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14 Oct 2008 : Column 1011W—continued
Trident Missiles
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 29 September 2008, Official Report, column 2440W, on Trident missiles, how many Trident warheads are either operationally available or undergoing maintenance. [225908]
Mr. Hutton: The UK has fewer than 160 operationally available Trident warheads. I am withholding further information as its release would, or would be likely to, prejudice national security.
Written Questions: Government Responses
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he will reply to question 220189, on staff, tabled on 15 July. [226916]
Mr. Kevan Jones: I replied to the hon. Member today.
Northern Ireland
Crime Prevention
Mr. McGrady: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the terms of reference of the review of community safety partnerships are. [224597]
Paul Goggins: An NIO-led review group is considering the optimum local arrangements for the delivery of the functions currently undertaken by Community Safety Partnerships (CSPs) and District Policing Partnerships (DPPs). The review will take account of the implementation of the Northern Ireland Executive's Review of Public Administration, and in particular the introduction of community planning. The main focus of this work is to establish how best to deliver effective local services and accountability, consistent with developments in community planning.
The review group will shortly bring forward recommendations on the way forward. I will then consult with key stakeholders before initiating a wider public consultation.
Disabled
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (1) how many and what proportion of staff in his Department are disabled; and what the average salary in his Department is of (a) full-time disabled staff, (b) full-time non-disabled staff, (c) part-time disabled staff and (d) part-time non-disabled staff; [220174]
(2) when he will reply to Question 220174, on staff, tabled on 15 July. [226923]
Mr. Woodward: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster on 8 October, Official Report, column 652W.
The statistics in respect of the Northern Ireland Office, as referred to in that response, relate only to its Home Civil Service employees. There are also a number of Northern Ireland Civil Servants working in the Department. When Northern Ireland Civil Servants are
included in the total, there are 54 staff (4.1 per cent.) in the NIO core and 36 staff (4.7 per cent.) in its executive agencies who have advised the Department that they have a disability.
Nuclear Power
Dr. Alasdair McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what (a) meetings and (b) discussions he has had with the Minister for the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment in the Northern Ireland Executive on the implications for electricity consumers in Northern Ireland of the Government's plans for nuclear generation in Great Britain in the last 12 months; and what correspondence has been undertaken between his officials and those in the Northern Ireland Executive on the matter of the same timescale. [224763]
Mr. Woodward: I have had no such meetings or discussions in the last 12 months, but I know that officials in the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform maintain close links with their counterparts in the Northern Ireland Department of Enterprise, Trade and Industry.
Vetting: Standards
Mr. McGrady: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what proportion of the applications made to Access NI for criminal record checks in each of the last three months took more than four weeks to complete. [225356]
Paul Goggins: During the period in question, AccessNI maintained a performance target to complete 90 per cent. of basic disclosure applications within two weeks and 90 per cent. of standard disclosure applications within three weeks. Unfortunately, we have failed to meet our target of 90 per cent. of enhanced disclosures within four weeks.
I will write to the hon. Gentleman to explain the steps taken to address this issue.
Water Charges
Mrs. Lait: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for North Shropshire, of 26 June 2008, Official Report, column 441W, on water charges, what estimate he has made of the effect on funding to be provided from central Government to the Northern Ireland Executive as a result of not implementing a policy of revised water charges in Northern Ireland. [225545]
Mr. Woodward: Policy on water charging is a devolved matter for the Northern Ireland Executive. Any associated costs would be met from within the Northern Ireland block grant, which was set out in the 2007 Comprehensive Spending Review.
Work and Pensions
Better Government for Older People
Mr. Andrew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what plans he has for the future of the Better Government for Older People programme; and if he will make a statement. [225530]
Ms Rosie Winterton [holding answer 13 October 2008]: On 22 May 2008 the Minister for Pensions Reform (Mike O’Brien) announced a review by John Elbourne to examine how Government can best engage with older people. The review is looking at how Government support mechanisms to engage with older people, including Better Government for Older People.
Council Tax Benefits: Scotland
Mr. Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what research his Department has commissioned on the effects of a local income tax on the administration of the council tax benefits system in Scotland. [225411]
Elderly
Mr. Andrew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the relationships are between his Department, the Better Government for Older People programme, the Older People’s Advisory Group and the Centre for Policy on Ageing. [225531]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The Department for Work and Pensions is the main funder of Better Government for Older People (BGOP). BGOP supports a network of volunteers, the Older People’s Advisory Group. The Centre for Policy on Ageing hosts BGOP, employing staff and providing accommodation.
