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12 Nov 2008 : Column 1244W—continued
Overseas Aid: Natural Resources
John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much his Department has spent on the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative in each year since 2002. [233819]
Mr. Thomas: The Department for International Development (DFID) has provided to date a total of £8.45 million over the last six years to support the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) globally.
The yearly break down of expenditure is as follows:
| £ | |
Overseas Aid: Politics and Government
John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much funding his Department has provided to the Rights, Democracy and Inclusion Fund. [233866]
Mr. Michael Foster: The Department for International Development has disbursed £1,054,690 to the Rights, Democracy and Inclusion Fund (RDIF) against a total commitment of £1,362,335.
Overseas Aid: Water
Mr. Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many water wells his Department has funded in each year since 1997; how much this programme has cost, broken down by country; and what estimate he has made of the number of lives that have been saved as a result. [234603]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: Over the last six years the Department for International Development (DFID) has provided £775 million for water supply and sanitation programmes. It is estimated that these programmes have resulted in 25 million people gaining access to these basic services. It is not possible to disaggregate data on our funding specifically for water wells, nor accurately to estimate how many lives have been saved directly.
A detailed breakdown of DFID support for the water sector over the last five years can be found in the two reports titled ‘Financial Support to the Water Sector 2002-2004’ and ‘Financial Support to the Water Sector 2004-2006’. These are both available on the DFID website and in the Library:
Sierra Leone: Overseas Aid
John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what progress has been made by his Department in helping Sierra Leone to (a) attract private investment by simplifying regulations, (b) improve its tax collection, (c ) manage its natural resources through the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative and (d) tackle corruption. [233774]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The Department for International Development (DFID) has been supporting the Government of Sierra Leone to reduce the administrative barriers to investment. As a direct result, it is now the easiest place to start a business in West Africa according to the 2009 Doing Business survey at:
DFID is funding a seven-year programme (2005-12) of assistance to the National Revenue Authority (NRA). This support will modernise the NRA and implement effective strategies to broaden the tax base and account for revenues it collects.
As part of a Diamond Sector Programme (2004-07) DFID has funded and provided technical support to implement the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) in Sierra Leone, enabling more transparency and accountability by publishing and verifying transactions between Government and companies in the sector. Sierra Leone was accepted as an EITI candidate country on 22 February 2008 and has until 9 March 2010 to undertake validation to obtain full membership of the initiative.
DFID has been the principal donor to the Sierra Leone Anti-Corruption Commission, since its establishment in 2000. Until recently, progress in tackling corruption had been slow and political commitment weak. However, initiatives under the new Government such as the appointment of a capable and independent Anti-Corruption Commissioner, a revised Anti-Corruption Act and a new National Anti-Corruption Strategy gives us some confidence that we will see progress in the fight against corruption in Sierra Leone. Recognising this renewed commitment, we are looking at a new support package for the ACC with donor partners.
Sub-Saharan Africa: Overseas Aid
John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much his Department spent on maternal health projects in sub-Saharan Africa in each of the last five years. [233725]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The Department for International Development's (DFID) bilateral expenditure on health in sub-Saharan Africa in each of the last five years is shown in the following table. Much of this contributes to maternal health through strengthening health systems. DFID's directly targeted funding for maternal, neonatal and reproductive health projects is also shown. In addition, DFID makes substantial contributions to multilateral organisations that contribute to improving maternal health, including £98 million core funding to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) over the past five years.
| DFID's bilateral expenditure on health in Africa, 2003-04 to 2007-08 | |||||
| £ million | |||||
| 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | |
DFID has committed to spend at least £6 billion on health systems and services between 2008 and 2015; much of this will be in Africa and will contribute to improving maternal health.
Sudan: Human Rights
John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent discussions the Africa Conflict Prevention Pool has had on the humanitarian situation in Darfur. [233779]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The UK Government are addressing the humanitarian situation in Darfur through the Department for International Development’s (DFID) bilateral programme rather than through the Conflict Prevention Pool (CPP). We monitor the humanitarian situation closely and discuss it regularly with the British embassy, the joint DFID-FCO Sudan unit and with development partners in Sudan. DFID’s programme includes an annual contribution to the Common Humanitarian Fund (CHF), which allows the UN’s Humanitarian Co-ordinator to target urgent humanitarian needs. In 2008 we have provided £40 million for the CHF—around 50 per cent. of the total.
Vietnam: Overseas Aid
John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps he has taken to enable poor people to maximise their revenues from agricultural exports in Vietnam. [233797]
Mr. Michael Foster: The Department for International Development (DFID) has committed £8.66 million to the Making Markets Work Better for the Poor project in Vietnam since 2003. The project links poor people in rural provinces to international markets to maximise their revenues from agricultural and other production. A good example is the development of sustainable smallholder bamboo production supplying IKEA with materials for flooring which is delivering additional benefits of $1 million per year to poor households in Thanh Hoa province. Pilot schemes in 30 locations have raised incomes for 20,000 households and created 500 new jobs.
