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22 Nov 2007 : Column 1060W—continued
Whales: Japan
Mr. Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) what steps he plans to take in response to Japan’s resumption of whaling; [167140]
(2) what his policy is on Japan’s resumption of whaling; and if he will make a statement; [167141]
(3) what recent discussions he has had with his EU counterparts on Japan’s resumption of whaling. [167142]
Jonathan Shaw: The UK, together with a majority of members of the International Whaling Commission (IWC), has consistently criticised Japan for its lethal whaling operations, authorised under special permits (so called ‘scientific’ whaling) and urged Japan to desist from these operations forthwith.
Like most IWC members, we do not believe that lethal scientific research can be justified: there are perfectly adequate non-lethal alternatives which could secure the information required by the IWC for stock assessment and management purposes. The whale meat and other products from this so-called ‘scientific’ whaling are sold domestically in Japanese markets and restaurants. These whaling operations severely hamper international efforts to conserve and protect whales, and clearly demonstrate that these programmes are driven by commercial, rather than scientific considerations.
Japan’s proposal to kill 50 humpback whales, a species that remains on the World Conservation Union’s (IUCN) List of Threatened Species, is nothing less than outrageous. We will continue to make our opposition to whaling known to Japan at every appropriate opportunity, and argue that Japanese action undermines the credibility of the IWC as an effective organisation for the conservation of whale stocks worldwide.
Whaling is not an issue on which the European Union (EU) exercises competence. As such, it is not generally a subject for discussion at meetings of EU Ministers.
At official level, we do have regular contact with other like-minded countries, including those EU countries who are, like the UK, parties to the International Convention on the Regulation of Whaling and thus members of the IWC.
Scotland
Act of Union 1707: Anniversaries
Tony Baldry: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what plans the Government have for celebrating the Act of Union of 1707. [165060]
David Cairns: The Government have supported a number of commemorative events to celebrate the Act of Union of 1707, including:
a commemorative two-pound coin;
an historical exhibition, “Making the Act of Union 1707”, in the Royal Gallery, House of Lords, which then transferred to the Scottish Parliament.
a treaty of union debating competition organised by the English-Speaking Union;
an arts outreach project on the theme “Tales of the United Kingdom” organised by The Prince of Wales's Arts & Kids Foundation;
a plaque commemorating the Act of Union 1707 in St. Stephen's Hall in the Palace of Westminster; and
the naming of a mainline train, “Treaty of Union”.
Burglary: Self-Defence
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland when he last met the Advocate-General to discuss the use of self-defence in cases of burglary. [167558]
David Cairns: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has regular meetings with my noble Friend the Advocate-General, where they discuss a wide range of issues.
Departmental Manpower
Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland (1) how many reports have been made to his Department’s nominated officers under paragraph 16 of the revised Civil Service Code since its publication on 6 June 2006; [162453]
(2) how many allegations of victimisation for whistleblowing have been reported to his Department by departmental staff since 6 June 2006; [162454]
(3) when his Department’s whistleblowing procedures were reviewed to reflect the provisions in the revised Civil Service Code. [162455]
David Cairns: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my hon. Friend, the Parliamentary Secretary at the Cabinet Office (Gillian Merron), on 19 November 2007, Official Report, column 597W.
Danny Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many people aged (a) 30 to 39, (b) 40 to 49, (c) 50 to 59 and (d) 60 to 69 years have (i) applied for jobs, (ii) received interviews and (iii) gained (A) temporary and (B) permanent jobs in his Department in 2007. [165115]
David Cairns: The Scotland Office does not directly appoint staff; they are seconded from other Departments. The Office has no information on the ages of individuals who have applied to these Departments.
Departmental Official Hospitality
David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what entertainment or hospitality members of the Department's management board have received in each of the last three financial years; and if he will make a statement. [164744]
David Cairns: Paragraph 4.3.5 of the Civil Service Management Code sets out the rules on the registration of hospitality. The Government are committed to publishing an annual list of hospitality received by members of departmental boards. The first list for 2007 will be published as soon as it is ready after the end of the current calendar year.
Departmental Opinion Polls
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what opinion polls the Department has conducted of (a) the public and (b) staff since 27 June 2007; and what the (i) name of the firm employed to conduct the poll, (ii) purpose and (iii) cost to the public purse was in each case. [164943]
Departmental Publicity
Mr. Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many full-time equivalent staff are responsible for brand management and marketing in his Department. [165208]
Mr. Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland (1) how much his Department and its agencies spent on staff working on (a) marketing and (b) branding in the last 12 month period for which figures are available; [167297]
(2) how much his Department and its agencies spent on managing their corporate identities in the last 12 month period for which figures are available. [167342]
Departmental Repairs and Maintenance
David T.C. Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how much has been spent by his Department on renovation and refurbishment of its properties in each of the last five years. [164366]
David Cairns: The Scotland Office does not separately identify the costs of renovation and refurbishment from the routine repair and replacement of existing facilities. Over the period of the last five years, the Office has shared its accommodation with a number of other Government Departments. The figures in the following table show the gross total for repairs and maintenance of Scotland Office buildings but do not include the contribution by the Departments towards their share of the costs.
| £ | |
Departmental Standards
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland when he expects to publish his Department’s autumn performance report. [164865]
David Cairns: The Scotland Office has no public service agreements; the Office's performance indicators are published in our annual report.
