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6 May 2008 : Column 872W—continued
Mr. Thomas: The Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR) is not directly responsible for a public sector pension scheme.
BERR’s accounting officer has responsibility for the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA) Pension Scheme. Information on rate and cost of employer contributions is contained in the UKAEA Pension Scheme’s resource accounts (since 2000-01).
Departmental Responsibilities
Sir Paul Beresford: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what role the relevant shareholder executive has in determining the definition of the public tasks of his Department's agencies. [203464]
Malcolm Wicks: The shareholder executive has no remit for determining the definition of the public tasks of the Department's agencies. However, working with appropriate stakeholders, the shareholder executive ensures that, for each of the businesses in its portfolio, wholly or partly owned by Government, there are clearly articulated objectives reflecting both commercial and non-commercial aims.
Energy: Fees and Charges
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (1) what steps the Government are taking to assist pensioners and vulnerable adults with rising energy costs; [202028]
(2) what steps the Government are taking to work with energy companies to minimise the effects of rising fuel bills for low income families, pensioners and vulnerable adults; [202029]
(3) what steps the Government plan to take to minimise further rises in energy costs. [202030]
Malcolm Wicks [holding answer 30 April 2008]: We are concerned about the impact of higher prices on vulnerable people and we continue to encourage energy suppliers to adopt initiatives to restrict price rises for the most vulnerable.
In Budget 2008, the Government said they would like to see the amount energy suppliers spend on social programmes increase to at least £150 million a year over the period ahead. A new voluntary agreement has recently been signed individually with the six major energy suppliers to treble their individual investment on social programmes in the next three years, reaching collective investment of £150 million by 2010-11. This will take spend to £100 million in 2008-09, £125 million in 2009-10 and £150 million in 2010-11.
In addition, winter fuel payments helped keep 11.7 million people warm in winter 2006-07 and Budget 2008 announced an additional one-off payment of £100 to over-80s households and £50 to over-60s households in 2008-09.
The Government do not interfere in commercial pricing decisions in the energy supply markets which are competitive markets. Ofgem’s analysis suggests that recent energy price rises are due mainly to global demand for fossil fuels pushing up wholesale prices. The UK gas market is increasingly influenced by
continental gas markets and the Government are supporting the European Commission’s efforts to improve competition in those markets.
Increased gas storage can help to protect the UK gas market from price shocks. The Government are taking steps to improve and streamline the regulatory regimes for constructing gas storage facilities through the Planning and Energy Bills, now before Parliament.
Energy: Skilled Workers
Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what assessment the Government have made of current and future skills needs in the (a) nuclear waste industries and (b) energy efficiency and renewable energy sectors. [202513]
Malcolm Wicks: The nuclear industry began a comprehensive review of its skills base in 2002. The Sector Skills Council Cogent became responsible for nuclear in 2004 and used the review to develop the sector skills agreement for the industry. The sector has also developed and launched a national Skills Academy for Nuclear, which will lead on training and skills development. The academy plans, on behalf of employers, to start learners on 1200 apprenticeships and 150 foundation degrees, while providing 4000 shorter courses to re-train existing staff over the next three years. It will also lead on delivery of the passport system to record skills and competencies. The needs for nuclear waste management are fully factored in to the academy's and employers’ plans.
Energy efficiency and renewables are mostly emerging technologies and it is hard to predict the exact timing of deployment. This makes it challenging to plan for skills delivery and, clearly, the production or large numbers of skilled people ahead of or behind demand for their services would be unhelpful. Employers and Sector Skills Councils are in early discussions about skills strategies (possibly leading to Skills Academies) for waste and environmental services, which would cover microgeneration and waste-to-energy, while the wind industry has just started discussions of its own. On the wider front, energy skills are largely generic and transferable, so people trained in the more developed skills programmes (nuclear, process and oil and gas) could provide a resource for renewable energy in the future.
Export Credits Guarantee Department
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what arrangements his Department has in place to monitor the extent to which support for carbon-intensive projects provided by the Export Credits Guarantee Department is consistent with Government policy on climate change. [200335]
Malcolm Wicks: ECGD’s Statement of Business Principles, published in 2000, includes the commitment that ECGD:
“will ensure [its] activities take into account the Government’s international policies, including those on sustainable development, environment, human rights, good governance and trade”.
The implementation of the Statement of Business Principles in relation to environmental issues is described further in ECGD’s Case Impact Analysis Process (CIAP), which is published on the ECGD website:
Fuel Poverty
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform pursuant to the answer of 7 February 2008, Official Report, column 1447W, on fuel poverty, when he expects (a) fuel poverty figures for 2006 and (b) updated regional fuel poverty figures to be published. [202375]
Malcolm Wicks: Fuel poverty figures for 2006 will be available in the sixth annual fuel poverty strategy progress report later this year. Data used to estimate numbers of fuel poor households are derived from the annual English House Conditions Survey (EHCS). Regional figures (at Government office region level) will be published in an annex of detailed tables accompanying the 2006 report.
Industrial Diseases: Compensation
Mr. David Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how much and what proportion of the total administrative cost of the coal health compensation schemes had been spent on (a) contractors and (b) external legal advice as at 31 March 2008. [202714]
Malcolm Wicks: With respect to Coal Health Compensation schemes, the Department’s administrative costs are broken down as follows as at 31 March 2008:
| Contractors | Costs (£ million) | Proportion (%) |
Other costs with respect to Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) and Vibration White Finger (VWF) that are not part of the Department’s administrative costs are shown in the following table as at 31 March 2008. These are cost that would normally be borne by the plaintiffs but which, for these schemes, the Department has agreed to meet.
| £ million | ||
| COPD | VWF | |
Mr. David Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what the average settlement has been for (a) chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and (b) vibration white finger claims for the 20 solicitors firms who have submitted the greatest number of claims under the Coalminers’ Compensation Scheme. [202746]
Malcolm Wicks: The average settlement for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) and Vibration White Finger (VWF) by the 20 claimants’ representatives who have submitted the greatest number of claims is shown in the tables as at 20 April 2008:
| Average c laims for COPD | |||
| Claimants’ representatives | Total claims | Total claims settled by payment | Average damages paid on claims settled by payment (£) |
| Average c laims for VWF | |||
| Claimants’ representatives | Total claims | Total claims settled by payment | Average damages paid on claims settled by payment (£) |
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