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23 Jan 2007 : Column 1664W—continued
Truancy
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what steps his Department plans to take to tackle truancy in the next 12 months. [117472]
Jim Knight: The Government attach great importance to their work with schools and local authorities on improving school attendance. The Department’s current key priorities for this work are to continue and maintain the system-wide drive across all schools to reduce absence rates, with a particular focus on reducing the amount of ‘persistent absence’, including truancy.
During this year, my Department will be offering additional challenge and support, through the National Strategies, to 436 secondary schools, located across 54 local authorities, which have been identified as having particularly high levels of persistent absence. The National Strategies will be supporting these local authorities and schools in planning and monitoring their progress during the year; sharing with them its knowledge of best practice across the system; challenging current systems and processes to help improve them; and closely monitoring progress on reducing levels of persistent absence.
Violent Crime Reduction Bill
Mr. Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills (1) what resources will be made available to schools for the screening of pupils for weapons under the terms of the Violent Crime Reduction Bill; how these resources will be allocated; and if he will make a statement; [117476]
(2) when he expects to publish guidance to head teachers on the implementation of the screening of pupils for weapons under the terms of the Violent Crime Reduction Bill; and if he will make a statement. [117475]
Jim Knight: We expect to publish draft guidance for public consultation in the next few weeks, and final guidance in the spring. This will cover both the power to search pupils for weapons on suspicion which will commence later this year under the Education Act 1996 as amended (inserted by the Violent Crime Reduction Act 2006), and screening pupils for weapons without suspicion following the policy announced in this House on 16 October 2006, Official Report, column 41WS. DFES has not imposed any new duty on schools in England to search or screen pupils. Schools wishing to search or screen pupils should fund this from their overall resources; they have received a good funding settlement in Dedicated Schools Grant for 2006-07 and 2007-08. The national average per pupil increased 14 per cent. over the two years.
Wireless Networking
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills (1) what consultations he has undertaken on the use of wireless networking in schools; and if he will make a statement; [116887]
(2) whether his Department has published any regulations or guidelines concerning the use of wireless networking in schools; and if he will make a statement. [116888]
Jim Knight: The decision on the use of specific technologies, including wireless networks, within schools is made at local level. The Department has not therefore consulted on the issue of wireless networks.
The British Educational Communications and Technology Agency (Becta), the lead agency on the use of ICT, have produced guidance on wireless local area networks which is available on their website to local authorities and schools.
Solicitor-General
BAE Systems
Dr. Cable: To ask the Solicitor-General what investigations into alleged bribery and corruption by BAE Systems are being undertaken by the Serious Fraud Office; which countries are involved; when the investigations are expected to be completed; and if he will make a statement. [115162]
The Solicitor-General: The SFO has three branches of investigation which relate to BAE Systems Plc. These cases were accepted for investigation in July 2004.
The countries involved are South Africa, Romania, Tanzania, the Czech Republic, Chile and Quatar.
No precise timescale can be provided for when the investigations are expected to be completed. However the Attorney-General has made it clear to the Director of the SFO that he should pursue these investigations vigorously.
Dr. Cable: To ask the Solicitor-General what investigations into alleged bribery and corruption by companies other than BAE Systems are being undertaken by the Serious Fraud Office; which countries are concerned; when the investigations are expected to be completed; and if he will make a statement. [115163]
The Solicitor-General: The Serious Fraud Office is currently investigating five cases other than those concerning BAE Systems Plc where there are allegations of bribery or corruption abroad, as well as fraud. Four of these cases concern companies.
It is not possible for operational reasons to give details of all of these cases, but they include an investigation into Energy Financing Team Ltd. in Bosnia, an investigation into Kellogg Brown and Root in connection with Nigeria and a number of other countries and an investigation into the construction of the Unesco-financed Bibliotecha Alexandrina in Egypt.
