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3 Feb 2009 : Column 1070W—continued
Special Educational Needs
Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many maintained special schools there were in each local authority in each year since 1997. [250184]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The information requested has been placed in the Libraries.
Special Educational Needs: Pupil Exclusions
Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many pupils with special educational needs were given a fixed-period exclusion from a pupil referral unit in the last year for which figures are available. [251082]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: Information on exclusions from pupil referral units is no longer collected.
Special Educational Needs: Tribunals
Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Justice on the provision of information to parents about changes to the Special Educational Needs and Disability Tribunal system. [253981]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: Officials at the Department for Children, Schools and Families and the Tribunals Service at the Ministry of Justice have had discussions throughout the process of the Special Educational Needs and Disability Tribunal (SENDIST) becoming part of the Health, Education and Social Care Chamber of the First-tier Tribunal. On 8 December 2008 the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families held a meeting with the hon. Member for Twickenham (Dr. Cable) and a parents' group at which an official from the Tribunals Service/Ministry of Justice was present. The Department, through the Children, Young People and Families Grant programme, is funding the Independent Panel for Special Education Advice over 2009-10 and 2010-11 to expand the availability of its advice to parents, including advice on the new tribunal system.
Young People: Unemployment
Mr. Willis: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what plans his Department has to prevent 17 to 19-year-olds becoming unemployed during the current economic downturn. [252901]
Jim Knight: The current economic situation means that it is imperative to ensure young people gain the skills and qualifications they need to succeed in employment.
Local Connexions services have a key role in supporting all young people aged 13-19. They rigorously track young people’s activities so that they can provide targeted support to those young people who are in danger of becoming unemployed and those not currently in education, employment or training. They also provide tailored information, advice and guidance, supporting these young people to reengage in learning or work as early as possible.
In 2008, we extended the September Guarantee to 17-year-olds for the first time. The guarantee aims to provide all 17-year-olds with a suitable offer of a place in learning by the end of September. Almost 80 per cent. of those young people who had been engaged on a short course, or who were NEET, received an offer under the guarantee last year. The guarantee will help to ensure that all young people aged 17 have a suitable learning place by the end of September and prevent them from becoming unemployed.
Funding for apprenticeships across all ages is planned to increase by almost a quarter between 2007-08 and 2010-11, to over £1.1 billion. In addition we have recently announced our intention to invest an extra £140 million to deliver an additional 35,000 apprentices in both the public and private sectors in order to strengthen the country’s competitiveness and match young people’s demand. We have also introduced a number of flexibilities to help apprentices who face redundancy. As part of this work apprentices who are made redundant within
the final six months of their apprenticeship will now be able to finish their training and gain a qualification.
We have been working closely with colleagues in the Department for Work and Pensions to increase the level of support available to 18-year-olds who are unemployed. From April 2009, 18-year-old jobseekers who have spent a 26 week period NEET will receive mandatory early entry to intensive jobsearch support to enable them to enter sustainable employment faster. This system has been in place on a voluntary basis since April 2008.
Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Agricultural Waste Licences
Mr. Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what his policy is on the charging of fees for agricultural waste licences; and what the evidential basis for that policy is. [251281]
Jane Kennedy: In England and Wales, the recovery or disposal of agricultural waste does not generally require an environmental permit but benefits from one of a number of exemptions. Farmers have to register the exemptions with the Environment Agency. At present there is no charge for this.
DEFRA is currently undertaking a review of all permit exemptions, including those that apply to agricultural waste, and in the consultation document on that review it is proposed to introduce a charge for the registration of exemptions of £50 every three years. The Department is currently considering the responses to the consultation, on this point and others, and no decisions have yet been reached.
Where permits are required, they are subject to application fees and annual charges set out within a scheme that is consulted upon annually by the Environment Agency and approved by the Secretary of State. Fees and charges seek to recover the costs of regulation in accordance with the polluter pays principle and Treasury rules.
Animal Welfare
Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what plans he has to establish an arm's length body responsible for animal health; and if he will make a statement. [250840]
Jane Kennedy: The establishment of a new independent arm's length body responsible for animal health is being considered as part of the wider responsibility and cost sharing agenda for animal health. We plan to consult on specific proposals for implementing responsibility and cost sharing for animal health shortly.
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