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House of Commons
Session 2007 - 08
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The Questions Book

Part 1: Written Questions for Answer on
Monday 24 November 2008

Notes:
* Indicates a Question for Oral Answer.
+ Indicates a Question not included in the random selection process but accepted because the quota for that day had not been filled.
[N] Indicates a Question for Written Answer on a named day, i.e. the Member has indicated under S.O. No. 22(4) the day on which he wishes the Question to be answered.
[R] Indicates that a relevant interest has been declared.
 


 

Questions for Oral or Written Answer
beginning on Monday 24 November 2008
(the 'Questions Book')

Part 1: Written Questions for Answer on
Monday 24 November 2008


This paper contains only Written Questions for answer on Monday 24 November of which previous notice has been given in the Notices of Questions paper. They are arranged in alphabetical order of answering Department.

For other Written Questions for answer on Monday 24 November of which no previous notice has been given, see the Order Paper.

For Written and Oral Questions for answer after Monday 24 November see Part 2 of this paper.


Questions to the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform
1
N
Norman Baker (Lewes): To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, whether his Department has raised with the US authorities their decision to prevent British firms from bidding for the contract to build a new US embassy in London; what assessment he has made of this decision in terms of compatibility with EU law; and if he will make a statement.
(238996)
2
John Battle (Leeds West): To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, what steps his Department is taking to ensure support is given to low income households facing debt problems.
(238800)
3
John Battle (Leeds West): To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, how many small to medium sized enterprises were registered in the Leeds West constituency between 1997 and 2008.
(238803)
4
John Battle (Leeds West): To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, what steps his Department is taking to safeguard small to medium size enterprises in Leeds West constituency.
(238804)
5
N
Mr Alan Duncan (Rutland & Melton): To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, what evaluation has been carried out of the Small Firms Loan Guarantee against the seven success criteria introduced following the Graham Review; and when the results of that evaluation will be published.
(237408)
6
N
Mr Alan Duncan (Rutland & Melton): To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, whether the economic impact evaluation of the Small Firms Loan Guarantee referred to in his Department's Annual Report 2008 has been completed; and when it will be published.
(237409)
7
N
Andrew George (St Ives): To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, what meetings he and Ministers in his Department have had with representatives of UK grocery retailers since 1st May 2008.
(237211)
8
N
Andrew George (St Ives): To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, what meetings he has had since 1st May 2008 at which the Competition Commission market investigation into the supply of groceries in the UK was discussed.
(238156)
9
Justine Greening (Putney): To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, how many of his Department's staff who left under (a) an involuntary and (b) a voluntary exit scheme in each year since 2005-06 received a severance package of (i) up to £25,000, (ii) £25,001 to £50,000, (iii) £50,001 to £75,000, (iv) £75,001 to £100,000 and (v) over £100,000; and if he will make a statement.
(239167)
10
Dr Evan Harris (Oxford West & Abingdon): To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, when he plans to issue his consultation on the National Minimum Wage and income from gratuities.
(238830)
11
Mr David Heathcoat-Amory (Wells): To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, how much his Department spent on visits by its staff to Brussels in 2007-08; and how many such visits were made by (a) air and (b) rail.
(239423)
12
N
Chris Huhne (Eastleigh): To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, when he plans to answer Question 228895, on departmental security, tabled on 16th October 2008.
(239020)
13
N
Mr Nick Hurd (Ruislip-Northwood): To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, pursuant to the Answer to the hon. Member for Tunbridge Wells of 14th May 2008, Official Report, columns 1590-1W, on Grayling Political Strategy, if he will place in the Library a copy of each of the letters from UKAEA and Postcomm.
(238464)
14
Miss Anne McIntosh (Vale of York): To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, what role the Consumer Council for Water has in the regular Ofwat review of charges.
(239404)
15
Miss Anne McIntosh (Vale of York): To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, for what reason he has decided to review the Consumer Council for Water.
(239405)
16
Chris Ruane (Vale of Clwyd): To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, what steps his Department has taken to improve its arrangements for co-ordination with other Government departments of policy affecting coastal towns in the last two years.
(238652)
17
Chris Ruane (Vale of Clwyd): To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, how much his Department spent in each regional development agency area on (a) rural, (b) urban and (c) coastal communities in each of the last 10 years for which figures are available.
(238657)
18
Chris Ruane (Vale of Clwyd): To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, how many social enterprises there were in each of the principal seaside towns on the latest date for which figures are available; and what percentage of all businesses in each town this represents.
(238666)
19
N
David Taylor (North West Leicestershire): To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, how many secondments from the private sector to the Defence and Security Organisation of UK Trade and Investment there have been since its creation.
(238398)
20
Sarah Teather (Brent East): To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, how much surplus land the North West Development Agency owns, expressed in (a) area and (b) estimated monetary value.
(238691)
21
Sarah Teather (Brent East): To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, what plans there are for each of the sites owned by the North West Development Agency which are registered on the Register of Surplus Public Sector Land; what construction projects are planned for each site; and when he expects each site to be returned to use.
(238692)
Questions to Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer
22
Mr David Anderson (Blaydon): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will exempt domestic carbon monoxide alarms from value added taxation.
(239272)
23
John Battle (Leeds West): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that low income communities have access to credit; and if he will make a statement.
(238802)
24
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much his Department spent on (a) publicity and (b) advertising in each year since 1997-98; and if he will make a statement.
(238940)
25
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many employees in his Department took early retirement in each of the last five financial years; and at what total cost.
(238972)
26
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many press releases have been issued by his Department in each year since 1997-98; and if he will make a statement.
(238993)
27
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the rate of staff (a) absence and (b) sickness absence was in (i) his Department and (ii) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies in each year since 1997; what the target rates set for his Department are in each case; and if he will make a statement.
(239030)
28
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many civil servants have been employed by each of his Department's agencies and non-departmental public bodies in each year since 1997-98; and if he will make a statement.
(239033)
29
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much his Department has spent on (a) focus groups and (b) opinion polls in each year since 1997-98; how much he estimates will be spent on each category in 2008-09; and if he will make a statement.
(239052)
30
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much his Department spent on external consultancy in each year since 1997-98; and if he will make a statement.
(239063)
31
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many (a) special advisers and (b) press officers have been employed by his Department in each year since 1997-98; and at what cost in each year.
(239090)
32
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many press officers were employed in his Department in each year since 1997-98; at what cost in each year; and if he will make a statement.
(239124)
33
Mr David Drew (Stroud): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will bring forward proposals to increase penalties on professional advisers who assist clients to access tax havens.
(239514)
34
Mr David Drew (Stroud): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he plans to abolish the non-domicile tax rule.
(239515)
35
Mr David Drew (Stroud): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions he has had with the Bank of England on the re-introduction of capital controls requiring commercial banks to increase deposits held with the Bank of England.
(239516)
36
Mr David Drew (Stroud): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he plans to level payments on national insurance between earned and unearned income.
(239517)
37
Mr David Drew (Stroud): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will provide a financial stimulus to the mortgage market, with specific reference to the operations of building societies.
(239530)
38
Mr David Drew (Stroud): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make it his policy to release additional funds to the building society sector.
(239535)
39
Mr David Drew (Stroud): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make it his policy to encourage local authorities to divert investment into the building society sector.
(239536)
40
Mr David Drew (Stroud): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make it his policy to assist smaller building societies with set-up costs in order to allow them to access the special loan liquidity scheme.
(239537)
41
Paul Farrelly (Newcastle-under-Lyme): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of (a) tax avoidance schemes and (b) tax avoided by individuals (i) artificially converting income into capital gains and (ii) taking bonuses not in cash but in instruments subject to capital gains tax when sold over the period 1997-98 to 2007-08.
(238566)
42
Paul Farrelly (Newcastle-under-Lyme): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what taxation is applied by HM Revenue and Customs to profits on carried interests of individuals working in the private equity industry.
(238567)
43
Paul Farrelly (Newcastle-under-Lyme): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what research his Department has commissioned since 1997-98 on the potential cost to the public purse of (a) tax avoidance schemes and (b) tax avoided by individuals (i) artificially converting income into capital gains and (ii) taking bonuses not in cash but in instruments subject to capital gains tax; what the conclusions were of such research; and if he will make a statement.
(238756)
44
Paul Farrelly (Newcastle-under-Lyme): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of (a) the cost to the Exchequer of taper relief claimed from capital gains tax on the disposal of (i) business assets and (ii) non-business assets in each year from 1998-99 to 2007-08 and (b) the cost to the Exchequer of taper relief from capital gains tax in respect of carried interest claimed by individuals working in the private equity industry in each year from 1998-99 to 2007-08.
(238858)
45
Paul Farrelly (Newcastle-under-Lyme): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many individuals used all or part of their annual £9,200 exemption to capital gains tax in 2007-08; and what estimate he has made of the proportion of those who paid income tax at the higher rate.
(238862)
46
Paul Farrelly (Newcastle-under-Lyme): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what tax avoidance schemes his Department has (a) disallowed and (b) prohibited in (i) 2007-08 and (ii) 2008-09 to date.
(239397)
47
Paul Farrelly (Newcastle-under-Lyme): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the number of UK residents who are not domiciled in the UK for tax purposes.
(239398)
48
Paul Farrelly (Newcastle-under-Lyme): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what research his Department has carried out on the professional status of UK residents who are not domiciled in the UK for tax purposes; and what proportion he estimates (a) are employed in financial services in the City of London, (b) work in the private equity industry and (c) act as business entrepreneurs.
(239399)
49
Paul Farrelly (Newcastle-under-Lyme): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate his Department has made of the additional revenue to the Exchequer that would have accrued in each year from 1997-98 to 2007-08 in (a) income tax and (b) capital gains tax from the liability of non-domiciled residents to UK tax at the domiciled rate.
(239400)
50
Paul Farrelly (Newcastle-under-Lyme): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the amount of (a) income tax and (b) capital gains tax foregone by the Exchequer in respect of UK residents who are not domiciled in the UK for tax purposes in the latest period for which figures are available.
(239401)
51
Paul Farrelly (Newcastle-under-Lyme): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what research his Department has commissioned on the use of avoidance schemes in respect of (a) income tax and (b) capital gains tax in the payment of bonuses by companies in the financial services sector in the City of London between 1997-98 and 2007-08; what estimate he has made of the levels of tax avoidance on such bonuses in each of those years; and if he will make a statement.
(239402)
52
Paul Farrelly (Newcastle-under-Lyme): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will estimate the level, based on estimated receipts for 2007-08, at which a combined personal tax allowance covering income and capital gains could be financed by abolition of (a) the separate annual capital gains tax exemption of £9,200 and (b) that exemption together with separate entrepreneurs' relief from capital gains tax.
(239496)
53
Paul Farrelly (Newcastle-under-Lyme): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what factors he took into account when deciding to set capital gains tax at a flat rate of 18 per cent; and what consideration he gave to setting capital gains tax at (a) the basic rate of income tax and (b) the individual's marginal rate of income tax.
(239497)
54
Paul Farrelly (Newcastle-under-Lyme): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the reasons are for (a) maintaining the existence of a separate annual allowance for exemption to capital gains tax (CGT) and (b) the difference between the level of the CGT exemption and the annual personal allowance for income tax.
(239502)
55
N
Mr Frank Field (Birkenhead): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, on what date the Chief Executive of HM Revenue and Customs received the letter from the right hon. Member for Birkenhead of 31st October 2008 on his constituent, Natasha Brown; and when he expects the matter raised in the letter to be resolved.
(238155)
56
N
Andrew George (St Ives): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what meetings at which the Competition Commission market investigation into the supply of groceries in the UK was discussed he has had since 1st May 2008.
(237212)
57
N
Andrew George (St Ives): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what meetings he and Ministers within his Department have had with representatives of UK grocery retailers since 1st May 2008.
(237213)
58
N
Mr Robert Goodwill (Scarborough & Whitby): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how fines incurred by businesses for minor driving offences are treated for tax purposes.
(238056)
59
N
Justine Greening (Putney): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate his Department has made of the number of (a) limited liability companies, (b) partnerships and (c) self-employed individuals that were liable for late payment interest charges levied by HM Revenue and Customs in each of the last four years in respect of (i) main rate corporation tax, (ii) marginal small company rate corporation tax, (iii) small companies' rate corporation tax, (iv) VAT, (v) income tax and (vi) national insurance contributions; and what the projected figures for (A) 2008-09 and (B) 2009-10 are.
(238834)
60
N
Justine Greening (Putney): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate his Department has made of the monetary value of late payment interest charges levied by HM Revenue and Customs on (a) limited liability companies, (b) partnerships and (c) self-employed individuals in each of the last four years in respect of (i) main rate corporation tax, (ii) marginal small company rate corporation tax, (iii) small companies' rate corporation tax, (iv) VAT, (v) income tax and (vi) national insurance contributions; and what the projected figures for (A) 2008-09 and (B) 2009-10 are.
(238835)
61
N
Justine Greening (Putney): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate his Department has made of the number of late payment interest charges levied by HM Revenue and Customs on (a) limited liability companies, (b) partnerships and (c) self-employed individuals in each of the last four years in respect of (i) main rate corporation tax, (ii) marginal small company rate corporation tax, (iii) small companies' rate corporation tax, (iv) VAT, (v) income tax and (vi) national insurance contributions; and what the projected figures for (A) 2008-09 and (B) 2009-10 are.
(238836)
62
N
Justine Greening (Putney): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate his Department has made of the number of company insolvencies in which HM Revenue and Customs was a creditor in each of the last four years, broken down by (a) compulsory liquidations, (b) creditors voluntary liquidations, (c) company voluntary arrangements, (d) administrations and (e) receiverships; and what projections his Department has made for (i) 2008-09 and (ii) 2009-10.
(238837)
63
N
Justine Greening (Putney): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate his Department has made of the number of individual insolvencies in which HM Revenue and Customs was a creditor in each of the last four years, broken down by (a) administration orders, (b) individual voluntary arrangements, (c) bankruptcies and (d) bankruptcies involving trading debts; and what projections his Department has made for (i) 2008-09 and (ii) 2009-10.
(238838)
64
Justine Greening (Putney): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many of his Department's staff who left under (a) an involuntary and (b) a voluntary exit scheme in each year since 2005-06 received a severance package of (i) up to £25,000, (ii) £25,001 to £50,000, (iii) £50,001 to £75,000, (iv) £75,001 to £100,000 and (v) over £100,000; and if he will make a statement.
(239164)
65
Mr William Hague (Richmond (Yorks)): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps the Government has taken in light of the inclusion of (a) Bank Mellat (UK), (b) Bank Saderat plc and (c) Bank Tajerat (London) in the letter of 1st August 2008 (SI2008/520) from the Permanent Representatives of France, the United Kingdom and the United States to the President of the UN Security Council.
(239499)
66
Stephen Hammond (Wimbledon): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what factors HM Revenue and Customs took into account when setting the interest rate it charges to small businesses at 7.5 per cent.; and what consideration was made of the Bank of England base rate.
(238550)
67
Mr Mike Hancock (Portsmouth South): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what tax measures are in place relating to the breeding of thoroughbred racehorses; and whether any such measures provide incentives to breed such horses.
(239188)
68
N
Mr Mark Harper (Forest of Dean): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the tax revenue received from taxation of rehabilitation services provided by employers to employees where the injury was sustained outside the workplace in the last financial year.
(238789)
69
N
Mr Mark Harper (Forest of Dean): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the tax treatment is of rehabilitation services for employees provided by employers for (a) the employer and (b) the employee in (i) cases where the injury is sustained in the workplace and (ii) cases where the injury is sustained outside the workplace.
(238790)
70
Mr Oliver Heald (North East Hertfordshire): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what his policy is on (a) high street banks in which the Government has purchased an interest and (b) their subsidiaries passing on reductions in the bank base rate to their mortgage holders; and if he will make a statement.
(239003)
71
N
Mr Mark Hoban (Fareham): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions he had with the Financial Services Authority between March 2008 and October 2008 on its supervisory responsibilities in respect of (a) Landsbanki and (b) Heritable, with particular reference to the liquidity of both banks.
(238062)
72
N
Mr Mark Hoban (Fareham): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what responsibilities the Financial Services Authority had for monitoring the global liquidity position of (a) Landsbanki and (b) Kaupthing.
(238063)
73
Mr David Laws (Yeovil): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the proportion of HM Revenue and Customs staff in offices earmarked for closure in the South West who live within reasonable daily travel of a strategic site; and if he will make a statement.
(238723)
74
Mr David Laws (Yeovil): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many HM Revenue and Customs customer reviews are (a) outstanding and (b) expected to be outstanding by 5th April 2009.
(238724)
75
Mr David Laws (Yeovil): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many (a) Civil Service staff and (b) senior Civil Service staff were employed by HM Revenue and Customs when it was formed in 2005.
(238725)
76
Mr David Laws (Yeovil): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many (a) Civil Service staff and (b) senior Civil Service staff were employed by HM Revenue and Customs on 31st October 2008.
(238726)
77
Mr David Laws (Yeovil): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the environmental impact of HM Revenue and Customs workforce change programme in (a) Somerset and (b) the South West; and if he will make a statement.
(238727)
78
Anne Main (St Albans): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the monetary value of compensation to be paid to Northern Rock shareholders in respect of the shares taken into public ownership.
(238875)
79
Mr Austin Mitchell (Great Grimsby): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what proportion of the assets of Kaupthing Bank that were frozen in the UK belonged to Kaupthing, Singer and Friedlander (Isle of Man).
(239285)
80
Mr Austin Mitchell (Great Grimsby): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what level of protection applied to deposits with the Derbyshire (Isle of Man) upon its take over by Kaupthing, Singer and Friedlander Ltd; what action the Government has taken against such deposits; whether any deposits have been transferred to Kaupthing, Singer and Friedlander (Isle of Man); and if he will make a statement.
(239286)
81
Mr Austin Mitchell (Great Grimsby): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will bring forward proposals to protect deposits made in international banks by British citizens; and if he will make it his policy that such proposals be included in arrangements for the Financial Services Compensation Scheme.
(239416)
82
Mr Gordon Prentice (Pendle): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, when he expects to publish the Government's response to the Parliamentary Ombudsman's report on Equitable Life.
(239214)
83
Adam Price (Carmarthen East & Dinefwr): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 10th November 2008, Official Report, column 932W, on banks: incentives, whether he expects to be consulted on the size of any stock bonuses which may be paid to directors of Lloyds TSB.
(239170)
84
Mr Mark Prisk (Hertford & Stortford): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many value added tax (VAT) default surcharges have been issued by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) at the (a) two per cent., (b) five per cent., (c) 10 per cent. and (d) 15 per cent. rate to small and medium-sized businesses as a result of (i) failure of HMRC to receive their VAT return and (ii) failure of HMRC to receive VAT payment in each of the last four financial quarters; and if he will make a statement.
(238673)
85
Mr Mark Prisk (Hertford & Stortford): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many consultations have been requested by small and medium-sized businesses with HM Revenue and Customs Advice Centre to defer payment of value added tax in each of the last four financial quarters; how many have resulted in payment being deferred in each quarter; and if he will make a statement.
(238674)
86
Chris Ruane (Vale of Clwyd): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps his Department has taken to improve its arrangements for co-ordination with other Government departments of policy affecting coastal towns in the last two years.
(238651)
87
Mr Adrian Sanders (Torbay): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether an assessment has been made of the environmental effects of the HM Revenue and Customs Workforce Change programme; and if he will make a statement.
(238738)
88
Mr Adrian Sanders (Torbay): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what national targets exist for the maximum length of time taken to answer telephone enquiries to HM Revenue and Customs offices; and whether these targets will be revised as part of the Workforce Change programme.
(238739)
89
Mr Adrian Sanders (Torbay): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what national targets exist for the average distance from customers to HM Revenue and Customs offices; and whether he plans to change these targets as a result of the Workforce Change programme.
(238740)
90
Mr Adrian Sanders (Torbay): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make it his policy to ensure that all HM Revenue and Customs office sites proposed for closure will retain a full-time enquiry centre, open five days a week, after the rationalisation process has been completed.
(238741)
91
Mr Adrian Sanders (Torbay): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the service offered by HM Revenue and Customs in areas where (a) reduced opening hours each day and (b) fewer open days per week are being piloted for enquiry centres.
(238794)
92
Mr Adrian Sanders (Torbay): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent representations he has received from local authorities on proposed tax office closures in South Devon.
(239001)
93
N
David Taylor (North West Leicestershire): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the budget for (a) the Office of Government Commerce and (b) OGC Buying Solutions is for each of the next three financial years.
(238395)
94
N
David Taylor (North West Leicestershire): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many people were seconded from the private sector to (a) HM Revenue and Customs, (b) the Office of Government Commerce and (c) OGC Buying Solutions in (i) 2005, (ii) 2006, (iii) 2007 and (iv) 2008.
(238397)
95
N
David Taylor (North West Leicestershire): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many meetings officials of OGC Buying Solutions have had with representatives of (a) strategic health authorities and (b) primary care trusts in (i) the East Midlands and (ii) England in the last two years.
(238399)
96
Jenny Willott (Cardiff Central): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what his Department's estimate is of the effect on receipts to the Exchequer of increasing the taper rate on tax credits to (a) 46 per cent., (b) 45 per cent., (c) 44 per cent. and (d) 43 per cent. in 2009; what his estimate is of the number of people who would no longer be eligible for tax credits in each case; and if he will make a statement.
(238778)
97
Sammy Wilson (East Antrim): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the estimated monetary value of illicit drugs seized by HM Revenue and Customs in Northern Ireland was in each of the last 10 years.
(239268)
Questions to the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families
98
John Battle (Leeds West): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, what recent arrangements have been made by his Department to support child protection in (a) Leeds West constituency and (b) Leeds City area.
(238774)
99
John Battle (Leeds West): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, how much funding will be available to (a) Leeds West constituency and (b) Leeds Metropolitan district under the free Childcare for Training and Learning for Work scheme; and if he will make a statement.
(238775)
100
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, how many employees in his Department have taken early retirement since its inception; and at what total cost.
(238964)
101
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, how many press releases have been issued by his Department in each year since its inception; and if he will make a statement.
