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17 July 2007 : Column 343Wcontinued
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills what total amount of compensation claims was made against public bodies for which his Department is responsible in the last 12 months; and if he will list the 10 highest such claims, identifying the nature of each case. [148185]
Mr. Lammy: This information is not held centrally by the Department and can be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills if he will make a statement on his policy on support for minority groups within his Department. [148206]
Mr. Lammy: The Department was established on 28 June 2007 but, like predecessor Departments, we will be putting an equality and diversity delivery plan in place as a key part of our human resources strategy.
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills if he will list the (a) national and (b) European court cases since 1997 whose judgements have required a change in policy by his Department. [148217]
Mr. Lammy: The information requested is not routinely collated and so could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills how many complaints of racial abuse relating to staff for which his Department is responsible have been (a) investigated and (b) upheld in the last 12 months. [149250]
Mr. Lammy: No complaints of racial abuse were investigated in the Department in the last 12 months. Formal complaints of racial abuse would be investigated quickly and thoroughly and, where complaints were upheld, appropriate disciplinary action would be taken. All cases are treated seriously.
The Department believes that each and every individual has the right to be treated fairly, with dignity and respect. As such, we do not tolerate unacceptable behaviour towards others. The overall aim of our harassment and bullying policy is to prevent such unacceptable behaviour occurring but, where it does occur, to ensure that appropriate and effective action is taken to deal with it and prevent it happening again. This applies to everyone in the Department. Every individual is personally responsible for their own behaviour, and every manager is responsible for enforcing the policy in accordance with the guidance and procedures set out in our staff handbook.
Mr. Boris Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills how much funding each relevant education institution received for improving retention in each of the last 10 years. [149092]
Bill Rammell: The Higher Education Funding Council for England allocates funding directly to higher education institutions towards the costs of widening participation activities. Since 2003-04 this allocation has included an element for improving retention, which is intended to increase student success. I have arranged for a table to be placed in the House of Commons Library detailing the amounts of funding allocated to each institution for the four years from 2003-04 to 2006-07. There was no specific allocation to institutions for improving retention prior to 2003-04: institutions then, as now, were expected to support student retention activities from within their overall block grant.
Student success within institutions arises from a wide range of factors including teaching quality and student support services. Supporting student success is therefore intrinsically linked with the total investment that institutions make, of which the improving retention element of the widening participation allocation is just one part.
Mr. Boris Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills what plans he has to encourage more UK-domiciled graduates to study at postgraduate level. [149034]
Bill Rammell: Between 1996-97 and 2005-06, the latest year for which data are available, the number of UK domiciled students entering higher education to study at postgraduate level rose by 35,000 (26 per cent.) to 170,000. We will continue to support our world-class higher education system so that it remains attractive to students, whatever their background.
Mr. Boris Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills how many and what percentage of postgraduates were from socioeconomic classes four to seven in each of the last 10 years, broken down by subject. [149033]
Bill Rammell: The latest information for enrolments on postgraduate courses by subject of study are given in the tables. A new classification for recording subject of study was introduced in 2002-03 and so figures from 2002-03 onwards are not comparable to earlier years.
Figures for postgraduate enrolments by social class are not available.
Number of UK domiciled postgraduate enrolments at higher education institutions in England (excluding the Open University) by subject of study, 1995/96 to 2001/02 | |||||||
Subject of study | 1995/96 | 1996/97 | 1997/98 | 1998/99 | 1999/2000 | 2000/01 | 2001/02 |
Note: Figures are on a snapshot basis as at 1 December excluding those writing up, on sabbatical or dormant. Students from the Open University are also excluded from the analysis. Figures are rounded to the nearest 5. Source: Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) student record |
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