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18 July 2006 : Column 284W—continued


Businesses (Peterborough)

Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many businesses in (a) Peterborough constituency and (b) the Peterborough city council area (i) started up and (ii) ceased trading in each of the last nine years; and if he will make a statement. [85970]

Margaret Hodge: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 16 June 2006, Official Report, columns 1484-85, which contains data for each year starting nine years ago up to the latest available.

Canatxx

Mr. Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether (a) he has and (b) Ministers in his Department have received official hospitality from Canatxx Ventures Ltd and Canatxx UK and its associated companies in the last four years. [85272]

Jim Fitzpatrick: No DTI Ministers have received official hospitality from Canatxx UK Ltd, Canatxx Energy Ventures Ltd or any of its associated companies in the last four years.

Civil Service Secondees

Dr. Iddon: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many people from science and technology backgrounds have been seconded into the civil service in his Department in each of the last three years. [48412]

Jim Fitzpatrick: The DTI has had and continues to have people seconded who have science and technology backgrounds. Where an S and T background is an
18 July 2006 : Column 285W
essential requirement for a secondment we will take the appropriate steps to check the applicant’s qualifications.

The DTI has had a number of people seconded from science and technology backgrounds in the last three years, although we do not hold this information centrally. As the Department dedicated to maximising the contribution of the science and technology fields to the UK’s economic development—and the quality of our lives—we are delighted to have such expertise within the DTI.

Miners’ Compensation

Sir Peter Soulsby: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry which solicitors have received payments under the (a) vibration white finger and (b) chronic obstructive pulmonary disease conditional fee agreement for coal health compensation claims for claims registered by claimants living in Leicester, South constituency; and whether Vendside Ltd has received any payment from his Department for coal health compensation claims registered by claimants living in that constituency. [84113]

Malcolm Wicks: Conditional fee agreements do not form part of either the vibration white finger (VWF) or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) schemes. Solicitors are paid according to a tariff set out in the respective Claims Handling Agreement. The tables list the solicitors, including Vendside/UDM, that have received payments in accordance with those tariffs for representing claimants from the Leicester, South constituency:

VWF
Solicitor Costs paid (£)

Ashton Morton Slack Solicitors

757

Beresfords Solicitors

470

Moss Solicitors

4,678

Oxley and Coward Solicitors

2,697

Vendside / UDM

1,351

Watson Burton LLP

737

Total

10,690



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OPD
Solicitor Costs paid (£)

Ashton Morton Slack Solicitors

1,770

Atteys

3,393

Avalon Solicitors

10,495

Beresfords Solicitors

8,543

Blackett Hart and Pratt Solicitors

1,223

BRM Solicitors

4,175

Browell Smith and Co.

6,059

Delta Legal

2,586

Bac Solicitors

2,977

Dodds and Partners

2,888

Gorman Hamilton Solicitors

5,451

Hugh James

15,562

Irwin Mitchell Solicitors

2,079

Kidd and Spoor Harper Solicitors

1,834

Mark Gilbert Morse

9,066

Marrons Solicitors

1,090

Moss Solicitors

46,148

O. H. Parsons and Partners Solicitors

3,055

Proddow and Mackay Solicitors

2,963

Raleys Solicitors

1,792

Thompsons Solicitors

5,659

Vendside Ltd

10,557

Watson Burton LLP

23,393

Wilson Browne incorp. Holyoak and Co.

3,055

Total

175,814


In addition, Vendside have been paid an additional £2,333 in costs for handling claims for Industrial Deafness for Leicester, South constituents which are dealt with under common law.

John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry which mining contractors have signed the chronic obstructive pulmonary disease claims handling agreement with his Department. [85431]

Malcolm Wicks [holding answer 14 July 2006]: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave him on 12 May 2006, Official Report, columns 576-77W.

Departmental Expenditure

Mr. Francois: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how much has been spent in each year since 1997 by his Department on salaries paid to civil servants. [41589]

Jim Fitzpatrick: The Department's expenditure on civil servants' salaries for 1998-99 to 2004-05 is detailed as follows. Figures from 1999-2000 are taken from the Department's Resource Accounts, which are published annually by the Stationery Office. Total resource budgets for 2002-03 and 2003-04 included exceptional provisions to reflect accounting adjustments in respect of the Department's liabilities. Prior to 1998-99, figures were not produced on the same basis and comparable figures are not available other than at disproportionate cost.