In most cases it is not possible to give a specific timescale for completion of the investigation, as that often depends on the speed of the response by other jurisdictions to Letters of Request from the Serious Fraud Office. A decision whether to bring charges is
expected later this year in relation to at least one case. The Attorney-General has made it clear to the Director of the SFO that he should pursue these investigations vigorously.
A number of other cases are currently being considered for investigation in the vetting process.
Treasury
Bank Accounts
Jim Cousins: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the percentage of people aged (a) 18 to 25, (b) 26 to 50, (c) 51 to 65, (d) 66 to 85 and (e) over 85 years who have a bank account in each region and county in the most recent period for which figures are available. [116689]
Ed Balls: The most recent data available that allow assessment to be made of levels of bank account holding are the Family Resources Survey from 2002-03. The information in the survey is at household level, not individual level, and shows that 92 per cent. of households in the United Kingdom had an account in that year.
These data are broken down to Government Office regional level:
| Government Office Region | Households with any type of account (percentage) |
The data can also be broken down by the age of the Household Reference Person (the owner of the household property, or the household member with the highest income):
| Age of Household Reference Person | Households with any type of account (percentage) |
Debt
Ann McKechin: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much was received by the Government from (a) low and (b) lower middle income countries in 2005-06 on debts owed to (i) the Export Credits Guarantee Department, including debts that have been rescheduled after Paris Club agreements, and (ii) HM Treasury, broken down by country; and how much is expected to be received in each category in 2006-07. [114487]
Ed Balls: The following table shows how much was received by the Export Credits Guarantee Department from (a) low and (b) lower middle income countries in 2005-06 and how much is expected to be received in 2006-07. All amounts received and expected are in respect of debts that have been rescheduled after Paris Club agreements. There are no debts outstanding specifically to the Treasury.
| £ million | |||
| Category | Country | 2005-06 paid | 2006-07 expected |
| (1) Includes received and anticipated payments. | |||
To note that the receipt from Nigeria of £656.94 million was the final instalment paid under the terms of the 20 October 2005 Paris Club debt agreement that saw some $18 billion cancelled (equivalent to about 60 per cent. of Nigeria’s debt in the Paris Club) in return for Nigeria using part of its oil windfall to pay off its remaining debt. This debt deal represented the largest single debt relief package ever for sub-Saharan Africa.
ECOFIN
Dr. Cable: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) pursuant to the written statement of 14 December 2006, Official Report, column 93WS, on ECOFIN (28 November), what conclusions were reached on company tax obstacles hindering the functioning of the internal market; and if he will make a statement; [116221]
(2) if he will make a statement on the conclusions reached on future work to combat tax fraud; [116222]
(3) if he will make a statement on the agreement reached on the Travellers’ Allowance Directive; [116223]
(4) if he will make a statement on the agreement reached on an extension of the 2003 e-commerce arrangements; [116225]
(5) if he will make a statement on the conclusions adopted on reducing administrative burdens caused by requirements to report data in the European Union; [116247]
(6) if he will make a statement on the conclusions reached on future work to combat tax fraud; [116249]
(7) if he will make a statement on the European Commission’s (a) presentation on its approach to and (b) conclusions on tackling barriers in the clearing and settlement industry; [116271]
(8) if he will make a statement on the Finnish progress report on the directive on payment services in the internal market; [116272]
(9) if he will make a statement on the issues discussed relating to the minimum excise rates on alcoholic beverages; [116274]
(10) what future work programme was agreed for the Code of Conduct Group on Business Taxation; and if he will make a statement; [116232]
(11) if he will make a statement on the Commission’s assessment of the company tax obstacles hindering the function of the internal market; [116233]
(12) what subjects were covered in the progress report from the Code of Conduct Group on Business Taxation; and if he will make a statement; [116234]
(13) in what ways he and his EU counterparts will work together to modernise and simplify the VAT system; and if he will make a statement. [116235]
Dawn Primarolo: Written ministerial statements are tabled before and after Council meetings. Further details of what was agreed at the Council, and the Council Conclusions, are available at the ECOFIN section of the Council website:
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