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27 Oct 2008 : Column 758W—continued
Information for non-COI spend on internet and website design and hosting for public information campaigns could be gathered only at disproportionate cost.
Broadcast advertising campaigns are usually only purchased through COI so the aforementioned figures from COI should be fairly representative of the Department's spending in this area.
Departmental Pay
David Simpson: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many non-pensionable bonuses were awarded to members of staff in his Department in the last 12 months; and at what total cost. [226411]
Mr. McFadden: The Department for Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform awards non-consolidated bonuses in two formats:
1. Special bonuses to recognise performance in particularly demanding tasks or situations. Staff in receipt of a special bonus may also receive an annual performance award.
2. Annual performance awards paid to highly successful performers as part of the annual pay award.
Based on the information available, the number of staff receiving these awards and total amount of bonuses for which this information can be provided is in the following table.
| Financial year( 1) | Special bonus | Performance awards | ||
| Number of staff receiving | Total value (£) | Number of staff receiving | Total value (£) | |
| (1) Financial year running from 1 April to 31 March. (2) 2008-09 special bonus figures are not yet available. (3 )Includes staff who were transferred from BERR to DECC as part of the October 2008 Machinery of Government changes as these staff received a BERR pay award in 2008. (4) In 2007-8 the total value of bonuses paid was approximately 1.5 per cent of the total Department's paybill. (5) Includes staff who were transferred from DTI to DIUS as part of the June 2007 Machinery of Government Changes as these staff received a DTI/BERR pay award in 2007. Does not include those staff transferred into BERR from Cabinet Office and the Department for Communities and Local Government as part of the June 2007 Machinery of Government Changes as these staff received Cabinet Office and DCLG pay awards respectively in 2007. Note: The special bonuses and performance awards for non-SCS staff are paid on a non-consolidated, non-pensionable basis and do not increase the Department's paybill costs each year. For the SCS the Senior Salaries Review Body determines the level of expenditure to cover bonuses. | ||||
Departmental Public Relations
Mr. Ancram: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what the cost was of (a) entertainment, (b) advertising and promotion and (c) public relations consultancy to his Department in 2007-08. [228151]
Mr. McFadden: In 2007-08 the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform’s total expenditure (including UK Trade and Investment and the Department’s agencies) on (a) entertainment and hospitality; (b) advertising and promotion and (c) public relations consultancy and marketing was as follows:
| £000 | |
The information is taken directly from the Department’s financial system and the categories may cover a wider range of expenditure than requested in the question.
Departmental Recruitment
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many civil servants in his Department were recruited through the fast stream; and what the average salary of those officials is. [229138]
Mr. McFadden: 269 civil servants working in the Department were originally recruited through the fast stream grade in the period for which this information is available (1997-2008). The average salary of these officials is £38,190.
Minimum Wage: Greater London
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many people living in each London borough received the national minimum wage at the latest date for which information is available. [229398]
Kevin Brennan: I have been asked to reply.
The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.
Letter from Colin Mowl, dated October 2008:
The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking how many people living in each London borough received the national minimum wage at the latest date for which information is available. I am replying in her absence. (229398)
Estimates for the number of jobs paid at the national minimum wage are not available from the Office for National Statistics. However, estimates for the number of all employee jobs paid below the national wage are, though the lowest geographical breakdown available is by Government Office Region.
The number of jobs earning less than the national minimum wage for London region for all employees in 2007 was 23,000.
A guide to measuring low pay and associated articles can be found on the National Statistics website at:
Post Office: Marketing
Grant Shapps: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how much the Post Office has spent on (a) advertising and (b) sponsorship in each of the last five years. [229833]
Mr. McFadden: This is an operational matter for Post Office Ltd. (POL). I have therefore asked Alan Cook, Managing Director of POL, to reply direct to the hon. Member.
Copies of the letter will be placed in the Libraries of the House.
Post Office: Motor Vehicles
Tim Farron: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform if he will consider proposals for the Post Office network to have its terminals linked to the Motor Vehicle Licence Online system. [228970]
Mr. McFadden [holding answer 21 October 2008]: Responsibility for the issue and renewal of motor vehicle excise licences, including the channels available to do so, rests with DVLA. The arrangements in place for renewal of licences at post offices are a contractual matter between DVLA and Post Office Ltd.
Post Offices
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many people used post offices for (a) foreign currency transactions and (b) submitting passport applications in the last 12 months. [229407]
Mr. McFadden: This is an operational matter for Post Office Ltd. (POL). I have therefore asked Alan Cook, Managing Director of POL, to reply direct to the hon. Member.
Copies of the letter will be placed in the Libraries of the House.
