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26 Mar 2009 : Column 630W—continued
The relevant Departments will announce further details of this spending in the coming weeks.
Reoffenders: Finance
Alun Michael: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Justice on methods of budgeting for services designed to reduce levels of reoffending. [266531]
Yvette Cooper: The Treasury is represented at the Inter-Ministerial Group on reducing reoffending and is therefore in regular contact with the Ministry of Justice on the subject. The Government's budgeting framework is set out in the Consolidated Budgeting Guidance.
Smuggling: Tobacco
David Taylor: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much was allocated to HM Revenue and Customs' work on tobacco smuggling in each of the last five years for which figures are available. [266854]
Angela Eagle: The information requested is not available.
However, HMRC does make retrospective estimates of the staff years used on tobacco work. I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 12 March 2009, Official Report, column 722W, in reply to his previous question on the subject.
Taxation: Business
Sir Michael Spicer: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent representations he has received from representatives of businesses on tax incentives for self-financed credit insurance schemes; and if he will make a statement. [266647]
Ian Pearson: Treasury Ministers and officials receive representations from a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery. As was the case with previous Administrations, it is not the Government’s practice to provide details of all such representations.
VAT
Mrs. May: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 10 March 2009, Official Report, column 263W, on VAT, what the other groups are which account for the remaining 15 per cent. of savings to taxpayers. [266064]
Mr. Timms: The full breakdown relating to the answer of 10 March 2009, Official Report, column 263W can be obtained from published data on the gross VAT Theoretical Tax Liability in table B.1 of Measuring Indirect Tax Gaps 2008
Shares of the components can be derived from comparing the components to the gross VAT Theoretical Tax Liability in that table.
Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform
Construction: Government Assistance
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what steps his Department is taking to maintain and protect (a) skills and (b) capability in the construction industry during the recession; and if he will make a statement. [262554]
Mr. Simon: I have been asked to reply.
The Government are working closely with all sides of the construction industry to mitigate the impact of the economic downturn. Skill levels and training capability are protected through the continuing levy arrangements directed by the Construction Industry Training Board.
Over the next three years the levy is anticipated to rise between £535 million to £545 million for training in the construction sector.
In recent months we have also taken a number of specific measures. We have set up an Apprenticeship Task Force with employers and trade unions to see how we can expand and improve apprenticeships within construction. We have established an Apprentice Matching Service to find alternative training places for redundant apprentices. Construction was one of the first sectors to agree a Train to Gain compact, which offers additional flexibilities within the Train to Gain service for employers. In addition, through the last pre-Budget report we announced bringing forward £3 billion of capital spending for housing, education, transport and other construction projects.
When Departments and agencies let a new contract there is now an expectation that successful contractors will provide training for apprentices.
Departmental Cleaning Services
John McDonnell: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform which contractors his Department uses to undertake cleaning duties; and what the hourly rates of pay are for cleaners working in his Department. [258506]
Mr. McFadden: GBM Services provide cleaning services to buildings on this Department's HQ estate. The current hourly rate of pay for their cleaners is £5.90p.
Departmental Consultants
John McDonnell: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many consultants are employed by each bargaining unit of (a) his Department, (b) its agencies and (c) its non-departmental public bodies; what work is being undertaken by each; and what the (i) length and (ii) value of each contract is. [258507]
Mr. McFadden: I have approached the chief executives of the Insolvency Service and Companies House agencies and they will respond to my hon. Friend directly.
The information requested of the Department and its NDPBs is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Letter from Gareth Jones, dated 26 March 2009:
I am responding on behalf of Companies House to your Parliamentary Question tabled on 20 February 2009, UIN 258507, to the Minister of State for Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform
Companies House currently has no relevant consultancy contracts in place.
Letter from Stephen Speed, dated 26 March 2009:
I refer to your question to ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, how many consultants are employed by each bargaining unit of (a) his Department, (b) its agencies and (c) its non-departmental public bodies; what work is being undertaken by each; and what the (i) length and (ii) value of each contract is.
The Minister of State has asked me to reply on behalf of The Insolvency Service.
PricewaterhouseCoopers have been employed for a period of 3 months (January 2009 - March 2009) to undertake an Equal Pay Review and Pay Review of The Insolvency Service's pay and reward system. The cost is £58,000.
Departmental Data Protection
Paul Holmes: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many members of staff in his Department have been (a) investigated, (b) suspended and (c) dismissed for losing (i) memory sticks, (ii) laptop computers, (iii) desktop computers and (iv) mobile telephones belonging to his Department in each year since 1997. [248248]
Mr. McFadden: There have been five investigations into the circumstances in which the items in question were lost or stolen. No staff have been suspended or dismissed as a result.
Departmental Internet
Mr. Rob Wilson: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform if he will place in the Library a copy of each contract his Department has commissioned with external companies to deliver public services provided by his Department over high speed broadband internet connections. [262769]
Mr. McFadden: The Department has not commissioned or contracted with external companies to deliver high speed broadband for the provision of its public services.
Departmental Postal Services
Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many and what percentage of letters sent by his Department were given to (a) the Royal Mail and (b) another postal services provider for delivery in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement. [259971]
Mr. McFadden: During the 12-month period up to the end of January 2009, BERR sent 100 per cent. of its external UK letters (approximately 48,000 items) via Royal Mail from its central London buildings. These figures include mail from DIUS who share our building at Kingsgate House, Victoria Street. Information on items sent from BERR offices outside of central London is not available centrally.
