Written Answers to Questions
Tuesday 5 February 2008
Leader of the House
Regional Ministers: Oral Questions
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Leader of the House what plans she has to bring forward proposals for regional Ministers to respond to oral questions from hon. Members. [184618]
Helen Goodman: I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer given on 26 November 2007, Official Report, column 133W.
Written Questions
Robert Neill: To ask the Leader of the House if she will place in the Library a copy of the internal guidance given to civil servants and Ministers on the use of ministerial corrections; and in what cases an incorrect answer to a written parliamentary question should be corrected via (a) a written ministerial statement and (b) a ministerial correction. [184009]
Helen Goodman: A copy of the guidance requested was deposited in the Library to coincide with the written ministerial statement issued by my right hon. and learned Friend the Leader of the House on 18 October 2007 entitled “Corrections to the Official Report and publication of NDPB letters in Hansard”.
The guidance is also available on the Leader’s office website:
Scotland
Departmental Consultants
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what consultancy contracts his Department issued in each year since 2005; what the (a) value, (b) purpose and (c) contractor was in each case; and whether the consultant's report is publicly available in each case. [181897]
David Cairns: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to my right hon. Friend the Member for Oldham, West and Royton (Mr. Meacher) on 3 July 2007, Official Report, column 959W.
Official Engagements
Dr. Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what his official engagements were between 11 December 2007 and 13 January 2008. [179686]
Des Browne: Throughout the period 11 December 2007 to 13 January 2008, 1 had various meetings in London and Scotland, including with ministerial colleagues and officials from the MoD and Scotland Office. On 11 December and 12 December, I had meetings with several families of troops who died on operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. On 12 December I attended the Scotch Whisky Association reception in Dover House. On 14 and 15 December, I hosted a meeting in Edinburgh for the Defence and Foreign Ministers of nations contributing troops to NATO-led operations in southern Afghanistan. On 17 December I discussed the outcome of the Edinburgh meeting with the NATO Secretary General and also met Ross Kemp to discuss his recent visit to Afghanistan. On 18 December I met representatives from Serco Defence, Science and Technology. On 19 December I held a video conference with representatives of the independent panel set up by the Canadian Government to review their future role in Afghanistan (the Manley Panel). On 20 December, I took the salute at a passing out parade at the Army Training Regiment in Bassingbourn. On 3 and 4 January 2008, I visited Brussels for meetings with the UK ambassador to NATO and the UK delegation to the EU. On 5 January, I visited HQ Northern Ireland and was briefed by the General Officer Commanding. On 8 January, I had meetings with the Belgian Ambassador and with Lieutenant General Mohan al-Firaji, Commander of Iraqi security operations in Basra, following which I gave evidence to the House of Commons Defence Committee on its inquiry into the future of NATO and European defence. On 10 January, I attended the House for a Defence debate on armed forces personnel. On 11 January, I hosted the pre-Budget report seminar in Edinburgh and visited the Army Personnel Centre in Glasgow. On 12 January, I attended a meeting of the Executive of the Scottish Labour Party in Stirling.
Royal National Mod Festival
Mr. MacNeil: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland in which years since 1997 the Prime Minister sent greetings to the annual Royal National Mod festival. [174324]
David Cairns [holding answer 17 December 2007]: Art and culture are matters devolved to the Scottish Executive and Scottish Ministers. However, the Prime Minister sent a hand-written note, in Gaelic, to the Royal National Mod last year and the Secretary of State for Scotland wrote in 2006.
Weather: Death
Mr. Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions on action to prevent excess winter deaths in Scotland in 2008. [183740]
David Cairns: I have regular discussion with the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions on a range of issues.
In winter 2006-07 we made 1,028,120 winter fuel payments to people in Scotland. Figures are not yet available for this winter, but we expect the numbers to be similar.
