Written Answers to Questions
Monday 9 March 2009
Women and Equality
Sex Establishments: Planning Permission
Julie Morgan: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality if she will make an assessment of (a) the account taken by local authorities of the gender equality duty in determining applications for the opening of lap-dancing clubs and (b) levels of use by local authorities of their powers to control the opening and regulation of such clubs. [260515]
Mr. Alan Campbell: I have been asked to reply.
Currently, lap dancing clubs are required to obtain a premises licence or club premises certificate for regulated entertainment and the licensing authority will consider such applications in accordance with its powers to control and regulate such clubs under the Licensing Act 2003. The Government do not collect specific information on decisions taken by licensing authorities relating to applications for lap dancing clubs.
On the 18 June 2008 the Parliamentary Under-Secretary at the Department for Culture, Media and Sport wrote to chief executives of local authorities on the subject of lap dancing clubs to seek their views on whether they considered their powers under the Licensing Act 2003 were sufficient to regulate and control the opening of lap dancing in their area. This attracted 117 responses, the majority of which felt that additional legislation should be introduced to provide controls which are specific to lap dancing and similar premises.
In response, the Government have included provisions in the Policing and Crime Bill to reclassify lap dancing clubs as sex encounter venues under Schedule 3 of the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1982. This will give local authorities more powers to control the number and location of lap dancing clubs. It will also allow them to consider their obligations under the Gender Equality Duty when determining new applications if appropriate.
Leader of the House
Reform
Simon Hughes: To ask the Leader of the House what proposals she has for further modernisation of the working practices of the House. [260761]
Chris Bryant: The Modernisation Committee is currently inquiring into the arrangements for recall and dissolution. Other proposals are being considered by the Procedure Committee.
My right hon. and learned Friend is always keen to hear proposals for modernisation of the working practices of the House.
Scotland
Departmental Official Hospitality
Mr. Rob Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what his Department's entertainment budget was in each of the last five years. [261114]
Ann McKechin: The Scotland Office does not separately record entertainment costs. Any such costs will be met from within the Office's hospitality budget. The hospitality budget over the last five years was as follows:
| Budget (£000) | |
The events run from within the Office's hospitality budget continue to be popular with MPs of all parties with relevant Scottish constituencies taking the opportunity to engage with important stakeholders and groups in Scotland.
Mr. Rob Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how much his Department spent on (a) alcohol and (b) food in each of the last five years. [261158]
Ann McKechin: The Scotland office does not hold the information in the format requested.
Departmental Press
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how much his Department has spent on (a) newspapers, (b) magazines and (c) periodicals in each year since 1997. [261279]
Ann McKechin: The Scotland Office was established on 1 July 1999. The office provides corporate services, such as the payment of invoices, to the Office of the Advocate General. Separate figures for newspapers and magazines for each office are not recorded; and the cost of periodicals is subsumed within the overall library costs, such as the purchase of books. Expenditure by both offices on newspapers and magazines was as follows:
| Cost (£) | |
Departmental Surveys
Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how much was spent by his Department on staff surveys in (a) 2007 and (b) 2008; and which companies were contracted to carry out the surveys. [260942]
Ann McKechin: The Scotland Office ran one internally delivered staff survey during 2007 at no additional cost to the office. No staff survey was undertaken in 2008.
Public Opinion
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how much was spent by his Department on (a) opinion polling, (b) focus groups and (c) other forms of market research in each year since 1997; if he will list the surveys commissioned; and what the purpose was of each. [261280]
Ann McKechin:
The Scotland Office was established in its present form on 1 July 1999. The Scotland Office incurred no costs on focus groups, opinion polls or other forms of market research between 1999-2000 and 2007-08. The office's estimated spend in 2008-09 on
focus groups, to solicit views of voters to the Gould recommendations, is expected to be £24,500; no costs are anticipated on opinion polls or other forms of market research .
Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Angling
Mr. Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many rod licences were granted to people in each age group in each of the last five years. [260697]
Huw Irranca-Davies: The Environment Agency sells different types of licences for fishing with rod and line in England, Wales and on the Border Esk in Scotland. The licence year runs from 1 April to 31 March. People over 65 years old are eligible for a concessionary licence while those between 12 and 16 years, inclusive, can buy a junior licence. Full licences are bought by people from 17 to 64 years, inclusive. One-day or eight-day licences can be bought by any age group. Published sales of each licence type are:
| Rod licence type | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09( 1) |
| (1) Sales to end of December 2008. | |||||
Departmental Art Works
Mr. Vara: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs which works of art from the Government Art Collection each Minister in his Department has selected for display in a private office. [259445]
Huw Irranca-Davies: DEFRA Ministers have the following works of art from the Government Art Collection displayed in their departmental offices:
The Secretary of State (the right hon. Hilary Benn MP)—four prints
Thomas Shotter Boys—Hyde Park Corner
Thomas Shotter Boys—Westminster Abbey
Edmund Walker and Thomas Picken—The New Houses of Parliament
William Parrott—Chelsea with part of the Old Church
Minister of State (the noble Lord Hunt)—one drawing, two prints and four photographs
Elsie Few—Desert
June Berry—The Green, Green Grass
Brendan Neiland—Millbank
Andy Goldsworthy—Ice Sphere
Andy Goldsworthy—Ice Sphere (pendant)
Andy Goldsworthy—Ice Star
Andy Goldsworthy—Ice Star (pendant)
Neither the Minister of State, my right hon. Friend the Member for Liverpool, Wavertree , or I have any artwork from the Government Art Collection displayed in our offices.
Fish Farms: Pollution Control
Mr. Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of his Department’s policy to minimise pollution from fish farms. [260698]
Huw Irranca-Davies: The Environment Agency issues consents to all fish farms to control the discharge to the environment of pollutants expected from this type of operation. It does this by putting chemical limits on the consent which cannot be exceeded or issues a differential consent which compares upstream and downstream impacts.
Fish farms also use various chemicals to control pests on the fish and treat infection. The Environment Agency asks the farmer to provide a chemical use plan which specifies the amount of chemical applied to the fish.
From this the Environment Agency can work out the environmental impact downstream and compare against predetermined no-effect concentrations to fish and other organisms. Through this approach, the agency ensures that downstream environments are protected.
Fisheries: South West
Mr. Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many fisheries officers were based in each principal coastal town in Devon and Cornwall in each of the last three years. [260658]
Huw Irranca-Davies: Data for the number of fishery officers in the Marine and Fisheries Agency is contained in the following table.
| 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | |||||||
| Office | District inspector | Senior fishery officer | Fishery officer | District inspector | Senior fishery officer | Fishery officer | District inspector | Senior fishery officer | Fishery officer |
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