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1 Sep 2008 : Column 1411W—continued


Mental health and behavioural disorders
Average duration (days)

DfTc DSA DVLA HA MCA VOSA

2003

38.9

18.0

44.2

58.1

14.4

29.2

2004

48.9

22.6

31.7

80.0

16.5

24.8

2005

56.5

20.5

35.2

44.7

30.5

33.4

2006

27.0

27.6

33.5

40.5

47.6

35.8

2007

22.1

32.1

25.5

38.3

26.9

35.1


The Government Car and Despatch Agency and The Vehicle Certification Agency could provide the information only at disproportionate cost.

The information requested from the Department for Transport’s non-governmental bodies can be provided only at disproportionate cost also.

Jenny Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the average duration of single periods of sick leave taken by staff in (a) her Department, (b) its agencies and (c) the non-departmental bodies for which it has responsibility was in each of the last five years; and if she will make a statement. [216172]


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Ms Rosie Winterton: The central Department and its agencies recorded the following average durations of single periods of sick leave taken by staff in each of the last five years:

Average duration (days)

DfTc DSA DVLA HA MCA VOSA

2003

n/a

5.1

6.8

6.0

4.2

5.9

2004

8.5

6.2

7.0

7.0

4.7

5.7

2005

5.4

6.3

7.2

6.0

5.1

6.5

2006

4.6

7.3

7.5

7.0

6.1

7.6

2007

3.8

7.7

7.5

6.0

6.0

8.0


The Government Car and Despatch Agency and The Vehicle Certification Agency could provide the information only at disproportionate cost.

The information requested from the Department for Transport’s non-governmental bodies can be provided only at disproportionate cost also.

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many and what percentage of staff in her Department have had more than two periods of sickness absence of less than five days in each of the last three years. [218694]

Ms Rosie Winterton: The Central Department and its agencies recorded the following employees who have had more than two periods of sickness of less than five days in each of the last three years:

Number of staff with two or more periods of sickness of less than five days Number of staff Percentage of staff

2005

3,431

19,618

17.49

2006

3,206

20,080

15.97

2007

3,309

20,293

16.31


These figures exclude those of the Government Car and Despatch Agency who could provide this information only at disproportionate cost.

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many staff in her Department have had five or more periods of sickness absence of less than five days in two or more of the last five years. [218974]

Ms Rosie Winterton: The Central Department and its agencies recorded 682 employees who have had five or more periods of sickness absence of less than five days in two or more of the last five years.

This figure excludes the Government Car and Despatch Agency who could provide the information only at disproportionate cost.

Departmental Sick Pay

Jenny Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many staff in (a) her Department , (b) its agencies and (c) the non-departmental bodies for which it has responsibility have received sick pay for sick leave due to (i) stress and (ii) mental health and behavioural disorders in each of the last 10 years; what the average length of time was for which sick pay was paid in these cases; and if she will make a statement. [216173]


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Jim Fitzpatrick: The information requested can be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Jenny Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much was paid in sick pay to staff in (a) her Department, (b) its agencies and (c) the non-departmental bodies for which it has responsibility in each of the last five years; what proportion of the staffing expenditure of each body this represented in each year; and if she will make a statement. [216174]

Jim Fitzpatrick: The information requested can be provided only at disproportionate.

Departmental Travel

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many miles (a) Ministers and (b) officials in her Department travelled (i) by car, (ii) by rail and (iii) by air on Government business in each year since her Department’s formation. [220513]

Jim Fitzpatrick [holding answer 21 July 2008]: The information is not available in the form requested.

Driving Tests: Vetting

Willie Rennie: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many people were removed from the approved driving instructors register following a criminal conviction for a sexual offence in each of the last two years. [219454]

Jim Fitzpatrick [holding answer 17 July 2008]: In February 2007, the Home Office added the profession of ‘driving instructor’ to its Notifiable Occupation Scheme. This means that the Registrar of Approved Driving Instructors should be notified by the police when an Approved Driving Instructor (ADI) is convicted of an offence and therefore has an early opportunity to take appropriate action.

Since March 2007, Potential Driving Instructors (PDIs) have been required to undergo criminal records checks when applying to start the qualifying process. At the same time, the Driving Standards Agency began checking criminal records of existing ADIs.

From October 2007 ADIs applying to re-register or renew their registration have had to undergo criminal records checks. (This system was in full operation by April 2008).

Eight ADIs have been removed from the register since March 2007 as a result of a criminal records check revealing a conviction for a sexual offence.

Information on ADIs removed from the register as a result of a conviction for a sexual offence where identification of the offence was not the result of a criminal records check could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Driving Under The Influence

Mr. Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment she has made of the proposals by the Government’s Chief Medical Officer that a zero alcoholic drink driving limit should be set for drivers under the age of 20 years. [220445]


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Jim Fitzpatrick: We have made no specific evaluation of this proposal, but the Government do not consider it feasible to introduce a zero alcohol limit for drivers of any age because it is possible for some alcohol to be present in the body from sources other than alcoholic drinks.

We are currently considering a range of options to make further progress in tackling drink driving and intend to publish a consultation document in the next few months.

East Coast Railway Line

Mr. Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment she has made of the performance of rail services on the East Coast Main Line; and if she will review the National Express franchise against that assessment. [217280]

Ms Rosie Winterton: The Franchise Agreement specifies performance benchmarks which are continuously monitored by the Department for Transport. National Express East Coast is currently meeting its contracted commitments.

High Speed Trains

Stephen Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment she has made of the environmental effects of modal shift arising from the creation of a new high-speed rail line to run alongside the current route of the (a) West and (b) East Coast Main Line. [219416]

Mr. Tom Harris: In developing the July 2007 rail White Paper Delivering a Sustainable Railway, the Department for Transport commissioned work on various inter-urban capacity options. One element of this work sought to establish how much shift from air to rail would be needed to make up for the emissions generated by a high speed line. It concluded that the scale of the transfer required depended on the route of a new line.

The recently announced Network Rail New Lines Programme, in examining options for increasing rail capacity, will assess the likely transfer of passengers to any new line. It will also consider whether if there is a need for new lines in the future and whether it would make sense to design these for conventional or high speed use.

Lost Working Days

Mr. Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many working days have been lost due to industrial action by employees for which her Department is responsible in each year since 1997. [218040]

Jim Fitzpatrick: The information requested can be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Mayor of London

Stephen Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many meetings she had with the Mayor of London in the last 12 months. [217775]


1 Sep 2008 : Column 1415W

Ms Rosie Winterton: The Secretary of State has had three meetings in total with the Mayor of London in the last 12 months. For clarity, two of these were with the former Mayor and the other was with the present Mayor.

Motor Vehicles: Registration

Stephen Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the Answer of 13 June 2008, Official Report, column 538W to the hon. Member for Romsey, on cars: Hampshire, what the information is on car registrations in each local authority in the United Kingdom. [217523]

Mr. Tom Harris: A table showing the numbers of licensed cars at the end of 2007 registered in each local authority in Great Britain with carbon dioxide emissions equivalent to the present Band F (186 to 225 g/km) and Band G (over 225 g/km) has been placed in the House Libraries.

Figures are not held centrally for Northern Ireland.

Motor Vehicles: Rural Areas

Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if she will develop policies to assist rural motorists who have no alternative to car transport in areas where petrol prices are particularly high. [219134]

Ms Rosie Winterton: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer given by the Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury in response to the same question on 22 July 2008 (UIN 219135).


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