DFID is also assisting Vietnam to fulfil its World Trade Organisation (WTO) commitments by providing £4 million to the Beyond WTO programme, including help to poor people to seize the opportunities created by Vietnam's integration into the global economy. Vietnam's agricultural exports increased by 20 per cent. in 2007, the year after WTO accession.
DFID also provide major funding to the rural transport sector (£40.5 million over 10 years) to improve the quality of the rural road networks to link many poor villages to national and international markets. This has
helped reduce the production costs of agro-processing for export, making products more competitive in global markets.
Work and Pensions
Airwave Service
Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what organisations for which his Department is responsible (a) use and (b) are planning to use Airwave handsets. [234692]
Jonathan Shaw: Airwave handsets are currently being used by the Fraud Investigation Service which is part of the benefit fraud directorate within Jobcentre Plus.
There are no plans currently for other parts of DWP to use Airwave handsets.
Children: Maintenance
Mr. Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many child maintenance customers will continue to operate under the old Child Support Agency system; when he expects all customers to be transferred to the new Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission system; and if he will make a statement. [232045]
Kitty Ussher [holding answer 30 October 2008]: The Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission is responsible for the child maintenance system. I have therefore asked the Commissioner to write to the hon. Member with the information requested.
In reply to your recent Parliamentary Question about the Child Support Agency, the Secretary of State promised a substantive reply from the Child Maintenance Commissioner.
You asked the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many child maintenance customers will continue to operate under the old Child Support Agency system; when he expects all customers to be transferred to the new Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission system; and if he will make a statement. [232045]
The Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission took responsibility for all Child Support Agency functions, assets and people from 1 November 2008. All existing Agency clients have the option either to agree a private maintenance arrangement or to remain within the current schemes until the new gross income statutory maintenance scheme is introduced.
The Commission expects to introduce the new gross income statutory maintenance scheme in 2011 and all Agency clients on both schemes will then be invited either to apply to the new gross income scheme or to make a private arrangement. It is currently planned that this process will take around three years.
I hope you find this answer helpful.
Disability Living Allowance
Mr. Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 4 November 2008, Official Report, column 257W, on disability living allowance, what percentage of those rejected for both disability living allowance and attendance allowance have gone to a Ministry of Justice tribunal. [234976]
Jonathan Shaw [holding answer 11 November 2008]: The information is not available and could be provided only at a disproportionate cost.
Employment and Support Allowance
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether the Disability and Work Division’s Employment and Support Allowance design team has undertaken an impact assessment study for the introduction of employment and support allowance (ESA), with particular regard to the effects on expenditure on current incapacity benefit and income claimants and new ESA claimants; and if he will make a statement. [227945]
Jonathan Shaw [holding answer 17 October 2008]: I can confirm an impact assessment was conducted for the Welfare Reform Bill that introduced the employment and support allowance.
The “Welfare Reform Bill 2006—Regulatory Impact Assessment” can be found on the internet at:
The introduction of employment and support allowance will not affect the level of benefit expenditure on existing incapacity benefits customers, including contributory incapacity benefit and income support on grounds of incapacity. However, it will affect the level of benefit expenditure on new claimants receiving employment and support allowance for the first time instead of incapacity benefit.
According to our latest estimates, paying these people employment and support allowance rates will cost nearly £400 million more spread over the first five years, including the knock-on to housing benefit expenditure, compared to paying the incapacity benefit rates.
The £400 million arises largely because, under employment and support allowance, claimants receive an increased rate of benefit at the 14(th) week, much sooner than under the incapacity benefits system, where higher rates are typically payable after a year of incapacity.
Employment Services
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what procedures his Department has to ensure that its employment advisers do not require women living in refuges to disclose their address as part of a work search. [233655]
Mr. McNulty: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the acting chief executive of Jobcentre Plus, Mel Groves. I have asked him to provide the hon. Member with the information requested.
The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question asking what procedures his Department has to ensure that its employment advisers do not require women living in refuges to disclose their address as part of a work search.
This is something that falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Acting Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
An address is not a prerequisite to enable matching a jobseeker to available vacancies. Therefore, at this stage a woman is not required to divulge her address to a potential employer.
Where an employment application process involves material that would ordinarily be posted to the customer, alternative arrangements can be agreed. For example, an application form can be collected from a local Jobcentre Plus office, posted to an alternative address, or sent by email to the customer.
Employment Services: Training
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what training is provided to employment advisers to enable them to (a) recognise and (b) meet the needs of people with mental health problems. [233447]
Mr. McNulty: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the acting chief executive of Jobcentre Plus, Mel Groves. I have asked him to provide the hon. Member with the information requested.
The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question asking what training is provided to employment advisers to enable them to (a) recognise and (b) meet the needs of people with mental health problems. This is something that falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Acting Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
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