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12 Mar 2008 : Column 456W—continued
Courts Martial
Dr. Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the average waiting time was for a case to go to court martial in the (a) Army, (b) Royal Navy and (c) Royal Air Force in (i) 2006 and (ii) 2007. [193084]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: The following table shows the average waiting times for a case to go to court martial by calendar year for each service.
| Days | ||
| 2006 | 2007 | |
| Notes: 1. The RAF and Army figures are based on the length of time taken from the date an incident was either formally reported, or an official police investigation was initiated, to the actual starting date of the court martial hearing. 2. The increase in the RAF figures from 2005 (56 days) is due to a different recording procedure. Previously the RAF measured the average delay between the point that the case papers were received by the court administration unit (which administers arrangements for the court martial) to the trial date and appearing at court martial. It is not possible to provide data within the same parameters for 2006 and 2007 as information was not transferred to the current working database. 3. The RN figures are based on the length of time taken from when the Naval Prosecution Authority prefers charges to the first day of a trial. 4. Not all applications made in 2007, where charges have been preferred, have yet reached trial (although the majority have). 5. The averages shown are heavily affected by individual cases, where for example, there may be unusual delays in obtaining evidence, such as fraud or where computer analysis is involved. | ||
Defence: Procurement
Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment his Department has made of the (a) technical and (b) financial aspect of EADS’s bid to (i) supply the Royal Air Force as part of the Future Strategic Tanker Aircraft project and (ii) supply the US Air Force with refuelling aircraft; and if he will make a statement. [192974]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: EADS is a member of the AirTanker consortium which was announced Preferred Bidder for the Future Strategic Tanker Aircraft (FSTA) PFI project in 2005 following a competition. The Ministry of Defence has undertaken a detailed assessment of AirTanker’s PFI proposal, which offers a cost effective solution to the FSTA requirement. The United States has conducted its own, separate, assessment of EADS’ proposals to meet its future air-to-air refuelling needs.
Departmental Impact Assessments
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many regulatory impact assessments his Department has conducted in the last 12 months. [191270]
Derek Twigg: Between 1 January and 31 December 2007 two regulatory impact assessments have been published by the Ministry of Defence. All impact assessments published by the Department can be found on the MOD website at:
From April 2008, impact assessments from all departments will be published on a central website.
Departmental Marketing
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 21 January 2008, Official Report, column 1589W, on departmental marketing, what the dimensions were of the display boards in his Department's London buildings. [192480]
Derek Twigg: The dimensions of each of the display boards in the MOD London buildings were 2200mm high by 800mm wide.
Departmental Reviews
Dr. Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will place in the Library copies of his Department’s (a) Pension Abatement Review and (b) X Factor Review for financial years 1997-98 to 2007-08. [185714]
Derek Twigg: The 2007-08 X-Factor Review provided evidence to both the Armed Forces’ Pay Review Body (AFPRB) and the Senior Salaries Review Body (SSRB). Although the AFPRB recommendations have already been announced, the SSRB has yet to submit its recommendation for the senior military. Once the Government have responded to the SSRB’s recommendations, I will place a redacted version of the review in the Library.
The Pension Abatement Review is carried out independently of MOD by the Armed Forces’ Pay Review Body. The AFPRB report for each pension abatement review can be found on:
Written Questions
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many written Questions to his Department had not received an answer as at 25 February 2008 for (a) between two and four, (b) between four and six, (c) between six and eight and (d) more than eight weeks; and how many in each category were tabled for named day answer. [193398]
Derek Twigg: The information requested is as follows:
(a) 17 questions including three named day questions.
(b) Seven questions including two named day questions.
(c) Nine questions.
(d) 20 questions including two named day questions.
Ex-servicemen: Employment Schemes
Mr. Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will consider introducing a scheme to assist veterans leaving the armed forces to employment on a similar model to the US authorities, Troops to Teachers programme. [191326]
Derek Twigg:
Currently, some 68 service leavers a year already enter a teaching career. Additionally, as a result of an approach by the Specialist Schools and Academies Trust, the MOD has been working for the past year, initially with the trust but latterly with the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF), on a scheme to encourage more service leavers
to take up a career in secondary level specialist teaching in science, maths and IT subjects as a contribution to addressing the national shortage in secondary level STEM subject teachers. Apart from advertising through the Career Transition Partnership opportunities for individuals to consider teaching and outlining the existing routes into the profession, we are looking to develop routes to attract suitable service leavers to become teachers who do not already possess the academic qualifications normally necessary to enter teacher training. This work is a still at an early stage.
The MOD is an active participant in the recently launched wider DCSF Transition to Teaching initiative to encourage career changers into the teaching profession, and is represented on the Steering Committee alongside such blue chip employers as IBM, KPMG, Thales, Astra Zenica and Lockheed Martin Aerospace. Most service leavers are very successful in securing civilian employment: about 95 per cent. of those using the Career Transition Partnership who wish to continue to work are in new careers within six months of discharge from the armed forces.