Post Offices: Chelmsford
Mr. Burns: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many post offices and sub-post offices were closed in the Chelmsford local authority area in the periods between (a) 1987 and 1996 and (b) 1997 and 2008. [229874]
Mr. McFadden: This is an operational matter for Post Office Ltd. (POL). I have therefore asked Alan Cook, Managing Director of POL, to reply direct to the hon. Member.
Copies of the letter will be placed in the Libraries of the House.
Post Offices: Closure
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many letters his Department has received (a) in favour of and (b) opposed to post office closures in the last 12 months. [229353]
Mr. McFadden: The Department does not hold this information in the form requested. I understand that, nationally, Post Office Ltd. has received over 180,000 pieces of correspondence in response to the local area plan consultations on its Network Change proposals, half by e-mail (or whatever the proportion is).
Post Offices: Closures
Andrew Selous: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform when he expects Post Office Ltd. to make a decision on the future of Linslade Post Office in South West Bedfordshire constituency. [229580]
Mr. McFadden [holding answer 23 October 2008]: The Linslade Post Office branch was part of the Cambridgeshire, Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire Area Plan. I understand that the proposal to close the branch is subject to the further review process by Postwatch, and Post Office Ltd. expect to communicate the final decision in the near future.
Post Offices: North Yorkshire
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform if he will instruct Post Office Ltd. to make its accounts available to North Yorkshire County Council to allow that council to assess the financial viability of individual post offices in North Yorkshire. [228985]
Mr. McFadden: Post Office Ltd’s annual accounts are filed at Companies House and are therefore publicly available on request. In certain circumstances, for example where a local authority is interested in funding post office and other community service provision after the closure of a post office branch, Post Office Ltd may be prepared to disclose the costs to them of operating an individual post office on a confidential basis, providing the local authority signs an appropriate non-disclosure agreement and the outlet meets the relevant criteria.
Regional Development Agencies: Bank Services
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how much each regional development agency has invested or on deposit in Icelandic banks. [228196]
Mr. McFadden [holding answer 17 October 2008]: Regional Development Agencies do not hold accounts in Icelandic banks.
Small Firms' Loan Guarantee
Mr. Leech: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many businesses have been refused loans under the Small Firms' Loan Guarantee in each year since 2003. [225167]
Mr. McFadden: Decision-making on individual SFLG loans is delegated to participating lenders, who firstly must determine whether each business proposition is viable, before considering if SFLG is appropriate. Following implementation of changes recommended under the Graham Review in 2005, this Department no longer makes decisions on individual loans, and lenders are provided with a web-portal to determine formal approval of the guarantee. Therefore BERR does not hold any records on businesses that have not been granted loans under SFLG.
Taxis
Mr. Prisk: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how much was claimed in expenses for taxi travel by officials from (a) his Department and (b) its executive agencies in (i) 2006-07, (ii) 2005-06, (iii) 2004-05, (iv) 2003-04 and (v) 2002-03; and if he will make a statement. [227049]
Mr. McFadden: Taxi spend incurred by officials in UK and Overseas travel is as follows:
| £ | |
Details for 2003-04 and for 2002-03 have not been retained and are therefore unavailable.
Letter from Gareth Jones, 27 October 2008:
I am responding on behalf of Companies House to your recently tabled Parliamentary Question to the Minister of State for Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform.
Taxi fares form part of overall expense claims and are not recorded separately. The amount claimed in cost. Companies House does however have an account with a local taxi company and the amounts paid were as follows:
| Financial year | Amount spent on taxi account (£) |
Letter from Stephen Speed, 27 October 2008:
The Minister of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform has asked me to reply to your question how much was claimed in expenses for taxi travel by officials from (a) his Department and (b) its executive agencies in (i) 2006-07, (ii) 2005-06, (iii) 2004-05, (iv) 2003-04 and (v) 2002-03.
The Insolvency Service Executive Agency of the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform replied to a similar question in PQ 3644 of 2007 that the Service is unable to extract details of annual taxi expenses as they are not separately recorded. All claims made in August 2008 were sampled which showed costs of £1,510 for taxi fares in that month. We therefore reported that we do not expect the annual cost of taxi fares to be more than £20,000.
Wind Power
Mark Williams: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what the (a) average gross income per annum and (b) subsidy from the public purse for a large 2.5 MW installed capacity wind turbine was in the latest period for which figures are available. [225109]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: I have been asked to reply.
The information is as follows:
(a) The Department does not hold information on income for wind farms. Generators agree a contract with suppliers for the sale of electricity and renewable obligation certificates (ROCs), and this information is therefore likely to be commercially confidential.
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