Scottish Language
Mr. MacNeil: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what steps have been taken by the Government to comply with the recommendations of the report of the Committee of Experts on the Charter for Minority and Regional Languages in respect of Scottish Gaelic and Scots. [162784]
David Cairns: [holding answer 12 November 2007]: Implementation of the Charter for Minority and Regional Languages falls, in the main, to the devolved administrations of the Welsh Assembly Government, the Scottish Executive and the Northern Ireland Executive.
The Scotland Office, along with DCMS and relevant stakeholders, including the BBC, are working to establish a dedicated Gaelic digital service to be launched next year. This new service will help meet the cultural, linguistic and educational needs of the Gaelic community and promote the benefits to the wider community.
Scottish Parliament: Elections
David Mundell: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will publish minutes of meetings held with Scotland Office Ministers and the Ron Gould Scottish Elections review team. [165814]
David Cairns
[holding answer 19 November 2007]: The one meeting between Scotland Office Ministers and Ron Gould plus his review team was a private discussion and no agreed minute was taken. A note drawn up for internal purposes only covered the seven key issue areas which Gould made the focus of his review. Also discussed was Mr. Gould’s request to have access to ballot paper images to assist in his analysis of
rejected papers. I will provide to the Scottish Affairs Committee, to assist them with their discussions, the timelines for legislation and ballot paper design that were requested by Ron Gould as written evidence from the Scotland Office.
Home Department
Alcoholic Drinks: Peterborough
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people were prosecuted for selling alcohol to minors in (a) Peterborough constituency and (b) Peterborough city council area in each year since 1997. [165916]
Mr. Coaker: Between the years of 1997-2005 only one person was proceeded against for the illegal sale of alcohol to minors in Peterborough petty sessional area. The proceeding took place in 2005 and the defendant was found guilty. The data provided cannot identify whether the defendant was a resident of Peterborough.
Information broken down by (a) constituency and (b) local council area are not held by the ministry of justice.
In addition to court proceedings, the offence of illegal sale of alcohol to minors can attract a penalty notice for disorder (PND), PND data are only available broken down by police force area.
Information for 2006 will be available at the end of November 2007.
Alcoholic Drinks: Young People
Mr. Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many confiscations by police of alcohol and alcohol containers from under-age drinkers under the Confiscation of Alcohol (Young Persons) Act 1997 have taken place in each of the last five years in (a) England and Wales and (b) each police force area. [165665]
Mr. Coaker: The Home Office does not routinely record or hold this information.
Arrests: Terrorism
Mr. Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people have been (a) arrested for and (b) convicted of terrorist offences in each of the last five years. [166493]
Mr. McNulty [holding answer 20 November 2007]: Information on the number of arrests and convictions for terrorist offences for people in respect of whom legal proceedings are not active is not available as the information is not collated in this way.
Latest UK police terrorism arrest statistics (excluding Northern Ireland) from 11 September 2001 to 31 March 2007 show 1,228 arrests were made: of which there have been 41 Terrorism Act convictions and 183 convictions under other legislation. Statistics are available on the Home Office website at:
Civil Service: Pay
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the Civil Service pay band is for Louise Casey. [164803]
Gillian Merron: I have been asked to reply.
Louise Casey is a senior civil service pay band 2. An explanation of pay bands for senior civil servants can be found in the Review Body of Senior Salaries latest report, which is available on the civil service website at:
Convictions: Rape
Jo Swinson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will publish the results of her Department’s study of differential rape convictions and detection rates in eight police force areas in England and Wales. [166409]
Mr. Coaker [holding answer 20 November 2007]: Home Office Online Report 18/7 ‘Investigating and Detecting Recorded Offences of Rape’ was published on 20 July 2007. It is available on the Home Office website.
Crime: Young People
Matthew Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate she has made of the cost of crimes committed by persons aged between 16 and 25 years in (a) Cornwall, (b) each parliamentary constituency in Cornwall and (c) England in each year since 1979. [166713]
Mr. Coaker: Estimates of the cost of crimes committed by persons aged between 16 and 25 years in (a) Cornwall, (b) each parliamentary constituency in Cornwall and (c) England are not routinely calculated, and could be provided in part and only at disproportionate cost.
Domestic Violence: Wales
Mr. Touhig: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many women in Wales have reported incidents of domestic violence in each of the last five years; and what measures are in place to support women who report domestic violence. [165985]
Mr. Coaker: The Welsh Assembly Government have put in place a domestic abuse strategy for Wales.
One of the key aims of the strategy is to increase the number of incidents reported to the police so that action can be taken to prevent repeat victimisation. The indications are that there has been some success with this. Police recorded incidents in Wales are up to nearly 35,000 in 2006-07, from 26,854 in 2002-03.
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