In view of the initiatives already in hand, the Department has no plans to adopt the US Troops to Teachers programme.
Navy: Deployment
Dr. Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the average unit tour interval was for each ship type in the Royal Navy in the latest period for which figures are available. [193090]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: The average unit tour interval by surface ship type over the last five years, defining a tour as a ship being away from its base port for more than three months, is as follows (rounded to the nearest month):
| Months | |
Survey Vessels have up to five year deployments.
River Class Patrol Vessels on Fishery Protection undertake eight week (approx) taskings.
Falkland Island Patrol Vessel permanently deployed.
Regulation
Mrs. May:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence for which regulators and inspectorates his Department has had responsibility in each year since 1997; what the
budget was of each such body in each year; and what the cost to the public purse was of any restructuring of each such body in each year. [175306]
Derek Twigg: The only such body for which this Department has responsibility is the MOD Fire Service maintained by the Secretary of State for Defence in its role as an Enforcing Authority under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005. This however has not resulted in any restructuring costs, nor has it been necessary to maintain a separate record of the costs to the Fire Service of carrying out its duties under the 2005 order.
Small Scale Focused Intervention Battlegroup
Dr. Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the Small Scale Focused Intervention Battlegroup’s mission statement is. [193099]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: The Small Scale Focussed Intervention Battlegroup (SSFIBG) is a new capability formed on 15 February 2008 and as such it does not currently have a formal mission statement.
The SSFIBG’s purpose is to provide a Contingency Force Element to Reinforce the Joint Rapid Reaction Forces when either the Airborne Task Force or lead Commando Group is deployed on operations. In such an eventuality it would be given a mission statement.
Dr. Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what criteria he uses to determine whether the Small Scale Focused Intervention Battlegroup is deployed on operations. [193100]
Mr. Bob Ainsworth: There are a number of force elements at high readiness held by the Department in order to undertake a range of tasks at short notice, including the Small Scale Focussed Intervention Battlegroup. The criteria used to determine the exact force package deployed will depend on the precise nature of the requirement, which will vary depending on circumstances.
Duchy of Lancaster
Non-Profit Making Associations: Ethnic Groups
Margaret Moran: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what funding has been allocated to support black and minority ethnic social enterprise (a) to date in 2007-08 and (b) over the next three years. [191996]
Phil Hope: 20 per cent. (totalling around £600,000 over the three years to 2009-10), of the Office of the Third Sector's Strategic Partners programme funding for social enterprise partners is ring-fenced to ensure that those partners reach out effectively to black and minority ethnic communities to enable them to articulate their needs and issues.
The Office of the Third Sector will consult and involve partners in policy development, taking into account the evidence, advice and opinion they provide.
Margaret Moran: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what plans he has to establish a black and minority ethnic social enterprise network; and if he will make a statement. [191997]
Phil Hope: As a strategic partner of the Office of the Third Sector’s, the Social Enterprise Coalition invests 25 per cent. of its strategic grant (£137,000 in 2007-08) in undertaking a lead role on behalf of the social enterprise movement, to develop a plan for engaging and integrating black and minority ethnic (BME) social enterprise into the wider movement.
The Coalition is currently engaged in the consultation phase of this work, taking views from a wide range of BME organisations and individuals. This includes developing options for ensuring that the voice of BME social enterprise is heard.
The outcome of this work will be available in the autumn.
Voluntary Organisations: York
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (1) what proportion of contracts awarded to third sector organisations providing services in the Vale of York are three-year contracts; [193799]
(2) what progress has been made towards ensuring third sector organisations providing services in the Vale of York are awarded three-year contracts. [193800]
Phil Hope: This Government are committed to ensuring that three year funding for third sector organisations becomes the norm rather than the exception. I will be reporting on Government progress in meeting this funding commitment to HM Treasury on an annual basis. The first report will be made in the autumn 2008 and will be laid before Parliament. It is expected that local authorities will be making reports on three year funding from 2009 onwards.
The information requested is currently not recorded centrally.
Wales
Legislative Competence: Wales
Mrs. Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will place in the Library copies of correspondence between his Department and (a) the National Assembly for Wales and (b) Welsh Assembly Government Ministers between 1 May 2007 and 1 February 2008 relating to the legislative procedure for Wales including legislative competence orders; and if he will make a statement. [193548]
Mr. Paul Murphy: We have had frequent exchanges with both the National Assembly for Wales and Welsh Assembly Government Ministers about the new legislative arrangements for Wales. We are committed to making this process work and will continue to have discussions with all relevant parties. To make such correspondence available in the Library would restrict our ability to conduct business effectively.
Treasury
Income Tax: East Riding
Mr. Graham Stuart: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what proportion of taxpayers in Beverley and Holderness paid the higher rate of income tax in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement. [192897]
Jane Kennedy: The number of individual income taxpayers by constituency can be found in table 3.15 "Income and tax by Parliamentary Constituency" on HM Revenue and Customs' website.
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