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19 Jun 2008 : Column 1068W—continued
Stephen Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the Answer of 11 June 2008, Official Report, column 265W, on rolling stock: procurement, how many of the 317 vehicles ordered from manufacturers will be delivered in October 2008. [211871]
Mr. Tom Harris: The intention is that four electric multiple unit vehicles will be delivered to the London Midland Franchise in October 2008 subject to completion of the testing and acceptance requirements.
Stephen Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the Answer of 11 June 2008, Official Report, column 265W, on rolling stock: procurement, what the date of delivery is of each carriage ordered; and on which line each carriage will be delivered. [211952]
Mr. Tom Harris: The detailed delivery dates and exact allocation of rolling stock is for the train operator to manage. The new vehicle orders apply to Chiltern Railways, New Southern Railways and London Midland.
Trains: Procurement
Mrs. Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what information was provided to her Department by Alstom and Barclays Private Equity on their reasons for withdrawing from the tendering process to build trains under the Intercity Express Programme. [209663]
Mr. Tom Harris: Alstom advised the Department for Transport that it decided to withdraw from the Intercity Express Programme (IEP) competition to focus instead on other major rolling stock opportunities. The Department is reassured that Alstom remains committed to the UK rail market and we look forward to receiving robust bids from IEP bidders in the coming weeks.
Solicitor-General
Civil Servant Prosecutions
6. Simon Hughes: To ask the Solicitor-General what role law officers play in decisions to prosecute civil servants on matters arising out of their employment. [212147]
The Solicitor-General: If the offence is one for which the consent of the Attorney to prosecute is not required, the decision whether to prosecute would be taken by the relevant prosecuting authority. If the offence requires the consent of the Attorney, and the Attorney received a request for consent, she would deal with it in the normal way—namely form a view as to whether there was sufficient evidence and whether a prosecution was in the public interest. The decision would be taken independently of Government.
Rape Victims
Ms Katy Clark: To ask the Solicitor-General what progress she has made in her proposals to seek the admission in rape trials of evidence on the psychological reactions of rape victims. [212148]
The Solicitor-General: Two joint inspectorate reports in 2002 and 2007 identified that the attitude to the victim within the court process was key to improving conviction rate and so have convened a group of experts including the judiciary to look at potential ways to dispel the myths that unfairly influence juries.
Careless Driving
8. Mr. Bone: To ask the Solicitor-General what discussions she has had with ministerial colleagues on bringing into force the legislative provision establishing the offence of causing death by careless driving. [212149]
The Solicitor-General: I am aware that colleagues at the Ministry of Justice have previously confirmed that the new offence will be commenced after the Sentencing Guidelines Council has published guidelines for the court. These are expected later in the summer and the Ministry of Justice will work closely with other interested Departments to agree an implementation date.
National Fraud Strategic Authority
9. Alun Michael: To ask the Solicitor-General what progress has been made in the work of the National Fraud Strategic Authority and Reporting Centre. [212151]
The Solicitor-General: The National Fraud Strategic Authority is being established to co-ordinate a national strategy to combat fraud, to be in place by the end of the year. Proposals for a National Fraud Reporting Centre that will provide major enhancements for reporting fraud and acting on fraud intelligence is now in an early pilot stage.
Prosecutions: Northampton
Mr. Hollobone: To ask the Solicitor-General in what proportion of prosecutions in Northamptonshire victim personal statements (a) formed part of the case files and (b) were shared with the court in the last 12 months. [212378]
The Solicitor-General: The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) does not retain data for the proportion of victim personal statements, which form part of the prosecution file or the proportion of victim personal statements which are shared with the court.
However, the CPS recognises the importance that victim personal statements can have to inform the decision to prosecute and the appropriate charges and the added value in providing victims of crime with an opportunity to inform the court about the impact the crime has had on their lives. Systems and procedures have been developed to ensure that victim personal statements are drawn to the courts attention. Additionally, under the CPS victim focus scheme, crown prosecutors play a key role in assisting bereaved families to prepare a victim personal statement.
Shoplifting: Prosecutions
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Solicitor-General how many prosecutions were brought for shoplifting by the Crown Prosecution Service in each of the last three years; and if she will make a statement. [212150]
The Solicitor-General: The CPS data are only broken down by offences and can only provide prosecutions for theft as an offence. I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by the Ministry of Justice on 7 May 2008, Official Report, column 987W.
Prime Minister
Chequers
Mr. Lidington: To ask the Prime Minister what assessment he has made of the likely effect on the use of Chequers of draft proposals in the National Air Traffic Service's consultation on the use of airspace over South East England. [212379]
The Prime Minister: None. I will continue to use Chequers consistent with the Chequers Estate Acts and consistent with the practice of previous administrations.
Women and Equality
Gender Equality: Carers
16. Ben Chapman: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality what recent discussions she has had with ministerial colleagues on equality between men and women in providing care. [212143]
Barbara Follett: As I said in the response to my hon. Friend the Member for West Ham (Lyn Brown). We recognise that the majority of caring, around 70 per cent. is done by women. The Prime Minister launched the revised National Carers Strategy on 10 June. It set out a £255 million package of support for carers. Throughout the development of this strategy I had discussions with ministerial colleagues about support for men and women.
Wales
Council Tax: Rates and Rating
Robert Neill: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Brentwood and Ongar of 7 May 2008, Official Report, columns 894-95W, on council tax: valuation, how many dwellings in Wales had their council tax banding amended by the 2005 council tax revaluation. [211653]
Mr. Paul Murphy: Statistics showing the revised property bandings that resulted from the 2005 valuation are shown in the following table.
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