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27 Feb 2009 : Column 1110W—continued
Skilled Workers: Lincolnshire
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills (1) what reports he has received on the skills requirements of the workforce at the Lindsey oil refinery; and if he will make a statement; [256190]
(2) what skills courses currently funded by his Department relate to posts which have been contracted to workers from other EU member states at the Lindsey oil refinery; and how many such courses are currently available in North East Lincolnshire. [256193]
Mr. Simon: The Learning and Skills Council funds provision at the local College, Grimsby Institute of Further and Higher Education, which offers a range of industry-specific programmes of learning to help learners acquire and improve the skills needed to work in the chemical refining sector. These include chemical process operations, fabrication and welding, Health and Safety Passport scheme and general engineering and plant maintenance. We are not aware that courses are specifically arranged for learners from other EU member states.
The Government have recently announced a review of productivity and skills in the engineering construction sector. This will make recommendations on ways to improve skills and productivity in the UK engineering construction industry and identify specific factors influencing success for UK-based companies bidding for UK and foreign engineering construction contracts.
Northern Ireland
Billy Wright Inquiry
Mr. Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much the Wright Inquiry has spent on security. [257112]
Mr. Woodward: I am advised by the Billy Wright Inquiry that the inquiry has spent £577,000 on security to the end of January 2009.
Mr. Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much the Wright Inquiry has spent on (a) transport, (b) accommodation, (c) advertising and (d) virtual reality technology. [257113]
Mr. Woodward: I am advised by the Billy Wright Inquiry that, to the end of January 2009, the inquiry has spent:
(a) £693,000 on transport;
(b) £1.70 million on accommodation;
(c) Nothing on advertising; and
(d) Nothing on virtual reality technology.
Bloody Sunday Tribunal of Inquiry
Mr. Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much the Saville Inquiry has spent on (a) advertising, (b) accommodation, (c) transport and (d) virtual reality technology. [257118]
Mr. Woodward: I am advised by the Bloody Sunday Inquiry that, to the end of January 2009, the inquiry has spent:
(a) Approximately £19,000 on advertising;
(b) Approximately £26 million on accommodation (including hire of venues for inquiry hearings plus office and private accommodation);
(c) Approximately £5 million on transport; and
(d) Approximately £106,000 on virtual reality technology.
This covers only expenditure by the inquiry and not expenditure by the Ministry of Defence associated with the inquiry.
Mr. Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much the Saville Inquiry has spent on security. [257119]
Mr. Woodward: I am advised by the Bloody Sunday Inquiry that the Inquiry has spent approximately £3.4 million on security to the end of January 2009.
Departmental Consultants
Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the cost of his Department's contracts with management consultants was in each of the last five years. [251367]
Mr. Woodward: The cost of contracts with management consultants is not held centrally. Information in relation to spending on the different types of consultancies has been recorded since 2005-06.
In each of the last three years my Department has spent the following amounts on management consultants:
| £ | |
Mr. Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland pursuant to the answer of 18 January 2009, Official Report, columns 988-91W, on departmental consultants, how many consultants from each of the companies listed his Department has employed in the last 12 months. [257268]
Mr. Woodward: The Northern Ireland Office does not record the number of individual consultants used by consultancy firms employed by my Department as contracts are awarded directly to the company.
With reference to the answer given on 18 December 2008, Official Report, columns 988-91W, my Department has employed 32 of the companies listed in the last 12 months.
Police
Mr. Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many (a) police officers and (b) other staff paid from the policing budget for Northern Ireland undertook duties at the public event hosted by the Northern Ireland Policing Board in Londonderry on 18 February 2009. [259725]
Paul Goggins: That is an operational matter for the Chief Constable. I have asked him to reply directly to the hon. Member, and a copy of his letter will be placed in the Library of the House.
Robert Hamill Inquiry
Mr. Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much the Hamill Inquiry has spent on (a) advertising, (b) transport, (c) accommodation and (d) virtual reality technology. [257126]
Mr. Woodward: I am advised by the Robert Hamill Inquiry that, to the end of January 2009, the inquiry has spent:
(a) Nothing on advertising;
(b) £230,000 on transport;
(c) £3.50 million on accommodation; and
(d) £50,000 on virtual reality technology.
Rosemary Nelson Inquiry
Mr. Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much the Nelson Inquiry has spent on (a) advertising, (b) security, (c) accommodation, (d) transport and (e) virtual reality technology. [257105]
Mr. Woodward: I am advised by the Rosemary Nelson Inquiry that, to the end of January 2009, the inquiry has spent:
(a) Nothing on advertising;
(b) £957,000 on security,
(c) £4.48 million on accommodation;
(d) £446,000 on transport; and
(e) Nothing on virtual reality technology.