(238985)
102
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, how much his Department has spent on (a) focus groups and (b) opinion polls in each year since its inception; how much he estimates will be spent on each category in 2008-09; and if he will make a statement.
(239044)
103
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, how many (a) special advisers and (b) press officers have been employed by his Department in each year since its inception; and at what cost in each year.
(239082)
104
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, how many civil servants have been employed by each of his Department's non-departmental public bodies in each year since its inception; and if he will make a statement.
(239138)
105
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, how much (a) his Department and (b) each of its non-departmental public bodies spent on external consultancy in each year since its inception; and if he will make a statement.
(239139)
106
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, what the rate of staff (a) absence and (b) sickness absence was in (i) his Department and (ii) each of its non-departmental public bodies in each year since its inception; what the target rates set for his Department are in each case; and if he will make a statement.
(239140)
107
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, how much (a) his Department and (b) each of its non-departmental public bodies spent on (i) publicity and (ii) advertising in each year since its inception; and if he will make a statement.
(239141)
108
Mr Jim Cunningham (Coventry South): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, what recent steps the Government has taken to improve the reading skills of children in primary schools.
(239445)
109
Mr Jim Cunningham (Coventry South): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, what recent steps the Government has taken to improve the writing skills of children in primary schools.
(239446)
110
Mr Jim Cunningham (Coventry South): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, what funds the Government has made available for schools in deprived areas.
(239447)
111
Mr Jim Cunningham (Coventry South): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, what action the Government has taken to improve standards in schools in deprived areas.
(239448)
112
N
Mr David Drew (Stroud): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, what the average cost was of suspending (a) a headteacher, (b) a deputy headteacher and (c) a mainstream teacher for each month of suspension in the latest period for which figures are available; and what the average length of time of such suspensions was in each category in the last 12 months.
(238400)
113
N
Mr David Drew (Stroud): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, what steps he plans to take to ensure that suspensions of headteachers, deputy headteachers and teachers are for as short a time as possible.
(238401)
114
N
Mr David Drew (Stroud): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, what guidance his Department provides to local authorities on (a) dealing with the media and (b) communication with parents in cases of suspension of teaching staff.
(238402)
115
Mr Nick Gibb (Bognor Regis & Littlehampton): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, in how many comprehensive schools 50 per cent. or more pupils achieved a modern language GCSE at A* to C in 2007.
(238747)
116
Mr Nick Gibb (Bognor Regis & Littlehampton): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, in which maintained mainstream schools no pupils at the end of key stage 4 were entered for GCSE in history in 2007.
(238754)
117
Mr Nick Gibb (Bognor Regis & Littlehampton): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, what the cost to his predecessor Department was of preparing the Answer of 17th April 2007, Official Report, columns 549-52W, on GCSE.
(238755)
118
Mr Nick Gibb (Bognor Regis & Littlehampton): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, what percentage of pupils in the maintained mainstream sector achieved five GCSEs, including a modern language at A* to C grade in each year since 2005.
(238829)
119
Mr Nick Gibb (Bognor Regis & Littlehampton): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, pursuant to the Answer of 10th November 2008, Official Report, column 900W, on specialist schools: languages, which specialist schools have chosen languages as one of their specialisms.
(238854)
120
Mr Nick Gibb (Bognor Regis & Littlehampton): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, pursuant to the Answer of 10th November 2008, Official Report, column 900W, on specialist schools: science, which specialist schools have chosen science as one of their specialisms.
(238855)
121
Mr Nick Gibb (Bognor Regis & Littlehampton): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, pursuant to the Answer of 16th October 2008, Official Report, columns 1502-3W, on schools: assessments, which mainstream schools did not enter any pupils for A-level history.
(239025)
122
Mr Nick Gibb (Bognor Regis & Littlehampton): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, pursuant to the Answer of 16th October 2008, Official Report, columns 1502-3W, on schools: assessments, which mainstream maintained schools did not enter any pupils for A-level geography.
(239026)
123
Mr Nick Gibb (Bognor Regis & Littlehampton): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, what percentage of eligible pupils in the maintained, mainstream sector achieved five GCSEs including a modern language at A* to C in (a) 1999, (b) 2000, (c) 2001, (d) 2002 and (e) 2003.
(239294)
124
Mr Nick Gibb (Bognor Regis & Littlehampton): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, whether the guidance document Home to school travel for pupils requiring special arrangements (reference: LEA/0261/2004) and the 2007 report by his Department's predecessor Procurement of home to school transport services for children with Special Educational Needs in London are still in use.
(239444)
125
N
Mrs Cheryl Gillan (Chesham & Amersham): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, how many notifications his Department and its predecessor sent to each of the schools inspectorates under the automatic transfer arrangements in relation to (a) independent and (b) maintained schools in each year since April 2005; and how many notifications his Department and its predecessor received from independent and grant maintained schools in each such year.
(238396)
126
Justine Greening (Putney): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, how many of his Department's staff who left under (a) an involuntary and (b) a voluntary exit scheme in each year since it was established received a severance package of (i) up to £25,000, (ii) £25,001 to £50,000, (iii) £50,001 to £75,000, (iv) £75,001 to £100,000 and (v) over £100,000; and if he will make a statement.
(239159)
127
N
John Mann (Bassetlaw): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, what information his Department has on the number of books per pupil there were in New Manton Primary School in (a) 2007 and (b) 2008.
(238194)
128
N
Mr Mark Oaten (Winchester): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of training given to teachers on the needs of children with type 1 diabetes.
(238276)
129
N
Mr Mark Oaten (Winchester): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, whether he has issued guidance on the administering of injections and other treatments to children with type 1 diabetes by school teachers.
(238277)
130
N
Mr Mark Oaten (Winchester): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, what guidance he has issued to local education authorities on informing teachers about children with type 1 diabetes.
(238278)
131
Chris Ruane (Vale of Clwyd): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, what steps his Department has taken to improve its arrangements for co-ordination with other Government departments of policy affecting coastal towns in the last two years.
(238648)
132
Chris Ruane (Vale of Clwyd): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, what assessment his Department has made of the recommendations of the report of the Thanet Inquiry in respect of looked after children and vulnerable young people being placed out-of-county by local authorities.
(238658)
133
Chris Ruane (Vale of Clwyd): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, how many children's homes there were in each of the principal English seaside towns in each year for which figures are available; and how many children were in each home in each year.
(238920)
134
Mr Adrian Sanders (Torbay): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, if he will make it his policy to ensure all school playing fields are accessible to young people outside school hours.
(238569)
135
Matthew Taylor (Truro & St Austell): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, how many unfilled teaching jobs there have been at (a) primary school level and (b) secondary school level in (i) Cornwall and (ii) England in each year since 1979.
(239012)
136
Joan Walley (Stoke-on-Trent North): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, how many Sure Start children's centres have opened in Stoke-on-Trent since the scheme's inception; and if he will make a statement.
(239491)
Questions to the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster
137
Annette Brooke (Mid Dorset & North Poole): To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, how many people aged 16 years or under committed suicide in each of the last five years.
(239325)
138
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, what the rate of staff (a) absence and (b) sickness absence was in the Prime Minister's Office in each year since 1997; what the target rates set for his Office are in each case; and if he will make a statement.
(238933)
139
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, how much the Prime Minister's Office spent on (a) publicity and (b) advertising in each year since 1997-98; and if he will make a statement.
(238950)
140
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, how many employees in the Prime Minister's Office took early retirement in each of the last five financial years; and at what total cost.
(238966)
141
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, how much the Prime Minister's Office has spent on (a) focus groups and (b) opinion polls in each year since 1997-98; how much he estimates will be spent on each category in 2008-09; and if he will make a statement.
(239046)
142
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, how much the Prime Minister's Office spent on external consultancy in each year since 1997-98; and if he will make a statement.
(239069)
143
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, how many (a) special advisers and (b) press officers have been employed by the Prime Minister's Office in each year since 1997-98; and at what cost in each year.
(239084)
144
Andrew George (St Ives): To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, whether the Office for National Statistics issues guidance to the Department of Health on the interpretation of the statistical significance of mortality rates for surgical procedures.
(238757)
145
Justine Greening (Putney): To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, what estimate the Office of National Statistics has made of the number of patients diagnosed with cancer in each London borough in (a) 2005, (b) 2006 and (c) 2007, broken down by cancer type.
(238831)
146
Justine Greening (Putney): To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, what estimate the Office of National Statistics has made of the survival rate for patients diagnosed with cancer in each London borough in (a) 2005, (b) 2006 and (c) 2007, broken down by cancer type.
(238832)
147
Justine Greening (Putney): To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, how many of his Department's staff who left under (a) an involuntary and (b) a voluntary exit scheme in each year since 2005-06 received a severance package of (i) up to £25,000, (ii) £25,001 to £50,000, (iii) £50,001 to £75,000, (iv) £75,001 to £100,000 and (v) over £100,000; and if he will make a statement.
(239151)
148
N
Mr Nick Hurd (Ruislip-Northwood): To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, what guidance has been given by his Department on the use of public affairs agencies by public sector bodies.
(238779)
149
N
Mr Nick Hurd (Ruislip-Northwood): To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, what monetary payments V (a) has made and (b) is contracted to make to Burston-Marsteller; and for what purposes.
(238780)
150
Mr Nick Hurd (Ruislip-Northwood): To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, if he will place in the Library a copy of the contract between Futurebuilders and Catz Club, redacting commercially sensitive information.
(238781)
151
Mr Nick Hurd (Ruislip-Northwood): To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, if he will place in the Library a copy of a table listing each grant given by Futurebuilders to individual voluntary groups and organisations since its establishment.
(238782)
152
Mr Nick Hurd (Ruislip-Northwood): To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, on which dates each financial payment was made to Catz Club by Futurebuilders.
(238783)
153
Mr Nick Hurd (Ruislip-Northwood): To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, if he will place in the Library a copy of a table listing each grant given by Capacitybuilders to individual voluntary groups and organisations since its establishment.
(238784)
154
Mr Nick Hurd (Ruislip-Northwood): To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, how much funding Futurebuilders has written off in total in relation to the charity Catz Club.
(238785)
155
Mr Nick Hurd (Ruislip-Northwood): To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, pursuant to the Answer of 28th October 2008, Official Report, column 16W, on Catz Club, for what reasons Futurebuilders decided to terminate its relationship with Catz Club.
(238909)
156
Mr Nick Hurd (Ruislip-Northwood): To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, pursuant to the Answer of 28th October 2008, Official Report, column 16W, on Catz Club, what other press releases have been removed from the Futurebuilders website on the basis that they are no longer an investee of Futurebuilders.
(238910)
157
Mike Penning (Hemel Hempstead): To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, how many cases of breast cancer were (a) diagnosed and (b) successfully treated in (i) Hertfordshire and (ii) the UK in each of the last 10 years.
(239346)
158
N
Chris Ruane (Vale of Clwyd): To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, what the productivity level per worker was in each region in the latest period for which figures are available.
(238462)
159
N
Chris Ruane (Vale of Clwyd): To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, how many and what proportion of all deaths in each region were from circulation diseases in the latest period for which figures are available.
(238463)
160
Chris Ruane (Vale of Clwyd): To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, how many and what percentage of teenagers became pregnant in each of the (a) wards and (b) lower layer super output areas in each of the principal seaside towns for the last year for which figures are available.
(238660)
161
Mr Dennis Skinner (Bolsover): To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, what the life expectancy is of (a) men and (b) women in (i) the East Midlands and (ii) the South East; and what it was in (A) 1997 and (B) 2001.
(238628)
162
John Smith (Vale of Glamorgan): To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, how many people died of thromboembolism in each of the last five years.
(238672)
163
N
Hon Nicholas Soames (Mid Sussex): To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, pursuant to the Answer to the hon. Member for Hertsmere of 17th January 2008, Official Report, columns 1428-30W, on foreign workers: EU nationals, what the (a) number of people of working age in employment, (b) working age population and (c) working age population employment rate of (i) the UK, (ii) UK citizens, (iii) UK-born citizens, (iv) non-UK citizens and (v) EU A8 citizens was (A) in each year between 1997 and 2001 and (B) in each quarter of 2008 for which figures are available.
(238571)
164
Mr David Willetts (Havant): To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, how many 18-year-olds there were in each year since 2005; and what estimate the Office for National Statistics has made of the number of 18-year-olds there will be in each year to 2015.
(238880)
Questions to the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government
165
Tony Baldry (Banbury): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, whether housing associations are public bodies for the purposes of EU procurement legislation.
(239210)
166
John Battle (Leeds West): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to ensure support is given to low income households facing possible repossession of their homes.
(238801)
167
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what the rate of staff (a) absence and (b) sickness absence was in (i) her Department and (ii) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies in each year since her Department's inception; what the target rates set for her Department are in each case; and if she will make a statement.
(238932)
168
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how much (a) her Department and (b) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent on (i) publicity and (ii) advertising in each year since her Department's inception; and if she will make a statement.
(238949)
169
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many employees in her Department took early retirement in each of the last five financial years; and at what total cost.
(238963)
170
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many press releases have been issued by her Department in each year since 1997-98; and if she will make a statement.
(238984)
171
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how much her Department has spent on (a) focus groups and (b) opinion polls in each year since 1997-98; how much she estimates will be spent on each category in 2008-09; and if she will make a statement.
(239043)
172
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how much (a) her Department and (b) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent on external consultancy in each year since her Department's inception; and if she will make a statement.
(239068)
173
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many (a) special advisers and (b) press officers have been employed by her Department in each year since its inception; and at what cost in each year.
(239081)
174
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many civil servants have been employed by each of her Department's agencies and non-departmental bodies in each year since 1997-98; and if she will make a statement.
(239101)
175
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many press officers were employed in her Department in each year since 1997-98; what the total cost was in each year; and if she will make a statement.
(239115)
176
Mr Don Foster (Bath): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, with reference to the Answer of 25th June 2007, Official Report, column 175W, on planning, when her Department plans to publish a summary of responses to its consultation on the Town and Country (General Permitted Development) Order 1995.
(239406)
177
Andrew George (St Ives): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if the Minister for the South West will assist hon. Members from constituencies in the South West who are experiencing difficulty securing responses to their correspondence with Ministers.
(238863)
178
Justine Greening (Putney): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many of her Department's staff who left under (a) an involuntary and (b) a voluntary exit scheme in each year since 2005-06 received a severance package of (i) up to £25,000, (ii) £25,001 to £50,000, (iii) £50,001 to £75,000, (iv) £75,001 to £100,000 and (v) over £100,000; and if she will make a statement.
(239165)
179
N
Mr Mark Harper (Forest of Dean): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what the official engagements were from 6th October to 31st October 2008 for (a) the Minister for London, (b) the Minister for Yorkshire and the Humber and (c) the Minister for the South East in their roles as regional ministers.
(238851)
180
N
Mr Mark Harper (Forest of Dean): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what the monthly cost of maintaining the Regional Fire Control Centre at Taunton was in the latest period for which figures are available.
(238999)
181
Mr David Heathcoat-Amory (Wells): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how much her Department spent on visits by its staff to Brussels in 2007-08; and how many such visits were made by (a) air and (b) rail.
(239417)
182
Dr Brian Iddon (Bolton South East): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many small businesses have claimed small business rates relief in Bolton South East constituency in the last 12 months; and how much relief they have claimed.
(239280)
183
Mr Stewart Jackson (Peterborough): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if she will place in the Library a copy of the letter from the Minister of State for Local Government to the hon. Member for Leeds East on the methodology used in respect of Working Neighbourhood Funding in Leeds.
(238872)
184
Mr Brian Jenkins (Tamworth): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessments of Staffordshire County Council's social services department have been made since 2000.
(239403)
185
N
Mrs Eleanor Laing (Epping Forest): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many authorised sites for Gypsies and Travellers are provided by local authorities in (a) Essex, (b) Suffolk, (c) Norfolk, (d) Kent, (e) Hertfordshire, (f) Berkshire, (g) Cambridgeshire and (h) Greater London.
(237785)
186
N
Mrs Eleanor Laing (Epping Forest): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many cases of compulsory purchase of land there have been in England in order to build publicly-owned Gypsy and Traveller sites in the last 10 years.
(237786)
187
N
Mrs Eleanor Laing (Epping Forest): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many authorised private Gypsy and Traveller sites there are in England.
(237787)
188
N
Mrs Eleanor Laing (Epping Forest): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many gypsies and travellers there were in England in (a) 1988, (b) 1998 and (c) 2008.
(237788)
189
N
Mrs Eleanor Laing (Epping Forest): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what the occupancy rate was for publicly-owned authorised sites for Gypsies and Travellers in (a) Essex, (b) Suffolk, (c) Norfolk, (d) Kent, (e) Hertfordshire, (f) Berkshire, (g) Cambridgeshire and (h) Greater London in each of the last three years.
(237789)
190
Mrs Eleanor Laing (Epping Forest): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many compulsory purchase orders to acquire land for the purpose of building Gypsy and Traveller sites have been rejected by her Department in the last 10 years.
(239407)
191
Mrs Eleanor Laing (Epping Forest): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many compulsory purchase orders to acquire land for Gypsy and Traveller sites have been made in the last 10 years.
(239408)
192
Mrs Eleanor Laing (Epping Forest): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many times her Department has rejected the recommendation of planning inspectors on compulsory purchase orders to acquire land for Gypsy and Traveller sites in the last 10 years.
(239409)
193
Mrs Eleanor Laing (Epping Forest): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many times planning inspectors have recommended against proceeding with a compulsory purchase order to acquire land for Gypsy and Traveller sites in the last 10 years.
(239410)
194
Kerry McCarthy (Bristol East): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what recent discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions on the effect on levels of home repossessions when the standard interest rate used to calculate claims for mortgage interest payments is reduced but lenders do not pass on interest rate cuts to borrowers.
(238647)
195
Miss Anne McIntosh (Vale of York): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what estimate she has made of the number of rough sleepers there were estimated to be in each district in North Yorkshire in each of the last five years.
(239436)
196
Miss Anne McIntosh (Vale of York): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what progress is being made on the street needs audit of rough sleeper counts.
(239437)
197
Anne Main (St Albans): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what the cost was of the public inquiry into the Radlett rail freight proposals held in December 2007.
(238722)
198
Anne Milton (Guildford): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 18th November 2008, Official Report, column 397W, on South East Plan, whether her Department circulated information about the South East Plan or the consultation on the South East Plan to (a) individual residents, (b) Guildford Borough Council, (c) Waverley Borough Council, (d) Surrey County Council, (e) local newspapers and (f) other advertising outlets.
(238777)
199
Anne Milton (Guildford): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, on what date the revised South East Plan will be published.
(238828)
200
Mr Austin Mitchell (Great Grimsby): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many (a) council houses, (b) housing association properties, (c) homeless families placed in temporary accommodation and (d) families on the housing waiting list there are in each local authority in England.
(239014)
201
Mr Eric Pickles (Brentwood & Ongar): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, whether residents in domestic properties owned by the Duchy of Cornwall have (a) rights of leasehold extension or enfranchisement and (b) a right to buy their properties.
(239029)
202
Mr Gordon Prentice (Pendle): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what information she holds on the number of local authorities in England which have exercised their discretion to award hardship relief in respect of unpaid business rates; and if she will make a statement.
(239212)
203
Mr Gordon Prentice (Pendle): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many people have been prosecuted successfully for non-payment of business rates in each of the last 12 months.
(239213)
204
Dr John Pugh (Southport): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if she will revise her guidance to local authorities on capitalisation in order to allow them to re-profile expenditure for street works and construction projects.
(238876)
205
N
Chris Ruane (Vale of Clwyd): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what proportion of the housing stock in each of the principal seaside towns has been assessed as (a) meeting and (b) not meeting the Decent Homes standard.
(238460)
206
N
Chris Ruane (Vale of Clwyd): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment her Department has made of the relationship between opportunities for regeneration and redevelopment in seaside towns and levels of public housing below the decent homes standard in such towns.
(238461)
207
Chris Ruane (Vale of Clwyd): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department has taken to improve its arrangements for co-ordination of policy with other Government departments on coastal towns since the publication of the Communities and Local Government Committee's Second Report of Session 2006-07, Coastal Towns, HC 351.
(238655)
208
N
Chris Ruane (Vale of Clwyd): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 17th November 2008, Official Report, column 129W, if she will make it her policy to (a) collect and (b) hold centrally information on houses of multiple occupation in seaside towns.
(238656)
209
Chris Ruane (Vale of Clwyd): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if her Department will bring forward proposals to establish a permanent network to facilitate the spread of best practice in coastal town regeneration.
(238659)
210
Chris Ruane (Vale of Clwyd): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment she has made of the work of each regional improvement and efficiency partnership in respect of the principal seaside towns in England which lie in their areas.
(238917)
211
Chris Ruane (Vale of Clwyd): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many vacant retail units there were in each principal seaside town in each year for which figures are available; and what proportion of the total retail units in each town this represents.
(238919)
212
Chris Ruane (Vale of Clwyd): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many empty properties there were in each (a) ward and (b) lower layer super output area of each principal seaside town in England in each year for which figures are available, ranked from highest to lowest (i) number of properties and (ii) percentage of total housing stock in each town.
(239005)
213
Chris Ruane (Vale of Clwyd): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many compulsory purchase orders have been issued in each of the principal seaside towns in England in each of the last 10 years.
(239393)
214
Mr Adrian Sanders (Torbay): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what mechanisms are in place to assess housing demand when considering housing targets in Planning Policy Statement 3.
(238565)
215
Matthew Taylor (Truro & St Austell): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many and what percentage of homes in each county in England are registered as second homes.
(239013)
216
Sarah Teather (Brent East): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many homes in each (a) region and (b) local authority area have been brought under the National Clearing House Scheme.
(238704)
217
Sarah Teather (Brent East): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what estimate she has made of the number of people who were rough sleeping in each (a) region and (b) local authority area on the latest date for which figures are available, broken down by (i) age group, (ii) gender and (iii) ethnic background.
(238705)
218
Joan Walley (Stoke-on-Trent North): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what support her Department gives to community groups to set up and run credit unions.
(239490)
219
N
Derek Wyatt (Sittingbourne & Sheppey): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many times the Valuation Office has increased the business rates in UK ports by (a) 50 per cent., (b) 75 per cent. and (c) 100 per cent. over the last three years; and if she will make a statement.
