| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
27 Oct 2008 : Column 714W—continued
Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many (a) mathematics, (b) physics, (c) chemistry, (d) biology, (e) English and (f) IT teacher trainees have failed one or more times the (i) literacy, (ii) numeracy and (iii) IT tests in initial teacher training in each of the last 10 years. [230270]
Jim Knight: The requested information could be produced only at a disproportionate cost.
Communities and Local Government
Community Relations
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what requirement local authorities have to adopt National Indicator 35 on violent extremism as part of their Local Area Agreement. [229696]
Mr. Khan: Local authorities are not required to adopt any National Indicators (NIs) in their Local Area Agreements (LAAs). Targets in LAAs are negotiated and agreed between each local area, led by its local authority, and Government. 19 authorities have included NI35 as a designated target in their LAA. A further five areas have included NI35 as a local target.
Departmental Information and Communications Technology
Mr. Ancram: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much her Department spent on upgrading its IT in each of the last three financial years. [228417]
Mr. Khan: Communities and Local Government carried out a major upgrade to its desktop and infrastructure which was implemented between September 2007 and January 2008 which cost £2,064,000. The information relating to IT upgrades for other years and other systems is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Departmental Internet
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether (a) civil servants, (b) Ministers and (c) special advisers in her Department are permitted to access web mail accounts from departmental computers. [229760]
Mr. Khan: Communities and Local Government allows access to web mail accounts on departmental computers. However any users accessing web mail accounts from departmental systems are required to comply with the terms of a personal commitment statement and a code of conduct specifically in relation to the use of personal data. These restrict users from using web mail for general work purposes, and clearly define the restrictions and options available for different levels of protectively marked data, including the need for encryption in some cases. Staff are not permitted to automatically forward their Communities email account to a web mail account. Breach of these policies can be a disciplinary matter.
Departmental Older Workers
David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many people aged over (a) 55 and (b) 60 years of age were recruited by her Department in 2007-08; and what percentage in each case this was of the number of new recruits. [228762]
Mr. Khan: The Department for Communities and Local Government has recruited 11 people over the age of 55 since 1 January 2007 which was 5 per cent. of total new recruits. The Department has recruited seven staff over the age of 60 which was 3 per cent. of total recruits.
Departmental Overseas Visits
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the Answer of 15 September 2008, Official Report, column 2081W, on departmental overseas visits, which division of her Department authorised each overseas visit. [230144]
Mr. Khan: Communities and Local Government does not hold central records to identify which divisions in this Department authorised each overseas visit and there would be a disproportionate cost in obtaining this information from local managers.
Departmental Pensions
Jenny Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many and what proportion of civil servants in her Department and its agencies are members of the (a) Classic, (b) Classic Plus, (c) Nuvos and (d) Premium civil service pension schemes. [229535]
Mr. Khan: The proportion of civil servants in Communities and Local Government, including its agencies that are members of each version of the civil service pension scheme is outlined as follows:
| CLG members by scheme type | |
| Number | |
| (1) This figure includes staff on a casual contract and those who have opted out of the civil service pension arrangements. | |
Departmental Public Expenditure
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether the Departmental Unallocated Provision for Capital DEL outlined in her Department’s 2008 Annual Report on page 166, has yet been allocated in whole or in part from (a) 2009-10 and (b) 2010-11. [230184]
Mr. Khan: As yet, none of the 2009-10 and 2010-11 Departmental Unallocated Provision for Capital DEL has been allocated to a programme.
Any decisions on its allocation are not expected until after the publication of next year’s Annual Report and Main Estimates.
Departmental Public Relations
Mr. Ancram: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the cost was of (a) entertainment, (b) advertising and promotion and (c) public relations consultancy to her Department in 2007-08. [228144]
Mr. Khan: During 2007-08 the Department spent £317,086 on hospitality. The Department does not record expenditure for entertainment on its finance system and the figures in this reply relate to the broader category of hospitality. All expenditure on hospitality is made in accordance with published departmental guidance on financial procedures and propriety, based on principles set out in Government Accounting and the Treasury handbook on Regularity and Propriety.
The public information campaigns carried out by the Department in 2007-08 are published with costs in the Department's annual report, which is available in the Library of the House.
I refer the hon. Member to the reply to recent Freedom of Information requests which give details of the Department's expenditure with Public Relations Companies between April 2002 and 8 August 2008. These can be found on the Department's website at:
Departmental Recruitment
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (1) if she will place in the Library a copy of the job specification of the spatial analysis co-ordinator position advertised by her Department in October 2008; [230333]
(2) how many spatial analysis co-ordinators her Department (a) employs and (b) proposes to employ. [230334]
Mr. Khan: The Department employs no spatial analysis co-ordinators. We propose to employ one. A copy of the job specification has been placed in the Library.
Equality and Diversity Partnerships
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what funding the Government Offices for the Regions gave to regional equality and diversity partnerships in the last period for which figures are available. [230323]
Mr. Khan: The Government Offices for the English Regions gave £20,000 to regional and equality and diversity partnerships in the last period for which figures are available as follows:
Fire Services: Long Service Awards
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what recent changes have been made to the eligibility criteria for the Fire Brigade’s Long Service and Good Conduct Medal; what the criteria are; whether staff in the new Regional Fire Control centres are eligible for the medal; and if she will make a statement. [229706]
Mr. Khan: There have been no recent changes to the eligibility criteria for the Fire Brigade Long Service and Good Conduct Medal, which are set out in full in the Royal Warrant. Broadly, the warrant provides that eligibility extends to members of all ranks in fire brigades and aerodrome fire services maintained by local authorities in the United Kingdom or public airport companies, members of fire brigades or services maintained by Government Departments in the UK, certain Commonwealth territories or the British Airports Authority whose conditions of employment include a liability to engage in fire-fighting, and to certain other fire service personnel who are Crown servants. Staff in the new Regional Fire Control Centres which are local authority owned companies will not be in fire brigade employment and will not be eligible.
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many Fire and Rescue Service Long Service and Good Conduct medals were awarded in each of the last 10 years; and if she will make a statement. [229707]
Mr. Khan: For the 10 year period 1 January 1999 to 27 October 2008 14,394 Long Service and Good Conduct medals have been awarded to those eligible.
For 2008, to date (27 October 2008), 1,209 medals have been awarded.
For the previous nine years, 1999 to 2007 inclusive, the number of medals awarded were:
| Number | |
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |