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RAF Air Tankers
John Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence on how many occasions RAF air tankers have undergone non-emergency (a) first, (b) second, (c) third and (d) fourth time maintenance outside the UK in the last five years; where the maintenance took place; for what reasons the locations were chosen; and what the cost of the maintenance was in each year. [80053]
Mr. Ingram: The RAF currently operates Tristar and VC10 aircraft to provide both a strategic air refuelling (AR) and Air Transport (AT) capability. Some airframes can be used in either the AR or AT role.
Scheduled “forward” (formerly first line) maintenance for the VC10 and Tristar aircraft is undertaken within the UK. When deployed on operations some 'forward’ maintenance is carried out at RAF bases overseas. However, records for this work are not held centrally and can be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Scheduled “depth” (formerly second, third and fourth line) maintenance for the VC10 is undertaken within the UK and for the Tristar has been carried out under contract by Gulf Aircraft Maintenance Company (GAMCO) in Abu Dhabi since 1997. GAMCO won this contract in open competition.
The cost of providing scheduled ‘depth' maintenance to Tristar aircraft that can operate in either the AR or AT role is set out in the following table. Information for 2001 is not held centrally and can be provided only at disproportionate cost. However, the table does include the projected costfor 2006.
| Number of aircraft | Total cost (£ million) | |
Records Management
Mrs. Humble: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what rules are in the Joint Service Defence Records Management Manual concerning retention of (a) records concerning changes of policy and instructions and (b) documentation on the reasons for changes made. [79838]
Mr.
Watson: Joint Service Publication 441—The Defence
Records Management Manual—identifies effective methods of
storing information in a coherent manner and of reviewing and disposing
information in an efficient and cost-effective way in order to comply
with the Public Records Acts 1958 and 1965. The
principle is that material of historic value should be identified for
permanent preservation, and that other material should be destroyed as
soon as there is no business need for it. The wide variety of
activities within the Department means that many decisions must be
taken locally. However, the manual includes in an illustrative list of
records likely to warrant permanent preservation, those
that:
Illustrate the formation/evolution of Defence policy
Contain important decisions relating to the organisation, disposition or use of the armed forces
Show the reasons for important decisions or actions or provide precedents.
Royal Navy (Catering)
David T.C. Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the budget is per person per day for meals for Royal Navy personnel serving at sea. [79751]
Mr. Watson: The Daily Messing Rate is based on a "basket" of food items, and is constructed by applying prices obtained from the main MOD Food Supply Contractor to the HM Ships ration scale. The June 2006 Budget is £2.14, and this is supplemented by further allowances dependent on a number of factors, for example the size of the ship's company, and the length of time for which the ship is at sea, to a maximum of £3.36. On average, for a ship at sea, the budget per person, per day is approximately £2.27.
School Cadet Forces
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the announcement on 27 June on the creation of six new state school cadet units, what discussions he had with the Department of Education and Skills on this matter. [81777]
Mr. Watson: The list of candidate schools for the pilot Combined Cadet Force expansion scheme has been developed with the full assistance of officials at the Department for Education and Skills as outlinedto the house on 27 April 2006, Official Report,column 1267.
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the announcement on 27 June on the creation of six new state school cadet units, how much of the funding will come from the private sector. [81778]
Mr. Watson: The pilot scheme will receive initial funding of £800,000 in 2007-08 to establish the six new units. None of this funding will come from the private sector.
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what recent estimate he has made of the number of people who are willing to support and take part in state school cadet schemes. [81779]
Mr.
Watson: As a Ministry of Defence sponsored
voluntary youth organisation that does not advertiseit is
extremely difficult to assess the number of individuals willing to
support the combined cadet force
scheme. Identification of suitable volunteers to operate a combined
cadet force contingent is the responsibility of the school's head
teacher. To date the Department is aware of nine state schools that
have expressed an interest in forming combined cadet force contingents
and have sufficient volunteers to support the contingents. This is in
addition to the volunteers supporting the 52 state schools CCF already
established.
Second World War Disability Pensions
John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will review the case of Mr. Banta Singh, former member of the Hong Kong and Singapore Royal Artillery, whose appeal for the reinstatement of his service disability pension was rejected in April 2006. [74109]
Mr. Watson: I have arranged for Mr. Singh’s case to be reviewed by the Army Discretionary Awards Panel.
Suicide Vulnerability
Mrs. Humble: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many trainees have been discharged in the past 12 months as a result of an adverse assessment under the Suicide Vulnerability Risk Management Policy. [79841]
Mr. Watson: None.