In addition, we are currently undertaking a fuel poverty partnership pilot with the energy industry which aims to increase the uptake of energy efficiency measures. The pilot is targeting 250,000 pensioners in receipt of pension credit throughout Great Britain, including 16,500 pensioners in Scotland alone.
In the event of sustained freezing temperatures, eligible customers, generally those in receipt of income-related benefits, may be entitled to cold weather payments.
Wales
Fair Trade Initiative
Mr. Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what his Department's policy is on the use of fair trade goods (a) in staff catering facilities and (b) at official departmental functions and meetings; and if he will make a statement. [183879]
Mr. Paul Murphy: My Department does not have staff catering facilities. Catering for functions and meetings in London and Cardiff includes, where possible and consistent with value for money, a mixture of fair trade or locally sourced produce.
Northern Ireland
Bloody Sunday Tribunal of Inquiry
Adam Price: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when he expects the report of the Saville Inquiry to be published. [183896]
Mr. Woodward: The Tribunal are currently engaged in compiling their final report. The Tribunal have advised that it is not possible at this stage to give a precise indication of when the report will be submitted to me, due to the complexity and volume of evidence with which they are dealing. We are informed that the submission of the report is not imminent, and that recent media speculation that the report will be concluded in May 2008 has no basis in fact.
Bloody Sunday Tribunal of Inquiry: Costs
Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the cost of the Bloody Sunday inquiry to the public purse has been to date; when he expects the inquiry’s final report to be published; and if he will make a statement. [183641]
Mr. Woodward: The cost of the Saville Inquiry is £181.2 million (as of December 2007).
The Tribunal are currently engaged in compiling their final report. The Tribunal have advised that it is not possible at this stage to give a precise indication of when the report will be submitted to me, due to the complexity and volume of evidence with which they are dealing. We are informed that the submission of the report is not imminent, and that recent media speculation that the report will be concluded in May 2008 has no basis in fact.
Road Traffic Offences
Mr. Jeremy Browne: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many (a) parking tickets and (b) speeding fines were issued for vehicles used by his Department in each of the last 10 years; and what the cost to the public purse of those penalties was in each year. [183353]
Mr. Woodward: The Northern Ireland Office has no record of any fines being paid by the Department. It is the Department’s policy not to pay parking ticket or speeding fines issued to staff while using its vehicles.
We are aware that one fixed penalty notice was issued and the fine of £60 was paid by the driver.
Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform
Coal
Bill Etherington: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what estimate he has made of the average cost of indigenous deep-mined coal per tonne in (a) 1982, (b) 1992 and (c) 2007. [183724]
Malcolm Wicks: According to British Coal records, the average operating cost per tonne of indigenous deep mined coal was £40.94 in 1982-83 and £38.33 in 1992-93.
Following privatisation in 1994, equivalent information has not been collected centrally.
Nevertheless, based on a published average operating cost of 1.56p per gigajoule for mines representing 87 per cent. of UK deep mine production in that year, it is estimated that in 2006 (the latest year for which this information is available) the operating cost of larger deep mines was in the order of £37.44 per tonne before exceptional items.
Internet: Fraud
Mrs. James: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (1) what estimate he has made of the extent of personal financial losses by consumers as a result of responses to fraudulent phishing emails which purport to originate from individual banks and financial service providers in each of the last five years; [183476]
(2) what estimate he has made of the number of fraudulent and spam phishing emails, which purported to originate from individual banks and financial service providers, sent to email addresses in the .uk domain in the last 12 months. [183477]
Mr. Coaker: I have been asked to reply.
Figures collated by APACS (the UK Payments Association) show that in 2006 there were 14,156 phishing incidents.
APACS estimate that total losses for online banking fraud, which would include phishing along with other scams such as Trojans, amounted to £33.5 million in 2006. In many cases however these losses would be born by the financial institution rather than the consumer. In practice banks normally reimburse cardholders who have been genuine victims of online card fraud and have not been negligent with their card details, or acted fraudulently themselves.
