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Genetics: Databases

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people whose DNA is held on the national database that have committed no offence are (a) male and (b) female; and if she will make a statement. [162218]

Meg Hillier: On 31 October 2007, there were an estimated 4,188,033 individuals with a DNA profile retained on the National DNA Database (NDNAD). This includes approximately 22,700 persons who had provided a DNA profile voluntarily. Of the 4.18 million
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persons, 3,938,156 persons were sampled by police forces in England and Wales. These figures were obtained from the NDNAD.

Data on arrest and criminal histories are not held on the NDNAD, but are held on the Police National Computer (PNC). Such data are not available routinely at present, but the National Policing Improvement Agency which has responsibility for the delivery of NDNAD services is working towards being able to provide such data regularly from the NDNAD and PNC.

Data obtained from the PNC on 31 October indicate that 3,637,163 (of the 3,938,156) persons had a record retained on PNC. Of these, 3,117,942 persons had a conviction, caution, formal warning or reprimand(1) recorded on the PNC (79 per cent. of persons on the NDNAD sampled by forces in England and Wales); and 519,221 persons (13 per cent. of persons on the NDNAD sampled by forces in England and Wales) had no current conviction, caution, formal warning or reprimand recorded on PNC. The latter figure comprises some persons who may have had a caution or conviction record removed from PNC after five to 10 years in accordance with the Rules for Criminal Record Weeding (which applied prior to April 2006); persons who have been charged and acquitted or proceedings discontinued; persons who have been charged with a recordable offence and proceedings are ongoing; and persons who have been arrested but no further action was taken against them. The PNC records for the other 300,993 persons (8 per cent. of persons on the NDNAD) had been removed from the PNC for various reasons, for example, their conviction and caution records had been weeded after five-10 years, the person had been acquitted or proceedings were discontinued. No breakdown is available of the number of males and females who have a profile on the NDNAD but who have not been convicted, cautioned etc. These data could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Passports

Mr. Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what percentage of passports were renewed more than a year before the expiry date in the latest period for which figures are available. [171876]

Meg Hillier: This question can only be answered in relation to adult renewal passports, the required data for child renewal passports is not currently available.

For all adult passports renewed during the 2006 calendar year a proportion of 3.1 per cent. were renewed more than 12 months prior to expiry.

Prosecutions: Licensing

John Cummings: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) prosecutions and (b) convictions there were in Easington constituency for the illegal sale of alcohol from off licence premises in each year since 2000. [172766]


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Mr. Coaker: Data on prosecutions and convictions held by the Ministry of Justice are not broken down by constituency area. The data show that no prosecutions took place in Easington local criminal justice area or North Durham (which Easington was amalgamated into in 2002), for the illegal sale of alcohol in off-licence premises from 2000-06.

Innovation, Universities and Skills

Apprentices

Mr. Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills what estimate his Department has made of the number of (a) apprenticeships, (b) level two apprenticeships and (c) advanced apprenticeships there are likely to be in 2010-11, broken down by age group (i) 16 to 18, (ii) 19 to 25 and (iii) over 25-year-olds. [173558]

Mr. Lammy: Planned apprenticeship volumes by academic year to 2010/11 were published in the Learning and Skills Council's Statement of Priorities on 16 November 2007, available at http://readingroom.lsc.gov.uk/lsc/National /nat-statementofpriorities-nov07.pdf. The breakdown is available by 16 to 18 and 19+ only, and not by level.

Departmental Data Protection

Mr. Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills how many employees of each grade in his Department (a) have access to confidential or sensitive data and (b) are authorised to download such data to disk; how many of his Department's employees have undergone data protection training in the last 12 months; what the average length of time is that each employee of (i) his Department and (ii) his Department's agencies has spent on data protection training; how many investigations of employees of his Department for improperly accessing confidential information have taken place in the last 12 months; how many such investigations resulted in cases of disciplinary action; and what the circumstances of each of those cases were. [168277]

Mr. Lammy: I refer the hon. Member to the statement made by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister on 21 November 2007, Official Report, column 1179. The review by the Cabinet Secretary and security experts is looking at procedures within Departments and agencies for the storage and use of data. A statement on Departments' procedures will be made on completion of the review.

Departmental ICT

Gordon Banks: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills which manufacturers' software is used in his Department. [167226]

Mr. Lammy: The Department currently shares software with the Department for Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform and the Department for Children, Schools and Families. The following list provides the names of manufacturers providing software applications to Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform.


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Departmental Procurement

Mr. Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills whether the standard terms and conditions of purchase used by his Department in procurement of goods and services from the private sector prohibits the assignment of debt. [172316]

Mr. Lammy: The Department's standard terms and conditions for the purchase of goods and services do not specifically mention the prohibition of the assignment of debt. They do include a clause stating that the benefit and burden of the contract may not be assigned or sub-contracted in whole or in part by the contractor without the prior written consent of the Department.

Wales

Departmental Manpower

Mrs. May: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many (a) men and (b) women of each Civil Service grade are employed by his Department. [172734]

Mr. Hain: The Wales Office published the numbers of staff by grade in its departmental annual report, which is available online at www.walesoffice.gov.uk or in the House Library.

Figures for the number of women in each grade are also provided.

Culture, Media and Sport

Arts: Finance

Dan Rogerson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what his Department’s public service agreement targets are for arts inclusion following the comprehensive spending review settlement. [168865]

James Purnell: HM Treasury announced in the comprehensive spending review that from April 2008 there would be 30 public service agreements (PSAs) setting out priority outcomes for the Government as a whole. The percentage of people who participate in culture and sport is one of the indicators for PSA21: Build more cohesive, empowered and active communities.

My Department has also published its new Departmental Strategic Objectives (DSO), the first of which is Opportunity: encourage more widespread enjoyment of culture, media and sport. Detailed indicators for this DSO are currently being developed and will be published in due course.

Christmas

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport whether it is his Department’s policy to use (a) incandescent light bulbs and (b) LED lights for festive decorations on departmental premises. [173505]


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Mr. Sutcliffe: The Department currently uses incandescent light bulbs for festive decorations on three Christmas trees inside its buildings. However in line with the Department’s policy to use energy efficient light fittings, we will purchase LED lights when we need to replace them.

The Department does not have any external festive decorations.

Sports: Schools

Mr. Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps his Department are taking to encourage school students to participate in competitive sport. [173460]

Mr. Sutcliffe: Increasing inter and intra-school sporting opportunities is a key component of the National School Sport Strategy, which is delivered jointly by the Department for Children, Schools and Families and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.

The 2006-07 School Sport Survey showed that:

Earlier this year, the Prime Minister announced extra funding to extend the number of Competition Managers to at least 225 by the beginning of 2009. Competition Managers will work with Governing Bodies and School Sport Associations to create a stronger framework for competitive sport and increase the amount of competitive sport in primary and secondary schools.

As part of this work, our Secretary of State has chaired two summits with Governing Bodies and School Sport Associations to discuss the development of world class junior competition frameworks in their sports.

In addition, we are introducing a new National School Sport Week, championed by Dame Kelly Holmes, to encourage all schools to run sports days and tournaments. This will build on the success of the UK School Games and its impact on motivating young people to take part in competitive sport.

Olympics

Departmental Foreign Workers

David Simpson: To ask the Minister for the Olympics how many (a) EU foreign nationals and (b) non-EU foreign nationals are employed by her Office. [168093]

Tessa Jowell: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to him by my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Secretary for the Cabinet Office (Gillian Merron) on 28 November 2007, Official Report, column 442W.

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