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25 Apr 2007 : Column 1128W—continued
Doctors: Training
Mr. Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the evidential basis was for the decision on the relative proportion of speciality training and fixed term speciality training posts in Northern Ireland; and by whom the decision was made. [133705]
Paul Goggins: The decision on the proportion of speciality training and fixed terms speciality training posts in NI was based on work force planning projections. The decision was made by my Department in conjunction with the Northern Ireland Medical and Dental Training Agency.
Mr. Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the cost has been of (a) modernising medical careers in Northern Ireland and (b) the Medical Training Application Service in Northern Ireland. [133706]
Paul Goggins: The total cost attributed to Modernising Medical Careers is £1.7 million.
The total spend to date for the introduction of Modernising Medical Careers is £1.565 million. The Northern Ireland contribution to the Medical Training Application Service is £165,000.
Domestic Wastes
David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what (a) total and (b) average amount of domestic waste was produced per household in Northern Ireland in the last 12 months. [133926]
David Cairns: The latest complete and validated data for municipal waste is for the financial year 2005-06. This indicates that:
(a) The total amount of household waste arisings in Northern Ireland for 2005-06 was 937,331 tonnes.
(b) The average amount of waste collected per household in 2005-06 was 1.36 tonnes, equating to 26.2 kg per household per week.
EU Grants and Loans
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland which programmes have been funded in Northern Ireland from the PEACE budget of the European Regional Development Fund in the last 12 months. [133550]
Mr. Hanson: A list of projects awarded funding since April 2006 under the European Regional Development Fund measures of the PEACE II Programme has been placed in the Library of the House. In addition to this, 46 individuals have been awarded funding. Due to data protection considerations these names have not been included.
Fly Tipping
David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what discussions he has had in the last 12 months with Ministers from the government of the Republic of Ireland on illegal dumping in Northern Ireland of waste from the Republic of Ireland. [133925]
David Cairns: I discussed the matter of illegal cross-border waste movements at a meeting with Dick Roche, Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government in Ireland on 2 October 2006. Issues discussed, including enhanced co-operation between the relevant authorities on illegal waste movements, are being carried forward by officials in both jurisdictions.
Health Services
Mr. Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what steps are planned to be taken to ensure that sufficient medical staff are available to provide a high standard of patient care in Northern Ireland during the first week of August 2007. [133793]
Paul Goggins: The Northern Ireland Medical and Dental Training Agency is implementing a rigorous recruitment process that will be completed by the end of May. The best quality applicants will be appointed and will be in post by 1 August 2007.
International Fund for Ireland
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland which projects have been funded in Northern Ireland by the International Fund for Ireland in the last 12 months. [133548]
Mr. Hanson: The International Fund for Ireland is administered by an independent board appointed jointly by the British and Irish Governments and all matters pertaining to the projects supported by the fund are a matter for that board. I will forward the request to the chairman of the International Fund for Ireland and ask him to respond directly and I will place a copy of the reply in the House of Commons Library.
The fund’s annual reports list the projects funded. The 2006 report has been published and a copy has been placed in the House of Commons Library.
Local Government
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what powers and responsibilities he intends to devolve to councils in Northern Ireland. [132683]
David Cairns: Details are set out in statements made on 22 November 2005, Official Report, columns 106-111WS and on 21 March 2006, Official Report, columns 17-19WS.
Ministerial Visits
David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many days he spent in Northern Ireland on official business in each of the last 12 months; and on how many occasions he stayed overnight. [133621]
Mr. Hain: From April 2006 to March 2007 inclusive, I have spent 123 days in Northern Ireland. It is not appropriate to disclose details of where I spend my nights as this is considered personal information with security implications.
In addition to the time spent in Northern Ireland, I undertake NIO business in Parliament and in the Northern Ireland Office, London. As a member of the Cabinet I have additional duties including attending Cabinet meetings on Thursday mornings.