(238153)
220
N
Derek Wyatt (Sittingbourne & Sheppey): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what change there has been in levels of business rates in the last 12 months; and what assessment she has made of the effect of that change on small and medium sized businesses based in ports.
(238279)
Questions to the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
221
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many civil servants were employed by (a) his Department's agency and (b) each of his Department's non-departmental public bodies in each year from 1997-98 to 2007-08; and if he will make a statement.
(238558)
222
Rosie Cooper (West Lancashire): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 6th October 2008, Official Report, column 11, on television (access), what progress has been achieved in ensuring that residents of Skelmersdale can continue to watch television after the date of digital switchover.
(238728)
223
Mr Don Foster (Bath): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 11th November 2008, Official Report, column 1090W, on alcoholic drinks: licensing, how many premises licences authorising the sale or supply of alcohol there were in (a) 2006-07 and (b) 2007-08 after figures were scaled up to national totals for England and Wales.
(238731)
224
Mr Nick Gibb (Bognor Regis & Littlehampton): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 18th November 2008, Official Report, columns 606-7W, on Department written questions, what estimate he made of the cost of answering the question fully.
(239291)
225
Justine Greening (Putney): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many of his Department's staff who left under (a) an involuntary and (b) a voluntary exit scheme in each year since 2005-06 received a severance package of (i) up to £25,000, (ii) £25,001 to £50,000, (iii) £50,001 to £75,000, (iv) £75,001 to £100,000 and (v) over £100,000; and if he will make a statement.
(239160)
226
Mr Mike Hancock (Portsmouth South): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if he will take steps to make it a requirement that when an injured horse is destroyed by a veterinary surgeon on a racecourse that at least two means of humane despatch are immediately available.
(239185)
227
Mr Mike Hancock (Portsmouth South): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if he will bring forward legislative proposals to limit the number of thoroughbred horses which may be bred by the racing industry; and if he will make a statement.
(239186)
228
Mr Mike Hancock (Portsmouth South): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if he will take steps to ensure that veterinary surgeons who destroy injured thoroughbreds on racecourses have (a) sufficient training and (b) are periodically assessed to ensure that their standard of competence is maintained.
(239189)
229
N
Mr Jeremy Hunt (South West Surrey): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, which organisations provided the Big Lottery Fund with public relations services in each of the last five years; and how much the Big Lottery Fund spent on public relations in each year.
(238032)
230
N
Mr Jeremy Hunt (South West Surrey): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how much he expects his Department to spend on the Creative and Business International Network in each of the next three years; and how much he expects the Network's inaugural meeting to cost.
(238033)
231
N
Mr Jeremy Hunt (South West Surrey): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, on what dates (a) he and (b) other Ministers in his Department received media training during the last 12 months.
(238034)
232
N
Mr Jeremy Hunt (South West Surrey): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, which organisations provided Ministers in his Department with media training in each of the last three years; and how much was spent on media training in each year.
(238035)
233
N
Mr Jeremy Hunt (South West Surrey): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many (a) buildings and (b) other monuments were on the At Risk register in each year since 1997.
(238152)
234
Mr Jeremy Hunt (South West Surrey): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate he has made of the contribution made by tourism to the national economy in each of the last three years; and what estimate he has made of its expected contribution in each of the next three years.
(239374)
235
Mr Jeremy Hunt (South West Surrey): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how much funding (a) the National Lottery and (b) his Department has allocated to support (i) individual tennis players and (ii) tennis national governing bodies in each year since 1997.
(239375)
236
Mr Jeremy Hunt (South West Surrey): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how much funding (a) the National Lottery and (b) his Department has allocated to support (i) individual sailors and (ii) sailing national governing bodies in each year since 1997.
(239376)
237
Mr Jeremy Hunt (South West Surrey): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how much funding (a) the National Lottery and (b) his Department has allocated to support (i) individual gymnasts and (ii) gymnastics national governing bodies in each year since 1997.
(239377)
238
Mr Jeremy Hunt (South West Surrey): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how much funding (a) the National Lottery and (b) his Department has allocated to support (i) individual athletes and (ii) athletics national governing bodies in each year since 1997.
(239378)
239
Mr Jeremy Hunt (South West Surrey): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, from which 10 countries the UK received the most visitors in each year since 1997.
(239379)
240
Mr Jeremy Hunt (South West Surrey): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how much the Heritage Lottery Fund has provided for places of worship in each year since 1995, expressed in (a) cash terms and (b) 2008-09 prices.
(239380)
241
Mr Jeremy Hunt (South West Surrey): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, when he expects to publish the accounts for 2007-08 of (a) the National Lottery Distribution Fund and (b) the Olympic Lottery Distribution Fund.
(239381)
242
Mr Jeremy Hunt (South West Surrey): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what support his Department has provided to the Churches Conservation Trust in each year since 1997.
(239382)
243
Mr Jeremy Hunt (South West Surrey): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how much the Churches Conservation Trust received in private donations in each year since 1997.
(239383)
244
Mr Jeremy Hunt (South West Surrey): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, for how many buildings the Churches Conservation Trust was responsible in each year since 1997.
(239384)
245
Mr Jeremy Hunt (South West Surrey): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, on what date each of the Find Your Talent pilots began; when he expects to report on the findings from the pilots; and if he will make a statement.
(239385)
246
Mr Jeremy Hunt (South West Surrey): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how much funding (a) the National Lottery and (b) his Department has allocated to support (i) individual canoeists and (ii) canoeing national governing bodies in each year since 1997.
(239386)
247
Mr Jeremy Hunt (South West Surrey): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how much funding (a) the National Lottery and (b) his Department has allocated to support (i) individual hockey players and (ii) hockey national governing bodies in each year since 1997.
(239387)
248
Mr Jeremy Hunt (South West Surrey): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how much funding (a) the National Lottery and (b) his Department has allocated to support (i) individual boxers and (ii) boxing national governing bodies in each year since 1997.
(239388)
249
Mr Jeremy Hunt (South West Surrey): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how much funding (a) the National Lottery and (b) his Department has allocated to support (i) individual badminton players and (ii) badminton national governing bodies in each year since 1997.
(239389)
250
Mr Jeremy Hunt (South West Surrey): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many staff Visit Britain and its predecessor employed in each year since 1997.
(239391)
251
Mr Jeremy Hunt (South West Surrey): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 20th October 2008, Official Report, column 109W, on culture: planning, what the reason is for the time taken to (a) launch and (b) commence the Cultural Planning Toolkit training.
(239395)
252
Mr Austin Mitchell (Great Grimsby): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment he has made of the effect of the PE and school sport national professional development programme on the standard of swimming teaching in England.
(239287)
253
Mike Penning (Hemel Hempstead): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what funding his Department has allocated to public libraries in (a) Hertfordshire and (b) England in each of the last five years.
(239348)
254
Mike Penning (Hemel Hempstead): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what funding his Department made available to theatre companies in (a) Hemel Hempstead constituency and (b) England in each year between 1999 and 2007.
(239349)
255
Hugh Robertson (Faversham & Mid Kent): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 18th November 2008, Official Report, column 259W, on the Olympic Games: finance, how much of the £290 million has been allocated to each home country sports council; how much money has been committed by Sport England to date; and to what.
(239390)
256
Chris Ruane (Vale of Clwyd): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment he has made of the potential for seaside towns to encourage tourists by means of niche marketing; and what support he provides for such activities.
(238552)
257
Chris Ruane (Vale of Clwyd): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many (a) guest houses, (b) hotels, (c) bed and breakfasts and (d) other guest accommodation properties were registered for tourism use in each of the principal seaside towns of England in each of the last 20 years.
(238635)
258
Chris Ruane (Vale of Clwyd): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps his Department has taken to improve its arrangements for co-ordination with other Government departments of policy affecting coastal towns in the last two years.
(238653)
259
Chris Ruane (Vale of Clwyd): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many (a) hotels and (b) guest houses classified as (i) one star, (ii) two star, (iii) three star, (iv) four star and (v) five star there were in each of the principal English seaside towns in each year for which figures are available.
(238918)
260
Mr Adrian Sanders (Torbay): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many local authorities have taken up grants for free swimming for the under-16s.
(238737)
261
N
Bob Spink (Castle Point): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what funding has been made available to local authorities to implement the Government's free swimming initiative over the next 12 months.
(235636)
262
N
Bob Spink (Castle Point): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what proportion of local authorities have implemented the Government's free swimming initiative to date.
(235637)
263
N
Bob Spink (Castle Point): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, which local authorities have not implemented the Government's free swimming initiative to date; and if he will make a statement.
(235638)
Questions to the Secretary of State for Defence
264
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the rate of staff (a) absence and (b) sickness absence was in (i) his Department and (ii) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies in each year since 1997; what the target rates set for his Department are in each case; and if he will make a statement.
(238926)
265
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much (a) his Department and (b) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent on (i) publicity and (ii) advertising in each year since 1997-98; and if he will make a statement.
(238943)
266
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many employees in his Department took early retirement in each of the last five financial years; and at what total cost.
(238956)
267
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many press releases have been issued by his Department in each year since 1997-98; and if he will make a statement.
(238977)
268
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much his Department has spent on (a) focus groups and (b) opinion polls in each year since 1997-98; how much he estimates will be spent on each category in 2008-09; and if he will make a statement.
(239036)
269
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much (a) his Department and (b) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent on external consultancy in each year since 1997-98; and if he will make a statement.
(239058)
270
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many (a) special advisers and (b) press officers have been employed by his Department in each year since 1997-98; and at what cost in each year.
(239074)
271
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many civil servants have been employed by each of his Department's agencies and non-departmental bodies in each year since 1997-98; and if he will make a statement.
(239095)
272
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many press officers were employed in his Department in each year since 1997-98; what the total cost was in each year; and if he will make a statement.
(239108)
273
Harry Cohen (Leyton & Wanstead): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what stage the Status of Forces negotiations with the Iraqi government have reached; what discussions on the issue there have been with the United Nations, the United States and other nations with a presence in Iraq; what plans there are to present the ensuing agreements to (a) the Iraqi Parliament, (b) the UK Parliament and (c) the United Nations for approval; what consideration has been given to including the status of private security firms of UK origin or with UK personnel in the agreement; and if he will make a statement.
(238795)
274
Harry Cohen (Leyton & Wanstead): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what instructions have been issued to UK naval forces in respect of the terms of engagement to employ when encountering vessels engaged in acts of piracy.
(238857)
275
Mr Dai Davies (Blaenau Gwent): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will take steps to increase the number of nuclear watchkeepers to oversee the safety of the nuclear propulsion units in nuclear powered submarines.
(238556)
276
Mr Dai Davies (Blaenau Gwent): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the available skills base required for the trident nuclear submarine replacement programme; and if he will make a statement.
(238557)
277
Mr David Drew (Stroud): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what factors were considered by the Government in responding to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child regarding the Optional Protocol of the Child in relation to armed conflict; and whether the Army Terms of Service (Amendment etc.) Regulations 2008 were taken into account.
(238827)
278
Mr David Drew (Stroud): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of whether the Army Terms of Service (Amendment etc.) Regulations 2008 are compatible with the Convention rights in the Human Rights Act 1998.
(239510)
279
N
Mr Tobias Ellwood (Bournemouth East): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many UK military personnel are based in Pakistan.
(238273)
280
N
Mr Tobias Ellwood (Bournemouth East): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many UK military personnel are based in Sudan; and how many work with (a) NATO forces, (b) EU forces and (c) other forces.
(238274)
281
N
Mr Tobias Ellwood (Bournemouth East): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what plans there are to change overall UK troop numbers in Afghanistan in the next 12 months.
(238457)
282
N
Mr Tobias Ellwood (Bournemouth East): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what countries have contributed to the UN force in the Democratic Republic of Congo; and how many troops each has provided.
(238458)
283
Mr Nick Gibb (Bognor Regis & Littlehampton): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 12th November 2008, Official Report, column 419W, on Department written questions, what the cost of preparing that answer was.
(239292)
284
Justine Greening (Putney): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many of his Department's staff who left under (a) an involuntary and (b) a voluntary exit scheme in each year since 2005-06 received a severance package of (i) up to £25,000, (ii) £25,001 to £50,000, (iii) £50,001 to £75,000, (iv) £75,001 to £100,000 and (v) over £100,000; and if he will make a statement.
(239161)
285
Nick Harvey (North Devon): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Written Ministerial Statement of 29th October 2008, Official Report, columns 28-30WS, on protected mobility, which types of lesser protected vehicles he plans to withdraw from operations.
(238751)
286
Nick Harvey (North Devon): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what effect the procurement of new utility vehicles announced on 29th October 2008 will have on the Future Rapid Effects System programme.
(238752)
287
Mr Gerald Howarth (Aldershot): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 28th April 2008, Official Report, column 58W, on future large aircraft, what progress has been made in addressing the shortfall in fitting a fuel tank inerting system to the A400M development aircraft.
(238840)
288
Mr Gerald Howarth (Aldershot): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what price was realised from the sale of the Pystock site in Hampshire following the privatisation of the Defence Evaluation and Research Agency; and what covenants were placed on the sale.
(238841)
289
Mr Lindsay Hoyle (Chorley): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many dentists the Army employs; and from which sites such dentists operate.
(239450)
290
Mr Lindsay Hoyle (Chorley): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many regiments were based in the North West in each of the last three years; and how many will be based in the North West in the next 12 months.
(239451)
291
Mr Lindsay Hoyle (Chorley): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many recruits joined the (a) Army, (b) Royal Navy, (c) Royal Marines and (d) Royal Air Force in each of the last three years, broken down by region of recruitment.
(239452)
292
Mr Lindsay Hoyle (Chorley): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what progress has been made on the Joint Strike Fighter Project; and if he will make a statement.
(239453)
293
Mr Mark Lancaster (North East Milton Keynes): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, for how long the Tornado GR4 has been deployed continuously on operations.
(238819)
294
Mr Mark Lancaster (North East Milton Keynes): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what role the Harrier Force played in Operation TELIC in 2003.
(238820)
295
N
Mr Mark Lancaster (North East Milton Keynes): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many Harrier aircraft were deployed in support of Operation TELIC; and for what period.
(238821)
296
N
Mr Mark Lancaster (North East Milton Keynes): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the average daily sortie rate was for the eight Harrier aircraft deployed in Afghanistan in October 2008.
(238822)
297
N
Mr Mark Lancaster (North East Milton Keynes): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the planned sortie rate is for 8 Tornado aircraft due to replace Harrier in Afghanistan next year during its first month of operation in theatre.
(238823)
298
N
Mr Mark Lancaster (North East Milton Keynes): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much funding has been spent on urgent operational requirements for the Harrier force since it deployed to Afghanistan in 2004.
(238824)
299
Mr Mark Lancaster (North East Milton Keynes): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the total cost to the public purse has been in addition to that which would routinely have been incurred as part of the routine Harrier Annual Flying Task of sustaining the Harrier force in Afghanistan over the last three years.
(238825)
300
Mr Mark Lancaster (North East Milton Keynes): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the forecast total cost to the public purse additional to that which would routinely be incurred as part of the routine Tornado Annual Flying Task has been of deploying the Tornado force to Afghanistan for the first year, including costs associated with urgent operational requirements, deployment and sustainable costs, and costs associated with upgrading follow-on aircraft to replace those initially deployed to theatre.
(238826)
301
N
Dr Julian Lewis (New Forest East): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether (a) the Commonwealth War Graves Commission and (b) another organisation maintains a list of the names of fallen service personnel recorded on major war memorials; whether the names of those on the plaques removed by thieves from the Plymouth Royal Naval Memorial in 2008 were independently recorded; whether the stolen plaques have been (i) recovered and (ii) replaced; and if he will make a statement.
(238290)
302
Miss Anne McIntosh (Vale of York): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he is taking to ensure developers and contractors in the house building industry consider the whole life costs and the production process of housing; and whether he plans to introduce producer responsibility for (a) the construction industry and (b) house building industry products.
(239435)
303
N
Adam Price (Carmarthen East & Dinefwr): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what regulations there are on the compatibility of membership of the British National Party and service in the Army Intelligence Corps.
(238891)
304
N
Adam Price (Carmarthen East & Dinefwr): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 17th November 2008, Official Report, column 147W, on Iraq: peacekeeping operations, how many Jaish-al-Mahdi prisoners have been released as a result of these discussions.
(239015)
305
N
Adam Price (Carmarthen East & Dinefwr): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 4th November 2008, Official Report, column 304W, on Iraq: peacekeeping operations, whether the discussions with representatives of Jaish-al-Mahdi included discussions on the withdrawal of the British Army to Basra airport.
(239171)
306
Adam Price (Carmarthen East & Dinefwr): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 18th November 2008, Official Report, column 420W, on Iraq: peacekeeping operations, whether the Iraqi authorities have taken any steps to remove any of the cameras in the last six months.
(239172)
307
N
Hon Nicholas Soames (Mid Sussex): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will make it his policy to support the establishment of a national memorial to Bomber Command.
(238572)
308
N
Hon Nicholas Soames (Mid Sussex): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, for what reason his Department has not established a memorial to Bomber Command in London.
(238573)
309
Ann Winterton (Congleton): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many unarmoured Jackals there are in service.
(238664)
310
Ann Winterton (Congleton): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what his policy is on the public disclosure of the weight of Army vehicles.
(238665)
Questions to the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change
311
Mr David Anderson (Blaydon): To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what the average cost per tonne of imported coal was in 2007.
(239273)
312
Mr David Anderson (Blaydon): To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what the effect on the balance of payments of coal imports and exports was in 2007.
(239274)
313
Gregory Barker (Bexhill & Battle): To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what percentage of emissions reductions in the EU power sector from a 1990 baseline he estimates will arise (a) as a result of reductions in EU domestic emissions from this sector and (b) as a result of the purchase of clean development mechanism or joint implementation credits.
(238729)
314
Gregory Barker (Bexhill & Battle): To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what estimate he has made of the percentage of total effort required under (a) EU effort sharing arrangements and (b) the EU Emissions Trading Scheme between 2013 and 2020 which could be delivered through the purchase of clean development mechanism or joint implementation credits.
(238730)
315
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how many employees in his Department have taken early retirement since its inception; and at what total cost.
(238958)
316
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how many press releases have been issued by his Department since its inception; and if he will make a statement.
(238979)
317
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how much his Department has spent on (a) focus groups and (b) opinion polls since its inception; how much he estimates will be spent on each category in 2008-09; and if he will make a statement.
(239038)
318
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how many (a) special advisers and (b) press officers have been employed by his Department since it was established; and at what cost in each year.
(239076)
319
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what the rate of staff (a) absence and (b) sickness absence in (i) his Department and (ii) each of its non-departmental public bodies has been since its inception; what the target rates set for his Department are in each case; and if he will make a statement.
(239134)
320
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how much (a) his Department and (b) each of its non-departmental public bodies has spent on external consultancy since its inception; and if he will make a statement.
(239135)
321
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how much (a) his Department and (b) each of its non-departmental public bodies have spent on (i) publicity and (ii) advertising since its inception; and if he will make a statement.
(239136)
322
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how many civil servants have been employed by each of his Department's non-departmental bodies since his Department's inception; and if he will make a statement.
(239137)
323
Andrew George (St Ives): To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, whether he has considered the merits of allowing regional variations in grant limit levels under the Warm Front scheme to account for regional variations in the cost of work under the scheme.
(238886)
324
Andrew George (St Ives): To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what recent assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of grant limit levels under the Warm Front scheme.
(238887)
325
Mr Mark Lancaster (North East Milton Keynes): To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, when he expects the new Warm Front scheme computer system to be fully operational.
(238839)
326
Mr Mark Lancaster (North East Milton Keynes): To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how much the computer system for Warm Front has cost to install.
(238842)
327
Mr Mark Lancaster (North East Milton Keynes): To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how many people who have made financial deposits for new boilers through the Warm Front scheme have not received them to date.
(238843)
328
Mr Oliver Letwin (West Dorset): To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, if he will amend the Government's insulation scheme for disabled householders to cover households with disabled children.
(239187)
329
Dr Alasdair McDonnell (Belfast South): To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, if he will estimate the average cost of decommissioning a nuclear power station borne by (a) the public purse and (b) the nuclear power industry.
(238750)
330
Mr Jamie Reed (Copeland): To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how many properties in Copeland are awaiting improvement work to be carried out under the Warm Front scheme.
(239240)
331
Mr Jamie Reed (Copeland): To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what estimate he has made of the number of (a) households in Copeland constituency which received a Warm Front grant and (b) Warm Front grants made for the installation of (i) central heating, (ii) loft insulation, (iii) draughtproofing, (iv) cavity wall insulation and (v) hot water tank insulation in properties in Copeland constituency in each financial year since the commencement of the Warm Front scheme.
(239352)
332
Mr Jamie Reed (Copeland): To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what assessment he has made of the average waiting time for (a) an assessment visit to, (b) installation work to be carried out in and (c) repair work on faulty installations in properties in Copeland constituency which qualified for Warm Front grants in each financial year since the commencement of the Warm Front scheme began; and how many households in Copeland were awaiting an assessment visit in the last period for which figures are available.
(239485)
333
Mr Jamie Reed (Copeland): To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what estimate he has made of the value of (a) work carried out and (b) reductions in energy bills achieved as a result of work carried out under the Warm Front scheme on properties in Copeland constituency in each financial year since the scheme's inception.
(239486)
334
Mr Jamie Reed (Copeland): To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how many Warm Front scheme registered installers are based in Copeland constituency.
(239487)
335
Mr Dennis Skinner (Bolsover): To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how many claims for (a) miners' hearing loss, (b) vibration white finger and (c) chronic obstructive pulmonary disease were paid in Bolsover constituency in each of the last six years.
(238667)
336
N
Jo Swinson (East Dunbartonshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what projects have received funding from the Marine Renewables Deployment Fund in 2007-08; and which have been allocated funding for 2008-09.
(238642)
337
N
Jo Swinson (East Dunbartonshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what his latest estimate is of the surplus in each budget category of the Marine Renewables Deployment Fund for 2007-08; and what the projected spending is for each category for 2008-09.
(238643)
338
N
Jo Swinson (East Dunbartonshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what changes to the funding criteria of the Marine Renewables Deployment Fund have been made since August of this year; and what effect these changes have had on the number of projects qualifying for funding.
