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23 Feb 2009 : Column 333W—continued
Working Tax Credit
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) how many claims for (a) underpayments and (b) overpayments of working tax credit from residents of the Portsmouth travel-to-work area remain unresolved; [256546]
(2) how many people in the Portsmouth travel-to-work area were underpaid working tax credit in the last two years; how many of these have had their payments corrected to date; and how much his Department has spent on making correction payments to date; [256547]
(3) how much has been recovered from overpayments of working tax credit from residents in the Portsmouth travel-to-work area to date. [256548]
Mr. Timms: Information is not available in the format requested. HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) Code of Practice 26 ‘What happens if we've paid you too much tax credit?’ explains the ways the Department collect back an overpayment.
HMRC publish information on the number and value of tax credits overpaid and underpaid by local authority and parliamentary constituency on its website at
Women and Equality
Departmental Internet
Mr. Harper: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality if she will publish a copy of the Government Equalities Office’s website accessibility plan. [257232]
Maria Eagle: The Government Equalities Office will publish its website accessibility plan in June 2009.
Departmental Lobbying
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality whether she received representations from (a) Lord Moonie, (b) Lord Taylor of Blackburn, (c) Lord Snape and (d) Lord Truscott in the last seven months. [255237]
Maria Eagle: The Minister for Women and Equality has not received any representations from Lords Moonie, Taylor, Snape and Truscott in the last seven months.
Females: Public Appointments
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality what progress she has made in increasing the proportion of women appointed to public bodies. [253343]
Maria Eagle: The latest figures, published by Cabinet Office show that, as at 31 March 2008, 33.3 per cent. of all public appointments were held by women. This is a decrease from the previous year. The Government remain committed to ensuring equal representation of women and men on the boards of our public bodies. The latest figures demonstrate more action is needed.
Government are strengthening legislation to support this agenda. The forthcoming Equality Bill will include a broad range of positive action provisions that will allow political parties and public bodies to take a range of steps to encourage involvement among under-represented groups.
The Commissioner for Public Appointments now has the power to take steps to promote diversity in the procedures for making public appointments within her remit. This came into force on 9 October 2008.
Olympics
Construction: Olympic Games 2012
Tom Brake: To ask the Minister for the Olympics how many young people who have completed further education construction courses have undertaken job placements as part of the Olympic construction process. [256093]
Tessa Jowell: At the end of December 2008, there were 26 graduate trainees working for contractors on the Olympic Park. In addition, the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) runs a work placement programme which allows undergraduates or recent graduates to obtain paid work within the ODA for up to 11 months.
Tom Brake: To ask the Minister for the Olympics how many undergraduates are being sponsored to obtain a construction-related degree as part of the Olympic construction process. [256094]
Tessa Jowell:
The Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) does not specifically sponsor construction-related degrees but there are two other relevant programmes in place.
The ODA runs a work placement programme which enables undergraduates and recent graduates to obtain paid work within the organisation for up to 11 months in functions such as planning, legal and procurement. Of the six people currently on this scheme, five are recent graduates, and one is an undergraduate. In addition, to the end of December 2008, there were 26 graduate trainees working for contractors on the Olympic Park.
Contracts: Olympic Games 2012
Tom Brake: To ask the Minister for the Olympics what penalties are payable under the contract with Lend Lease on early cancellation of the contract to construct and manage the Olympic Village contract. [256115]
Tessa Jowell: The agreement with Lend Lease is structured in such a way that early termination would be a last resort option. Early termination is possible only under certain circumstances and, in the event that termination does occur, there are no specific penalties payable to Lend Lease. However, any costs and expenses necessarily incurred or contracted by Lend Lease for delivery of the services would have to be met by the Olympic Delivery Authority to the extent that they cannot be mitigated. The details of the contract terms remain commercially confidential.
Economic Situation
Grant Shapps: To ask the Minister for the Olympics what recent discussions her Office has had with outside organisations to discuss policies on reducing the effect of the recession on matters within her Office’s responsibility. [254062]
Tessa Jowell: Officials of the Government Olympic Executive and I meet a wide variety of stakeholders to discuss all aspects of the London 2012 games programme. These discussions frequently cover both the effects of the current economic downturn and the many economic benefits associated with the preparations for, and the legacy of, the 2012 games.