Financial year £000 Percentage of total resource budget

1998-99

198,857

7.0

1999-2000

197,643

7.0

2000-01

211,943

4.8

2001-02

207,108

4.8

2002-03

217,359

3.0

2003-04

243,155

2.2

2004-05

232,200

4.6


Energy Review

Mr. Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry which external consultants were contracted to process submissions to the energy review; what criteria were adopted in choosing the consultants; whether the contract was subject to competitive tender; what the total value was of each contract; what responsibility each consultant was given; and what the length was of each contract. [85540]


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Malcolm Wicks: AEA Technology Environment were contracted, by competitive tender, to support the analysis of the submissions to the Energy Review consultation exercise.

Their report is on the DTI website at http://www.dti.gov.uk/files/file31631.pdf

Enterprise

Mr. Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry pursuant to his oral statement of 4 May 2006, Official Report, column 537WH, on Enterprise, on what date the manufacturing day during enterprise week will be held. [85684]

Margaret Hodge: Enterprise Week is to be held from 13 to 19 November 2006. On 14 November there will be a strong focus on the manufacturing sector, with regional events taking place led by industry.

Enterprise Insight

Mr. Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry in which local authorities Enterprise Insight will be establishing local campaign hubs; on what basis these areas were selected; and how other local authorities can apply for campaign hubs to be based in their locality. [85679]

Margaret Hodge: Local Enterprise Campaign Hubs are being set up in Coventry, Liverpool, Lowestoft, Tees Valley and Wakefield. The local authorities looking after these areas are Coventry city council, Liverpool city council, Waveney district council, Redcar and Cleveland borough council and Wakefield metropolitan district council respectively.

These areas were selected as they have low levels of entrepreneurial activity, and high levels of deprivation.

Mr. Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what independent assessment has been made of the effectiveness of money spent by the Enterprise Insight campaign. [85682]

Margaret Hodge: Enterprise Insight employs a variety of monitoring tools to assess the effectiveness on the campaign.

These include an annual survey that monitors young people's attitudes across the country and tracks changing levels of awareness of the campaign.

Enterprise Insight is currently commissioning an independent organisation to develop monitoring and evaluation systems for each enterprise campaign hub as it is rolled out. In early 2008, this organisation will produce an evaluation that will assess the impact of the campaign hubs.

Enterprise Insight has put in place a number of more specific monitoring tools that:


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Mr. Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what (a) salary and (b) benefits are paid to the Chief Executive of Enterprise Insight; and what salary was advertised when this position was last vacant. [85683]

Margaret Hodge: Enterprise Insight is an independent organisation, founded and run by the four main business organisations (Institute of Directors, British Chambers of Commerce, CBI and Federation of Small Businesses), with support from DTI.

The DTI’s Small Business Service co-funds Enterprise Insight, but the Enterprise Insight Board independently determines its staff remuneration levels.

Equal Pay

Ms Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many (a) women and (b) men are employed in the Department; what the average pay was for (i) women and (ii) men in the Department in (A) 1997 and (B) 2006; what women’s average pay is as a percentage of men’s average pay; and how many (1) women and (2) men the Department employed in each of the last five years, broken down by grade. [67780]

Jim Fitzpatrick: The Cabinet Office collects and publishes annually statistical information on the civil service by Department. This includes data on the employment of men and women. Information on the numbers of women and men employed in the civil service broken down at 31 December 2005 is available in the Libraries of the House and on the civil service website at:

It should be borne in mind that the figures for DTI published by Cabinet Office include additional staff such as those employed in Executive agencies.

The Department of Trade and Industry (including UK Trade and Investment and Small Business Service, but excluding Executive agencies) employs (a) 1,682 women (1,596.3 full-time equivalent) and (b) 2,176 men (2,165.3 full-time equivalent) at 9 November 2005.

DTI measures equal pay for those not in the senior civil service as part of a regular and ongoing equal pay review programme. Equal pay is measured for the senior civil service by the Cabinet Office.

The average pay was for (i) women and (ii) men in the Department in (A) 2000-01 and (B) 2005-06 and what women’s average pay is as a percentage of men’s average pay are shown in the following table.

2000-01 is the earliest period for which an accurate comparison can be provided.

2005-06 2000-01

Women

25,740

20,011

Men

29,070

24,968

Women’s pay as percentage of men’s

88.5

80.2


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