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27 Nov 2006 : Column 350W—continued


27 Nov 2006 : Column 351W

Departmental IT Strategy

Mr. Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make a statement on the IT strategy of his Department and its agencies. [102907]

Mrs. McGuire: The Department’s IT Strategy supports the successful delivery of the Government’s welfare reform agenda. It allows the Department to modernise to produce better services, while achieving its efficiency challenge, by adopting industry standard products, rather than bespoke IT developments, and joining up information systems.


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Information Prescription

Anne Main: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions in which areas he expects trials of the information prescription to take place; how many people will be involved in the trials; what funding has been allocated for those trials; when he expects trials to begin; and if he will make a statement. [100704]

Ms Rosie Winterton: I have been asked to reply.

Information prescriptions pilots will take place initially in the areas of cancer, mental health and vulnerable older people. The number of people involved has not yet been determined. The initiative has funding of £1.35 million. The cancer pilots are being developed in partnership with Macmillan and Cancerbackup and are expected to begin in December 2006.

Ministerial Travel

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will list the occasions since he has held his present office when he has used (a) rail services, (b) the London Underground, (c) tram or light railway services and (d) buses in connection with his ministerial duties. [101981]

Mr. Hutton: The information requested could be supplied only at disproportionate costs. Under the terms of the Ministerial Code and Travel by Ministers, when travelling on official business Ministers are expected to make efficient and cost effective travel arrangements.

Pensions

Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many national insurance deficiency notices have been distributed since (a) 30 November 2005 and (b) 25 May 2006; and how many of these have been sent to individuals who would reach state pension age on or after 6 April 2010 and who could potentially achieve at least 30 qualifying years without paying any class 3 national insurance contributions. [102230]

Dawn Primarolo: I have been asked to reply.

The total number of deficiency notices issued for the 2003-04 tax year since 30 November 2005 was 1.26 million. HMRC started issuing deficiency notices for the 2004-05 tax year in September 2006 and so far has issued 2.5 million. The deficiency notices issued since September 2006 include information on the proposed changes to qualifying years.

Information on the numbers of individuals due to reach state pension age on or after 6 April 2010 who have paid class 3 national insurance contributions (a) since 25 May 2006 and (b) since 30 November 2005 is not readily available.


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Mr. Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 20 November 2006, Official Report, column 22W, on pension schemes, whether the reference to plans encompasses benefits already earned in private sector defined benefit pension schemes. [103794]

James Purnell: Yes.

Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will place in the Library the advice about possible changes to the qualifying conditions for receipt of a full basic state pension that has been issued to individuals applying to pay class 3 national insurance contributions (a) between 30 November 2005 and 25 May 2006 and (b) since 26 May 2006. [102229]

Dawn Primarolo: I have been asked to reply.

No specific guidance was provided to individuals applying to pay class 3 national insurance contributions between 30 November 2005 and 25 May 2006.

Following publication of the White Paper, “Security in retirement: towards a new pensions system” on 25 May 2006, HM Revenue and Customs has issued letters to those applying to pay class 3 contributions informing them of the proposal to reduce to 30 the number of qualifying years needed for entitlement to a full basic state pension for people who will reach state pension age on or after 6 April 2010. Sample copies of the letters have been placed in the Library.

Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the average rate of private sector employer contribution into (a) defined benefit pension schemes and (b) defined contribution pension schemes in the latest period for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement. [101301]

James Purnell: In 2005 the overall weighted average employer contribution rates for private sector occupational pension schemes, estimated across all schemes with 12 or more members, were 16.0 per cent. in defined benefit schemes and 6.3 per cent. in defined contribution schemes. Contribution rates to open schemes were 13.9 per cent. in defined benefit schemes and 6.0 per cent. in defined contribution schemes.

Where private sector employers make contributions to stakeholder pensions or group personal pensions, estimated median employer contribution rates were 6 per cent. for stakeholder pensions and eight per cent for group personal pensions in 2005.

