister whether Simon Stevens, President of United Health Europe, is a former health advisor to the Government. [75314]
The Prime Minister: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave my hon. Friend the Member for Leicester, East (Keith Vaz) on 31 March 2003, Official Report, column 526W.
United States (Visit)
Mr. Amess: To ask the Prime Minister what the cost was of his most recent visit to the United States; how many (a) officials, (b) advisers and (c) members of his family accompanied him; what the cost was in each case; where he and those who accompanied him stayed during this visit; what the cost was in each case; if he will list those (i) United States Senators, (ii) Members of Congress and (iii) others that he met during the visit; which British Government Departments provided briefing material for his use during this visit; whether he (A) sought and (B) received advice from (1) the United States Department of State and (2) other United States government departments during this visit; when he next plans to visit the United States; and if he will make a statement. [75647]
The Prime Minister: Since 1999 the Government have published an annual list of all visits overseas undertaken by Cabinet Ministers costing £500 or more during each financial year. Copies of these lists are available in the Library of the House. Information on the number of officials accompanying Ministers on overseas visits is included in the list. All Ministers’ travel arrangements are in accordance with the arrangements for official travel set out in chapter 10 of the ministerial code, and the accompanying guidance document, “Travel by Ministers”. Information for the year 2005-06 will be published as soon as it is ready. No members of my family accompanied me on the visit.
During my recent visit to the United States I met Senators Dodd, Sunnunu, Alexander and Obama from the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Briefing was provided by the relevant Government Departments. Advice was neither sought nor received from any US Government Department. For security reasons, my future engagements are announced as and when appropriate.
Constitutional Affairs
Compensation Bill
Mr. Dismore: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what discussions she has had with trades unions on Clause 1 of the Compensation Bill [Lords]; and if she will make a statement. [75834]
Bridget Prentice: Discussions have taken place with trades unions on all aspects of the Compensation Bill, including Clause 1.
Correspondence
Mr. Andrew Turner: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what her Department's target time is for providing a substantive reply to letters from hon. Members; and why her noble and learned Friend's reply to the letter dated 6 April 2006 from the hon. Member for the Isle of Wight was not dispatched until 22 May 2006. [75706]
Vera Baird: The Department aims to reply to 90 per cent. of letters from hon. Members within 20 working days of receipt. In 2005 Ministers replied to 3,179 letters with the target met in 92 per cent. of all cases. I apologise for the administrative oversight that led to the delay in sending a response to the hon. Member's letter of 6 April 2006.
Elections
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what the level of voter turnout was in local elections in (a) each London borough and (b) the UK in each of the last five local elections. [70061]
Bridget Prentice: The information is as follows:
(a) Central Government do not hold the turnout information for the last five local elections in each London borough. The turnout for London as a whole at the last five local elections was as follows:
| Percentage | |
(b) Average overall turnout for the last five local elections in the UK was as follows:
| Percentage | |
| (1) local elections combined with European Parliamentary Elections (2) local elections combined with UK Parliamentary Election | |
Family Courts
Ms Keeble: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many people have been sentenced to a term in prison by the family courts in each of the last five years. [74737]
Ms Harman: Numbers of how many people have been sentenced to a term in prison by the family courts in each of the last five financial years are listed below under custody. These cases under custody include those sentenced to a prison and those kept in police cells. The following table also shows the number of people on bail and the number awaiting a medical report.
| Financial year | Total | Bail | Custody | Medical reports |
The figures are from the county and high courts and relate to the breach of Family Law Act 1996 orders.
Figures for family proceeding courts are not held centrally and could be produced only at disproportionate costs.
Hutton Inquiry
Norman Baker: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what role Mr. Peter Mandelson played in the selection of Lord Hutton to investigate the death of Dr. David Kelly; and if she will make a statement. [65236]
Ms Harman: Mr. Peter Mandelson played no part.
Individual Support Order
Ann Coffey: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what action is being taken to encourage magistrates to follow the mandatory obligation to impose an individual support order (ISO), attached to an antisocial behaviour order, in cases where an ISO would be desirable in the interests of preventing further antisocial behaviour. [74524]
Ms Harman: The information is as follows:
All magistrates are issued with the ‘Adult Court Bench Book’ that contains a checklist of factors to consider when imposing antisocial behaviour orders (ASBO) and ISOs. This guidance sets out the approach courts should take in respect of ISOs.
All magistrates sit in court with a qualified legal adviser who is able to provide advice on relevant legislation, caselaw and guidance relating to ISOs.
An article on ISOs featured in the March edition of ‘The Magistrate’ magazine.
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