(238644)
339
Sarah Teather (Brent East): To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how much surplus land the Coal Authority owns, expressed in (a) area and (b) estimated monetary value.
(238693)
340
Sarah Teather (Brent East): To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what plans there are for each of the sites owned by the Coal Authority which are registered on the Register of Surplus Public Sector Land; what construction projects are planned for each site; and when he expects each site to be returned to use.
(238694)
341
N
Paddy Tipping (Sherwood): To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how many responses he has received to his consultation on carbon capture readiness; if he will list those responses and summarise their contents; what steps he now intends to take on the matter; and if he will make a statement.
(238061)
342
Mr Don Touhig (Islwyn): To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what measures are in place to ensure that consumers can make informed decisions when deciding on their energy supplier.
(238712)
343
Mr Don Touhig (Islwyn): To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what steps his Department is taking against energy companies who use misleading (a) marketing and (b) sales activities.
(238713)
344
Mr Don Touhig (Islwyn): To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what steps are being taken to ensure that (a) the elderly and (b) other people are able to access competitive deals for gas and electricity.
(238749)
345
N
Steve Webb (Northavon): To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, whether his Department has offered a full or partial waiver of liability on insurance claims regarding British Energy's existing stations to the purchaser of the stations; and if he will make a statement.
(238714)
346
N
Steve Webb (Northavon): To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what discussions his Department has had with (a) the Nucelar Decommissioning Authority (NDA) and (b) EDF on (i) the timing of the NDA's announcement of the sale of NDA land for new nuclear builds and (ii) the likely effect of this sale and its timing on the price of (A) the Government's stake in British Energy and (B) the share price of British Energy.
(238715)
347
N
Steve Webb (Northavon): To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what arrangements he has made for the liabilities of existing British Energy reactor sites to be covered by EDF; whether EDF will continue to pay into the Nuclear Liabilities Fund to cover wastes and spent fuel created from ongoing operations at existing British Energy reactors; and whether EDF will be required to pay the same amount per tonne to Sellafields Sites and the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority for spent fuel reprocessing or management and disposal as British Energy has paid under its agreement with the Government.
(238716)
Questions to the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
348
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the rate of staff (a) absence and (b) sickness absence was in (i) his Department and (ii) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies in each year since 1997; what the target rates set for his Department are in each case; and if he will make a statement.
(238925)
349
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many employees in his Department took early retirement in each of the last five financial years; and at what total cost.
(238955)
350
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many press releases have been issued by his Department in each year since 1997-98; and if he will make a statement.
(238976)
351
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much his Department has spent on (a) focus groups and (b) opinion polls in each year since 1997-98; how much he estimates will be spent on each category in 2008-09; and if he will make a statement.
(239035)
352
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much (a) his Department and (b) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent on external consultancy in each year since 1997-98; and if he will make a statement.
(239057)
353
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much (a) his Department and (b) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent on (i) publicity and (ii) advertising in each year since its inception; and if he will make a statement.
(239072)
354
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many (a) special advisers and (b) press officers have been employed by his Department in each year since 1997-98; and at what cost in each year.
(239073)
355
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many civil servants have been employed by each of his Department's agencies and non-departmental public bodies in each year since 1997-98; and if he will make a statement.
(239094)
356
Mr Dai Davies (Blaenau Gwent): To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what consideration he has given to the future chairmanship of the Sustainable Development Commission; and whether Sir Jonathon Porritt has indicated a wish to continue as chair beyond the end of his present term of office in July 2009.
(239007)
357
Mr David Drew (Stroud): To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what research his Department is conducting into the effects of farmers' markets on producers and consumers.
(239532)
358
Mr David Drew (Stroud): To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many prosecutions there have been for illegal actions relating to badgers in each of the last five years; how many of these were successful; and what advice he now offers police forces on this issue.
(239533)
359
N
Tim Farron (Westmorland & Lonsdale): To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the (a) administrative and (b) legal costs incurred by his Department in relation to outstanding claims made under the Single Farm Payment Scheme were in each of the last five years.
(238732)
360
N
Tim Farron (Westmorland & Lonsdale): To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much his Department has spent on administering non-compliance penalties made under the Single Farm Payment Scheme since the scheme came into operation.
(238733)
361
N
Tim Farron (Westmorland & Lonsdale): To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much the Forestry Commission has spent on maintaining its domestic properties in each of the last five years.
(238734)
362
N
Tim Farron (Westmorland & Lonsdale): To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much his Department has spent on maintaining its domestic properties in each of the last five years.
(238735)
363
Lynne Featherstone (Hornsey & Wood Green): To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what (a) water safety and (b) other environmental regulations are in place that prevent public access to grassed areas above covered reservoirs; and if he will take steps to encourage water companies to allow such access, with particular reference to urban areas with limited access to green space.
(238848)
364
Justine Greening (Putney): To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many of his Department's staff who left under (a) an involuntary and (b) a voluntary exit scheme in each year since 2005-06 received a severance package of (i) up to £25,000, (ii) £25,001 to £50,000, (iii) £50,001 to £75,000, (iv) £75,001 to £100,000 and (v) over £100,000; and if he will make a statement.
(239162)
365
Mr David Heathcoat-Amory (Wells): To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much his Department spent on visits by its staff to Brussels in 2007-08; and how many such visits were made by (a) air and (b) rail.
(239424)
366
Mr David Heathcoat-Amory (Wells): To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many (a) rail and (b) plane tickets to Brussels his Department paid for visits by its staff to Brussels in 2007.
(239426)
367
N
Mr Nick Hurd (Ruislip-Northwood): To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what payments British Waterways (a) has made in the last 12 months and (b) is contracted to make to Cavendish Public Affairs; and for what purposes.
(238467)
368
Mr Oliver Letwin (West Dorset): To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what quantities of vaccines for the (a) BTV1 and (b) BTV6 strains of bluetongue disease are (i) available and (ii) on order.
(239221)
369
Kerry McCarthy (Bristol East): To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what proposals his Department plans to put forward at the next European Fisheries Council on measures to protect sharks and other endangered or threatened species from the impact of over-fishing.
(238645)
370
Mr James Paice (South East Cambridgeshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate his Department has made of the potential taxpayer liability for fines disallowance or other penalties as a result of late payment of the Single Farm Payment Scheme and other precursor common agricultural schemes since 1997.
(239297)
371
Mr James Paice (South East Cambridgeshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 30th October 2008, Official Report, columns 1181-4W, on the Rural Development Programme, if he will provide the figures requested, excluding projects where ERDP legacy payments were made after 1st January 2007.
(239359)
372
Mr James Paice (South East Cambridgeshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 30th October 2008, Official Report, columns 1183-6W, on the Rural Development Programme, if he will provide the figures requested where ERDP legacy payments were made after 1st January 2007.
(239360)
373
Mr James Paice (South East Cambridgeshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, on what date the EU target of 96.14 per cent. of payments by value under the Single Payment Scheme in England was met in each of the scheme years to date; and when he expects the target to be met for the 2008 scheme year.
(239432)
374
Mr James Paice (South East Cambridgeshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much and to how many claimants he expects to have been paid under the 2008 Single Payment Scheme by 25th December 2008.
(239433)
375
Mr James Paice (South East Cambridgeshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what fines, disallowance or other penalties the Government has received to date as a result of late payment of the Single Payment Scheme and other precursor common agricultural schemes since 1997.
(239434)
376
Chris Ruane (Vale of Clwyd): To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department has taken to improve its arrangements for co-ordination with other Government departments of policy affecting coastal towns in the last two years.
(238650)
377
N
Mr Anthony Steen (Totnes): To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 13th November 2008, Official Report, column 1293W, on horses: conservation, for what reason the Dartmoor Pony Society has temporarily suspended the issuing of Heritage Trust passports; and what advice the Society has sought from his Department.
(237790)
378
Jo Swinson (East Dunbartonshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans his Department has to fund new mixed plastics recycling plants; and if he will make a statement.
(238638)
379
Jo Swinson (East Dunbartonshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many local authorities are not served by a mixed plastics recycling plant.
(238639)
380
Jo Swinson (East Dunbartonshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many local authorities do not carry out doorstep collections of mixed plastics for recycling.
(238640)
381
N
Jo Swinson (East Dunbartonshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate he has made of the average number of types of plastic recycled by local authorities.
(238641)
382
Mrs Theresa Villiers (Chipping Barnet): To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, which areas around Heathrow breach the emission limits contained in the EU Air Quality Directive which are due to come into force in 2010.
(238637)
383
Mrs Theresa Villiers (Chipping Barnet): To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has applied for a derogation from compliance with the EU Air Quality Directive.
(238661)
384
Joan Walley (Stoke-on-Trent North): To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 9th October 2008, Official Report, column 732W, on fisheries: international co-operation, if he will place in the Library a copy of the reports on the activity of the Committee made by officials of his Department.
(239512)
385
Joan Walley (Stoke-on-Trent North): To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 9th October 2008, Official Report, column 732W, on fisheries: international co-operation, what timetable he has set for making a formal assessment.
(239513)
386
Mr Roger Williams (Brecon & Radnorshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department plans to take on pesticide spraying following the recent high court ruling by Mr Justice Collins on the matter.
(239354)
387
Mr Roger Williams (Brecon & Radnorshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate he has made of the populations of (a) bees, (b) moths, (c) butterflies, (d) beetles, (e) upwing flies and (f) other invertebrates in the UK in each of the last five years.
(239358)
Questions to the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs
388
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what the rate of staff (a) absence and (b) sickness absence was in (i) his Department and (ii) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies in each year since 1997; what the target rates set for his Department are in each case; and if he will make a statement.
(238931)
389
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how much (a) his Department and (b) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent on (i) publicity and (ii) advertising in each year since 1997-98; and if he will make a statement.
(238948)
390
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many employees in his Department took early retirement in each of the last five financial years; and at what total cost.
(238962)
391
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many press releases have been issued by his Department in each year since 1997-98; and if he will make a statement.
(238983)
392
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how much his Department has spent on (a) focus groups and (b) opinion polls in each year since 1997-98; how much he estimates will be spent on each category in 2008-09; and if he will make a statement.
(239042)
393
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how much (a) his Department and (b) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent on external consultancy in each year since 1997-98; and if he will make a statement.
(239066)
394
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many (a) special advisers and (b) press officers have been employed by his Department in each year since 1997-98; and at what cost in each year.
(239080)
395
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many civil servants have been employed by each of his Department's agencies and non-departmental bodies in each year since 1997-98; and if he will make a statement.
(239100)
396
N
Mr Jim Cunningham (Coventry South): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent steps the Government has taken to promote peace in the Middle East.
(237678)
397
N
Mr Jim Cunningham (Coventry South): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what plans he has to discuss the prospects for peace in the Middle East with other governments.
(237679)
398
Mr Andrew Dismore (Hendon): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will withdraw from the UN Durban II anti-racism conference in the light of the language used in the draft statement portraying Israel as an enemy of humanity; and if he will make a statement.
(239540)
399
Mr Andrew Dismore (Hendon): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what information his Department holds on which countries (a) have withdrawn and (b) are considering withdrawal for the UN Durban II anti-racism conference due to the language used concerning Israel in the draft statement; and if he will make a statement.
(239541)
400
Mr Andrew Dismore (Hendon): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the UN on the draft statement for the UN Durban II anti-racism conference; and if he will make a statement.
(239542)
401
Justine Greening (Putney): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many of his Department's staff who left under (a) an involuntary and (b) a voluntary exit scheme in each year since 2005-06 received a severance package of (i) up to £25,000, (ii) £25,001 to £50,000, (iii) £50,001 to £75,000, (iv) £75,001 to £100,000 and (v) over £100,000; and if he will make a statement.
(239163)
402
Mr William Hague (Richmond (Yorks)): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will task officials in his Department with studying lessons learned from counter-piracy operations in the Straits of Malacca in 2005 for application to the situation in the Gulf of Aden; and what discussions his Department has had with the governments of Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand on the matter.
(239498)
403
Mr William Hague (Richmond (Yorks)): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what the legal basis is of the European Union's EULEX mission mandate in Kosovo; and if he will make a statement.
(239500)
404
Mr William Hague (Richmond (Yorks)): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the implications for the deployment of the EU's Rule of Law Mission in Kosovo of the recent decision by the government of Kosovo to reject the six point plan drawn up by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon.
(239501)
405
Mr David Heathcoat-Amory (Wells): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how much his Department spent on visits by its staff to Brussels in 2007-08; and how many such visits were made by (a) air and (b) rail.
(239422)
406
N
Chris Huhne (Eastleigh): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, when he plans to answer Question 228919, on departmental security, tabled on 16th October 2008.
(239019)
407
N
Mr David Lidington (Aylesbury): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he had during his recent visit to Syria about Syrian support for (a) Hamas and (b) Hezbollah; and if he will make a statement.
(238065)
408
N
Mr David Lidington (Aylesbury): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what the Government's policy is on the labelling of produce from Israel and the Palestinian territories; and if he will make a statement.
(238066)
409
N
Mr David Lidington (Aylesbury): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he had during his recent visit to Israel on the labelling of produce from Israel and the Palestinian territories; and if he will make a statement.
(238067)
410
N
Mr David Lidington (Aylesbury): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his EU counterparts on the labelling of food and food products originating in (a) Israel, (b) Israeli settlements on the West Bank and East Jerusalem, (c) Israeli-controlled territory on the West Bank and (d) areas of the West Bank under the control of the Palestinian authority in the last three years; and if he will make a statement.
(238068)
411
Mr Michael Moore (Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many locally engaged Iraqi staff employed by his Department since March 2003 concluded their period of employment on or before 31st December 2004.
(239427)
412
Mr Michael Moore (Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many locally engaged Iraqi staff employed by his Department on or after 1st January 2005 concluded their period of employment within 12 months of the beginning of their contract.
(239428)
413
Mr Michael Moore (Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many applications to the Gateway refugee settlement programme from citizens of countries other than Iraq were approved in (a) 2005, (b) 2006, (c) 2007 and (d) 2008.
(239429)
414
N
Mr Andrew Smith (Oxford East): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will make representations to the German government on the enforcement of a European arrest warrant in respect of Søren Kam.
(238157)
415
Jo Swinson (East Dunbartonshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what the current estimated value is of the (a) wine and (b) other alcoholic drinks held in storage by the British Embassy in (i) Paris, (ii) Berlin, (iii) Madrid, (iv) Brussels, (v) Rome and (vi) Dublin.
(238676)
416
Jo Swinson (East Dunbartonshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what the running costs of the British Embassy in (a) Paris, (b) Berlin, (c) Madrid, (d) Brussels, (e) Rome and (f) Dublin were in each of the last five years.
(238677)
417
Jo Swinson (East Dunbartonshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many receptions were held at the British Embassy in (a) Paris, (b) Berlin, (c) Madrid, (d) Brussels, (e) Rome and (f) Dublin in each of the last five years; and how much was spent on alcoholic drinks for such receptions in each of those years.
(238678)
418
Jo Swinson (East Dunbartonshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many receptions held at the British Embassy in (a) Paris, (b) Berlin, (c) Madrid, (d) Brussels, (e) Rome and (f) Dublin in each of the last five years were organised and funded by (i) trades unions, (ii) charities, (iii) businesses and (iv) other types of organisations; and what income each Embassy received from charges for the use of facilities for such receptions in each of those years.
(238679)
419
Jo Swinson (East Dunbartonshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how much was spent by the British Embassy in (a) Paris, (b) Berlin, (c) Madrid, (d) Brussels, (e) Rome and (f) Dublin on (i) newspapers, magazines and periodicals and (ii) stationery in each of the last five years.
(238680)
420
Jo Swinson (East Dunbartonshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many members of staff are employed at the British Embassy in (a) Paris, (b) Berlin, (c) Madrid, (d) Brussels, (e) Rome and (f) Dublin to work on correspondence; and what the average response time to written correspondence was in the latest period for which figures are available.
(238681)
421
Jo Swinson (East Dunbartonshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what financial monitoring is carried out at the British Embassy in (a) Paris, (b) Berlin, (c) Madrid, (d) Brussels, (e) Rome and (f) Dublin to avoid waste and promote efficient use of resources.
(238682)
422
Jo Swinson (East Dunbartonshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many staff at the British Embassy in Tel Aviv are employed to work on correspondence; and what the average response time to written correspondence was in the latest period for which figures are available.
(239248)
423
Jo Swinson (East Dunbartonshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how much was spent by the British Embassy in Tel Aviv on newspapers, magazines and periodicals in each of the last five years.
(239249)
424
Jo Swinson (East Dunbartonshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many receptions held at the British Embassy in Tel Aviv were organised and funded by (a) trades unions, (b) charities, (c) businesses and (d) other types of organisation in each of the last five years; and what income the Embassy received from charges for the use of facilities for receptions in each such year.
(239250)
425
Jo Swinson (East Dunbartonshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what the monetary value is of the (a) wine and (b) other alcohol held in storage by the British Embassy in Tel Aviv.
(239251)
426
Jo Swinson (East Dunbartonshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how much was spent on alcoholic drinks for receptions at the British Embassy in Tel Aviv in each of the last five years.
(239252)
427
Jo Swinson (East Dunbartonshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many receptions were held at the British Embassy in Tel Aviv in each of the last five years.
(239253)
428
Jo Swinson (East Dunbartonshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what the cost to the public purse of the British Embassy in Tel Aviv was in each of the last five years.
(239254)
429
Jo Swinson (East Dunbartonshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many staff at the British Embassy in Moscow are employed to work on correspondence; and what the average response time to written correspondence has been in the latest period for which figures are available.
(239255)
430
Jo Swinson (East Dunbartonshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how much was spent by the British Embassy in Moscow on (a) newspapers, magazines and periodicals and (b) stationery in each of the last five years.
(239256)
431
Jo Swinson (East Dunbartonshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many receptions held at the British Embassy in Moscow were organised and funded by (a) trades unions, (b) charities, (c) businesses and (d) other types of organisation in each of the last five years; and what income the Embassy received from charges for the use of facilities for receptions in each such year.
(239257)
432
Jo Swinson (East Dunbartonshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what the monetary value is of the (a) wine and (b) other alcohol held in storage by the British Embassy in Moscow.
(239258)
433
Jo Swinson (East Dunbartonshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how much was spent on alcoholic drinks for receptions at the British Embassy in Moscow in each of the last five years.
(239259)
434
Jo Swinson (East Dunbartonshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what the running cost of the British Embassy in Vienna was in each of the last five years.
(239364)
435
Jo Swinson (East Dunbartonshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how much was spent on alcoholic drinks for receptions at the British Embassy in Vienna in each of the last five years.
(239365)
436
Jo Swinson (East Dunbartonshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what the current monetary value of the (a) wine and (b) other alcohol held in storage by the British Embassy in Vienna is.
(239366)
437
Jo Swinson (East Dunbartonshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many receptions were held at the British Embassy in Vienna in each of the last five years; and how many of these were organised and funded by (a) trades unions, (b) charities, (c) businesses and (d) other types of organisation; and what income the embassy received from charges for the use of facilities for receptions in each of the last five years.
(239367)
438
Jo Swinson (East Dunbartonshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how much the British Embassy in Vienna spent on newspapers, magazines and periodicals in each of the last five years.
(239368)
439
Jo Swinson (East Dunbartonshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how much the British Embassy in Vienna spent on stationery in each of the last five years.
(239369)
440
Jo Swinson (East Dunbartonshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many members of staff at the British Embassy in Vienna are employed to work on correspondence; and what the average response time to written correspondence was in the latest period for which figures are available.
(239370)
441
Jo Swinson (East Dunbartonshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what financial monitoring the British Embassy in Vienna carries out to avoid waste and promote the efficient use of resources.
(239371)
442
Jo Swinson (East Dunbartonshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what the running cost of the British Embassy in Moscow was in each of the last five years.
(239372)
443
Jo Swinson (East Dunbartonshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many receptions were held at the British Embassy in Moscow in each of the last five years.
(239373)
444
Mr Don Touhig (Islwyn): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps are being taken in the United Nations Security Council to prosecute the human rights abuses of the Burmese government.
(238710)
445
Mr Don Touhig (Islwyn): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the (a) leadership and (b) political objectives of the Burmese government.
(238711)
446
Mr Don Touhig (Islwyn): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the status and safety of Christian communities in Burma; and if he will make a statement.
(238748)
447
Joan Walley (Stoke-on-Trent North): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 6th October 2008, Official Report, column 240W, on Western Sahara: politics and government, what representations have been made to the Moroccan government on compliance with UN Security Council Resolution 1813.
(239511)
448
Mark Williams (Ceredigion): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with ministerial colleagues on joint UK/Morocco military exercises in occupied Western Sahara.
(238852)
Questions to the Secretary of State for Health
449
Peter Bottomley (Worthing West): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the merits of (a) endovascular repair and (b) open surgical repair for abdominal aortic aneurysms in terms of (i) peri-operative mortality, (ii) time in intensive care, (iii) time in hospital overall and (iv) speed of return to normal activity.
(239355)
450
Peter Bottomley (Worthing West): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what criteria are taken into account when assessing the fitness of abdominal aortic aneurysm patients for open surgical repair; and if he will make a statement.
(239356)
451
Peter Bottomley (Worthing West): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, at which level of the NHS a decision on whether to screen men in the West Sussex Primary Care Trust area for abdominal aortic aneurysms will be made.
(239357)
452
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the rate of staff (a) absence and (b) sickness absence was in (i) his Department and (ii) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies in each year since 1997; what the target rates set for his Department are in each case; and if he will make a statement.
(238929)
453
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much (a) his Department and (b) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent on (i) publicity and (ii) advertising in each year since 1997-98; and if he will make a statement.
(238946)
454
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many employees in his Department took early retirement in each of the last five financial years; and at what total cost.
(238960)
455
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many press releases have been issued by his Department in each year since 1997-98; and if he will make a statement.
(238981)
456
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much his Department has spent on (a) focus groups and (b) opinion polls in each year since 1997-98; how much he estimates will be spent on each category in 2008-09; and if he will make a statement.