Post Office Card Accounts

David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent representations he has received on the scheme to replace the Post Office card account in 2010; and if he will make a statement. [102909]

Mr. Plaskitt: There have been a range of representations on this.


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We are holding regular and very constructive discussions with Post Office Ltd and other key stakeholders at both ministerial and official level, where we discuss wide ranging issues including accounts that can be assessed at post offices, both now and in the future. A further such meeting is taking place later today.

My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, will make a statement about the future of the Post Office network, including the range of future accounts, before the end of the year.

Poverty

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what percentage of households in each UK constituency are (a) from ethnic minority backgrounds, (b) living in poverty and (c) from ethnic minority backgrounds and living in poverty. [100871]

Mr. Jim Murphy: The figures are not available by UK constituency.

Information on the percentage of people in Great Britain from each ethnic group living in low income households is available in the Households Below Average Income 2004-05 publication, table 3.5 on page 30. This is available in the House of Commons Library.

Defence

Armed Forces Leave

Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the (a) highest and (b) average amount was of leave not taken in the last leave year and not carried over in the (i) Army, (ii) Royal Navy and (iii) Royal Air Force. [101050]

Derek Twigg: The information requested is not held centrally. However, the Defence Analytical Services Agency undertake an annual Survey of Leave(1): The survey report includes estimates of the average number of leave days lost per person for each service. These estimates for the 2005-06 leave year are shown in the following table.

2005-06 Estimated average number of annual leave days not taken and not carried over

Naval Service(1)

0.4

Army

2.4

RAF

1.1

(1) Naval Service includes the Royal Navy and the Royal Marines

Because the Survey of Leave is a sample survey it cannot identify the highest value in the population as a whole. Moreover, the highest figures within the survey sample are not considered robust enough to report in isolation.

The 2005-06 copy of the Survey of Leave report will be available in the Library of the House within the next four weeks.


27 Nov 2006 : Column 355W

Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many personnel in the (a) Army, (b) Royal Navy and (c) Royal Air Force were not able to take all of their annual leave in the last leave year. [101051]

Derek Twigg: The information requested is not held centrally. The Defence Analytical Services Agency undertake an annual survey of leave which provides various survey estimates relating to annual leave taken, carried forward and lost. However, the survey does not distinguish between annual leave days personnel were not able to take from those they chose to carry forward into the next year.

The 2005-06 copy of the survey of leave report will be available in the Library of the House within the next four weeks.

Armoured Vehicles

Mr. Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what factors he took into account when deciding to purchase a combination of Cougar and Vector Pinzgauer armoured vehicles rather than one large batch of one type of vehicle. [100922]

Mr. Ingram: These vehicles provide different capabilities. Vector is relatively light and agile and has high levels of terrain accessibility, particularly over rugged terrain. These factors make it particularly suited for long range patrols, which are a feature of operations in Afghanistan.

The heavier Cougar vehicle, which will be known as Mastiff when in service with UK armed forces, provides higher levels of protection, but is larger and less agile over rugged terrain. I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 6 November 2006, Official Report, column 797W, which covered the factors considered in order to meet the requirement for a medium Protected Patrol Vehicle.

Alongside other platforms, Vector and Mastiff will provide commanders with a range of vehicles of varying protection, mobility and profile, to be used according to operational circumstances.

Mr. Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many (a) Cougar and (b) Vector Pinzgauer armoured vehicles are being purchased by his Department. [100923]

Mr. Ingram: We are currently procuring around 100 Cougar vehicles, to be known as MASTIFF when in service with UK armed forces, and around 160 VECTOR vehicles.

Astute

Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the unit production cost is of an Astute class ship submersible nuclear class. [101437]

Mr. Ingram: The contract with BAE Systems is for the design and manufacture of three Astute Class submarines. The NAO's Major Project Report for 2006 reported an expected total cost of £3,656 million against a recosted approval of £2,578 million.


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