London 2012 is bringing a wide range of business and economic benefits including £6 billion worth of contracts, over 75,000 supply chain opportunities and many jobs, skills training and apprenticeship opportunities. These include 30,000 people helping to build the Olympic Park and Olympic Village; 2,500 people directly employed on the staging of the games with a contractor work force of some 100,000; and 50,000 new permanent jobs in the Park and the wider Lower Lea Valley after the Olympics are over. As well as further jobs in the supply chain, the games will also create 6,700 jobs in the wider visitor economy. Visit Britain estimates the tourism benefits at £2.1 billion. In terms of skills, at least 350 apprentices will gain valuable skills on the construction of Park and Village.
The economic downturn has reduced the amount of private sector investment available to the Olympic Village and the International Broadcast Centre/Main Press Centre projects. However, these projects remain on track; and to the extent that additional public sector funds are required, these can be delivered within the £9.325 billion public sector funding package.
Olympic Games 2012: Construction
Hugh Robertson: To ask the Minister for the Olympics what steps she is taking to contain the cost increases of Olympic venues; and if she will make a statement. [256482]
Tessa Jowell [holding answer 12 February 2009]: It is part of the Olympic Delivery Authority’s (ODA) normal business to bear down on costs across the programme. As reported in the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games Annual Report, published January 2009, the forecast of potential final costs of the ODA programme includes estimated savings of £193 million, offsetting forecast increases. There are a range of controls in place to manage risks and budgets, control changes and control access to contingency. The forecast in potential cost increases in venues is offset by potential savings in other parts of the project. So far, the powerlines tunnelling project, Orient Way railway sidings project and the Weymouth and Portland sailing venue have all been delivered on time and budget.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Minister for the Olympics what plans there are for the use of the (a) basketball arena, (b) white water course centre and (c) hockey centre after the end of the London 2012 Olympic Games. [256570]
Tessa Jowell: Business plans are currently being developed for the legacy use of all permanent London 2012 sporting venues.
The basketball arena is a temporary venue. The venue will be dismantled after the Games, and as many component parts as possible will be relocated and reused. The site will be available for development as part of the Legacy Masterplan Framework, the spatial development plan for the legacy of the Olympic Park.
The Whitewater course centre will operate as a Whitewater Canoe and Rafting Centre in legacy, with two courses (300 m and 100 m) for elite and community use.
The hockey venue for the Games is a temporary venue, and will therefore be dismantled after the Games to provide parkland and public domain within the Olympic Park. On the Olympic Park in legacy, Eton Manor will provide hockey, tennis and five-a-side football facilities for community and high performance uses. The site will also accommodate allotments, a war memorial and a wind turbine. Eton Manor will be operated in legacy by the Lee Valley Regional Park Authority.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Minister for the Olympics what plans there are for the use of the (a) international broadcast centre and (b) main press centre after the end of the London 2012 Olympic games. [256571]
Tessa Jowell:
The Government are working closely with the Mayor, the London Development Agency, London borough of Hackney and other partners to explore a number of proposals for the legacy use of both the international broadcast centre and main press centre. Our vision is for permanent facilities, focussed on the creative and media industries and on high quality employment for local communities, together with higher
education uses. This work will be taken forward by the Olympic Park Legacy Company as part of its work programme to deliver a sustainable physical and socio-economic legacy from the games for the Olympic park and surrounding areas.
Olympic Games 2012: Expenditure
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Minister for the Olympics how much had been spent on the Broxbourne white water canoe centre at the latest date for which figures are available; and what the estimated final cost of the centre is. [256592]
Tessa Jowell: The contractor that will build the Broxbourne white water centre has not yet been selected and so it is not appropriate to announce budget or cost details while the procurement process is continuing.
Olympic Games 2012: Finance
Tom Brake: To ask the Minister for the Olympics what the reasons are for the potential increase in (a) taxation and interest and (b) programme delivery costs referred to in Table 2 in the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic games annual report, January 2009. [256369]
Tessa Jowell: The potential increase in taxation, as reported in Table 2 of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic games annual report published January 2009, was the amount of corporation tax estimated to be payable on an anticipated receipt for the sale of the assets post-games. As a consequence of the decision, announced on 6 February 2009, to establish a dedicated 2012 Olympic Park Legacy Company, it is now more likely that the Company will benefit from that anticipated receipt and the corporation tax is now unlikely to be payable by the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA).
The increase in programme delivery costs is a result of CLM (ODA's Delivery Partner—and incentivised to deliver to programme and against cost targets) achieving a higher level of key performance indicators than anticipated in the original budget leading to a consequential increase in performance related payments. This reflects good progress in respect of the delivery of the project—to time and within budget—and in the achievement of savings which are outlined in the 2009 annual report.