(239040)
457
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much (a) his Department and (b) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent on external consultancy in each year since 1997-98; and if he will make a statement.
(239067)
458
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many (a) special advisers and (b) press officers have been employed by his Department in each year since 1997-98; and at what cost in each year.
(239078)
459
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many civil servants have been employed by each of his Department's agencies and non-departmental bodies in each year since 1997-98; and if he will make a statement.
(239098)
460
N
Colin Burgon (Elmet): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many operations have been cancelled in the Leeds Health Authority area due to surgical equipment being inadequately sterilised in each of the last two years; and what estimate he has made of the cost of those cancellations to the NHS.
(238697)
461
N
Colin Burgon (Elmet): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the value is of the contract awarded to the private sector company to carry out surgical equipment sterilisation in the Leeds Health Authority.
(238698)
462
Mr David Drew (Stroud): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the process if for raising the age limit for the over 30 months scheme; and what the Food Standards Agency's responsibilities are in this regard.
(239528)
463
Mr Frank Field (Birkenhead): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when he will report on the results of the public consultation that has taken place on the provision of Revlimid as a treatment for those suffering from myeloma.
(238753)
464
Mr Frank Field (Birkenhead): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will bring forward proposals to increase the budgets for local involvement networks to reflect the number of activities they will undertake.
(239299)
465
Andrew George (St Ives): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 10th November 2008, Official Report, column 834W, on maternity services, what correspondence his Department has had with primary care trusts on the additional sums to be made available for maternity care in the years 2008-09 to 2010-11 since the publication of the NHS Operating Framework for 2008-09.
(238706)
466
Sandra Gidley (Romsey): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when he plans to publish the results of the 2004 consultation on his Department's proposals to exclude overseas visitors from eligibility to free NHS primary medical services; and if he will make a statement.
(239176)
467
Sandra Gidley (Romsey): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when a full summary of responses to the consultation on the review of Part IX of the Drug Tariff will be made available.
(239177)
468
Justine Greening (Putney): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate his Department has made of the average time from diagnosis to treatment for patients diagnosed with cancer in each London borough in (a) 2005, (b) 2006 and (c) 2007, broken down by cancer type.
(238833)
469
Justine Greening (Putney): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many of his Department's staff who left under (a) an involuntary and (b) a voluntary exit scheme in each year since 2005-06 received a severance package of (i) up to £25,000, (ii) £25,001 to £50,000, (iii) £50,001 to £75,000, (iv) £75,001 to £100,000 and (v) over £100,000; and if he will make a statement.
(239155)
470
Mr Greg Hands (Hammersmith & Fulham): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many revascularisation procedures for peripheral vascular disease took place in the National Health Service in each of the last five years, broken down by strategic health authority.
(238564)
471
N
Simon Hughes (North Southwark & Bermondsey): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment his Department has made of the standard of healthcare for prisoners in England and Wales in comparison to that received outside prisons through the National Health Service.
(237615)
472
Chris Huhne (Eastleigh): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many hospitals with accident and emergency departments provide anonymised data to their local (a) police and (b) crime and disorder reduction partnership to assist them to identify violence hot spots.
(238568)
473
Chris Huhne (Eastleigh): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many beds in drug rehabilitation units were available in each of the last five years.
(239241)
474
Chris Huhne (Eastleigh): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many people received prescriptions of (a) heroin and (b) heroin substitutes in each of the last five years; and how many were receiving a prescription for each at the latest date for which information is available.
(239242)
475
Dr Brian Iddon (Bolton South East): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what his policy is on the applicability to food supplements of nutrient profiles set under the provision of the Nutrition and Health Claims Regulation; and what steps he is taking to advance that policy in discussions on these matters at the Council of Ministers and its Working Groups.
(239281)
476
Dr Brian Iddon (Bolton South East): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent discussions he has had on the European Food Safety Authority's procedures to distinguish between the processes and criteria adopted in relation to claims submitted under (a) Article 14 and 13.5 and (b) Article 13.1 of the Nutrition and Health Claims Regulation; and if he will make a statement.
(239282)
477
Mr Andrew Lansley (South Cambridgeshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what guidance his Department has issued to the NHS on bringing forward proposed capital projects.
(238703)
478
Mr Andrew Lansley (South Cambridgeshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 13th November 2008, Official Report, columns 1371-2W, on antibiotics, how much was spent by hospitals in each region on antibiotics in each year since 1997-98 for which figures are available.
(238742)
479
Mr Andrew Lansley (South Cambridgeshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 11th November 2008, Official Report, column 1046W, on health centres, what steps are being taken in respect of primary care trusts whose plans for (a) a new GP-led health centre and (b) new GP practices do not meet core criteria.
(238743)
480
Mr Andrew Lansley (South Cambridgeshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 11th November 2008, Official Report, column 1046W, on health centres, for each primary care trust whose plans for a new (a) GP-led health centres and (b) GP practice do not meet core criteria, what the reasons are for that being the case.
(238744)
481
Mr Andrew Lansley (South Cambridgeshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much his Department has spent on hospitality in each of the last five financial years.
(238892)
482
Mr Andrew Lansley (South Cambridgeshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much his Department has written off in bad debts in each of the last five financial years; and what the reason for each write off was.
(238893)
483
Mr Andrew Lansley (South Cambridgeshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will place in the Library a copy of his Department's workforce planning assumptions used to inform the 2007 Comprehensive Spending Review.
(238894)
484
Mr Andrew Lansley (South Cambridgeshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent estimate he has made of the unit cost of (a) making and (b) receiving phone calls on (i) adult and (ii) children's wards in NHS hospitals.
(238895)
485
Mr Andrew Lansley (South Cambridgeshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what budget was allocated for the work of (a) the Advisory Committee on Clinical Excellence Awards, (b) the Advisory Committee on Dangerous Pathogens and (c) the Health Protection Agency in each of the last five years.
(238896)
486
Mr Andrew Lansley (South Cambridgeshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many paid officials worked for (a) the Advisory Committee on Clinical Excellence Awards, (b) the Advisory Committee on Dangerous Pathogens and (c) the Health Protection Agency in each of the last five years.
(238897)
487
Mr Andrew Lansley (South Cambridgeshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what data his Department collects on serious untoward incidents in the NHS.
(238898)
488
Mr Andrew Lansley (South Cambridgeshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the present monetary value of land and buildings, including NHS land and buildings, his Department expects to dispose of by sale in (a) 2008-09, (b) 2009-10 and (c) 2010-11; and what estimate his Department has made of the receipts from the sale of each property in each year.
(238899)
489
Mr Andrew Lansley (South Cambridgeshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the benefits-in-kind provided to senior staff of his Department and noted in its resource accounts were in (a) 2005-06, (b) 2006-07 and (c) 2007-08.
(238900)
490
Mr Andrew Lansley (South Cambridgeshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the (a) location, (b) dates and (c) cost was of each away day his departmental board has held in the last 12 months.
(238901)
491
Mr Andrew Lansley (South Cambridgeshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many yellow card reports to the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency there were in each year since 1997 for which figures are available, broken down by (a) drug and device and (b) reports made by (i) patients and (ii) healthcare professionals.
(238902)
492
Mr Andrew Lansley (South Cambridgeshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, with reference to the Hospital Pharmacy Audit Index, how many issues of antibiotics each hospital trust in England made in 2007-08.
(238903)
493
Mr Andrew Lansley (South Cambridgeshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, with reference to the Hospital Pharmacy Audit Index, how many issues of antibiotics hospitals in each region of England made in each year since 1997-98 for which figures are available.
(238904)
494
Mr Andrew Lansley (South Cambridgeshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the rate of (a) MRSA and (b) clostridium difficile infection in hospitals was in each region in England in each financial year since 1997-08 for which figures are available.
(238905)
495
Mr Andrew Lansley (South Cambridgeshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what information is recorded in the Hospital Pharmacy Audit Index to which the NHS information centre has access.
(238906)
496
N
Mr David Lidington (Aylesbury): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what rules his Department applies to the labelling of food and food products imported from (a) Israel, (b) Israeli settlements in the Palestinian territories, (c) Israeli-controlled areas of the Palestinian territories and (d) areas of the Palestinian territories under the control of the Palestinian Authority; whether he plans to make any changes to those rules; and if he will make a statement.
(238064)
497
Anne Milton (Guildford): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when he expects the Extending Professional Regulation Working Group to publish its final report.
(238888)
498
Anne Milton (Guildford): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what representations he has received on patient safety and regulation of clinical physiologists.
(238889)
499
Anne Milton (Guildford): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many emergency contraceptive pills were issued without prescription at pharmacies and chemists between 2001 and 2007, broken down by calendar month.
(239216)
500
Anne Milton (Guildford): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many prescriptions for emergency contraceptive pills were issued by (a) NHS walk-in centres and (b) NHS minor injury units between 2001 and 2007, broken down by (i) year and (ii) calendar month.
(239217)
501
Anne Milton (Guildford): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many prescriptions for emergency contraceptive pills were issued by general practitioners to women aged (a) under 14, (b) between 15 and 16, (c) between 17 and 24, (d) between 25 and 30, (e) between 31 and 40, (f) between 41 and 50 and (g) 51 years and over in each year since 2001, broken down by calendar month.
(239218)
502
Anne Milton (Guildford): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many prescriptions for emergency contraceptive pills were issued by genitourinary medicine clinics in each (a) year and (b) calendar month since 2001.
(239219)
503
Anne Milton (Guildford): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many prescriptions for emergency contraceptive pills were issued by general practitioners in each (a) year and (b) calendar month since 2001.
(239220)
504
Dr Andrew Murrison (Westbury): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many prosecutions of (a) vending machine operators and (b) premises managers there have been for the sale of tobacco to minors from vending machines since the age of sale was raised to 18 years.
(239211)
505
N
Mr Mark Oaten (Winchester): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many children under the age of 16 years have type 1 diabetes in (a) Winchester and the Meon Valley, (b) Hampshire and (c) England.
(238275)
506
N
Mr Mark Oaten (Winchester): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, when he expects the Hearing Aid Council to be disbanded.
(238864)
507
Mike Penning (Hemel Hempstead): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many children under the age of 16 years in (a) Hemel Hempstead constituency and (b) Hertfordshire have type one diabetes.
(239343)
508
Mike Penning (Hemel Hempstead): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of (a) the number of opticians and (b) the number of opticians per 1,000 population in Hemel Hempstead constituency.
(239344)
509
Mike Penning (Hemel Hempstead): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the average waiting times were for (a) heart and (b) cancer operations in Hemel Hempstead constituency in each year since 2001-02.
(239347)
510
Mike Penning (Hemel Hempstead): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many registered neonatal nurses there are in (a) Hemel Hempstead constituency, (b) Hertfordshire and (c) nationwide.
(239350)
511
Chris Ruane (Vale of Clwyd): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department has taken to improve its arrangements for co-ordination with other Government departments of policy affecting coastal towns in the last two years.
(238649)
512
N
Mr Andrew Smith (Oxford East): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of whether there are enough prospective psychiatrists in training to meet future recruitment needs; and if he will make a statement.
(237732)
513
John Smith (Vale of Glamorgan): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many strategic health authorities have met the Chair of the national venous thromboembolism (VTE) implementation working group to discuss their strategies for implementing VTE risk assessment in their hospitals.
(238911)
514
John Smith (Vale of Glamorgan): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what measure is being used to assess the uptake by NHS acute trusts of the Chief Medical Officer's venous thromboembolism risk assessment tool.
(238912)
515
John Smith (Vale of Glamorgan): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what plans he has to introduce a hospital admission code for patients readmitted to hospital with a deep vein thrombosis acquired following a hospital stay.
(238913)
516
John Smith (Vale of Glamorgan): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what financial support his Department is supplying to the NHS venous thromboembolism exemplar centres.
(238914)
517
John Smith (Vale of Glamorgan): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the costs to the NHS of treating venous thromboembolism were in each of the last five years.
(238915)
518
John Smith (Vale of Glamorgan): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether he plans to recommend the inclusion of venous thromboembolism as a measurable indicator in the annual Healthcare Commission's Annual Health Check.
(238916)
519
Mrs Caroline Spelman (Meriden): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he made of the British Healthcare Trades Association's response to the Government's consultation on the provision of stoma and incontinence appliances under Part IX of the Drug Tariff.
(239284)
520
N
Graham Stringer (Manchester, Blackley): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the cost of administering the concessionary scheme for patients when the Greater Manchester congestion charge scheme is implemented.
(238055)
521
Mr Robert Syms (Poole): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many letters which mentioned intermittent catheters his Department has received in response to its latest consultation on the proposed new arrangements under Part IX of the Drug Tariff for the provision of stoma and urology appliances and related services in primary care specifically; and if he will make a statement.
(238701)
522
Mr Robert Syms (Poole): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment his Department has made of the possibility of extending the prescription fee that pharmacists currently receive to dispensing appliance contractors of intermittent catheters in the proposed new arrangements under Part IX of the Drug Tariff; and if he will make a statement.
(238702)
523
Sarah Teather (Brent East): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what treatments for patients with neurofibromatosis are available; and if he will make a statement.
(239351)
524
Mr Mark Todd (South Derbyshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the (a) total cost and (b) unit cost per child of the School Fruit and Vegetable Scheme if it applied to all primary school children.
(239238)
525
Mr Mark Todd (South Derbyshire): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the unit cost of the School Fruit and Vegetable Scheme per child served by the scheme was in the last year for which data is available.
(239239)
526
Joan Walley (Stoke-on-Trent North): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much funding was allocated to drug action teams through the National Treatment Agency in 2007-08; how much has been allocated for 2008-09; and if he will make a statement.
(239494)
527
Joan Walley (Stoke-on-Trent North): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what financial penalties Stoke-on-Trent City Council has incurred in the last period for which figures are available as a result of delayed discharges from hospitals.
(239506)
528
Joan Walley (Stoke-on-Trent North): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the recommendations of the World Health Organisation's publication The Public Health Significance of the Urban Pests; and what consideration he has given to the recommendation that governments should (a) collect information on vectors and (b) develop capacity to identify pest-related risks in the urban environment.
(239507)
529
Joan Walley (Stoke-on-Trent North): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many delayed discharges there were in (a) the West Midlands Strategic Health Authority area, (b) the Stoke-on-Trent Primary Care Trust area, (c) the North Staffordshire Primary Care Trust area and (d) England in each of the last five years, broken down by reason for delay; and how many patients in each case were occupying an acute hospital bed.
(239509)
530
Joan Walley (Stoke-on-Trent North): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the Community Care (Delayed Discharges etc.) Act 2003 in reducing instances of delayed discharge from hospital.
(239534)
531
Jenny Willott (Cardiff Central): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many people under the age of 65 years are registered blind, broken down by (a) region and (b) constituency; and if he will make a statement.
(239309)
Questions to the Secretary of State for the Home Department
532
N
Norman Baker (Lewes): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what factors underlie the increases in the number of procedures conducted under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 in each of the last six years; and if she will take steps to reduce the number of procedures in future years.
(238907)
533
Mr Richard Benyon (Newbury): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she plans to reply to Question 226752, tabled on 9th October 2008; what the reasons are for the time taken to reply; and if she will make a statement.
(239031)
534
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the rate of staff (a) absence and (b) sickness absence was in (i) her Department and (ii) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies in each year since 1997; what the target rates set for her Department are in each case; and if she will make a statement.
(238924)
535
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many employees in her Department took early retirement in each of the last five financial years; and at what total cost.
(238954)
536
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many press releases have been issued by her Department in each year since 1997-98; and if she will make a statement.
(238975)
537
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much her Department has spent on (a) focus groups and (b) opinion polls in each year since 1997-98; how much she estimates will be spent on each category in 2008-09; and if she will make a statement.
(239034)
538
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much (a) her Department and (b) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent on external consultancy in each year since 1997-98; and if she will make a statement.
(239056)
539
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much (a) her Department and (b) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent on (i) publicity and (ii) advertising in each year since 1997-98; and if she will make a statement.
(239071)
540
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many (a) special advisers and (b) press officers have been employed by her Department in each year since 1997-98; and at what cost in each year.
(239085)
541
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many civil servants have been employed by each of her Department's agencies and non-departmental public bodies in each year since 1997-98; and if she will make a statement.
(239093)
542
Mrs Nadine Dorries (Mid Bedfordshire): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent representations her Department has received on UK Border Agency staffing levels at London Luton Airport; and if she will make a statement.
(238717)
543
Mrs Nadine Dorries (Mid Bedfordshire): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to ensure border controls are properly enforced at London Luton Airport; and if she will make a statement.
(238718)
544
Mrs Nadine Dorries (Mid Bedfordshire): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many non-EU passport holders were processed by passport control at London Luton Airport in each year since 1997; and if she will make a statement.
(238719)
545
Mrs Nadine Dorries (Mid Bedfordshire): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many EU passport holders were processed by passport control at London Luton Airport in each year since 1997; and if she will make a statement.
(238720)
546
Mrs Nadine Dorries (Mid Bedfordshire): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much funding has been provided by her Department for staff of the UK Border Agency and its predecessors at London Luton Airport in each year since 1997; and if she will make a statement.
(238721)
547
Mr David Drew (Stroud): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will bring forward proposals to remove from the national DNA database profiles of people who have not been convicted of an offence.
(239518)
548
Mr David Drew (Stroud): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will bring forward proposals to impose time limits on the retention of people's DNA profiles on the national DNA database based on the seriousness of the offence where convicted.
(239519)
549
Mr David Drew (Stroud): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will bring forward proposals to outlaw the practice of allowing companies to undertake genetic research using the national DNA database.
(239520)
550
Mr David Drew (Stroud): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will initiate research into the reasons for the difference in likelihood of (a) black people and (b) others to have their DNA sample on the national DNA database.
(239521)
551
Mr David Drew (Stroud): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what guidance her Department provides to police forces on investigating offences involving cruelty to badgers.
(239538)
552
N
Mr Nigel Evans (Ribble Valley): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate she has made of the costs of alcohol-related crime in (a) Ribble Valley, (b) Lancashire and (c) the UK since the implementation of the Licensing Act 2003.
(237210)
553
N
Damian Green (Ashford): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the reasons are for the withdrawal of funding for the Metropolitan Police human trafficking unit; and if she will make a statement.
(237851)
554
N
Damian Green (Ashford): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when her Department notified the Metropolitan Police that her Department's funding of the Metropolitan Police human trafficking unit would be withdrawn; what representations she has received from the Metropolitan Police on this matter; and if she will place in the Library recent relevant written correspondence she has set and received on this matter.
(237852)
555
N
Damian Green (Ashford): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what percentage of people-trafficking-related (a) investigations, (b) trials and (c) convictions have arisen through the activity of the Metropolitan Police human trafficking unit in each year since its inception.
(237853)
556
N
Damian Green (Ashford): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what her most recent estimate is of the percentage of people trafficked into the United Kingdom who entered via or who pass through London.
(237854)
557
Damian Green (Ashford): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many offences of (a) drug and (b) drink driving were recorded in (i) Ashford constituency and (ii) Kent in each year since 1997.
(239276)
558
Damian Green (Ashford): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many anti-social behaviour orders have been (a) issued and (b) breached in (i) Ashford constituency and (ii) Kent since 31st December 2005.
(239277)
559
Damian Green (Ashford): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, to which countries her Department cannot return unsuccessful asylum seekers on humanitarian grounds; and how many unsuccessful asylum seekers from each such country were present in the United Kingdom at 1st November 2008.
(239278)
560
Damian Green (Ashford): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many unsuccessful asylum seekers were in receipt of section 4 support at 1st November 2008.
(239279)
561
Damian Green (Ashford): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 18th November 2008, Official Report, columns 318-9W, on deportation: standards, how her Department establishes that a person has left the UK without informing the immigration authorities; and how many people so recorded have subsequently been found to have been in the United Kingdom illegally in each of the last five years.
(239296)
562
Damian Green (Ashford): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 18th November 2008, Official Report, columns 318-9W, on deportation: standards, how many of the 63,365 removals from the United Kingdom in 2007 were cases of (a) enforced removals, (b) persons refused entry at port and subsequently removed (including cases dealt with at juxtaposed controls), (c) persons departing voluntarily after enforcement action had been initiated against them, (d) persons leaving under assisted voluntary return programmes run by the International Organisation for Migration and (e) persons who it has been established have left the UK without informing the immigration authorities.
(239298)
563
Justine Greening (Putney): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many of her Department's staff who left under (a) an involuntary and (b) a voluntary exit scheme in each year since 2005-06 received a severance package of (i) up to £25,000, (ii) £25,001 to £50,000, (iii) £50,001 to £75,000, (iv) £75,001 to £100,000 and (v) over £100,000; and if she will make a statement.
(239156)
564
Mr Dominic Grieve (Beaconsfield): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she plans to reply to Question 227226, tabled on 10th October 2008, on the National Identity Scheme Tracking Research.
(238544)
565
Mr Dominic Grieve (Beaconsfield): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she plans to reply to Question 227220, tabled on 10th October 2008, on DNA profiles.
(238545)
566
Mr Dominic Grieve (Beaconsfield): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she plans to reply to Question 226401, tabled on 8th October 2008, on biometric information.
(238546)
567
Mr Dominic Grieve (Beaconsfield): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she plans to reply to Question 226404, tabled on 8th October 2008, on the Identity Card Scheme Cost Report.
(238547)
568
Mr Dominic Grieve (Beaconsfield): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she plans to reply to Question 226403, tabled on 8th October 2008, on fingerprints for workers employed in sensitive locations applying for identity cards.
(238548)
569
Mr Dominic Grieve (Beaconsfield): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she plans to reply to Question 226402, tabled on 8th October 2008, on identity cards for British citizens under the age of 16 years.
(238549)
570
Mr Dominic Grieve (Beaconsfield): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she plans to reply to Question 227246, tabled on 10th October 2008, on people attempting to cross the English Channel illegally.
(238560)
571
Mr Dominic Grieve (Beaconsfield): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she plans to reply to Question 226398, tabled on 8th October 2008, on fingerprints taken for biometric visas.
(238561)
572
Mr Dominic Grieve (Beaconsfield): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she plans to reply to Question 226410, tabled on 8th October 2008, on private contractors' access to personal data.