Training (Supervisory Care)
Mrs. Humble: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence on what date the guidance note relating to working with under-18-year-olds was distributed to commanding officers in each of the services; by what means this note was promulgated; to how many recipients it was sent; and if he will place a copy in the Library. [79845]
Mr. Ingram: The Guidance Note on Care for the Under 18s was issued to the Principal Personnel Officers (PPOs) of the three armed services on 12 July 2005. The PPOs then promulgated this guidance to commanding officers.
A copy of the Guidance Note was placed in the Library of the House on 21 July 2005.
Work and Pensions Select Committee
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what actions have been taken by his Department to implement Work and Pensions Select Committee recommendations since the 2001-02 Session; and if he will make a statement. [78855]
Des
Browne: The information requested by thehon.
Member is not held centrally and can beprovided only at
disproportionate cost. However, the recommendations set out in the
Defence Select
Committee and other Select Committee reports are given very careful
consideration by Defence Ministers and Ministry of Defence officials
and we seek to implement them when we can. The Government Response to
Select Committee reports makes clear whether the Committee’s
recommendations are
accepted.
Culture, Media and Sport
Digital Audio Broadcasting
12. Michael Fabricant: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement on the future of digital audio broadcasts in the UK. [81374]
Mr. Woodward: Digital audio broadcasting (DAB) listening in the UK continues to grow. Over 3 million DAB sets have been sold and a wide variety of stations exist catering for many tastes. Ofcom has proposed further sound multiplexes to allow for additional DAB stations, both nationally and locally. They will publish a statement on the timetable for licensing these in the near future. Many people also listen to digital radio via the internet and digital TV platforms.
Junk Food Advertisements
14. Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport whether she has made an assessment of Ofcom's proposals to restrict junk food advertising on television aimed at children. [81376]
Mr. Woodward: The Government welcome Ofcom's consultation on options to strengthen the rules on broadcast food promotion to children. We will consider Ofcom's proposals in the light of the responses to their consultation and discuss these with them.
Tourism
15. Mrs. Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what recent assessment she has made of the impact of tourism on economic growth in the UK; and if she will make a statement. [81377]
Mr. Woodward: Tourism is estimated to have contributed 3.4 per cent. to the UK economy, in terms of gross value added (GVA), in 2003. Industry turnover in this year was £74 billion.
Average growth of the tourism sector between 1999 and 2003 (the last year for which complete data are available) was 2.2 per cent. per annum. This is in line with the growth of the wider economy.
17. Mr. Whittingdale: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what recent estimate she has made of the contribution of tourism to the UK economy; and if she will make a statement. [81379]
Tessa Jowell: Tourism is estimated to have contributed 3.4 per cent. to the UK economy, in terms of gross value added (GVA), in 2003. Industry turnover in this year was £74 billion. Average growth of the tourism sector between 1999 and 2003 (the last year for which complete data are available) was 2.2 per cent. per annum. This is in line with the growth of the wider economy.
Freesat
16. Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many people receive Freesat. [81378]
Mr. Woodward: According to the most recent estimates published by Ofcom on 7 June, there are around 645,000 free-to-view digital satellite homes in the UK.
London Olympics
18. Mr. Piara S. Khabra: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps the Government are taking to extend the benefits of the 2012 London Olympics to all of London. [81380]
Tessa Jowell: We are working with the Greater London Authority (GLA) to ensure that the benefits of the Olympics leave a lasting legacy in the five Olympic boroughs, in London as a whole, and in the rest of the UK.
Just to give two examples, one specific and one longer-term, 75 per cent. of the staff currently employed on the Olympic site are from London, and, in the run up to the Games, £18 billion will be spent on London's transport system.
Hugh Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (1) whether the plan for the London 2012 Olympics spectrum allocation has changed since the announcement of the success of the UK’s bid; [82014]
(2) which body is responsible for overseeing the spectrum allocation for the 2012 Olympics; when it is expected to produce a plan for spectrum allocation; and what the cut-off date is for testing the new technologies; [82015]
(3) how much spectrum has been reserved for new technologies likely to be in place by the 2012 Olympics; and on what basis that calculation was made. [82025]
Mr. Woodward: The matter raised is the responsibility of the Office of Communications (Ofcom), as independent regulator for the communications sector. Accordingly, I have asked the chief executive of Ofcom to reply directly to the hon. Member. Copies of the chief executive’s letter will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.