Departmental Travel
Mr. Jeremy Browne: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how much was spent on travel (a) within and (b) outside the UK for staff of the Commission in each of the last 10 years; and what percentage of the Commission's overall expenditure was spent on such travel in each such year. [181538]
Mr. Alan Williams: I have been asked to reply on behalf of the Public Accounts Commission.
There has been no expenditure by the Commission on travel by its staff in the last 10 years.
Innovation, Universities and Skills
Apprentices
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills how much work-based learning is required in a programme-led apprenticeship; and if he will make a statement. [184039]
Mr. Lammy: A Programme-led Apprenticeship (PLA) will deliver job skills, transferable skills and competence training and practice in an off-the-job setting prior to the apprentice moving into employment. The learner must spend a significant period of their learning in a work-based environment in employment in order to complete a full Apprenticeship.
A PLA is by definition linked to an Apprenticeship, the content of which is designed by the relevant Sector Skills Council to meet a sector’s need. However, a PLA is not a full Apprenticeship. PLAs are not included in published Apprenticeship statistics and a young person has to be employed before they are counted.
Further Education: Autism
Mr. Kidney: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills what arrangements his Department (a) has in place and (b) will have in place if the Education and Skills Bill is enacted to ensure the continuity of education and skills services provided to children with autism and Asperger’s Syndrome as they make the transition to adulthood. [183399]
Mr. Lammy: This Government are committed to improving provision and services for children and young people on the Autistic Disorder Spectrum. My Department is working closely with the Learning and Skills Council to identify existing provision and what needs to be put in place to ensure high quality and sufficiency to ensure continuity. All Learning and Skills Council Regions have completed analyses to identify current provision for all learners with learning difficulties and/or disabilities, including those on the Autistic Disorder Spectrum, and are developing plans for improving provision.
We are also working closely with the Department of Health, the Department for Children, Schools and Families and the Department for Work and Pensions on a raft of measures to improve provision and the transition to adulthood including those on the autistic disorder spectrum. These measures will anticipate the impact of changes needed over the next few years
including the raising of the participation age as envisaged in the Education and Skills Bill.
Measures include work on a common funding approach, plans for individual budgets, improved planning and commissioning and curriculum improvements. At the heart of these measures is greatly increased and effective partnership working as set out in the cross government strategy on learners with learning difficulties and/or disabilities ‘Progression through Partnership’ published last year.
A key partnership is the one we have established with the Autism Education Trust launched in November 2007 which will advise us on improvements needed in provision and work force development. We also expect to launch two key projects this year which will also feature autism—“Getting a Life” focusing on what works for people with learning disabilities and the “Transition Support Programme” part of Aiming High for Disabled People.
Higher Education: Admissions
Mr. Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills if he will rank UK universities in order of in-take of state school students as a percentage of total in-take in each of the last five years. [179503]
Bill Rammell: The information is shown in the following table. The figures show proportions of UK-domiciled young (aged under 21) entrants to full-time first degree courses at each higher education institution, who are from state schools over the period 2001/02 to 2005/06. Figures for 2006/07 will be available in 2008.
There has been an overall increase in proportions of state school entrants across the whole of the higher education sector since the PIs were introduced in 1997. In fact the latest available figure of 86.9 per cent., for young full-time first degree entrants to English higher education institutions in 2005/06, is the highest ever.
This information is taken from the annual Performance Indicators in Higher Education, which are currently published by the Higher Education Statistics Agency.
For each institution, the state school proportion is shown against a benchmark. This is a sector average which is adjusted for each institution to take into account the following factors: subject of study, qualifications on entry and age on entry. The benchmarks can be used to show how a university is performing compared to the sector as a whole, and also help to determine whether a meaningful comparison can be drawn between two or more universities.
The table includes the numbers of young entrants to each institution. From this it is clear that the number of students at each institution varies widely, and some have less than 100 students. Figures based on small numbers such as these should be treated with care.
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