(238562)
573
Mr Dominic Grieve (Beaconsfield): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she plans to reply to Question 227245, tabled on 10th October 2008, on weapons prevented from entering the UK.
(238620)
574
Mr Dominic Grieve (Beaconsfield): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she plans to reply to Question 227224, tabled on 10th October 2008, on responses to the National Identity Scheme Tracking Research.
(238621)
575
Mr Dominic Grieve (Beaconsfield): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she plans to reply to Question 226405, tabled on 8th October 2008, on passports.
(238622)
576
Mr Dominic Grieve (Beaconsfield): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she plans to reply to Question 226409, tabled on 8th October 2008, on identity cards.
(238623)
577
Mr Dominic Grieve (Beaconsfield): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she plans to reply to Question 227225, tabled on 10th October 2008, on respondents to the National Identity Scheme Tracking Research.
(238624)
578
Mr Dominic Grieve (Beaconsfield): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she plans to reply to Question 226400, tabled on 8th October 2008, on the retention of biometric information.
(238625)
579
Mr Dominic Grieve (Beaconsfield): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer to the hon. Member for Bolton South East of 12th November 2008, Official Report, column 1219W, on UK Border Agency: lost property, how much compensation has been paid to applicants where the UK Border Agency and its predecessors have accepted that they have misplaced or lost documents in each of the last five years.
(238796)
580
Mr Dominic Grieve (Beaconsfield): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer to the hon. Member for Bolton South East of 12th November 2008, Official Report, column 1219W, on UK Border Agency: lost property, how many principal files the UK Border Agency and its predecessors recorded as lost in each of the last five years.
(238797)
581
Mr Dominic Grieve (Beaconsfield): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many files relating to applications have been lost in transit between units of the UK Border Agency and its predecessor in each of the last three years.
(238865)
582
Mr Dominic Grieve (Beaconsfield): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many complaints were investigated by the Complaints Audit Committee of the UK Border Agency and its predecessor in each of the last three years.
(238866)
583
Mr Dominic Grieve (Beaconsfield): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the budget for the Advisory Panel on Country Information of the UK Border Agency and its predecessor was in each of the last three years.
(238867)
584
Mr Dominic Grieve (Beaconsfield): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the budget for the Complaints Audit Committee of the UK Border Agency and its predecessor was in each of the last three years.
(238868)
585
Mr Dominic Grieve (Beaconsfield): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the objectives of the Independent Inspectorate of the UK Border Agency are.
(238869)
586
Mr Dominic Grieve (Beaconsfield): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when the Independent Inspectorate of the UK Border Agency plans to issue its first report.
(238870)
587
Mr Dominic Grieve (Beaconsfield): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the budget for the Independent Inspectorate of the UK Border Agency is for (a) 2008-09, (b) 2009-10 and (c) 2010-11.
(238871)
588
Mr Dominic Grieve (Beaconsfield): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many approved visa application cases were investigated by the Independent Monitor for Entry Clearance Refusals Without the Right of Appeal in each of the last three years.
(238922)
589
Mr Dominic Grieve (Beaconsfield): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the budget of the offices of the Independent Monitor for Entry Clearance Refusals Without the Right of Appeal was in each of the last three years.
(238923)
590
Mr Dominic Grieve (Beaconsfield): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the budget for the office of the Race Monitor of the UK Border Agency and its predecessors was in each of the last three years.
(239016)
591
Mr Dominic Grieve (Beaconsfield): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the budget for the office of the Monitor of Accommodation Centres of the UK Border Agency and its predecessors was in each of the last three years.
(239017)
592
Mr Dominic Grieve (Beaconsfield): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the budget for the office of the Certification Monitor of the UK Border Agency and its predecessors was in each of the last three years.
(239018)
593
Mr Oliver Heald (North East Hertfordshire): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 5th November 2008, Official Report, column 793W, on departmental consultants, how many security passes her Department has issued to contractors providing consultancy services in the last 12 months; and if she will put in place measures to record the number of external consultants contracted to provide services for her Department.
(239190)
594
Mr David Heathcoat-Amory (Wells): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many police officers are (a) seconded to overseas missions, governments or organisations and (b) otherwise serving abroad.
(239295)
595
Mr David Heathcoat-Amory (Wells): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much her Department spent on visits by its staff to Brussels in 2007-08; and how many such visits were made by (a) air and (b) rail.
(239421)
596
N
Chris Huhne (Eastleigh): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the costs are expected to be for adults applying for a passport for the first time to provide the necessary biometric information in each year between 2008-09 and 2017-18.
(238193)
597
Chris Huhne (Eastleigh): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many warrants were issued for the arrest of those in breach of sentencing conditions in each of the last five years.
(239244)
598
Chris Huhne (Eastleigh): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate she has made of the level of acquisitive crime associated with drug addiction in each of the last five years; and if she will make a statement.
(239247)
599
Chris Huhne (Eastleigh): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what deadlines have been set in respect of (a) outbound and (b) inbound travel document information under the e-borders scheme for (i) leisure aviation, (ii) scheduled aviation, (iii) ferries, (iv) international rail, (v) boats, (vi) light aviation and (vii) other sectors.
(239288)
600
Chris Huhne (Eastleigh): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she made of the likelihood of compliance with requirements set under the e-borders scheme for inbound travel documents of those charter and leisure operators serving popular tourist destinations by 2009.
(239289)
601
Chris Huhne (Eastleigh): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she expects the projected benefits to the leisure and charter industry from the e-borders scheme to begin to flow.
(239290)
602
Mr John Leech (Manchester, Withington): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many police drivers have been prosecuted or disciplined for driving offences committed while at work in each of the last five years.
(238847)
603
N
Dr Julian Lewis (New Forest East): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will bring forward proposals to give powers to the police to confiscate amplification equipment when it is being used in (a) Parliament Square and (b) other public places without permission to (i) abuse and (ii) otherwise harass people going about their lawful occasions; and if she will make a statement.
(238198)
604
N
Dr Julian Lewis (New Forest East): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she plans to take to give local authorities the power to prevent (a) unauthorised and (b) harassing or abusive broadcasting of protest messages in public places; and what assessment she has made of the potential for use of injunctions in such circumstances.
(238199)
605
N
Dr Julian Lewis (New Forest East): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what consultation she has undertaken with (a) Mr Speaker and (b) the House authorities on use of loudhailers in Parliament Square, pursuant to Mr Speaker's Statement of 28th October 2008, Official Report, column 729.
(238291)
606
N
Dr Julian Lewis (New Forest East): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what effect the proposed repeal of the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005 will have on the law relating to (a) unregulated and (b) unlimited use of (i) loudhailers and (ii) other amplification equipment by protestors in Parliament Square.
(238292)
607
N
Mr David Lidington (Aylesbury): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she plans to implement the decision of the Asylum and Immigration Tribunal in the case of Mrs A. B., wife of Mr S. H. of Aylesbury.
(238998)
608
Anne Main (St Albans): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people were recommended for deportation from England and Wales in each of the last three years, broken down by county.
(238873)
609
Anne Main (St Albans): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people were recommended for deportation from England and Wales on more than one occasion in each of the last three years, broken down by county.
(238874)
610
N
Dr Andrew Murrison (Westbury): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what timetable she has set for the implementation of Mr Justice Blake's judgment of 30th September 2008 on Gurkhas.
(238327)
611
Mike Penning (Hemel Hempstead): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate she has made of the cost of alcohol-related crime in (a) Hemel Hempstead constituency and (b) Hertfordshire since the implementation of the Licensing Act 2003.
(239345)
612
Mr Eric Pickles (Brentwood & Ongar): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate she has made of the number of fixed penalty notices issued in each of the last three years.
(239027)
613
Mr Eric Pickles (Brentwood & Ongar): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will designate the Office of the Surveillance Commissioner a public authority for the purposes of the Freedom of Information Act 2000.
(239174)
614
Mr Gordon Prentice (Pendle): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what information she holds on whether allegations of threats of violence have been reported to the police by members of the British Nationalist Party since the Party's membership list was posted on the internet; and if she will make a statement.
(239215)
615
Chris Ruane (Vale of Clwyd): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will list the crime and disorder reduction partnerships that cover each of the principal seaside towns in descending order according to their efficiency ranking.
(238633)
616
Chris Ruane (Vale of Clwyd): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many offences relating to (a) drugs, (b) shoplifting and (c) violence against the person there were in (i) each principal seaside town, (ii) each ward in each seaside town and (iii) each lower super output area in each seaside town in each of the last 10 years; and if she will rank such areas in descending order of number of offences for the latest year for which figures are available.
(238636)
617
Chris Ruane (Vale of Clwyd): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will estimate the number of (a) ex-offenders living in the principal seaside towns, (b) ex-offenders per 10,000 population in such towns and (c) ex-offenders per 10,000 population nationally.
(238675)
618
Chris Ruane (Vale of Clwyd): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many incidents of (a) vehicle theft, (b) domestic burglary and (c) violent crime there were in each police force area in Wales in each of the last 17 years, broken down by sub-category of crime.
(239394)
619
Mr David Ruffley (Bury St Edmunds): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what percentage of time on average (a) all officers and (b) patrol officers spent on (i) incident and (ii) non-incident-related paperwork in each year since 2003-04; and how long each spent on average on patrol in each year.
(239000)
620
Mr David Ruffley (Bury St Edmunds): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, for what reason the annual Football Arrest Statistics document was not published in October 2008; and when she expects it to be published.
(239032)
621
Clare Short (Birmingham, Ladywood): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when a reply will be sent to the right hon. Member for Birmingham, Ladywood's enquiry dated 10th September 2008 on behalf of Karlene Cameron, ref: H118332.
(239300)
622
Keith Vaz (Leicester East): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate she has made of the number of (a) short-term and (b) long-term visa applications that were wrongly approved in (i) 2007 and (ii) 1997.
(239488)
623
Keith Vaz (Leicester East): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how long it took on average to process a (a) short-term and (b) long-term visa application in the latest period for which figures are available.
(239489)
624
Keith Vaz (Leicester East): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the average cost of processing a (a) short-term and (b) long-term visa application was in the latest period for which figures are available.
(239551)
625
Joan Walley (Stoke-on-Trent North): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what funding her Department has allocated to each area in Stoke-on-Trent constituency through its Drug Intervention Programme.
(239492)
626
Joan Walley (Stoke-on-Trent North): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much her Department allocated to each drug action team in England in 2007-08; and how much has been allocated for 2008-09.
(239493)
627
Mr Roger Williams (Brecon & Radnorshire): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many applications for animal testing licences were (a) received and (b) approved by her Department in each of the last five years.
(239361)
Questions to the honourable Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission
628
Simon Hughes (North Southwark & Bermondsey): To ask the honourable Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission, how many and what proportion of staff of the House were recorded as being disabled at 1st January 2008.
(238570)
629
Chris Ruane (Vale of Clwyd): To ask the honourable Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission, what estimate the Commission has made of the number of (a) mice, (b) rats and (c) other vermin on the House of Commons estate in each of the last 10 years; and what recent discussions the Commission has had with the House of Lords authorities on this matter.
(238553)
630
N
Chris Ruane (Vale of Clwyd): To ask the honourable Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission, what his most recent assessment is of the extent of carpet infestation by vermin in the House of Commons estate.
(238554)
Questions to the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills
631
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills, how many employees in his Department have taken early retirement since its inception; and at what total cost.
(238969)
632
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills, how many press releases have been issued by his Department in each year since its inception; and if he will make a statement.
(238990)
633
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills, how much his Department has spent on (a) focus groups and (b) opinion polls in each year since its inception; how much he estimates will be spent on each category in 2008-09; and if he will make a statement.
(239049)
634
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills, how many (a) special advisers and (b) press officers have been employed by his Department in each year since its inception; and at what cost in each year.
(239087)
635
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills, how many civil servants have been employed by each of his Department's agencies and non-departmental bodies in each year since its inception; and if he will make a statement.
(239146)
636
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills, how much (a) his Department and (b) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent on (i) publicity and (ii) advertising in each year since its inception; and if he will make a statement.
(239147)
637
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills, how much (a) his Department and (b) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent on external consultancy in each year since its inception; and if he will make a statement.
(239148)
638
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills, what the rate of staff (a) absence and (b) sickness absence was in (i) his Department and (ii) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies in each year since its inception; what the target rates set for his Department are in each case; and if he will make a statement.
(239149)
639
Mr Dai Davies (Blaenau Gwent): To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills, what proportion of the Learning and Skills Council budget is allocated to (a) Gwent and (b) Wales.
(239008)
640
Justine Greening (Putney): To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills, how many of his Department's staff who left under (a) an involuntary and (b) a voluntary exit scheme in each year since it was established received a severance package of (i) up to £25,000, (ii) £25,001 to £50,000, (iii) £50,001 to £75,000, (iv) £75,001 to £100,000 and (v) over £100,000; and if he will make a statement.
(239157)
641
Mr David Heathcoat-Amory (Wells): To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills, how much his Department spent on visits by its staff to Brussels in 2007-08; and how many such visits were made by (a) air and (b) rail.
(239495)
642
David Howarth (Cambridge): To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills, what progress he has made towards the implementation of Lord Justice Auld's recommendation that the Government should consider central funding of further education establishments to equip them, where necessary, to provide courses for lesser known languages for the Diploma in Public Service Interpreting; and if he will make a statement.
(239011)
643
Dr Brian Iddon (Bolton South East): To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills, whether he has received the report from Ecsite-UK on science and discovery centres; and if he will make a statement.
(239283)
644
Miss Anne McIntosh (Vale of York): To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills, what steps he is taking to promote opportunities for those over 30 years old to study at university both as full-time and part-time students.
(239438)
645
Mr David Willetts (Havant): To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills, pursuant to the Answer of 13th November 2008, Official Report, column 1394W, on higher education: admissions, if he will break down the information given by (a) year of study and (b) part-time or full-time status.
(238791)
646
Mr David Willetts (Havant): To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills, pursuant to the Answer of 9th June 2008, Official Report, columns 39-42W, on unemployment, if he will break down the information in each table by (a) socio-economic group and (b) ethnicity.
(238792)
647
Mr David Willetts (Havant): To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills, pursuant to the Answer of 13th November 2008, Official Report, columns 1394-7W, on higher education: admissions, if he will break down the information given by domicile of students (a) in the UK, (b) elsewhere in the EU and (c) outside the EU.
(238798)
648
Mr David Willetts (Havant): To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills, pursuant to the Answer of 13th November 2008, Official Report, columns 1398W, on students: fees and charges, how many and what proportion of (a) undergraduate and (b) postgraduate students studied part-time in each year between 1992-93 and 2001-02.
(238799)
649
Mr David Willetts (Havant): To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills, what estimate he has made of the average gross annual employment income of (a) full-time and (b) part-time undergraduate students who undertook paid work in the last academic year for which figures are available.
(238877)
650
Mr David Willetts (Havant): To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills, which international research facilities receive funding from the EU budget.
(238878)
651
Mr David Willetts (Havant): To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills, how many questions for written answer have been tabled to his Department during the current Session; and how many have yet to receive a substantive reply.
(238879)
652
Mr David Willetts (Havant): To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills, how much of the funding reassigned from equivalent or lower qualification students to support additional student numbers has been made available to universities providing additional (a) part-time and (b) full-time places.
(238881)
653
Mr David Willetts (Havant): To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills, what estimate he has made of levels of error and fraud within the maintenance grant system for undergraduate students; and what measures are in place to ensure accurate payment.
(238882)
654
Mr David Willetts (Havant): To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills, how many companies have signed the Skills Pledge since its launch.
(238883)
655
Mr David Willetts (Havant): To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills, how much his Department has spent on promoting the Skills Pledge.
(238884)
656
Mr David Willetts (Havant): To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills, how many university places were co-funded with employers in (a) 2005-06, (b) 2006-07, (c) 2007-08 and (d) 2008-09; and how many he expects to be so funded in 2009-10.
(238885)
657
Mr David Willetts (Havant): To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills, how much public funding was provided for the teaching costs of each place for first-time UK and EU undergraduates for courses (a) co-funded and (b) not co-funded with employers on average in the latest period for which figures are available.
(238921)
658
N
Derek Wyatt (Sittingbourne & Sheppey): To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills, what assessment he has made of the effects of the implementation of the Artists Re-sale Right Regulations 2006 on the UK art industry since 2006; and what assessment he has made of the performance of the art markets in (a) the United States and (b) Switzerland since 2006 for benchmarking purposes.
(238154)
659
N
Richard Younger-Ross (Teignbridge): To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills, what his policy on the Artist's Resale Right is; what account he has taken of the evidence received on the subject during the UK-IPO consultation; and what his policy is on the future of the right after 2010.
(238280)
Questions to the Secretary of State for International Development
660
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what the rate of staff (a) absence and (b) sickness absence was in (i) his Department and (ii) each of its non-departmental public bodies in each year since 1997; what the target rates set for his Department are in each case; and if he will make a statement.
(238935)
661
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how much (a) his Department and (b) each of its non-departmental public bodies spent on (i) publicity and (ii) advertising in each year since its inception; and if he will make a statement.
(238952)
662
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how many employees in his Department took early retirement in each of the last five financial years; and at what total cost.
(238970)
663
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how many press releases have been issued by his Department in each year since 1997-98; and if he will make a statement.
(238991)
664
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how much his Department has spent on (a) focus groups and (b) opinion polls in each year since 1997-98; how much he estimates will be spent on each category in 2008-09; and if he will make a statement.
(239050)
665
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how much (a) his Department and (b) each of its non-departmental public bodies spent on external consultancy in each year since its inception; and if he will make a statement.
(239061)
666
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how many (a) special advisers and (b) press officers have been employed by his Department in each year since its inception; and at what cost in each year.
(239088)
667
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how many civil servants have been employed by each of his Department's agencies and non-departmental bodies in each year since 1997-98; and if he will make a statement.
(239102)
668
N
Mr Jim Cunningham (Coventry South): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what recent steps the Government has taken to protect aid workers in Palestine.
(237613)
669
N
Mr Jim Cunningham (Coventry South): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what recent steps the Government has taken to promote economic development in Palestine.
(237614)
670
Mrs Claire Curtis-Thomas (Crosby): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Answer of 23rd October 2008, Official Report, column 570W, on South America: research, which companies have been contracted to work on the scoping study; in which country each company is based; and what the value is of each contract worth over £20,000 to work on the study.
(238758)
671
Mrs Claire Curtis-Thomas (Crosby): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Answer of 3rd November 2008, Official Report, columns 112-3W, on Pakistan: overseas aid, what mechanisms will be used to monitor progress in macroeconomic policy in the area of general budget support.
(238759)
672
Mrs Claire Curtis-Thomas (Crosby): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Answer of 3rd November 2008, Official Report, columns 112-3W, on Pakistan: overseas aid, what assessment he has made of the accessibility of semi-formal financial services in Pakistan.
(238760)
673
Mrs Claire Curtis-Thomas (Crosby): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Answer of 3rd November 2008, Official Report, columns 115-6W, on Sub-Saharan Africa: infant mortality, on what projects the £6 billion allocated to health systems and services between 2008 and 2015 will be spent; and how much of that money will be spent in Sub-Saharan Africa.
(238761)
674
Mrs Claire Curtis-Thomas (Crosby): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Answer of 3rd November 2008, Official Report, column 116W, on Sub-Saharan Africa: poverty, what his assessment is of the progress which has been made towards meeting the first Millennium Development Goal in Sub-Saharan Africa by 2015.
(238762)
675
Mrs Claire Curtis-Thomas (Crosby): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Answer of 3rd November 2008, Official Report, columns 115-6W, on Sub-Saharan Africa: infant mortality, which countries are planned to receive the 20 million insecticide-treated bed nets in the next three years; and how many will go to each country.
(238763)
676
Mrs Claire Curtis-Thomas (Crosby): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Answer of 3rd November 2008, Official Report, column 116W, on Sub-Saharan Africa: poverty, what proportion of poor there were in the total population of (a) Africa outside Sub-Saharan Africa and (b) in the world excluding Africa in 2005.
(238764)
677
Mrs Claire Curtis-Thomas (Crosby): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Answer of 27th October 2008, Official Report, column 669W, on overseas aid, what assessment he has made of the UK's progress towards meeting the UN target of 0.7 per cent. of gross national income being spent on overseas development aid by 2013.
(238765)
678
Mrs Claire Curtis-Thomas (Crosby): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps are being taken to inform eligible 18 to 25 year olds about the Platform2 volunteering programme.
(238766)
679
Mrs Claire Curtis-Thomas (Crosby): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of the global financial situation on global food prices.
(239317)
680
Mrs Claire Curtis-Thomas (Crosby): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what recent assessment his Department has made of the humanitarian situation in the occupied Palestinian territories.
(239318)
681
Mrs Claire Curtis-Thomas (Crosby): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment his Department has made of the progress of the International Health Partnership towards improving maternal health.
(239319)
682
Mrs Claire Curtis-Thomas (Crosby): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment he has made of the progress the EU Water Initiative Africa Working Group has made towards meeting the Millennium Development Goal on water and sanitation.
(239320)
683
Mrs Claire Curtis-Thomas (Crosby): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what recent assessment he has made of progress towards increasing levels of primary school enrolment in South East Asia.
(239321)
684
Mrs Claire Curtis-Thomas (Crosby): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what recent assessment he has made of the humanitarian situation in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
(239322)
685
Mrs Claire Curtis-Thomas (Crosby): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the Protracted Relief Programme in Zimbabwe.
(239323)
686
Mrs Claire Curtis-Thomas (Crosby): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what recent assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of the water, sanitation and hygiene programme in Sierra Leone.
(239324)
687
Justine Greening (Putney): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how many of his Department's staff who left under (a) an involuntary and (b) a voluntary exit scheme in each year since 2005-06 received a severance package of (i) up to £25,000, (ii) £25,001 to £50,000, (iii) £50,001 to £75,000, (iv) £75,001 to £100,000 and (v) over £100,000; and if he will make a statement.
(239158)
688
N
Mr Nick Hurd (Ruislip-Northwood): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, with reference to the Answer to the hon. Member for Selby of 6th February 2007, Official Report, column 767W, on public relations, what expenditure (a) his Department and (b) CDC has incurred on public affairs firms since 2002.