Northern Ireland Authority for Energy Regulation: Public Appointments
Mr. Grogan: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland whether the Commissioner for Public Appointments in Northern Ireland approved the procedure for the recent appointment of a board member of the Northern Ireland Authority for Energy Regulation. [133592]
Maria Eagle: The recent appointment by the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment to the board of the Northern Ireland Authority for Energy Regulation (since 1 April 2007 the Northern Ireland Authority for Utility Regulation) was carried out with the approval of the Commissioner for Public Appointments for NI (OCPANI), under the OCPANI monitored kitemark scheme.
Pedestrian Crossings: Bangor
Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (1) how many complaints his Department has received about the lack of pedestrian crossing provision on the High Donaghadee Road in Bangor, near to Montgomery Court; [133111]
(2) what assessment he has made of the health and safety implications of the lack of pedestrian crossing provision on the High Donaghadee Road in Bangor, near to Montgomery Court; [133115]
(3) if he will allocate funding to provide pedestrian crossing on the High Donaghadee Road in Bangor, near to Montgomery Court; [133116]
(4) what the (a) date, (b) time, (c) duration and (d) nature was of each survey carried out on the High Donaghadee Road in Bangor, near Montgomery Court, in order to assess the need for a pedestrian crossing in the provision at this location; [133389]
David Cairns: The Chief Executive of Roads Service (Dr. Malcolm McKibbin) has been asked to write to the hon. Lady in response to this question.
Letter from Dr. Malcolm McKibbin, dated 24 April 2007:
You recently asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland 4 Parliamentary Questions regarding:
how many complaints his Department has received about the lack of pedestrian crossing provision on the High Donaghadee Road in Bangor, near to Montgomery Court. (133111)
what assessment he has made of the health and safety implications of the lack of pedestrian crossing provision on the High Donaghadee Road in Bangor, near to Montgomery Court. (133115)
if he will allocate funding to provide pedestrian crossing on the High Donaghadee Road in Bangor, near to Montgomery Court. (133116)
what the (a) date, (b) time, (c) duration and (d) nature was of surveys carried out on the High Donaghadee Road in Bangor, near Montgomery Court, in order to assess the need or a pedestrian crossing in the provision of this location. (133389)
As this issue falls within my responsibility as Chief Executive of Roads Service, I have been asked to reply.
I should explain that Roads Service’s policy in relation to pedestrian crossings is to provide such facilities where there is an identifiable need and where the conditions at any potential site make it difficult for pedestrians and cyclists to cross the road. An integral part of the process is an assessment of the ‘demand’ and ‘difficulty’ of crossing the road at the location concerned. The initial part of our assessment process uses the number of pedestrians (the initial demand factor) and the volume of traffic (the initial difficulty factor) to give an indication of the potential ‘conflict’ at a site. The assessment of the need for a crossing is then supplemented using a scorecard, which assigns scores to various other ‘demand’ and ‘difficulty’ factors, including collision history at the site. This policy is designed to assess the need and to prioritise locations where pedestrians encounter difficulties in crossing the road due to the high volumes of vehicular traffic. This is applied consistently and impartially when assessing all requests in Northern Ireland, so that available funding can be directed at those with the greatest need.
With regard to the number of complaints received in relation to the lack of crossing facilities on the High Donaghadee Road between the roundabout with the East Circular road and the junction with the Ballycrochan Road, I can advise that since September 2005, five individuals have corresponded with Roads Service over this issue. In total these five people have written on nine occasions, with one resident including a petition of approximately 150 signatures. Roads Service has no record of complaints about the lack of pedestrian crossing facilities at this location prior to 2005.
In relation to health and safety implications, I am advised that survey observations, obtained as part of the process for determining the need for a controlled pedestrian crossing facility, concluded that there were a very small number of pedestrians wishing to cross the road at this location and as such, it was considered that there was little conflict between pedestrians and vehicular traffic.
In light of the survey findings, I am afraid that it is not possible to make funding available for a controlled pedestrian crossing facility at this location at this time. However, in such circumstances Roads Service may consider other measures to assist pedestrians, such as footway build-outs and central refuge islands, which shorten the crossing width and improve visibility thereby reducing the crossing difficulty. Central refuges can be particularly useful to vulnerable pedestrians such as elderly people.
