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Young Offender Institutions: Drugs

Mr. Malins: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what rehabilitation programmes are available for drug users in young offender institutions. [232187]

Mr. Hanson: The National Offender Management Service (NOMS) has in place a comprehensive drug treatment framework, based on the National Treatment Agency's revised models of care, to address the different needs of drug-misusers in prisons and young offenders institutions (YOIs). The interventions available are designed to meet the needs of low, moderate and severe drug misusers—irrespective of age, gender or ethnicity.

The interventions available include:

Prison drug treatment funding has increased year on year since 1996-97—up 1,179 per cent., with record numbers engaging in treatment.

Young Offender Institutions: Education

Mr. Malins: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what educational opportunities are available for young offenders aged (a) 16 to 18 and (b) 18 to 21 years old in young offender institutions. [232184]

Mr. Hanson: The educational opportunities available to offenders in young offender institutions (YOIs) is specified by the Learning and Skills Council in both an offenders' learning journey for under 18s and an offenders' learnings journey for adults. For under 18s this includes literacy, language and numeracy, information and communications technology (ICT), continuity of
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mainstream education, vocational training in a range of subjects and physical education. For adults, the specified curriculum includes literacy, language and numeracy, ICT and work-related learning.

Young Offenders: Employment

Mr. Malins: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many young offenders found full or part-time employment within one month of release from custody in the latest period for which figures are available. [232180]

Mr. Hanson: The National Offender Management Service does not record whether an offender has found full or part-time employment within a month of release from custody. However, it does record whether an offender has full or part-time employment on release. During the period April to September 2008 (latest figures available(1)) the total number of prisoners with employment upon release from young offender institutions (YOIs) was 1,263.

Young Offenders: Literacy

Mr. Malins: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what percentage of young offenders in custody were unable to read or write (a) on admission and (b) on release in the latest period for which figures are available. [232185]

Mr. Hanson: All young offenders under the age of 18 are assessed. Young offenders over the age of 18 are only assessed where basic skills screening indicates a literacy or numeracy deficiency and they have been referred to a learning provider.

In the academic year 2007-08 there were a total of 7,329 learning and skills assessments carried out in young offender institutions (YOIs). 24 per cent. of those assessments showed literacy levels below level 1 with numeracy below level 1 at 33 per cent. In the same period 1,388 qualifications were achieved below level 1, 1,813 qualifications at level 1 and 771 were achieved at level 2. Assessment of individuals was not carried out on release from custody and information is not available centrally.

Young Offenders: Prisoners Release

Mr. Malins: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what percentage of young offenders went to (a) housing provided by a family member, ( b) housing provided by a local authority or other statutory provider, (c) housing provided by a charity and (d) an address unknown to the authorities following release from custody in the latest period for which figures are available. [232181]

Mr. Hanson: Currently suitable accommodation after custody is a key element in the Government's Youth Crime Action Plan and we have been consulting on how we can increase young offender's access to this resource. The responses to the consultation will inform future policy in this area. There is also a National Indicator 46, ‘Young offenders' access to suitable accommodation’, which will encourage local authorities to support this aim. This information is not collected centrally.


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Mr. Malins: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what percentage of young offenders were released from custody into full or part-time education in the latest period for which figures are available. [232183]

Mr. Hanson: The percentage of prisoners released from custody into full or part-time education from young offender institutions (YOIs) was 27.8 per cent. for the period April to September 2008, the latest figures available(1).

Young People: Custodial Treatment

David Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice when he expects the independent review of prisoner escort and custody services-commissioned escorts for young people, commissioned by the Youth Justice Board to be published. [231249]

Mr. Hanson: The Youth Justice Board has commissioned a research report to assist with planning of escorting arrangements in the secure estate for children and young people. The purpose of the report is to aid internal decision-making and the board has no plans to publish it.

International Development

Overseas Aid

Mr. Hollobone: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will make it his policy not to allocate aid and assistance to countries which operate space programmes. [233098]

Mr. Douglas Alexander: The Department for International Development's (DFID) policy on providing aid is set out in the UK Government's 2006 White Paper. This is available online:

DFID concentrates its development assistance on countries with the largest numbers of poor people and on fragile states. When then deciding whether to use aid to support a country's Government, DFID undertakes a detailed assessment of that Government's commitment to: reducing poverty; upholding human rights; and improving public financial management.