(239173)
689
Mr Michael Moore (Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Written Ministerial Statement of 3rd November 2008, Official Report, column 5WS, on CDC Group, what his definition is of (a) employment infrastructure benefits and (b) social and environmental benefits as listed in paragraph 9.2 of the New Investment Policy.
(239301)
690
Mr Michael Moore (Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Written Ministerial Statement of 3rd November 2008, Official Report, column 5WS, on CDC Group, what measures his Department has taken to fulfil the obligations of paragraph 9.1 of the New Investment Policy to (a) determine and (b) measure the (i) differentiation and (ii) added value of CDC investments.
(239302)
691
Mr Michael Moore (Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Written Ministerial Statement of 3rd November 2008, Official Report, column 5WS, on CDC Group, when the CDC shareholders' resolution adopting the New Investment Policy was passed.
(239303)
692
Mr Michael Moore (Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Written Ministerial Statement of 3rd November 2008, Official Report, column 5WS, on CDC Group, what consideration he gave to including targets for investment in (a) agriculture and (b) environment sectors within the policy targets; and if he will make a statement.
(239304)
693
Mr Michael Moore (Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Written Ministerial Statement of 3rd November 2008, Official Report, column 5WS, on CDC Group, what measures his Department will put in place to ensure parliamentary scrutiny of the reports his Department receives from CDC under paragraph 12 of the New Investment Policy.
(239305)
694
Mr Michael Moore (Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Written Ministerial Statement of 3rd November 2008, Official Report, column 5WS, on CDC Group, what his Department's timescale is for the principle to work overtime to apply relevant international best practice standards, as set out in the Investment Code.
(239306)
695
Mr Michael Moore (Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Written Ministerial Statement of 3rd November 2008, Official Report, column 5WS, on CDC Group, why his Department has included in section 3 of the Investment Code an exception to the exclusion of investment in tobacco or tobacco-related products; what current investments involving tobacco CDC has or is committed to; and if he will make a statement.
(239307)
696
Mr Michael Moore (Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what projection he has made of public expenditure on official development assistance in the financial years (a) 2011-12, (b) 2012-13 and (c) 2013-14; and if he will make a statement.
(239431)
697
Mr Adrian Sanders (Torbay): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps his Department takes to ensure that investments abroad, through (a) CDC Group and (b) other bodies do not use with offshore tax regimes that are designated as harmful by the EU Code of Conduct.
(238736)
698
Sammy Wilson (East Antrim): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how much aid the Government (a) has channelled and (b) plans to channel to those displaced by violence and conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
(239264)
699
Ann Winterton (Congleton): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, on what fuel the main generators of power plants in Afghanistan are run.
(238662)
700
Ann Winterton (Congleton): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what the geographical location is of the main generating power plants in Afghanistan; what their output is; and how far their supply extends.
(238663)
Questions to the Secretary of State for Justice
701
Mr Henry Bellingham (North West Norfolk): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, where each of the (a) Community Legal Advice Centres and (b) Community Legal Advice Networks is located.
(238575)
702
Mr Henry Bellingham (North West Norfolk): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many courts (a) have closed in the last 12 months and (b) are scheduled for closure in the next 12 months.
(239342)
703
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the rate of staff (a) absence and (b) sickness absence was in (i) his Department and (ii) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies in each year since its inception; what the target rates set for his Department are in each case; and if he will make a statement.
(238927)
704
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how much (a) his Department and (b) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent on (i) publicity and (ii) advertising in each year since its inception; and if he will make a statement.
(238944)
705
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many employees in his Department have taken early retirement since its inception; and at what total cost.
(238957)
706
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many press releases have been issued by his Department in each year since its inception; and if he will make a statement.
(238978)
707
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how much his Department has spent on (a) focus groups and (b) opinion polls in each year since its inception; how much he estimates will be spent on each category in 2008-09; and if he will make a statement.
(239037)
708
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how much (a) his Department and (b) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent on external consultancy in each year since its inception; and if he will make a statement.
(239059)
709
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many (a) special advisers and (b) press officers have been employed by his Department in each year since its inception; and at what cost in each year.
(239075)
710
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many civil servants have been employed by each of his Department's agencies and non-departmental bodies in each year since its inception; and if he will make a statement.
(239096)
711
Mr David Burrowes (Enfield, Southgate): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, which religions HM Prison Service recognises.
(238859)
712
Mr David Burrowes (Enfield, Southgate): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how much he expects to collect from the victims surcharge in each of the next five years.
(238860)
713
Mr David Burrowes (Enfield, Southgate): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the average age of persons sentenced to custodial sentences was in each of the last 10 years.
(238861)
714
Mr Michael Clapham (Barnsley West & Penistone): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the flat cash grant allocation for the South Yorkshire probation area is in (a) 2009-10, (b) 2010-11 and (c) 2011-12.
(239522)
715
Mr Michael Clapham (Barnsley West & Penistone): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate he has made of the reduction in future planned spending for the South Yorkshire probation area in (a) 2009-10, (b) 2010-11 and (c) 2011-12.
(239523)
716
Mr Michael Clapham (Barnsley West & Penistone): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the estimated share of national savings from the Probation Service's budget is which falls to the South Yorkshire probation area in (a) 2009-10, (b) 2010-11 and (c) 2011-12.
(239524)
717
Mr Michael Clapham (Barnsley West & Penistone): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate he has made of the number of Probation Service staff expected to leave the South Yorkshire probation area as a result of (a) natural wastage, (b) retirement and (c) redundancy in (i) 2009-10, (ii) 2010-11 and (iii) 2011-12.
(239525)
718
Mr Dai Davies (Blaenau Gwent): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what percentage of national probation services savings are expected to be made by the Gwent probation area in (a) 2009-10, (b) 2010-11 and (c) 2011-12.
(239006)
719
Mr Dai Davies (Blaenau Gwent): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the flat cash grant allocation is for the Gwent probation area in (a) 2009-10, (b) 2010-11 and (c) 2011-12.
(239009)
720
Mr Dai Davies (Blaenau Gwent): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many staff he estimates will be lost through (a) retirement, (b) redundancy and (c) natural wastage in Gwent probation area in (a) 2009-10, (b) 2010-11 and (c) 2011-12.
(239010)
721
Philip Davies (Shipley): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many convicted sex offenders have volunteered for antilibidinal drug treatment in prison since the programme's introduction.
(239392)
722
Mr David Drew (Stroud): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the reduction in planned expenditure there will be for the Gloucestershire probation area in (a) 2009-10, (b) 2010-11 and (c) 2011-12.
(239505)
723
N
Mrs Cheryl Gillan (Chesham & Amersham): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the estimated share of savings to be achieved by the Probation Service is for each of the Wales Probation Areas in (a) 2009-10, (b) 2010-11 and (c) 2011-12.
(238459)
724
N
Mrs Cheryl Gillan (Chesham & Amersham): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate he has made of the number of Probation Service staff expected to leave the Wales Probation areas as a result of (a) retirement, (b) redundancy and (c) natural wastage in (i) 2009-10, (ii) 2010-11 and (iii) 2011-12.
(238469)
725
N
Mrs Cheryl Gillan (Chesham & Amersham): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the flat cash allocation is for each of the Wales Probation Areas in (a) 2009-10, (b) 2010-11 and (c) 2011-12.
(238470)
726
Justine Greening (Putney): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many of his Department's staff who left under (a) an involuntary and (b) a voluntary exit scheme in each year since 2005-06 received a severance package of (i) up to £25,000, (ii) £25,001 to £50,000, (iii) £50,001 to £75,000, (iv) £75,001 to £100,000 and (v) over £100,000; and if he will make a statement.
(239150)
727
Nick Harvey (North Devon): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the flat cash grant allocation for the Devon and Cornwall probation area in (a) 2009-10, (b) 2010-11 and (c) 2011-12 is.
(238786)
728
Nick Harvey (North Devon): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate he has made of the share of national probation service savings to accrue from the Devon and Cornwall probation area in (a) 2009-10, (b) 2010-11 and (c) 2011-12.
(238787)
729
Nick Harvey (North Devon): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many staff he expects the Probation Service to lose through (a) natural wastage, (b) retirement and (c) redundancy from the Devon and Cornwall probation area in (a) 2009-10, (b) 2010-11 and (c) 2011-12.
(238788)
730
Mr David Heathcoat-Amory (Wells): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how much his Department spent on visits by its staff to Brussels in 2007-08; and how many such visits were made by (a) air and (b) rail.
(239419)
731
N
Nick Herbert (Arundel & South Downs): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what information his Department holds on the reconviction rates of prisoners released from each prison in England and Wales in the last 10 years.
(238281)
732
David Howarth (Cambridge): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the effects of the Prison Service's ruling that prison inmates may not be employed by outside employers on the situation of prisoners in open prisons who are employed by outside employers while subject to Prison Rules.
(239430)
733
N
Simon Hughes (North Southwark & Bermondsey): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 22nd July 2008, Official Report, column 1240W, on police custody, how many prisoners have been held in police cells overnight in each month since the reactivation of Operation Safeguard in January 2007; and if he will make a statement.
(236872)
734
N
Simon Hughes (North Southwark & Bermondsey): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what plans there are to review the operation of Operation Safeguard.
(237007)
735
N
Simon Hughes (North Southwark & Bermondsey): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how inappropriate prisoners as identified by Prison Service Instruction (PSI 30/2006) and Integrated Drug Treatment Systems Continuity of Care guidance have been identified so as to ensure that they are not in police cells overnight since the reactivation of Operation Safeguard in January 2007.
(237008)
736
N
Simon Hughes (North Southwark & Bermondsey): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many inappropriate prisoners as identified by Prison Service Instruction (PSI 30/2006) and the Integrated Drug Treatment Systems Continuity of Care guidance have been held in police cells overnight since the reactivation of Operation Safeguard in January 2007.
(237009)
737
N
Simon Hughes (North Southwark & Bermondsey): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps the Government is taking to reduce prison overcrowding; and if he will make a statement.
(237010)
738
N
Simon Hughes (North Southwark & Bermondsey): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what his policy is on the prescribing of methadone in prisons in England and Wales.
(237680)
739
Chris Huhne (Eastleigh): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many magistrates' courts there were in each of the last 11 years.
(239243)
740
Chris Huhne (Eastleigh): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what proportion of community sentences were breached in each of the last five years.
(239245)
741
Chris Huhne (Eastleigh): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to increase levels of compliance with (a) community sentences and (b) other non-custodial sanctions.
(239246)
742
N
Mr Stewart Jackson (Peterborough): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many foreign prisoners were held at (a) HMP Peterborough, (b) HMP Whitemoor and (c) HMP Littlehey on 31st October (i) 2006, (ii) 2007 and (iii) 2008; and if he will make a statement.
(237855)
743
Ms Sally Keeble (Northampton North): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many times restraint techniques have been used in (a) young offender institutions and (b) secure children's homes in the most recent 12 month period for which figures are available.
(239440)
744
Ms Sally Keeble (Northampton North): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people have been detained in secure training centres in the last 12 months.
(239441)
745
Ms Sally Keeble (Northampton North): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people have been detained in young offender institutions in the last 12 months.
(239442)
746
Ms Sally Keeble (Northampton North): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many of those detained in HM prisons were (a) men aged over 65 years and (b) women aged over 60 at the latest date for which figures are available.
(239443)
747
Mrs Eleanor Laing (Epping Forest): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether his Department maintains an electronic database of its suppliers.
(239411)
748
Mrs Eleanor Laing (Epping Forest): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will place in the Library a copy of each tender document relating to the consultation on a Statement of Values.
(239412)
749
Mrs Eleanor Laing (Epping Forest): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many credit cards have been issued to staff in (a) his Department and (b) its agencies in the last five years.
(239413)
750
Mrs Eleanor Laing (Epping Forest): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, by how much he expects the headcount of (a) his Department and (b) each of its agencies to change in the next 12 months.
(239414)
751
Mrs Eleanor Laing (Epping Forest): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people are employed by (a) his Department and (b) each of its agencies.
(239415)
752
N
Mr Elfyn Llwyd (Meirionnydd Nant Conwy): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate he has made of the number of Probation Service staff expected to leave the North Wales Probation Area as a result of (a) natural wastage, (b) retirement and (c) redundancy in (i) 2009-10, (ii) 2010-11 and (iii) 2011-12.
(238468)
753
Miss Anne McIntosh (Vale of York): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what representations he has received on the effectiveness of community sentencing orders for shoplifting.
(239439)
754
N
Mr Humfrey Malins (Woking): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether education or training is compulsory for young offenders aged (a) between 15 and 17 and (b) between 18 and 21 years in young offender institutions.
(238289)
755
Mr Eric Pickles (Brentwood & Ongar): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether his Department plsns to issue a formal response to the Electoral Commission's August 2008 document, Electoral Administration in the UK; and if he will make a statement on its recommendations for regional electoral management boards in England.
(238688)
756
Mr Eric Pickles (Brentwood & Ongar): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what locations and accompanying local authority areas that are classified as prohibited places for photography further to an Order of the Secretary of State under the Official Secrets Act 1911 as amended.
(238689)
757
Mr Eric Pickles (Brentwood & Ongar): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will place in the Library copies of the minutes of the meetings of the Department for Constitutional Affairs Cemetery and Burials Advisory Group; and whether the Advisory Group continues to operate in his Department.
(238690)
758
Mr Eric Pickles (Brentwood & Ongar): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 6th May 2008, Official Report, column 795W, on voting methods, what evaluation reports were produced following the May 2000 pilot schemes.
(238695)
759
Mr Eric Pickles (Brentwood & Ongar): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 10th March 2008, Official Report, columns 157-8W, on powers of entry: debt collection, what the latest timetable is for (a) further consultation and (b) the implementation of new powers for bailiffs; and if he will place in the Library a copy of the completed scoping exercise.
(238696)
760
Mr Eric Pickles (Brentwood & Ongar): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 10th September 2008, Official Report, column 1985W, on Valuation Office: Land Registry, when the agency became a registered user of the Land Registry Direct Service.
(238699)
761
Mr Eric Pickles (Brentwood & Ongar): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 10th September 2008, Official Report, column 1985W, on Valuation Office: Land Registry, what (a) property information and (b) individual property attributes the Valuation Office Agency has access to as a consequence of its membership of the Land Registry Direct Service.
(238700)
762
Mr Eric Pickles (Brentwood & Ongar): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether his Department has established a timetable for the introduction of individual electoral registration in Great Britain; and if he will bring forward legislative proposals to introduce one.
(238806)
763
Mr Eric Pickles (Brentwood & Ongar): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the (a) timetable and (b) budget is for the work underway on the CORE electoral database; and whether the (i) timescale and (ii) budget are in compliance with original estimates and targets.
(238807)
764
Mr Eric Pickles (Brentwood & Ongar): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether a privacy impact assessment will be produced for the CORE electoral database.
(238808)
765
Mr Eric Pickles (Brentwood & Ongar): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether the CORE electoral database specification may be used for the introduction of individual electoral registration.
(238810)
766
Mr Eric Pickles (Brentwood & Ongar): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether he plans to hold further weekend voting pilots; and if he will make a statement.
(238811)
767
Mr Eric Pickles (Brentwood & Ongar): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether he plans to encourage greater use of remote electronic voting; and if he will make a statement.
(238812)
768
Mr Eric Pickles (Brentwood & Ongar): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether any election pilot shemes will be adopted in the 2009 local elections.
(238813)
769
Mr Eric Pickles (Brentwood & Ongar): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether a fees limit applies to requests for information under (a) the Freedom of Information Act and (b) the Environmental Information Regulations.
(238814)
770
Mr Eric Pickles (Brentwood & Ongar): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate has been made of the (a) setup and (b) average annual costs of enabling voters to use remote electronic voting in all elections across the United Kingdom.
(238849)
771
Mr Eric Pickles (Brentwood & Ongar): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether his Department has allocated funding to support the costs of weekend voting.
(238850)
772
Mr Eric Pickles (Brentwood & Ongar): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what powers he has given the Royal Parks Agency to issue fixed penalty notices; and if he will place in the Library a copy of the representations his Department has received on the issue from the agency.
(239028)
773
N
Paddy Tipping (Sherwood): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many child sex offenders are currently managed in one of the 101 probation approved premises.
(237728)
774
N
Paddy Tipping (Sherwood): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many classified dangerous or very dangerous offenders are currently managed in one of the 101 probation approved premises.
(237729)
775
N
Paddy Tipping (Sherwood): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many child sex offenders have been managed in one of the 101 probation-approved premises in each of the last three years.
(237730)
776
N
Paddy Tipping (Sherwood): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many child sex offenders living in approved premises committed further sex offences whilst a resident in each of the last three years.
(237731)
777
N
Paddy Tipping (Sherwood): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the minimum level of training is that a probation area requires of staff working in approved premises.
(238057)
778
N
Paddy Tipping (Sherwood): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many deaths of residents in approved premises have been recorded in each of the last five years.
(238058)
779
N
Paddy Tipping (Sherwood): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many approved premises have not introduced double working night levels.
(238059)
780
N
Paddy Tipping (Sherwood): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether a national record is kept of violent incidents against staff working in approved premises.
(238060)
781
Dr Rudi Vis (Finchley & Golders Green): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what guidance is given to prison officers on the wearing of political or religious badges or insignia.
(238629)
782
Dr Rudi Vis (Finchley & Golders Green): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the reasons are for the delay in replying to a freedom of information request about deaths in prisons made by the Howard League for Penal Reform in May 2008.
(238630)
783
Dr Rudi Vis (Finchley & Golders Green): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the sickness rates were for (a) prison officers and (b) governor grades at Low Newton prison in the latest period for which figures are available; and what the average rates in each case were across all prisons.
(238631)
784
Joan Walley (Stoke-on-Trent North): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what funding his Department has allocated to the construction of a new coroners' court in Stoke-on-Trent; and if he will make a statement.
(239508)
Questions to the Leader of the House
785
Mr Nick Gibb (Bognor Regis & Littlehampton): To ask the Leader of the House, pursuant to the Answer of 18th November 2008, Official Report, column 252W, on Department written questions, what the cost of preparing that answer was.
(239293)
Questions to the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
786
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what the rate of staff (a) absence and (b) sickness absence was in (i) his Department and (ii) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies in each year since 1997; what the target rates set for his Department are in each case; and if he will make a statement.
(238930)
787
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how much (a) his Department and (b) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent on (i) publicity and (ii) advertising in each year since 1997-98; and if he will make a statement.
(238947)
788
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many employees in his Department took early retirement in each of the last five financial years; and at what total cost.
(238961)
789
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many press releases have been issued by his Department in each year since 1997-98; and if he will make a statement.
(238982)
790
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how much his Department has spent on (a) focus groups and (b) opinion polls in each year since 1997-98; how much he estimates will be spent on each category in 2008-09; and if he will make a statement.
(239041)
791
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how much (a) his Department and (b) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent on external consultancy in each year since 1997-98; and if he will make a statement.
(239065)
792
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many (a) special advisers and (b) press officers have been employed by his Department in each year since 1997-98; and at what cost in each year.
(239079)
793
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many civil servants have been employed by each of his Department's agencies and non-departmental bodies in each year since 1997-98; and if he will make a statement.
(239099)
794
N
Mr Gregory Campbell (East Londonderry): To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many firefighters in Northern Ireland have lost their lives in the course of their duties in each of the last five years.
(238394)
795
N
Mr Gregory Campbell (East Londonderry): To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what the cost has been of (a) each public inquiry under way and (b) each historic enquiries team investigation under way in Northern Ireland.
(238403)
796
N
Mr Gregory Campbell (East Londonderry): To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what the cost of each (a) public inquiry, apart from the Saville Inquiry, and (b) historic enquires team investigation under way in Northern Ireland has been in each of the last six months.
(238404)
797
Justine Greening (Putney): To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many of his Department's staff who left under (a) an involuntary and (b) a voluntary exit scheme in each year since 2005-06 received a severance package of (i) up to £25,000, (ii) £25,001 to £50,000, (iii) £50,001 to £75,000, (iv) £75,001 to £100,000 and (v) over £100,000; and if he will make a statement.
(239152)
798
Sammy Wilson (East Antrim): To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many and what percentage of admissions to prisons in Northern Ireland resulted from defaulting on fines in each of the last five years.
(239265)
799
Sammy Wilson (East Antrim): To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many days were spent in prison by those imprisoned for defaulting on fines in each of the last five years.
(239266)
800
Sammy Wilson (East Antrim): To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how long on average those imprisoned for defaulting on fines spent in prison in Northern Ireland in each of the last five years.
(239267)
801
Sammy Wilson (East Antrim): To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many people were convicted of drug dealing offences in Northern Ireland in each of the last 10 years.
(239269)
802
Sammy Wilson (East Antrim): To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many and what proportion of arrests in Northern Ireland were for drunken and disorderly behaviour in each council area in each of the last five years.
(239271)
Questions to the Minister for the Olympics
803
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Minister for the Olympics, how many employees in her Office have taken early retirement since its inception; and at what total cost.
(238965)
804
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Minister for the Olympics, how many press releases have been issued by her Office in each year since its inception; and if she will make a statement.
(238986)
805
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Minister for the Olympics, how much her Office has spent on (a) focus groups and (b) opinion polls in each year since its inception; how much she estimates will be spent on each category in 2008-09; and if she will make a statement.
(239045)
806
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Minister for the Olympics, how many (a) special advisers and (b) press officers have been employed by her Office in each year since its inception; and at what cost in each year.
(239083)
807
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Minister for the Olympics, what the rate of staff (a) absence and (b) sickness absence was in her Office in each year since its inception; what the target rates set for her Office are; and if she will make a statement.
(239130)
808
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Minister for the Olympics, how much her Office has spent on external consultancy in each year since its inception; and if she will make a statement.
(239131)
809
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Minister for the Olympics, how many civil servants have been employed by each non-departmental public body for which she has responsibility in each year since its inception; and if she will make a statement.
(239132)
810
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Minister for the Olympics, how much (a) her Office and (b) each of the non-departmental public bodies for which she has responsibility spent on (i) publicity and (ii) advertising in each year since her Office's inception; and if she will make a statement.
(239133)
Questions to the Prime Minister
811
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Prime Minister, how many press releases have been issued by his Office in each year since 1997-98; and if he will make a statement.
