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26 Nov 2007 : Column 160W—continued
Adult Education: Oxfordshire
Tony Baldry: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills how many adult learner accounts have been taken up in Oxfordshire since September. [167173]
Mr. Lammy: As of 22 November 2007 a total of 791 adult learner accounts had been opened by learners in the trial LSC areas of the South East and East Midlands: 38 of these were opened by individuals in Oxfordshire.
As outlined in “World Class Skills: Implementing the Leitch Review of Skills in England” (July 07), the evaluation of these trials will inform the development of Skills Accounts to give adult learners greater choice, purchasing power and control over their learning, and to drive forward the implementation of demand-led funding within further education.
Anti-Semitism
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills how many officials from his Department, broken down by grade, attended the cross-government working group on anti-Semitism on 15 November; and if he will make a statement. [167394]
Bill Rammell: I understand that you have already received a reply from the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Department for Communities and Local Government on this question as the lead on cohesion matters. That reply sets out that the cross-government working group did not meet on the 15, but the meeting that took place was between the Parliamentary Under Secretary, his officials and representatives from key Jewish organizations. My officials did not participate in that meeting.
I can assure you that my Department deplores any acts of racial or religious intolerance in higher education. We are committed to tackling any form of anti-Semitism and racial intolerance in general. Although higher education institutions have primary responsibility for ensuring equal opportunities and for abiding by legislation in this area, the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills is committed to encouraging the higher education sector to ensure that discrimination has no place in any of its policies or practices.
Apprentices: Advisory Services
Tony Baldry: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills who will be responsible for providing information on apprenticeships for those aged over 25 years to (a) employers and (b) job seekers. [167162]
Mr. Lammy: Free impartial advice is available for employers, employees and job seekers through the “learndirect” and “next step” services, operated by the Learning and Skills Council. In addition, “Train to Gain” skills brokers provide specialised support to business on their skill needs, including apprenticeships.
In “World Class Skills” (Cmnd 7181), published in July, we announced the creation of a new universal adult careers service. The unified service will work closely with Job Centre Plus. It will provide free access to every adult in England to a wide range of information, including apprenticeships, and will be fully operational from 2010-11.
Apprentices: Lancashire
Mr. Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills how many new apprenticeships were created in (a) Ribble Valley and (b) Lancashire in each of the last three years. [168307]
Mr. Lammy: Figures for those participating in apprenticeships can be derived from the Learning and Skills Council’s (LSC) individualised Learner Record (ILR). The table shows the cumulative number of apprenticeship starts from August-July in each year in Lancashire local LSC area. (These figures are not readily available at parliamentary constituency level).
| Thousand | ||
| Advanced apprenticeships | Apprenticeships | |
Apprentices: Oxfordshire
Tony Baldry: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills (1) how many modern apprenticeships he expects to be started in the (a) Oxford and (b) Banbury travel to work area in each of the next three years; [167165]
(2) how many of the new 281,000 apprenticeships for 16 to 18-year-olds he expects to be made available in Oxfordshire. [167176]
Mr. Lammy: Our apprenticeship data models do not have the level of detail for local areas so we are unable to answer these questions.
Assessments: Per Capita Costs
Mr. Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills what the average net marginal cost was of a student taking (a) a GCSE in English literature, (b) a GCSE in English language, (c) a GCSE in mathematics, (d) an A-level in English literature, (e) an A-level in English language and (f) an A-level in mathematics at a further education college in the latest period for which figures are available. [166892]
Bill Rammell: We do not hold information on the net marginal cost of providing courses to learners in further education colleges. Colleges may identify this cost in their internal financial records but there is no requirement on them to share it with the Department or with the Learning and Skills Council.
The Learning and Skills Council funds all colleges on the basis of a national funding formula which includes base funding rates for all qualifications. The base funding rates the Learning and Skills Council will offer to further education colleges in respect of each learner undertaking the courses identified in this question in 2007-08 are:
| £ | ||
| Funding rate for each 16-18 year old learner in 2007-08 | Funding rate for each 19+ year old learner in 2007-08 | |
| (1)Colleges receive this full funding rate for 19+ year old learners eligible for full fee remission in 2007-08. Where 19+ year old learners are not eligible for full fee remission the rate offered by the Learning and Skills Council is reduced and the college will ask the learner to contribute a proportion of the course fee. | ||
Burgess Report
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills how much his Department has spent in implementing recommendations of the Burgess report since its publication. [165530]
Bill Rammell: The Department has not spent any money on implementing Burgess recommendations.
The Burgess Group’s final report on proposals for national credit arrangements was published in December 2006 and the Group’s final report on measuring and recording student achievement was published in October 2007. The Burgess Group was an HE sector group and the recommendations are for implementation by the HE sector. Work on the credit recommendations is being taken forward by a sector-led Credit Issues Development Group. Universities UK and Guild HE are currently considering their response to the report on measuring and recording student achievement.
On recording achievement, I welcome the proposal to develop a Higher Education Achievement Report, to help present a more complete picture of a graduate’s skills and knowledge than is captured solely in the overall degree classification. However, I believe progress can best be made by building on the current system, and certainly not by replacing degree classifications. The HE sector will need to consider carefully the best way to provide the additional information, while maintaining stability in the system.