I am pleased to advise you that Roads Service is presently designing such a scheme for this location. However, I have to stress that this proposal is at a very early stage and will require a degree of public consultation prior to the detailed layout being finalised. Hopefully we will be able to complete this work within the current financial year.
Finally, with regard to your enquiry for details of the surveys, I can advise that they were carried out on the High Donaghadee Road, between Ballymaconnell Road South and Ballycrochan Road, on 7 September 2005 between 8 and 10 am, on 3 October 2005 between 2 and 4 pm and on 5 October 2005 between 4 and 6 pm. Surveys were also carried out on the High Donaghadee Road, between Ashford Drive and Kilmaine Road, on 9 November 2005 between 4 and 6 pm and on 10 November 2005 between 8 and 10 am. These surveys involved the counting of vehicles passing along the High Donaghadee Road and the numbers of pedestrians crossing within 50m either side of the centre of the survey zone.
Public Libraries: Bangor
Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what assessment has been made by his Department of the adequacy of the public library provision in Bangor; and if he will make a statement. [133108]
Maria Eagle: Responsibility for delivering the Northern Ireland public library service, including securing appropriate library accommodation for this area, rests with the South Eastern Education and Library Board (SEELB).
DCAL has approved funding for a major extension and refurbishment of the existing Bangor library. The enhanced library will provide accommodation of over 2,000m(2) making it one of the largest public libraries in Northern Ireland.
The SEELB had to decant from Bangor library at the end of March 2007 to facilitate the commencement of this work. Arrangements are being made for the library to open in temporary premises in two units in the Flagship shopping centre from 21 May 2007 for the duration of the contract. Until 21 May, a library service will be provided from a mobile library outside the Hamilton road library. Information on these temporary arrangements has been made widely available by the SEELB.
Religious Persons
David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland on how many occasions in the last 12 months (a) he and (b) other Ministers in his Department have met leaders of (i) the Presbyterian Church, (ii) the Roman Catholic Church, (iii) the Church of Ireland, (iv) the Methodist Church, (v) the Baptist Union of Ireland, (vi) the Free Presbyterian Church, (vii) the Elim Pentecostal Church, (viii) the Reformed Presbyterian Church (ix) the Congregational Union of Ireland, (x) the Evangelican Alliance (xi) Evangelical Continuation in Northern Ireland and (xi) the Caleb Foundation. [132889]
Mr. Hain: I have met church leaders on numerous occasions as have my Ministers in my Department. Ministers and civil servants meet a large number of people and groups in the course of their official duties. It is not normal practice to disclose the detail of such meetings.
Sexual Offences
David Simpson:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many people were (a) prosecuted
and (b) convicted on charges relating to having sexual intercourse with an underage person in each district command unit of the Police Service of Northern Ireland in each of the last three years; what percentage of these cases resulted in a custodial sentence; and what the average length of the prison term was. [132151]
Mr. Hanson: Data relating to the number of prosecutions and convictions for sexual intercourse with an underage person are not collected. It is only possible to provide information for those offences which, by their definition, identify a child as the victim of buggery and unlawful carnal knowledge.
Table 1 gives the number of prosecutions and convictions for buggery and unlawful carnal knowledge offences by District Command Unit for the calendar years 2003 to 2005.
Due to small numbers of prosecutions and convictions in each District Command Unit, the average length of those sentenced to immediate custody has not been provided for individual District Command Units. Tables 2 to 4 document the total number prosecuted and convicted, the number and percentage sentenced to immediate custody and the average sentence length in months for these offences in each of the three years.
Data are collated on the principal offence rule; thus only the most serious offence with which an offender is charged is included.
| Table 1: Number of prosecution and convictions for buggery and unlawful carnal knowledge offences by District Command Unit 2003-05( 1,2,3,4,5,6) | ||||||
| 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | ||||
| Prosecuted | Convicted | Prosecuted | Convicted | Prosecuted | Convicted | |
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