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29 Feb 2008 : Column 2029W—continued
Departmental Property
Mr. Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what property has been lost or stolen from his Department since 1997; and what the cost of replacement was. [187469]
Gillian Merron: Central records are held by DFID for a maximum of seven years before destruction. Our central records show property lost or stolen since calendar year 2001 as follows. Value shown is the amount recorded in the losses register. Replacement values are not recorded centrally; as to do so would incur disproportionate costs.
| Lost | Stolen | Total No. | Total value (£) | |
Departmental Travel: Eurostar
Mr. Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development (1) how much his Department spent on (a) first and (b) other class travel by Eurostar in the last 12 months for which figures are available; [187746]
(2) how much his Department and its agencies spent on first class travel in the last 12 months for which figures are available, broken down by staff grade. [187664]
Gillian Merron: DFID’s expenditure on Eurostar for the period April 2006 to March 2007 was £84,960 for first class travel and £40,163 for other class travel.
DFID's total expenditure on first class travel for the period April 2006 to March 2007 was £322,617. Travel data disaggregated by staff grade is not routinely maintained and could not be produced without incurring disproportionate cost. The Department has no agencies.
All travel is undertaken in compliance with DFID rules set out in the Staff Handbook.
Infant Mortality
Mr. Andrew Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what progress his Department has made towards meeting Millennium Development Goal 4 on reducing child mortality. [188031]
Mr. Douglas Alexander: The latest assessment of progress towards Millennium Development Goal (MDG) 4 is included in the annual “State of the World’s Children Report” by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) published in January 2008. Overall in 2006, global child deaths reached a record low of 9.7 million, down from 13 million in 1990. The report showed that solid progress has been made in a number of countries such as Ethiopia, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Rwanda and Tanzania.
The report also highlighted that a concentrated push is required to accelerate progress in West Africa and parts of Asia to cut child deaths. MDG 4 is inextricably linked to MDG 5 (to improve maternal health) as 40 per cent. of children under the age of five are dying within a few days of birth. This is why the Prime Minister has called for 2008 to be a year of action towards meeting the MDGs especially those concerned with child mortality (MDG 4) and maternal health (MDG 5), which remain the most off-track.
Jamaica: Sugar
Mr. Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment he has made of the distribution of funds committed in support of the transition of the Jamaican sugar industry in the Accompanying Measures for Sugar Protocol countries as part of the reform of the EU sugar regime. [189445]
Mr. Thomas:
To access their allocation under the Accompanying Measures for Sugar Protocol countries (AMSP), each eligible country had to submit a National Action Plan (NAP) showing how they intend to spend the money. The focus of the Government of Jamaica’s (GoJ) NAP is to improve the competitiveness of the sugar cane industry through greater private sector involvement and to develop sustainable alternative economic activities for rural farmers who are not able to stay in the industry. Given the increased competition that Jamaican sugar now faces in the
world market and the opportunity that this increased competition brings, the GoJ approach appears to be along the right lines. The mechanism for delivery of the funds to the GoJ is through direct budget support, backed by a wide range of macroeconomic targets.
Both DFID Caribbean and the EC delegation in Jamaica will continue to monitor the implementation and effect of the AMSP on the various aspects of the Jamaican economy. However, since 2007 represents the first year of allocation to the GoJ under the AMSP, it is not envisaged that a full assessment will be undertaken until late 2009. This assessment will be lead by the EC delegation in Jamaica.
Kosovo: Higher Education
Mr. Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what estimate he has made of the number of students enrolled in tertiary education in Kosovo, broken down by sex; and if he will make a statement. [190000]
Mr. Douglas Alexander: The Second Millennium Development Goals Report for Kosovo states that in 2004-05 there were 28,935 students in tertiary education, of whom 46 per cent. were female.
Kosovo: HIV Infection
Mr. Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what estimate he has made of the prevalence of (a) HIV/AIDS and (b) tuberculosis in Kosovo; and if he will make a statement. [190002]
Mr. Douglas Alexander: While health data in Kosovo are weak, HIV prevalence is widely estimated to be low. Despite a number of risk factors which could increase HIV infection rates, the UN considers Kosovo to be on track to meet the MDG target on HIV/AIDS.
TB incidence in Kosovo averages 48 new cases per 100,000. This is slightly higher than neighbouring countries, reflecting overall lower average health outcomes in Kosovo.
Kosovo: Income
Mr. Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what estimate he has made of Kosovo’s (a) gross national income and (b) average earnings per head of population in the latest period for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement. [190004]
Mr. Douglas Alexander: The Statistics Office of Kosovo and the International Monetary Fund estimate that gross domestic product (GDP) per capita for 2006 is €1,117. There are no published estimates of gross national income (GNI), but gross national disposable income (GNDI) per capita has been estimated at €1,268. According to the Statistics Office of Kosovo, the average income earner received €2,032 in 2005.