Tom Brake: To ask the Minister for the Olympics what costs had been incurred on (a) the 2012 Media Centre and (b) the 2012 Olympic Village as at 1 February 2009; and if she will make a statement. [256370]
Tessa Jowell: Olympic Delivery Authority figures at the end of January 2009 show expenditure of £24.28 million on the International Business Centre/Main Press Centre project and expenditure of £71.6 million on the vertical build of the Olympic Village. Both these figures are in line with expected levels of expenditure.
Hugh Robertson: To ask the Minister for the Olympics for what reason the £326 million recently released from the Olympic contingency fund for the athletes village was drawn from the funders; why the £135 million for the International Broadcast Centre/Main Press Centre was drawn from funders and contingency reserves; and if she will make a statement. [256483]
Tessa Jowell [holding answer 12 February 2009]: The Funders Group contingency is principally for risks that fall outside of the control of the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA). The recent allocation of Funders Group contingency was to help fund the Olympic village and the international broadcast centre (IBC)/main press centre (MPC) projects, both of which had been affected by the global economic situation, particularly the downturn in the housing and banking markets. This downturn was outside of the ODA's control and therefore Funders’ Group contingency is the appropriate source of funding.
A proportion of the funding for the IBC/MPC project (£67 million) was funded from programme contingency. This is because, as part of the restructure of the IBC/MPC project, elements of new scope—including to ensure that the buildings left in legacy have the flexibility to be adapted to a wide range of uses to maximise potential future employment opportunities—and additional project contingency were included.
Olympic Games 2012: Gun Sports
Mr. Ellwood: To ask the Minister for the Olympics how many .22 pistols have been made available for use by the British Olympic pistol team out of public funds. [256871]
Tessa Jowell: UK Sport have advised that an award of £5,056,000 made by UK Sport to British Shooting for the period 2005-09 included an amount that the sport can set aside for the purchase of equipment. However, the nature of shooting is that athletes will usually buy their own equipment, specifically the guns used to train and compete, or these are provided by sponsors.
Individual athletes on the World Class Performance programme are awarded an athlete personal award (APA) which includes funding for living costs and sporting costs. The latter enables athletes to travel, attend training sessions and enter relevant competitions. Athletes in all sports are entitled to use this award to fund the purchase of equipment or as a contribution to the financing of equipment.
This expenditure is for the athlete themselves to decide and UK Sport and the governing body do not monitor this, preferring to focus solely on the outcomes that APAs provide. These outcomes include such things as full attendance at training and events, use of high performance services and the athlete's commitment to self improvement that ultimately leads to improved performance.
Mr. Ellwood: To ask the Minister for the Olympics what representations she has received requesting that the London 2012 Olympics shooting events be staged at Bisley. [256872]
Tessa Jowell: I have received representations from hon. Members, the National Rifle Association, Southern Counties Shooting Ltd, various members of shooting groups and other members of the public requesting the shooting events for the 2012 Olympic games and Paralympic games be staged at Bisley.
KPMG were commissioned by the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) last year to test and challenge the plans for a number of 2012 temporary venues, including shooting, to ensure they remain viable venues for
competition in 2012 as well as offering the best possible value for money. In December the Olympic Board published the findings of the KPMG report. The Olympic Board agreed at the time of publication that further work to assess the venue for shooting would be carried out by the ODA and the London Organising Committee of the Olympic games and Paralympic games (LOCOG) in the new year. This work is ongoing, and includes an evaluation of Bisley which will be considered by the Olympic Board.
Olympic Games 2012: Haringey
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Minister for the Olympics what existing sporting facilities in Haringey will be used for the London 2012 Olympic Games; and if she will make a statement. [257277]
Tessa Jowell: There are two routes by which the existing sporting facilities in Haringey could be used for the London 2012 Olympic Games. Firstly as a Pre-Games Training Camp venue; Haringey has one designated training facility in the LOCOG Pre-Games Training Camp Guide offering athletics training facilities at the White Hart Lane Community Sports Centre in Wood Green. A National Olympic Committee or National Paralympic Committee is yet to make arrangements to use this facility for this purpose.
Secondly, the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) has begun the process of identifying Games-time Training Venues and there is the possibility that this same facility could provide valuable training opportunities for athletes while competing at the London 2012 Games. The venue owner and operators have been asked to express their interest to LOCOG if they wish to be considered for this programme.
In addition, 371 businesses in Haringey have signed up for CompeteFor (London 2012’s website for publishing Games related contract opportunities) and 14 Haringey schools are registered as part of Get Set (LOCOG’s domestic education programme).
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