Departmental Recruitment
Justine Greening: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform pursuant to the answer of 25 February 2009, Official Report, columns 832-3W, on departmental recruitment, what estimate he has made of the annual salary cost of the new (a) permanent, (b) temporary and (c) agency staff recruited in each year since 2005-06. [264314]
Mr. McFadden: Permanent new recruits are staff employed by the Department on a permanent civil service contract. Temporary new recruits are staff recruited on a short term or fixed term civil service contract.
The annual salary cost of new permanent and temporary staff could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Agency staff are new recruits that have joined the Department but are not on a civil service contract and are employed by a third party. The arrangements for employing agency staff in the Department are delegated locally to line management units. To provide information on their salary costs could therefore be done only at disproportionate cost.
Departmental Translation Services
Mr. Frank Field: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many language translators are employed in each of his Department’s (a) executive agencies and (b) non-Ministerial departments; and what the cost of translating services provided by such people was in the latest period for which information is available. [257153]
Mr. McFadden: This Department’s Executive agencies, Companies House and the Insolvency Service, do not employ language translators.
This Department’s non-ministerial departments are broken down as follows:
Office of Fair Trading spent £12,167 on translation services in 2007-08.
Postcomm, the postal services regulator, does not employ language translators, though as part of its duties under the Welsh Language Scheme it does maintain an arrangement with the Central Office of Information (COI) to provide translation services mainly in response to correspondence submitted in Welsh. These services are estimated to account for no more than £200 per year. In addition, in 2008, Postcomm published a Welsh language version of its annual report and the summary of its Post Office Network Report on its website at a total cost of around £3,500.
Export Credits Guarantee Department does not employ any language translators.
Eco-towns: St Austell
Grant Shapps: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how much the South West Regional Development Agency has allocated to the St. Austell eco-town development; and if he will make a statement. [265285]
Mr. McFadden: The South West Regional Development Agency has not allocated any funding to the proposed St. Austell eco-town development. The South West Regional Development Agency is working with local partners in St. Austell and the surrounding area who are developing a framework for investment in the local economy.
EU Internal Trade
Mr. Byers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what his Department’s latest estimate is of the number of (a) UK nationals employed in other EU member states and (b) citizens of other EU member states employed in the UK under the terms of the EU Posted Workers Directive. [255463]
Mr. McFadden [holding answer 9 February 2009]: The latest figures on the number of EU workers who are employed under the terms of the Posted Workers are for 2006 and are not complete. They do not include postings from Spain to the UK, but the number of postings from the UK to all other EU countries includes postings from the UK to Spain. In addition, because these are the 2006 figures, which is before Bulgaria and Romania joined the EU, there is no information for these countries.
Based on this incomplete information, there are more UK workers posted under the posted workers directive—around 47,000 than other EU nationals posted to the UK—around 37,000.
We also have other estimates on the numbers of people working in other countries from the OECD and Eurostat.
The latest data from Eurostat shows that in 2007, around 3.4 per cent. of total UK employment was accounted for by nationals from the other EU-27 countries including 1.8 per cent. from the other EU-15 countries. This equates to just under 1 million EU-27 (excluding the UK) nationals and around 527,000 EU-15 (excluding the UK) nationals working in the UK.
We do not have the 2007 data for the number of UK workers employed in the EU. However, according to the OECD analysis of the 2000 round of censuses, which are the latest figures available, around 581,000 UK born live in the EU-15 (excluding the UK), of which around 324,000 are employed. Total employment in the EU-15 (excluding the UK) was around 131 million, therefore around 0.2 per cent. of total EU-15 (excluding the UK) employment was accounted for by UK workers.
The 2000 OECD work also showed that around 1.2 million EU-15 (excluding the UK) nationals live in the UK, of which around 602,000 are employed. Total employment in the UK was around 27 million, therefore around 2.3 per cent. of total UK employment was accounted for by nationals from the other EU-15 countries. According to the Labour Force Survey (LFS) for 2000—which is on a slightly different basis(1)—there were around 470,000 EU-15 (excluding the UK) nationals, 1.7 per cent. of the total.
Since the OECD only reports data for its members and these do not include all of the EU member states, statistics for the EU-27 are unavailable.
(1 )The LFS is a based on a sample, whereas the OECD is a census, in addition, the OECD defined its data according to foreign born, while the LFS data presented are defined by nationality.
Members: Correspondence
Sir Michael Spicer: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform when the Minister for Trade plans to reply to the letter from the hon. Member for West Worcestershire of 25 November 2008 on the export of products to India. [256930]
Mr. McFadden [holding answer 23 February 2009]: I responded to the hon. Member on 19 February 2009.
Public Holidays
Dr. Kumar: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform whether the Government plans to establish any additional public holidays. [260940]
Mr. McFadden: The pattern of bank holidays is well established and accepted but we keep suggestions of additional holidays under consideration.
Radio Frequencies
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (1) when the programme making and special events sector was informed that it may not retain access to the ultra high frequency frequencies it currently uses; and whether a decision has been made on which ultra high frequency frequencies the sector may use in future; [263353]
(2) if he will ensure that existing programme making and special events users of ultra high frequency channels to be cleared of these services are provided with adequate replacement spectrum before the digital dividend auctions take place. [263354]
Mr. McFadden: The matters raised are the responsibility of the independent regulator, the Office of Communications (Ofcom), which is accountable to Parliament rather than Ministers. Accordingly, I have asked the chief executive of Ofcom to reply directly to the hon. Member. Copies of the chief executive's letter will be placed in the Libraries of the House.
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