The Department for International Development is working with the Government of Kosovo and other donors to promote a strategic approach to poverty reduction with a focus on economic growth.
Kosovo: Infant Mortality
Mr. Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what estimate he has made of the levels of (a) infant and (b) maternal mortality in Kosovo; and if he will make a statement. [190001]
Mr. Douglas Alexander: Kosovo has yet to establish reliable health statistics and the data currently available are limited and of poor quality.
The most reliable estimate of infant mortality currently available is a 2003 survey which showed 35 to 49 deaths per thousand live births. The number of officially registered maternal deaths gives an average rate of 12.6 per 100,000 births for the period 2000-05.
The Department for International Development is working with other donors to improve the quality of health care delivered by municipal governments. We are also supporting the government of Kosovo to improve its statistics systems.
Kosovo: Poverty
Mr. Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what estimate he has made of the level of poverty in Kosovo; and if he will make a statement. [189997]
Mr. Douglas Alexander: Based on national data, the World Bank estimates that 45 per cent. of the Kosovo population live beneath the national poverty line. Of these, 15 per cent. are classed as extremely poor. This makes Kosovo the poorest country in the Balkans.
The Department for International Development is working with the Government of Kosovo and other donors to promote a strategic approach to poverty reduction with a focus on economic growth.
Kosovo: Unemployment
Mr. Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what estimate he has made of levels of (a) youth, (b) female and (c) total unemployment in Kosovo; and if he will make a statement. [189998]
Mr. Douglas Alexander: Unemployment in Kosovo is among the highest in the world. National statistics place unemployment among people aged 15 to 24 at 70 per cent., unemployment of women at 60 per cent., and total unemployment at 41 per cent.
The Department for International Development is currently working with key donor partners to assist the government of Kosovo in formulating a strategy for economic growth in Kosovo.
UN Convention Against Corruption
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether the UK has implemented the UN Convention against Corruption. [190873]
Mr. Thomas: The UK ratified the UN Convention against Corruption (UNCAC) on 9 February 2008.
Treasury
Taxation: Gambling
Paul Rowen: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer which gambling products are subject to more than one ad valorem tax. [190437]
Angela Eagle: I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer I gave on 5 February 2008, Official Report, column 1059W to the hon. Member for Birmingham, Yardley (John Hemming).
Work and Pensions
Income Support: Pensioners
Mr. Allen: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many pensioners in Nottingham North constituency received assistance under the minimum income guarantee in the most recent period for which figures are available. [187296]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: In Nottingham North, 4,760 households were in receipt of the pension credit guarantee credit as at August 2007—of which 1,910 households were in receipt of the guarantee credit only and 2,850 households were in receipt of both the guarantee credit and savings credit.
Notes:
1. The figures provided are early estimates. The preferred data source for figures supplied by DWP is the Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study (WPLS). However, the figure provided is the latest available figure, which is taken from the GMS scan at 31 August 2007. These are adjusted using the historical relationship between WPLS and GMS data to give an estimate of the final WPLS figure.
2. We have taken the minimum income guarantee to mean the pension credit guarantee credit.
3. Case loads are rounded to the nearest 10.
4. Households are those people who claim pension credit either for themselves only or on behalf of a household.
Low Incomes
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the cost of water bills as a proportion of incomes of less than (a) 30 per cent., (b) 40 per cent., (c) 50 per cent. and (d) 60 per cent. of the median in each year since 1997. [185864]
Angela Eagle: I have been asked to reply.
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
Letter from Colin Mowl, dated 29 February 2008:
The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your recent question asking the Secretary of State for Work & Pensions what estimate he has made of the cost of water bills as a proportion of incomes of less than (a) 30 per cent, (b) 40 per cent, (c) 50 per cent, and (d) 60 per cent of the median average in each year since 1997. I am replying in her absence. (185864).
The most common and internationally recognised threshold to measure poverty is income below 60 per cent of median. The sample size for the number of households with an income below
30 per cent of median is too small to yield reliable results. In addition presenting information for households with an income of 40 or 50 per cent of median income can be misleading. One reason for this is that households stating the lowest incomes may not actually have the lowest living standards. Many households who report very low incomes appear to have high spending equivalent to households higher in the income distribution.
The table provided shows water bill expenditure as a percentage of unequivalised disposable income for households that have income of 40, 50 and 60 per cent below median income. Due to the issue of small sample size, an average for the period 2000/01 to 2002/03 and 2003/04 to 2005/06 has been provided. Data for 1997/98 to 1999/00 are not readily available.
| Water bills as a percentage of median household disposable income( 1) , United Kingdom | |||
| Percentage | |||
| Households where income is below | |||
| 40 per cent. of median( 2) | 50 per cent. of median( 2) | 60 per cent. of median( 2) | |
| (1) Unequivalised household disposable income. (2) Ranked by unequivalised disposable income. Source: Office for National Statistics from Expenditure and Food Survey. | |||
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