Chemistry: Graduates
Stephen Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills how many people graduated with chemistry degrees in (a) 2005 and (b) 2007. [166748]
Bill Rammell: The latest available information is shown in the table. Figures for 2006/07 will be available in January 2008.
The latest figures published by the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) show that the number of students who have been accepted for entry to full-time undergraduate courses in chemistry in autumn 2007 is up by nearly 9 per cent. compared to 2006, and is up by nearly 13 per cent. compared to 2005.
| First degrees obtained in chemistry, English higher education institutions, academic year 2004/05 to 2005/06 | |
| Academic year | Number |
| Note: Figures have been rounded to the nearest five. Source: Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA). | |
Departmental Catering
Mr. Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills what percentage of (a) beef, (b) lamb, (c) pork and (d) dairy products used in his departmental headquarters were imported products in the most recent period for which figures are available. [166651]
Mr. Lammy: For the period 1 January to 30 June 2007 the percentage of imported beef, sheep meat, pork and dairy products used within DIUS headquarters buildings was 84 per cent. of beef, 93 per cent. of lamb, 76 per cent. of pork and 7 per cent. of dairy products.
Departmental Manpower
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills how many civil servants in his Department and its predecessors (a) transferred to other Government Departments and (b) left the Civil Service in each of the last five years. [162728]
Mr. Lammy: The Department was formed in the Machinery of Government changes announced on 28 June 2007. Its formation involved the headcount transfer of 536 staff from the former Department for Education and Skills and 243 from the Department of Trade and Industry (total 779 staff). There have been no significant numbers of staff movements or departures since that date. The latest staffing figure for my Department is a headcount total of 761 staff or full-time equivalent of 727.
Departmental Ministerial Policy Advisors
Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills whether any of his Department’s special advisers have declared a conflict of interest; and if he will make a statement. [164160]
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills whether any of his Department’s special advisers have declared a conflict of interest. [164511]
Mr. Lammy: Special advisers are appointed under terms and conditions set out in the “Model Contract for Special Advisers”. Copies of the Model Contract are available in the House Libraries.
Departmental Public Participation
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills what estimate he has made of the likely cost of student policy juries in 2007-08. [164850]
Bill Rammell: In October, John Denham announced an ambitious listening programme which will put the voices of England’s 2.3 million university students at the heart of Government. This new approach will ensure students are able to make their views and ideas heard through a range of mechanisms with Ministers responding to specific issues raised.
The student juries being run between now and Christmas are one element of the student listening programme. Costs for the five student juries, to be held in November and December 2007, have been budgeted at £20,000 in total (excluding VAT). We will also pay participants’ reasonable expenses.
Departmental Publicity
Mr. Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills how many full-time equivalent staff are responsible for brand management and marketing in his Department and its agencies. [165241]
Mr. Lammy: DIUS currently employs a team of 7.2 FTE staff who are responsible for marketing and brand management. The team is responsible for marketing campaigns through the paid-for media—TV, press, radio—such as the current Student Finance Campaign—as well as delivery of DIUS information through key channels publications and the corporate website. The team ensures that appropriate branding is visible on all DIUS communications.
National Weights and Measures Laboratory
National Weights and Measures Laboratory employs 0.4 FTE staff responsible for brand management and marketing.
The only marketing undertaken in the UK-IPO is in relation to commercial services where 1.6 staff are currently engaged. Brand management is a very small part of the activity—less than 0.2 FTE.
For a limited time, one person from IPO was recently seconded to support the branding of a newly formed DIUS. This secondment will cease at the end of this year.
Departmental Questions
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills how many and what percentage of questions tabled for answer on a named day to his Department received a substantive answer on the day due in the last year for which figures are available. [162614]
Mr. Lammy: The Department’s PQ tracking system is currently unable to break down the data requested and to do so would incur disproportionate cost. This Department aims to ensure that Members receive a substantive response to their named day question on the named day, and endeavours to answer ordinary written questions within a working week of being tabled. Unfortunately, this is not always possible, but this Department makes every effort to achieve these time scales.
Educational Institutions: Registration
Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills how many colleges and other educational establishments were (a) investigated and (b) subsequently removed from the Government Register of Educational Providers in relation to immigration-related considerations in the latest period for which figures are available. [163788]
Bill Rammell:
The Register of Education and Training Providers was established on 1 January 2005. Since that date, all colleges which want to recruit international students need to appear on the Register. The Home Office will not grant anyone leave to enter or remain in the UK unless he or she is studying at a
provider on the Register. The operation of the Register therefore directly helps the Home Office tackle immigration abuse in the education sector.
Since 1 January 2005, 256 colleges on the Register of Education and Training Providers have been investigated by the Borders and Immigration Agency. Of these, 114 have been found to be in breach of the Immigration Rules, and therefore removed from the Register.
General Elections
Mr. Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills what contingency preparations his Department made for the possibility of a general election in autumn 2007; and what the costs were of those preparations. [166894]
Mr. Lammy: Officials keep under review, and update, the stock of corporate briefing. No additional briefing was prepared in respect of any prospect of a general election in the autumn. We have not been able to identify any costs incurred in relation to any preparations and do not believe that any were incurred.
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