(238987)
812
N
Andrew George (St Ives): To ask the Prime Minister, what meetings at which the Competition Commission market investigation into the supply of groceries in the UK was discussed he has had since 1st May 2008.
(237214)
813
N
Andrew George (St Ives): To ask the Prime Minister, what meetings he has had with representatives of UK grocery retailers since 1st May 2008.
(237215)
Questions to the Secretary of State for Scotland
814
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what the rate of staff (a) absence and (b) sickness absence was in his Department in each year since 1997; what the target rates set for his Department are in each case; and if he will make a statement.
(238934)
815
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, how much his Department spent on (a) publicity and (b) advertising in each year since 1997-98; and if he will make a statement.
(238951)
816
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, how many employees in his Department took early retirement in each of the last five financial years; and at what total cost.
(238968)
817
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, how many press releases have been issued by his Department in each year since 1997-98; and if he will make a statement.
(238989)
818
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, how much his Department has spent on (a) focus groups and (b) opinion polls in each year since 1997-98; how much he estimates will be spent on each category in 2008-09; and if he will make a statement.
(239048)
819
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, how much his Department spent on external consultancy in each year since 1997-98; and if he will make a statement.
(239060)
820
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, how many (a) special advisers and (b) press officers have been employed by his Department in each year since 1997-98; and at what cost in each year.
(239086)
821
N
Mr Nick Gibb (Bognor Regis & Littlehampton): To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, pursuant to the Answer of 18th November 2008, Official Report, columns 251-2W, on departmental written questions, what the cost of providing the Answer was.
(238853)
822
Justine Greening (Putney): To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, how many of his Department's staff who left under (a) an involuntary and (b) a voluntary exit scheme in each year since 2005-06 received a severance package of (i) up to £25,000, (ii) £25,001 to £50,000, (iii) £50,001 to £75,000, (iv) £75,001 to £100,000 and (v) over £100,000; and if he will make a statement.
(239153)
Questions to the Solicitor General
823
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Solicitor General, how many (a) special advisers and (b) press officers have been employed by the Attorney-General's Office in each year since 1997-98; and at what cost in each year.
(238953)
824
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Solicitor General, how many employees in the Attorney-General's Office took early retirement in each of the last five financial years; and at what total cost.
(238967)
825
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Solicitor General, how many press releases have been issued by the Attorney-General's Office in each year since 1997-98; and if she will make a statement.
(238988)
826
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Solicitor General, how much the Attorney-General's Office has spent on (a) focus groups and (b) opinion polls in each year since 1997-98; how much she estimates will be spent on each category in 2008-09; and if she will make a statement.
(239047)
827
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Solicitor General, how many press officers were employed in the Attorney-General's Office in each year since 1997-98; what the total cost was in each year; and if she will make a statement.
(239119)
828
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Solicitor General, how many civil servants have been employed by each of the Attorney-General's Office's agencies and non-departmental public bodies in each year since 1997-98; and if she will make a statement.
(239142)
829
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Solicitor General, how much (a) the Attorney-General's Office and (b) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent on external consultancy in each year since 1997-98; and if she will make a statement.
(239143)
830
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Solicitor General, how much (a) the Attorney-General's Office and (b) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent on (i) publicity and (ii) advertising in each year since 1997-98; and if she will make a statement.
(239144)
831
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Solicitor General, what the rate of staff (a) absence and (b) sickness absence was in (i) the Attorney-General's Office and (ii) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies in each year since 1997-98; what the target rates set for the Office are in each case; and if she will make a statement.
(239145)
Questions to the Secretary of State for Transport
832
N
Norman Baker (Lewes): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, on what date it was decided that the Southend-on-Sea driving test centre would close; and who took that decision.
(238284)
833
N
Norman Baker (Lewes): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the current complement of (a) managerial staff, (b) examiners and (c) other staff at the Driving Standards Agency is.
(238285)
834
N
Norman Baker (Lewes): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what percentage of receipts from the driving test fee, after it has been increased, will be used to fund the change to the organisation of driving test centres.
(238286)
835
N
Norman Baker (Lewes): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the basic salary is of the Chief Executive of the Driving Standards Agency; what incentive factors apply which allow bonuses or other increments to be paid; and if he will make a statement.
(238287)
836
N
Norman Baker (Lewes): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much funding his Department has allocated to promote (a) cycling and (b) walking in 2008-09; and what percentage of his Department's total budget for that year that figure represents.
(238288)
837
N
Norman Baker (Lewes): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many times the Driving Standards Agency has issued more than one copy of the Are you ready DVD to an individual learner driver since 1st January 2008; for what reasons; and if he will make a statement.
(238908)
838
N
Norman Baker (Lewes): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he plans to take to ensure that in all cases air passengers stranded abroad as a result of airline failure are able to be repatriated; and what consideration he is giving to a statutory scheme to achieve this.
(239021)
839
N
Norman Baker (Lewes): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what his policy is on the renegotiation of the payments applicable under the franchise award to First Great Western in the light of the extra expenditure they (a) have incurred and (b) expect to incur.
(239022)
840
Norman Baker (Lewes): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what contracts his Department has with external consultants; what the value of these contracts is in the current financial year, including VAT and disbursements; how long each contract lasts; to which of his Department's programmes or projects each contract relates; and what the forecast total expenditure under each contract is.
(239023)
841
Norman Baker (Lewes): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, which Highways Agency Major Schemes projects are in (a) Options and (b) Development stages in the Highways Agency; and what budget is allocated to each of them in (i) 2008-09 and (ii) 2009-10.
(239024)
842
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the rate of staff (a) absence and (b) sickness absence was in (i) his Department and (ii) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies in each year since 1997; what the target rates set for his Department are in each case; and if he will make a statement.
(238936)
843
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much (a) his Department and (b) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent on (i) publicity and (ii) advertising in each year since 1997-98; and if he will make a statement.
(238939)
844
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many employees in his Department took early retirement in each of the last five financial years; and at what total cost.
(238971)
845
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many press releases have been issued by his Department in each year since 1997-98; and if he will make a statement.
(238992)
846
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much his Department has spent on (a) focus groups and (b) opinion polls in each year since 1997-98; how much he estimates will be spent on each category in 2008-09; and if he will make a statement.
(239051)
847
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much (a) his Department and (b) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent on external consultancy in each year since 1997-98; and if he will make a statement.
(239062)
848
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many (a) special advisers and (b) press officers have been employed by his Department in each year since 1997-98; and at what cost in each year.
(239089)
849
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many civil servants have been employed by each of his Department's agencies and non-departmental bodies in each year since 1997-98; and if he will make a statement.
(239103)
850
N
Mr Robert Goodwill (Scarborough & Whitby): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he expects to be in a position to introduce the graduated fixed penalty and deposit scheme.
(238745)
851
Justine Greening (Putney): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what databases containing details of registered drivers and vehicles the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency uses in its registration and enforcement capacities; what the stated purpose of each database is; and what procedures exist to ensure that accurate details are (a) maintained on and (b) co-ordinated between the databases.
(238845)
852
Justine Greening (Putney): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many of his Department's staff who left under (a) an involuntary and (b) a voluntary exit scheme in each year since 2005-06 received a severance package of (i) up to £25,000, (ii) £25,001 to £50,000, (iii) £50,001 to £75,000, (iv) £75,001 to £100,000 and (v) over £100,000; and if he will make a statement.
(239154)
853
Stephen Hammond (Wimbledon): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, for what reasons his Department has changed the process by which the Intercity Express Programme is financed; and if he will make a statement.
(238551)
854
Stephen Hammond (Wimbledon): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he plans to raise the age of eligibility for concessionary bus travel in line with changes to the pensionable age between 2010 and 2020.
(239275)
855
Mr David Heathcoat-Amory (Wells): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much his Department spent on visits by its staff to Brussels in 2007-08; and how many such visits were made by (a) air and (b) rail.
(239418)
856
Mr Lindsay Hoyle (Chorley): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will provide incentives for people wishing to register their vehicle for statutory off-road notification status to do so at post offices.
(239168)
857
Mr Lindsay Hoyle (Chorley): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will instruct the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency to offer a British-made car in its prize draw encouraging use of their online facilities.
(239169)
858
N
Mr Nick Hurd (Ruislip-Northwood): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what payments Cycling England has (a) made in the last 12 months and (b) is contracted to make, to public affairs consultants; and for what purposes.
(238466)
859
Mr John Leech (Manchester, Withington): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many miles of public carriageways are currently being monitored by speed cameras.
(238846)
860
Mr Eric Pickles (Brentwood & Ongar): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment the Health and Safety Executive has made of the risk to the public from bendy buses.
(238844)
861
Mr Adrian Sanders (Torbay): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what strategies his Department employs to ensure competition between local bus operators to encourage better services for passengers.
(238809)
862
Mr Adrian Sanders (Torbay): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what representations he has received from Torbay local authority since April 2007 on funding for the national concessionary bus fares scheme.
(239002)
863
N
Hon Nicholas Soames (Mid Sussex): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will bring forward proposals to include developer works within the scope of the Road Traffic Acts.
(238574)
864
Mr Don Touhig (Islwyn): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how much public money First Great Western Trains has received in the last 12 months.
(238707)
865
Mr Don Touhig (Islwyn): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of commuter train services between Newport and London.
(238708)
866
Mr Don Touhig (Islwyn): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the performance of First Great Western Trains against the objectives set for the operation of the Greater Western rail franchise.
(238709)
867
Joan Walley (Stoke-on-Trent North): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many of the children killed or seriously injured in cars in (a) 2004, (b) 2005, (c) 2006 and (d) 2007 were wearing (i) no type of restraint, (ii) an adult seat belt and (iii) an appropriate restraint.
(239504)
868
Joan Walley (Stoke-on-Trent North): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment his Department has made of levels of parental awareness of legislation on child car seats; what steps he is taking to ensure that parents are aware of the requirements of legislation on child car seats; and if he will make a statement.
(239529)
869
Joan Walley (Stoke-on-Trent North): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what research his Department has commissioned on the behaviour of parents in relation to the appropriate restraint of their children in cars.
(239531)
870
Joan Walley (Stoke-on-Trent North): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment his Department has made of the effect of wearing an appropriate restraint on the survival rate of children involved in car accidents.
(239539)
Questions to the Secretary of State for Wales
871
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what the rate of staff (a) absence and (b) sickness absence was in his Department in each year since 1997; what the target rates set for his Department are in each case; and if he will make a statement.
(238937)
872
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, how much his Department spent on (a) publicity and (b) advertising in each year since 1997-98; and if he will make a statement.
(238941)
873
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, how many employees in his Department took early retirement in each of the last five financial years; and at what total cost.
(238973)
874
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, how many press releases have been issued by his Department in each year since 1997-98; and if he will make a statement.
(238994)
875
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, how much his Department has spent on (a) focus groups and (b) opinion polls in each year since 1997-98; how much he estimates will be spent on each category in 2008-09; and if he will make a statement.
(239053)
876
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, how much his Department spent on external consultancy in each year since 1997-98; and if he will make a statement.
(239064)
877
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, how many (a) special advisers and (b) press officers have been employed by his Department in each year since 1997-98; and at what cost in each year.
(239091)
878
N
Adam Price (Carmarthen East & Dinefwr): To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, when he plans to lay before Parliament the draft Environmental Pollution and Waste Management (National Assembly for Wales) Legislative Competence Order.
(238890)
Questions to the Minister for Women and Equality
879
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Minister for Women and Equality, what the rate of staff (a) absence and (b) sickness absence was in (i) her Department and (ii) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies in each year since its inception; what the target rates set for her Department are in each case; and if she will make a statement.
(238928)
880
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Minister for Women and Equality, how much (a) the Government Equalities Office and (b) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent on (i) publicity and (ii) advertising in each year since its inception; and if she will make a statement.
(238945)
881
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Minister for Women and Equality, how many employees in the Government Equalities Office have taken early retirement since its inception; and at what total cost.
(238959)
882
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Minister for Women and Equality, how many press releases have been issued by the Government Equalities Office in each year since its inception; and if she will make a statement.
(238980)
883
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Minister for Women and Equality, how much the Government Equalities Office has spent on (a) focus groups and (b) opinion polls in each year since its inception; how much she estimates will be spent on each category in 2008-09; and if she will make a statement.
(239039)
884
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Minister for Women and Equality, how much (a) the Government Equalities Office and (b) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent on external consultancy in each year since its inception; and if she will make a statement.
(239055)
885
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Minister for Women and Equality, how many (a) special advisers and (b) press officers have been employed by the Government Equalities Office in each year since its inception; and at what cost in each year.
(239077)
886
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Minister for Women and Equality, how many civil servants have been employed by each of the Government Equalities Office and non-departmental bodies in each year since its inception; and if she will make a statement.
(239097)
887
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Minister for Women and Equality, how many press officers were employed in the Government Equalities Office in each year since its inception; what the total cost was in each year; and if she will make a statement.
(239111)
Questions to the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
888
John Battle (Leeds West): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps are being taken by his Department to help eradicate child poverty in Leeds West constituency.
(238805)
889
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the rate of staff (a) absence and (b) sickness absence was in (i) his Department and (ii) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies in each year since its inception; what the target rates set for his Department are in each case; and if he will make a statement.
(238938)
890
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much (a) his Department and (b) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent on (i) publicity and (ii) advertising in each year since its inception; and if he will make a statement.
(238942)
891
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many employees in his Department took early retirement in each of the last five financial years; and at what total cost.
(238974)
892
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many press releases have been issued by his Department in each year since 1997-98; and if he will make a statement.
(238995)
893
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much his Department has spent on (a) focus groups and (b) opinion polls in each year since 1997-98; how much he estimates will be spent on each category in 2008-09; and if he will make a statement.
(239054)
894
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much (a) his Department and (b) each of its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent on external consultancy in each year since its inception; and if he will make a statement.
(239070)
895
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many (a) special advisers and (b) press officers have been employed by his Department in each year since 1997-98; and at what cost in each year.
(239092)
896
Mr Jeremy Browne (Taunton): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many civil servants have been employed by each of his Department's agencies and non-departmental bodies in each year since 1997-98; and if he will make a statement.
(239104)
897
Mr Dai Davies (Blaenau Gwent): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the service made available by the Jobcentre Plus Rapid Response Service for Wales; and what steps he takes to ensure service provision reflects local rates of unemployment.
(238555)
898
Justine Greening (Putney): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many of his Department's staff who left under (a) an involuntary and (b) a voluntary exit scheme in each year since 2005-06 received a severance package of (i) up to £25,000, (ii) £25,001 to £50,000, (iii) £50,001 to £75,000, (iv) £75,001 to £100,000 and (v) over £100,000; and if he will make a statement.
(239166)
899
N
Mr Mark Harper (Forest of Dean): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when the Government plans to ratify the UN Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities; and if he will make a statement.
(238282)
900
N
Mr Mark Harper (Forest of Dean): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the compatibility of UK legislation with the provisions of the UN Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities; and if he will make a statement.
(238283)
901
N
Mr Mark Harper (Forest of Dean): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 19th November 2008, Official Report, columns 561-2W, on the Post Office Card Account, if he will estimate the cost to his Department of the tendering and bidding process for the Post Office Card Account; and what information his Department holds on the costs of the processes.
(238559)
902
Mr David Heathcoat-Amory (Wells): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much his Department spent on visits by its staff to Brussels in 2007-08; and how many such visits were made by (a) air and (b) rail.
(239420)
903
David Howarth (Cambridge): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Written Ministerial Statement of 18th November 2008, Official Report, columns 17-18WS on the Rent Officers Order, whether Cambridge is considered to be one of the localities where local consensus was not achieved with the consequence that its boundaries will now be reviewed.
(238746)
904
Kerry McCarthy (Bristol East): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will introduce a system of variations to the standard rate of interest as applied to claims made for mortgage interest payments to allow for the fact that some lenders do not pass on Bank of England interest rate cuts to their borrowers.
(238646)
905
Mr Eric Pickles (Brentwood & Ongar): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will place in the Library a copy of the letter from the Chair of the Health and Safety Commission to local authority chief executives in 2004 on memorial safety.
(238815)
906
Mr Eric Pickles (Brentwood & Ongar): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many (a) individuals and (b) pensioners are eligible for but do not claim council tax benefit.
(238816)
907
Mr Eric Pickles (Brentwood & Ongar): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will place in the Library a copy of the speech and presentation of his Department's Programme Manager on the Tell Us Once Project, made at the Institute of Revenues Rating and Valuation Annual Conference on 1st October 2008.
(238817)
908
Mr Eric Pickles (Brentwood & Ongar): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment has been made of the effects of paying housing benefit direct to tenants, with particular reference to the effects on the number of tenants defaulting on rental payments to their landlords.
(238818)
909
Andrew Rosindell (Romford): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much compensation will be paid to failed bidders for the Post Office Card Account contract.
(238632)
910
Chris Ruane (Vale of Clwyd): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many pensioners in each constituency in Wales claimed pension credit in each year since it was introduced.
(238634)
911
Chris Ruane (Vale of Clwyd): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department has taken to improve its arrangements for co-ordination with other Government departments of policy affecting coastal towns in the last two years.
(238654)
912
Chris Ruane (Vale of Clwyd): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many and what percentage of people were in receipt of housing benefit in each (a) ward and (b) lower layer super output area of each principal seaside town in each year for which figures are available.
(239004)
913
Mr Adrian Sanders (Torbay): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people claimed jobseekers' allowance between 1st April 2007 and 31st March 2008; and how much was spent on jobseekers' allowance claims in that period.
(238793)
914
Mr Dennis Skinner (Bolsover): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of the number of companies in the East Midlands with invalid or insufficient liability insurance.
(238668)
915
Mr Dennis Skinner (Bolsover): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people formerly employed in Remploy factories which have been closed down in the last two years have found new jobs; and if he will make a statement.
(238669)
916
Mr Dennis Skinner (Bolsover): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department has taken in the last two years to assist those who have lost their jobs due to the closures of Remploy factories.
(238670)
917
Mr Dennis Skinner (Bolsover): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many Remploy factories are operating; and how many people are employed in each factory.
(238671)
918
Jenny Willott (Cardiff Central): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, which means-tested benefits have income disregard rules; what the level of income disregard is for each benefit; and whether he plans to increase these levels.
(239308)
919
Jenny Willott (Cardiff Central): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many and what proportion of jobseeker's allowance (JSA) claimants moved off JSA and into employment in each month of the last five years, broken down by age; and if he will make a statement.
(239310)
920
Jenny Willott (Cardiff Central): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many jobseeker's allowance claimants were enrolled in an outsourced skills training and support programme to which they had been referred by Jobcentre Plus in each month of the last five years (a) in total and (b) broken down by the smallest geographical area for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement.
(239311)
921
Jenny Willott (Cardiff Central): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many (a) full-time and (b) part-time staff were employed in Jobcentre Plus offices in each month of the last five years (i) in total and (ii) broken down by the smallest geographical area for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement.
(239312)
922
Jenny Willott (Cardiff Central): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many and what proportion of jobseeker's allowance (JSA) claimants moved off JSA and into employment in each month of the last five years, broken down by the smallest geographical area for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement.
(239313)
923
Jenny Willott (Cardiff Central): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many new jobseeker's allowance applications have been received in each month of the last five years (a) in total, (b) broken down by the smallest geographical area for which figures are available and (c) broken down by age; and if he will make a statement.
(239314)
924
Jenny Willott (Cardiff Central): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what plans his Department has to reassess existing incapacity benefit claimants under the new Work Capability Assessment; and if he will make a statement.
(239315)
925
Jenny Willott (Cardiff Central): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the Department's estimate is of the number of people who will be on employment and support allowance (ESA), broken down by (a) income based ESA and (b) contributory based ESA, in each of the next five years; and if he will make a statement.
(239316)
926
Jenny Willott (Cardiff Central): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the estimate is of the cost of extending the winter fuel allowance to terminally ill people who would not otherwise qualify, excluding the one-off additional payment of £50 for 2008-09.
(239341)
927
Jenny Willott (Cardiff Central): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what his Department's estimate is of the number of people who will be in receipt of employment and support allowance (a) in total, (b) in the work-related activity group and (c) in the support group in each of the next five years; and if he will make a statement.
(239353)
928
Jenny Willott (Cardiff Central): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 4th November 2008, Official Report, columns 263-4W, on Jobcentre Plus: manpower, how many full-time equivalent staff his Department expects to be employed in Jobcentre Plus offices in each of the next three years; and if he will make a statement.
(239362)
929
Jenny Willott (Cardiff Central): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people claimed the higher rate care component of disability living allowance on the ground of terminal illness in 2007-08, broken down by the smallest geographical area for which figures are available.
(239396)
Questions to the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families
930
Joan Walley (Stoke-on-Trent North): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, what consideration he has given to proposing road safety education as a compulsory aspect of the school curriculum; and if he will make a statement.
[Transferred] (239503)
Questions to the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster
931
John Battle (Leeds West): To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, what the unemployment rate for (a) women and (b) men of working age has been in Leeds West constituency in each year since 1997.
[Transferred] (238776)
Questions to the Secretary of State for the Home Department
932
Mr Mark Todd (South Derbyshire): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 18th November 2008, Official Report, column 269W, on speed limits: motorcycles, whether the ability to read rear licence plates on motorcycles is a requirement of the type approval process for average speed cameras.
[Transferred] (239363)
933
Sammy Wilson (East Antrim): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the monetary value of property and possessions seized by the Assets Recovery Agency from residents of Northern Ireland convicted of drug dealing offences was in each of the last 10 years.
[Transferred] (239270)
Questions to the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills
934
Mr Jim Cunningham (Coventry South): To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills, what action the Government has taken to improve the reading and writing skills of parents.
[Transferred] (239449)
Questions to the Secretary of State for Transport
935
Mr David Drew (Stroud): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the cost was to his Department of the objections to the stopping up order at the highway between the Knapp and Castle Street, Dursley resulting in an enquiry having to be held.
[Transferred] (239526)
936
Mr David Drew (Stroud): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what checks are put in place to ensure that objections to stopping up orders are neither fictitious nor vexatious.
[Transferred] (239527)

 
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Revised 24 November 2008