Occupational Pensions: Public Sector
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many new public sector pensions have been opened in each of the last 10 years. [226177]
Yvette Cooper: I have been asked to reply.
Membership data on individual public sector pension schemes are available in their published resource accounts.
Social Security Benefits
John Mason: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate the Government has made of monetary value of unclaimed benefits in the latest period for which figures are available, broken down by benefit and allowance type. [225280]
Kitty Ussher: Estimates of the value of unclaimed income-related benefits in Great Britain, covering income support, pension credit, housing benefit, council tax benefit and jobseeker’s allowance (income-based) are published in the report “Income Related Benefits Estimates of Take-Up in 2006-07”. A copy of this report, along with past reports, has been placed in the Library.
Estimates are not available for other benefits and allowances.
Social Security Benefits: Disqualification
Mr. Clappison:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many written warnings have been issued to benefit claimants about the consequences
of failure to engage in a rehabilitation programme in respect of antisocial or criminal behaviour under the provisions of the Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1992 as amended by the Welfare Reform Act 2007; in how many cases benefit sanctions have been applied; what progress has been made in the pilot areas; how many warnings and sanctions have been issued in each pilot area; and if he will make a statement. [225574]
Kitty Ussher [holding answer 9 October 2008]: There have been no written warnings issued or sanctions applied in the pilot areas for the sanction of housing benefit related to antisocial behaviour.
The eight local authorities all have the necessary processes in place to offer suitable rehabilitation in cases where it would be appropriate. Some have introduced details about the sanction into their literature and warning letters to tenants.
Women and Equality
Equal Pay: Prosecutions
Stephen Hesford: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality how many prosecutions of private sector employers took place under the Equal Pay Act 1970 for the underpayment of female workers between 2000 and 2007. [216492]
Maria Eagle: The Equal Pay Act 1970 does not contain any criminal offences, so there can be no prosecutions under it. Anyone who considers that they have been paid less than a person of the opposite gender for doing like work, work rated the same, or work of equal value can make a civil claim under the Equal Pay Act 1970 before an employment tribunal.
The number of equal pay claims made to employment tribunals is published by the Employment Tribunal Service (ETS), but information on whether the claim was brought against a public or private sector is not recorded.
The following table records the number of claims made in each period which included a claim for equal pay.
| Equal pay claims | |
Data in this table are taken from the ETS Annual Reports for the years 2003-04 and 2005-06, and the Annual Statistics 2006-07, all of which are published on the ETS website:
Government Communications
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality how many staff in the Government Equalities Office (a) are classified as Government communicators and (b) have access to the Government Communication Network. [215116]
Maria Eagle: There are five communications specialists in the Government Equalities Office. All civil servants have the option of accessing the Government Communication Network and those who mainly work in a communications role have exclusive access to the resources it provides.
Women: Violence
Chris Huhne: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality what assessment she has made of the effects of gang culture on levels of violence against women. [223002]
Maria Eagle: To date no assessment has been made by my Department of the effects of gang culture on levels of violence against women.
Leader of the House
Legislation
Mr. Vara: To ask the Leader of the House (1) how much has been spent on (a) the publicity for and (b) the solicitation of responses to the Government’s Draft Legislative Programme for 2008-09; [226096]
(2) how many responses to the Government’s Draft Legislative Programme for 2008-09 were received by (a) e-mail, (b) post and (c) another method; and if she will make a statement. [226098]
Chris Bryant: £32,035 was spent on publishing the Government’s Draft Legislative Programme for 2008-09. The cost of the consultation exercise on the Government’s Draft Legislative Programme for 2008-09 was £30,922.38.
The Government’s Draft Legislative Programme for 2008-09 received the views of around 1,900 people and organisations. These comprised 566 responses to the Leader of the House of Commons’ website, at least 1,200 people and organisations who participated in the 62 regional events and 115 individuals and organisations who responded by post.
Innovation, Universities and Skills
Adult Education: Finance
Greg Mulholland: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills how much was allocated to adult learning support at higher education colleges in Leeds by the Learning and Skills Council in 2007-08. [226389]
Mr. Simon: The total Additional Learning Support (ALS) allocated to further education colleges in Leeds by the LSC in the year 2007-08 was £5,005,573. The breakdown of this allocation to individual colleges is set out as follows, and includes ALS for both 16 to 18-year-olds and adults (those aged 19 or over):
| College name | 2007/08 ALS allocation (£) |
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