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2 Apr 2008 : Column 929W—continued

Neighbourhood Renewal Fund

Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if she will place
2 Apr 2008 : Column 930W
in the Library a copy of each report on the Neighbourhood Renewal Fund prepared by each of the Government Offices for the Neighbourhood Renewal Unit. [193774]

John Healey: Government Offices do not systematically prepare such reports, although information on the Neighbourhood Renewal Fund may form part of Local Strategic Partnership reporting.

Work and Pensions

Departmental Contracts

Mr. Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what contracts were awarded by his Department to (a) KPMG, (b) PricewaterhouseCoopers, (c) Ernst and Young, (d) McKinsey, (e) Deloitte and (f) other consultancy firms in each of the last 12 months; and what the (i) purpose and (ii) value was of each of these contracts. [196578]

Mr. Timms: Contracts awarded to the suppliers (a) to (e) are listed in the following table. Details of contracts awarded to other consultancy firms (f) can be provided only at disproportionate cost.

2 Apr 2008 : Column 931W

2 Apr 2008 : Column 932W

Month	Supplier	Purpose	Value (£)
2007
April	PWC	Analysis, evaluation and advice on CSA debt	139,334
May	PWC	NEP—focus groups on the quality of ESOL training to unemployed immigrants	23,070
May	PWC	Management support to ‘Tell us Once’ project	61,230
May	McKinsey	Assurance review of CSA computer system	135,000
May	PWC	Measurement of admin costs	42,000
June	PWC	NEP—City strategy review	36,045
June	PWC	Departmental financial advisors	900,000
July	Deloitte	Investment advice to the enabling retirement savings programme	193,133
July	Deloitte	Child maintenance redesign	308,083
July	Deloitte	Child maintenance redesign	478,386
July	Deloitte	HR operating model	417,348
August	PWC	Support on resilience of the Pensions Protection Fund	20,000
August	KPMG	Financial support on Remploy/TU negotiations	87,000
August	Deloitte	PADA design and implementation	2,000,000
August	Deloitte	Child maintenance redesign	478,386
August	Deloitte	Business design and design capability	850,000
September	PWC	Analysis of costs and benefits of ‘Tell us Once’	970,000
September	Ernst and Young	Data protection advice	49,563
October	None	—	—
November	PWC	Support to CPS programme	514,560
November	Deloitte	Support to CPS programme	1,637,981
November	Deloitte	Application Delivery Centre	342,900
December	None	—	—
2008
January	Deloitte	Child maintenance redesign—debt provisions	105,705
January	Deloitte	New ways of working implementation	189,510
February	PWC	Review to improve DWP’s performance and development system PDS diversity and equality performance	26,696
February	PWC	Development of a framework and toolkit for corporate, cohesive and capable boards at DWP	39,183
February	Deloitte	Risk management support to RAD	50,000
March	PWC	Support to conduct equal pay audit	21,100

Incapacity Benefit

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people received incapacity benefits or severe disablement allowance on the grounds of dependency on (a) drugs and (b) alcohol in each year since 1997 for which information is available. [185923]

Mrs. McGuire: The Government’s drugs strategy was published on 27 February 2008. It stresses the need for the benefit system to support re-integration and personalisation. We will ensure that it provides the right level of support, and also creates incentives for people with drug problems to move towards treatment.

We will put in place arrangements which require drugs misusers on benefits who are not already in treatment to attend a discussion with an appropriate specialist treatment provider or partner organisation.

Entitlement to incapacity benefit is not linked to any specific diagnosis or condition. Entitlement, which is assessed by the personal capability assessment, depends on the effect that a person’s condition has on their ability to carry out a number of activities relevant to work. Most people with drug or alcohol dependency also have other conditions, such as mental illness; and it is these other conditions which result in entitlement to benefits.

We do record the diagnosis of incapacity that is written on a claimant’s medical certificate. The table shows the number of people receiving incapacity benefits whose recorded diagnosis includes drug or alcohol dependency.

Working age incapacity benefit/severe disablement allowance claims which includes a recorded diagnosis of alcoholism or drug abuse from the claimant ’ s medical certificate.
Number as of May:	Alcoholism	Drug abuse	Alcoholism as proportion of caseload	Drug Abuse as proportion of caseload
1997	26,800	21,900	1.03	0.84
1998	29,800	25,300	1.13	0.96
1999	32,500	27,900	1.23	1.05
2000	35,580	30,950	1.32	1.15
2001	38,660	36,230	1.40	1.32
2002	41,040	40,690	1.48	1.47
2003	43,420	43,890	1.57	1.58
2004	45,940	46,120	1.66	1.66
2005	47,740	47,980	1.74	1.75
2006	49,200	48,550	1.83	1.81
2007	51,410	49,890	1.94	1.89
Notes: 1. May 1997 to May 1999 (inclusive) numbers are uprated to WPLS totals and rounded to the nearest hundred. 2. May 2000 to May 2007 (inclusive) numbers are rounded to the nearest 10. 3. Totals may not sum due to rounding. 4. May 1997 to May 1999 (inclusive) numbers are based on a 5 per cent. sample, and are therefore subject to a degree of sampling variation. 5. These figures should be used as a guide to the current situation only. 6. Causes of incapacity are based on the International Classification of Diseases, 10(th) Revision, published by the World Health Organisation. Source: DWP Information Directorate 5 per cent. sample and 100 per cent. Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study

Medical Examinations: Sight Impaired

Dr. Iddon: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether all registered blind people are required to undertake a personal capability assessment. [195534]

Mr. Timms: Registered blind people are treated as meeting the threshold of incapacity for benefit purposes and are exempt from the personal capability assessment process.

New arrangements will apply when the work capability assessment for the Employment and Support Allowance is introduced in October this year.

Mineral Waters

Mr. Peter Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many litres of bottled water were purchased by his Department in each of the last three years; and if he will make a statement. [191249]

Mrs. McGuire: The Department for Work and Pensions currently has a single contract to supply DWP offices with water coolers, bottled water and associated services and equipment. Bottled water may also be provided for business meetings but is sourced from a variety of contracts and is not accounted for separately.

From April 2006 to March 2007, DWP purchased 3.4 million litres of bottled water. So far this year, from April 2007 to January 2008, DWP has purchased 2.9 million litres. Information prior to these dates is not available.

DWP is committed to phase out the use of bottled water for all business meetings and replace it with tap water. We are aiming to have this process in place by the summer of 2008.

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