Mr. Andy Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport which officials in her Department (a) are responsible for Olympics-related activity and (b) sit on the Inter-Departmental Steering Group for the Olympics. [81559]
Mr. Caborn: Jeff Jacobs, Chief Executive of the Government Olympic Executive, is responsible for Olympics-related activity within the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, and is Chair of the Inter-Departmental Steering Group.
John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps she is taking towards ensuring that the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic games benefit the whole of the United Kingdom. [81576]
Mr. Caborn: The Government are determined to ensure that the whole of the UK can contribute to and benefit from the Olympic games and Paralympic games in 2012.
A Nations and Regions Group (NRG) has been established to provide leadership and strategic direction in ensuring that the whole of the UK is engaged with and benefits from the games in 2012. Each nation and region is represented on the NRG and has been tasked with developing a delivery plan to ensure that these opportunities are realised.
Furthermore, a 2012 road show is being staged, in conjunction with the London Organising Committee for the Olympic games, which will visit every nation and region in the UK this summer. The road show was organised together with London 2012's Nations and Regions Group to ensure that there is a wide and diverse coverage of events and locations from within each region and Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Following the Secretary of State's letter to all MPs in May, details of where the road show is going have now been posted on the DCMS website: http://www.culture.gov.uk/global/press_notices/archive_2006/2012_roadshow_itinerary.htm.
Mr. Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (1) what arrangements have been made to improve the facilities at Bisley for the Olympics in 2012; and how much funding has been allocated; [80931]
(2) what facilities are being erected at Woolwich which are connected to the 2012 Olympic shooting events due to take place at Bisley. [80932]
Mr. Caborn: As the shooting events for the London 2012 Olympic Games and Paralympic Games will be held at Woolwich Arsenal, currently there are no arrangements to further improve facilities at Bisley for the Games.
However, Sport England provided £6 million in lottery funding to improve the shooting facilities at Bisley for the Manchester Commonwealth Gamesin 2002.
Advertising Expenditure
David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport pursuant to the answer of22 May 2006, Official Report, column 1407W, on advertising, what the reason was for the increase in expenditure on advertising between 2004-05 and 2005-06. [77194]
Mr. Lammy: The increase in expenditure on advertising between 2004-05 and 2005-06 was due a one off information campaign directly targeted at small independent businesses, to help them understand the provisions of the new licensing act. This include advertising in the regional and specialist press throughout England and Wales.
Betting Companies
Mr. Moss: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans she has to meet sports governing bodies to discuss the use of their fixtures and data by betting companies. [81093]
Mr. Caborn: I have met with representatives of the Football Leagues on a number of occasions to discuss this issue, most recently earlier this month. I have also discussed this matter in detail with the British Horseracing Board.
Channel 4
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement on the Government's strategy for Channel 4. [81234]
Mr. Woodward: As indicated in the BBC Charter Review White Paper published in March this year, the Government are clear that Channel 4 has a vital role to play, alongside the BBC, in the provision of public service broadcasting for the future. We are keen that it should continue to fulfil that role and are considering forms of assistance such as asking the BBC to provide Channel 4 with financial help towards meeting its capital switchover costs and Channel 4's desire to secure a limited amount of additional digital terrestrial capacity from the BBC. The Government will also take a close interest in the conclusions of Ofcom's proposed review of Channel 4's financial prospects.
Delisted Buildings
Mr. Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport which buildings have been delisted in the last 10 years. [81023]
Mr. Lammy: I am arranging for a list, showing the buildings that have been delisted between 1 January 1996 and 31 December 2005, to be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.
Mr. Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport which Bills introduced in the last30 years have contained provisions to delist listed buildings. [81024]
Mr. Lammy: There have been no previous Bills containing provisions to de-list listed buildings.
Digital Coverage
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps she is taking to increase digital coverage in rural areas. [81838]
Mr. Woodward: The vast majority of households in rural areas can receive digital TV services via digital satellite, terrestrial or cable. Take up of digital TV is61 per cent. in rural areas. Digital switchover will happen across the whole country between 2008 and 2012 in the following order.
| Rural Area | |
After switchover UK digital terrestrial television coverage will match the current analogue coverage of 98.5 per cent.
Mr. Martlew: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the proposed date is for digital television switchover in each parliamentary constituency in the UK. [81104]
Mr. Woodward: Digital switchover is being rolled out in relation to ITV regions and will happen between 2008 and 2012 in the following order:
| ITV region | |
I will soon be writing to hon. Members to give them more details on switchover
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