When assessing a Government's commitment to reducing poverty the composition of their public expenditure programme is viewed as a whole. It would not be appropriate to make that assessment based solely on whether they include or exclude specific expenditures.

Rwanda: Overseas Aid

Mr. Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much aid the Government have provided to Rwanda in each of the last three years. [233183]

Mr. Douglas Alexander: The UK Government have provided the following amounts of aid to Rwanda during the last three years:


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 £

2005

29,325,834

2006

51,298,863

2007

47,204,899


Duchy of Lancaster

Civil Servants: Career Structure

Mr. Maude: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (1) what records his Department maintains on the number of civil servants who are (a) on the Priority Movers List, (b) part of the Priority Talent Pool, (c) part of the Career Support Network and (d) part of the Redeployment Network in each Government agency and Department; [191089]

(2) how many permanent staff of (a) the Cabinet Office and (b) the Central Office of Information are not assigned to a permanent post; [211110]

(3) how many permanent staff within Downing street are classed as (a) staff without posts and (b) part of a people action team. [210865]

Mr. Watson: Individual Departments maintain their own records of staff temporarily without a permanent post. These staff are managed actively in accordance with departmental policy and taking into account cross-civil service protocols on the handling of surplus staff.

As at 30 April 2008 there were 17 permanent Cabinet Office employees without a permanent role and none in the Central Office of Information. The Cabinet Office runs a brokerage service to ensure that staff without permanent roles are assigned to project or interim work while they are supported to find a suitable permanent role.

Civil Servants: Pensions

Paul Rowen: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (1) what estimate he has made of the annual change in the cost to the public purse arising from the recent changes to civil service pensions; and if he will make a statement. [229487]

(2) what estimate he has made of the annual savings accruing to the public purse as a result of the introduction of a career average pension scheme within the civil service pension scheme. [229872]

Mr. Watson: I refer the hon. Member to the written ministerial statement made by my hon. Friend the then Parliamentary Secretary for the Cabinet Office (Gillian Merron) on 26 July 2007, Official Report, column 105WS, which gave details of the package of civil service pension reform. The impact to date of the introduction of the nuvos scheme on the overall membership of the civil service pension scheme, and on overall costs, is limited. However, the scheme actuary has estimated long-term annual savings in employer contributions at 1.2 per cent. of the total pensionable payroll (the total pensionable payroll is currently around £14 billion).

Paul Rowen: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how many civil servants will receive payments from the civil service pension scheme in 2008-09. [231289]


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Mr. Watson: Details of benefits payable under the principal civil service pension scheme will be included in the Cabinet Office: Civil Superannuation Resource Accounts 2008-09, expected to be published shortly before the summer recess.

Departmental Information Officers

Mr. Heald: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how many full-time equivalent press officers (a) work and (b) provide assistance for his Department. [231498]

Mr. Watson: 10 full-time equivalent press officers currently work and provide assistance for the Cabinet Office.

Departmental Public Participation

Mike Penning: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how many postcards were issued by his Department as part of public policy consultations in each of the last five years; and how many responses were received in each year. [229731]

Mr. Watson: The Cabinet Office uses a range of methods to engage with the public, including online surveys and information leaflets. The information requested is not held centrally and can be obtained only at a disproportionate cost.

However, 1,479 postcards were sent out at the outset of the Crime and Communities consultation to stakeholders who had been involved with addressing crime and antisocial behaviour in their neighbourhoods. 399 responses were received.

EDF Energy

Mr. Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what contracts (a) his Department and (b) its agency has with EDF; and how much (i) his Department and (ii) its agency paid to EDF in each of the last 10 years, broken down by the purpose of the payment. [221851]

Mr. Watson: The Cabinet Office does not have any energy contracts directly with EDF.

Since 2002 the Cabinet Office has procured its electricity and gas supply from facilities management providers who tender competitively. In 2007-08 the Cabinet Office procured for 70 Whitehall an additional electrical transformer to avoid overloading the original at a cost of £150,000 plus VAT from the distribution network operator EDF Energy.

From 1998 to 2002 the Cabinet Office procured its energy from various suppliers including London Electricity (wholly owned by EDF Energy). Information for this period can be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Government Departments: Information and Communications Technology

Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what public-facing IP addresses are used by the Government Secure Intranet. [233306]


4 Nov 2008 : Column 337W

Angela Eagle: I have been asked to reply.

The information is as follows.

GSi Gateway

GSi SIG

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