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27 Oct 2008 : Column 763W—continued
(b) The renewables obligation are the Government’s main mechanism for supporting renewable energy. It does not pay a subsidy to generators from the public purse, but instead places an obligation on suppliers to source a specific and annually increasing proportion of their sales from renewable sources. Suppliers meet their obligation either by presenting ROCs, which are issued to generators for every MWh of eligible renewable generation; by paying a buy-out price; or a combination
of presenting ROCs and paying the buy-out price. Money from the buy-out fund is recycled pro-rata to suppliers presenting ROCs.
The price of a ROC is therefore set by the market. However, the nominal value of a ROC for a particular obligation period can be calculated by adding together the buy-out price and the recycled payment for that period. For 2007-08, this gives £34.30 + £18.59 = £52.89.
Wines
Alistair Burt: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what his Department’s practice is on supplying non-alcoholic wine as a choice at official receptions or functions. [229128]
Mr. McFadden: Non-alcoholic wine is available to order by function organisers within the Department from our contracted catering service provider, Baxter Storey.
World War II: Medals
Mr. Hepburn: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many people in (a) Jarrow constituency, (b) South Tyneside, (c) the North East and (d) England were awarded a Bevin Boys badge in each year since the inception of the award. [224687]
Mr. Mike O'Brien: I have been asked to reply.
Applications for the Bevin Boys Veterans badge are processed on behalf of DECC by the MOD's Service Personnel and Veterans Agency (SPVA). They inform me that as at 6 October 2008 a total 4,541 badges have been issued. Of these, two applicants have included the word Jarrow in their address and have received a Bevin Boys Veterans badge.
Figures for the remaining areas—South Tyneside, the north-east and England—can be provided only at disproportionate costs.
Duchy of Lancaster
Death: Weather
Hugh Bayley: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how many excess deaths from cold weather there were in York in each year since 1996-97; and if he will make a statement. [230259]
Kevin Brennan: 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 question asking how many excess deaths from cold weather there were in York in each year since 1996-97. I am replying in her absence. (230259)
Estimates of excess winter deaths are based on the difference between the number of deaths during the four winter months (December to March) and the average number of deaths during the preceding four months (August to November) and the following four months (April to July). It is not possible to say whether these deaths were related to cold weather. The table attached provides the number of excess winter deaths in York unitary authority for the years 1996/97 to 2005/06 (the latest available).
| Table 1: Excess winter deaths( 1, 2)( ) York unitary authority, 1996 - 97 to 2005 - 06 | |
| Winter | Deaths (persons) |
| (1) The estimated number of excess winter deaths is the difference between the number of deaths during the four winter months (December to March) and the average number of deaths during the preceding four months (August to November) and the following four months (April to July). Figures are rounded to the nearest 10 to reflect the fact that they are estimates. (2) Data are based on deaths occurring in each month. | |
Departmental Temporary Employment
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster which companies were used by his Department for providing temporary staff in each of the last five years; and what the value of contracts with each such company was in each of those years. [229082]
Kevin Brennan: Departmental records are not structured in a way that readily identifies which companies have been used for the provision of temporary staff to the Cabinet Office or the value of the contracts held. This information is therefore available only at disproportionate cost.
Foreign Workers
Mr. Clappison: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what estimate he has made of the number of foreign workers in employment who have lived in the UK for less than six months. [228442]
Kevin Brennan [holding answer 20 October 2008]: 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 Parliamentary Question asking for an estimate of the number of foreign workers in employment who have lived in the UK for less than six months. I am replying in her absence. (228442)
Using the latest available Labour Force Survey (LFS) data, that is for April-June 2008, it is estimated that there were 55,000 foreign-born people aged 16 and over in employment who had been resident in the UK for less than six months and were living in private households.
It should be noted that the LFS is a survey of private households only and excludes most kinds of communal establishments, such as hotels and hostels, in which foreign-born workers may also be resident.
As with any sample survey, estimates from the LFS are subject to a margin of uncertainty. In sampling error terms the above estimate is considered to be acceptable as the coefficient of variation (CV) lies between 10 and 20 per cent. The CV indicates the quality of an estimate, the smaller the CV value the higher the quality.
The figure is derived from the LFS microdata which are weighted using the official population estimates published in autumn 2007. They are not entirely consistent with the figures published in the monthly Labour Market Statistics First Release which are weighted using more up-to-date population estimates.
Lost Working Hours
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how many hours of work in the United Kingdom were lost as a result of industrial action in each year since 1997. [229383]
Kevin Brennan: 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 Parliamentary Question on how many hours of work in the United Kingdom have been lost as a result of industrial action in each year since 1997.1 am replying in her absence. (229383)
The Office for National Statistics does not collect information on the number of hours of work lost as a result of industrial action, but does produce estimates of the number of working days lost.
The Office for National Statistics compiles monthly labour disputes statistics for the UK. They exclude disputes that do not result in a stoppage of work, and stoppages involving fewer than ten workers or lasting less than one day, unless the total number of working days lost in the dispute is 100 or more.
Table 1 attached provides estimates of working days lost in the United Kingdom between 1997 and 2007.
| Working days lost (United Kingdom) | |
| Number | |
Methadone: Death
Mike Penning: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how many deaths attributed to methadone addiction were recorded in each of the last five years. [229662]
Kevin Brennan: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated October 2008:
As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent question asking how many deaths attributed to methadone addiction have been recorded in each of the last five years. (229662)
The attached table provides the numbers of deaths for which the underlying cause was drug poisoning and methadone was mentioned on the death certificate either alone or together with other substances, from 2003 to 2007 (the latest year available).
The information collected at death registration does not specify whether the deceased was addicted to the substances mentioned as contributing to the death.
| Table 1: Deaths attributed to drug poisoning( 1) where methadone was mentioned on the death certificate, England and Wales, 2003 to 2007( 2, 3, 4) | |||
| Number | |||
| Methadone mentioned only | Methadone and other substances | Total mentions of methadone | |
| (1) Cause of death was defined using the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10). Deaths were included where the underlying cause was due to drug poisoning (shown in the table below) and where methadone was mentioned on the death certificate. (2) Figures include deaths of non-residents. (3) Figures are for deaths registered in each calendar year. (4) Where methadone was the only drug mentioned on the death certificate, and where methadone was mentioned with other substances. | |||
Minimum Wage: Chelmsford
Mr. Burns: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how many people living in West Chelmsford constituency received no more than the national minimum wage at the latest date for which figures are available. [230516]
Kevin Brennan: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated October 2008:
As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking how many people living in West Chelmsford parliamentary constituency received no more than the national minimum wage at the latest date for which figures are available. (230516)
Estimates for the number of jobs paid at the national minimum wage are not available from ONS. However, estimates for the number of all employee jobs paid below the national wage are available by Government Office Region. This is the lowest geographical breakdown published by ONS.
The number of jobs earning less than the national minimum wage for the East region for all employees in 2007 was 27,000.
A guide to measuring low pay and associated articles can be found on the National Statistics website at:
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