Olympics
CompeteFor
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Minister for the Olympics how much the CompeteFor website has cost to (a) develop and (b) run in each year since its inception; and how much of the funding was provided by (i) the Government, (ii) the London Development Agency and (iii) regional development agencies. [251305]
Tessa Jowell: The information requested is as follows:
The costs of CompeteFor are as follows:
(a) CompeteFor cost £3.633million to develop, which included concept development, specification, implementation and testing, and establishing the support structure.
(b) Running costs are as follows:
Year 1 (December 2007 to March 2008) £220,000
Year 2 (April 2008 to March 2009) projected at £1.241 million
Funding arrangements are as follows
(i) No direct funding was provided by Central Government.
(ii) The London Development Agency and the eight other regional development agencies have each provided £379,000 in set up and running costs in Year 1 and will provide approximately £111,000 each in running costs by the end of this financial year.
The remaining costs are met by contributions provided by the devolved administrations.
Government Olympic Executive: Expenditure
Mr. Hunt: To ask the Minister for the Olympics how much has been spent on the Government Olympic Executive in each of the last three years. [258337]
Tessa Jowell: The expenditure of the Government Olympic Executive (GOE), part of the DCMS, for the last two complete financial years is as follows:
| £ million | |
The estimated expenditure for GOE in 2008-09 is £8.1 million.
This planned increase in costs (a) reflects the wider role the GOE has taken on during this period—GOE is now the only organisation overseeing the entire Olympic project, integrating the work of multiple delivery bodies, and ensuring the games is delivered within the £9.3 billion public sector funding provision; (b) is a planned response to the expected growth in work to deliver the Government's commitments and guarantees, as 2012 approaches; and (c) is consistent with GOE's staffing and resource plan for 2008-09 to 2010-11, which was agreed by Treasury early in 2008.
GOE's budget covers funding for both (a) GOE staff costs and (b) 2012-related programmes aimed at maximising the benefits of the games for the whole of the UK. In 2008-09, for example, this has included a contribution towards the costs of regional Cultural Olympiad programmers, the costs of events to engage with the public and to raise awareness of the opportunities the games can provide for all the nations and regions of the UK, the costs of establishing a 2012 evaluation framework Cabinet Office and the costs of publishing the 2012 Legacy Action Plan and the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games Annual Report.
Government Olympic Executive: Manpower
Mr. Hunt: To ask the Minister for the Olympics (1) how many staff worked in the Government Olympic Executive in each of the last three years; [258334]
(2) how many staff worked for her in each of the last three years. [258555]
Tessa Jowell [holding answer 25 February 2009]: Since its inception in June 2007 my private office has consisted of five officials and a special adviser, except for when it has carried vacancies.
In addition, staff working in the Government Olympic Executive (GOE) report to me through the Permanent Secretary of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. The number of staff (full-time equivalents (FTEs)) working in the GOE has risen over the last three years as follows.
| As at February each year | FTEs |
This planned increase in staffing (a) reflects the wider role the GOE has taken on during this period - GOE is now the only organisation overseeing the entire Olympic project, integrating the work of multiple delivery bodies, and ensuring the games is delivered within the £9.3 billion public sector funding provision; (b) is a planned response to the expected growth in work to deliver the Government's commitments and guarantees, as 2012 approaches; and (c) is consistent with GOE's staffing and resource plan for 2008-09 to 2010-11, which was agreed by the Treasury early in 2008.
Olympic Games 2012
Hugh Robertson: To ask the Minister for the Olympics by what process the London Organising Committee for the Olympic Games plans to design the opening and closing ceremonies of the London 2012 Olympics; and if she will make a statement. [258906]
Tessa Jowell [holding answer 26 February 2009]: The opening and closing ceremonies of both the Olympic games and the Paralympic games in 2012 will be significant moments for the UK, representing an opportunity to showcase the excellent cultural talent we have.
The decision making process to design and deliver these ceremonies is the responsibility of the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games (LOCOG). The first stage of this process is to host key stakeholder forums, to scope the initial ambition for these ceremonies. These events are taking place in the different nations and regions of the UK in the coming weeks.
Following these consultations, LOCOG will work to put in place the brief and plans necessary to deliver the ceremonies, and appoint the creative team to run the ceremonies.
Olympic Games 2012: Construction
Hugh Robertson: To ask the Minister for the Olympics pursuant to the answer of 17 February 2009, Official Report, column 2273W, on Olympic games 2012: construction, whether the Olympics Delivery Authority predicted the cost implications for the velopark budget of moving the velodrome. [259001]
Tessa Jowell [holding answer 26 February 2009]: The Velodrome was moved slightly to the west to help with the design and layout of the wider cycling facilities to be built in legacy. The Olympic Delivery Authority was aware of the generally poor ground conditions. However, the VeloPark budget could only be adjusted when the full extent of these conditions was known.
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