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11 July 2006 : Column 1765W—continued
Child Services
Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland whether the action plan for implementation of the Children’s and Young People’s Strategy will be subject to consultation. [83685]
Maria Eagle: I do not intend to consult publicly on the action plan for implementation of the 10-year Strategy for Children and Young People. My priority, as I indicated at the launch, is to publish the action plan as quickly as possible and then get on with the actions to achieve the six outcomes set out in the strategy. A draft action plan will be considered by the Strategy Planning and Review Group, established to oversee implementation. I will chair the group and membership will include key children’s stakeholders. I will also seek the views of members of the All-Party Group, whom I meet with on a regular basis, prior to publication.
Departmental Staff
Mark Durkan: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many disabled staff Northern Ireland Government Departments have employed in each of the last 10 years. [80941]
Mr. Hanson: The information requested is as shown in the following table:
| Staff employed by Northern Ireland Government Departments who have declared a disability at 1 January each year | |||
| NICS staff | NIO HCS staff | Total | |
| n/a = Not applicable Notes: 1. Table shows staff employed by NI Government Departments and departmental agencies and includes industrial staff, casual staff and Home Civil Service (HCS) staff employed in NIO. (Figures for NIO HCS staff prior to 2001 could not be made available within the timescale for this question. 2. Figures for 1997 and 1998 show those staff who were registered as disabled. Figures for 1999 to 2006 show those staff who declared a disability as defined by the Disability Discrimination Act 1995. It is impossible to say with authority whether all staff with disabilities have declared it; anecdotal evidence is that an unknown number has not. 3. In August 2000, the Northern Ireland civil service conducted a survey of staff and encouraged those staff who had a disability to declare it at that time. Since then all new staff have been required to declare whether or not they have a disability. | |||
Derry Airport
Mark Durkan: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many people from (a) Strabane district council area and (b) Limavady district council area have applied for jobs as (i) airport hands and (ii) fire fighters at city of Derry airport in the last six years; and how many from each council area were successful. [83028]
David Cairns: Employment policies and practices in relation to the airport are a matter for its owner, Derry city council.
I have asked the chief executive of Derry city council to write to the hon. Member with the information.
Domestic Rates
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what estimate he has made of the average effective tax rate that will be levied from April 2007 under the new system of domestic rates; and if he will make a statement. [83011]
Mr. Hanson: It is estimated that the effective tax rate to be levied on households in Northern Ireland under the new discrete capital values system in April 2007 will be £6.33 for every £1,000 of capital value. This estimate is based on a 6 per cent. increase for the regional rate, which has already been announced in the draft Priorities and Budget 2006-08 and an assumption of a 6 per cent. increase in the average district council rate. District councils are wholly responsible for setting the district rate in each of the 26 council areas and this broad assumption is made against a background of a 5.8 per cent. average increase in district rates over the last three years.
In order to smooth the transition to the new system assistance will be provided through relief schemes, firstly for those facing significant increases and secondly for those on low incomes beyond the 20 per cent. of households that are already entitled to a full rebate under housing benefit.
FIFA World Cup
Mr. Hands:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland which matches (a) he and (b) other Ministers in his Department attended at the FIFA
World Cup 2006 in Germany in their ministerial capacity; at what cost to public funds; and with what contributions from third party organisations. [83628]
Mr. Hain: Neither I nor any member of my ministerial team attended any matches at the recent FIFA World Cup in Germany.
Financial Assistance (Political Parties)
Mr. David Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much has been paid per year to each political party in Northern Ireland under the financial assistance to political parties scheme; and whether this funding will end if there is no agreement for a power-sharing Executive by 24 November. [81486]
Mr. Hanson: The amount paid per year to each political party under the Financial Assistance to Political Parties Scheme as operated by the Northern Ireland Assembly is set out as follows.
In terms of future funding, I would refer my hon. Friend to the work plan published with the joint statement made by the Prime Minster and the Taoiseach on 29 June 2006, which stated that salaries and allowances for MLAs and financial assistance to parties would stop from 24 November if restoration does not occur by that date.
| £ | |||||||
| 1998-99 | 1999-00 | 2000-01 | 2001-02 | 2002-03 | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | |
| (1) These parties did not continue operating following the 2003 NI Assembly election. | |||||||
Further Education
Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what funding has been allocated for further education colleges in the Province to provide tuition to those with (a) mental health difficulties and (b) learning disabilities in 2006-07. [83653]
Maria Eagle: The Department for Employment and Learning is unable to provide financial information in the format requested but would confirm that it has allocated total funding of £6,866,092 for the academic year 2006-07 to the FE sector in Northern Ireland towards provision for those students with learning difficulties and disabilities.
Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what criteria are used to categorise further education college courses as recreational rather than vocational. [83654]
Maria Eagle: When the course of study is identified by the further education colleges as not examined, or not leading to a qualification, it is categorised by the Department as “non-specified, non-examinable” and generally viewed as a hobby and leisure/recreational course.
Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what plans there are to withdraw funding to further education colleges in the Province for tuition of those with (a) mental health difficulties and (b) learning difficulties. [83729]
Maria Eagle: The Department for Employment and Learning has no plans to withdraw funding to further education colleges in Northern Ireland for tuition for those students with learning difficulties and disabilities.
Mrs. Iris Robinson:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what funding has been allocated to
further education colleges in the Province for tuition of those with (a) mental health difficulties and (b) learning disability in each of the last five years. [83730]
Maria Eagle: The Department for Employment and Learning is unable to provide financial information in the format requested but would confirm that the total funding provided to the FE sector in Northern Ireland towards provision for those students with learning difficulties and disabilities in the last five years was as follows:
| Funding (£) | |
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