| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
21 Apr 2009 : Column 559W—continued
Warm Front Scheme
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how much each contractor appointed under the Warm Front scheme has received under the scheme in each of the last three financial years for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement. [267693]
Joan Ruddock: The spreadsheet containing this information contains over 450 lines of data, and I have therefore placed it in the Library of the House.
Warm Front Scheme: Complaints
Greg Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Braintree of 10 March 2009, Official Report, column 410W, on the Warm Front Scheme: Essex, what mechanisms his Department has put in place to record complaints about the Warm Front scheme. [269204]
Joan Ruddock: The Department, and its predecessor DEFRA, has kept a record of all letters and emails it has received about Warm Front since January 2007 using an online correspondence tracking IT system. The total number of cases received by the Department is approximately 1,750. However not all of these cases will necessarily be complaints. DECC has recently put in place mechanisms for recording and monitoring all complaints received.
Warm Front Scheme: Contracts
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many Warm Front heating installations have been completed by Matthew Score over the last eight years; how much was received by Matthew Score for that work; and how much Government grant was provided for the work. [266007]
Joan Ruddock [holding answer 24 March 2009]: Matthew Score is a sub-contractor to Heating Efficiency Systems Ltd., which is contracted to Eaga, the Warm Front Scheme Manager. Eaga does not keep records of the work carried out by sub-contractors or the monetary value to the sub-contractor of that work. This is a matter for the initial contractor, in this instance Heating Efficiency Systems Ltd.
Foreign and Commonwealth Office
British Overseas Territories: Electricity Generation
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs in which British Overseas Territories micro-generation electricity production schemes are in operation. [269498]
Gillian Merron: The following Overseas Territories have micro-generation electricity production schemes: the Falkland Islands, Cayman Islands, South Georgia and Bermuda.
There is limited private use by companies and individuals of renewable energy resources such as wind turbines and solar panels in other territories (Turks and Caicos Islands, St Helena and Pitcairn).
This answer does not include information on Gibraltar.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs which British Overseas Territories have held trials of power generation from (a) wind turbines, (b) solar power stations and (c) tidal and hydroelectric power. [269499]
Gillian Merron: Overseas Territories have held trials of alternative power generation as follows:
Tristan da Cunha has tested a wind turbine.
The Turks and Caicos Islands constructed a wind turbine, however this was destroyed in Hurricane Ike.
St. Helena has an operational wind power generation programme.
The Falkland Islands has an operational wind power generation programme.
South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands have trialled wind power generation.
Bermuda has trialled wind power generation.
Bermuda has trialled solar power stations.
(c) Tidal and hydroelectric power
The Falklands Islands has trialled a micro hydroelectric scheme.
Bermuda has trialled tidal and hydroelectric power generation.
South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands already have an operational hydroelectric power generation programme.
There has been some limited private use of alternative power generation systems in some of the Overseas Territories.
This answer does not include information on Gibraltar.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much electricity is generated from renewable resources in each British Overseas Territory. [269782]
Gillian Merron: The following figures were provided by the following Overseas Territories:
The Falkland Islands generates 24 per cent. of total demand for electricity in Stanley, and 0.6 GWh in the rest of the territory from renewable sources.
South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands have a new hydroelectric scheme supplying 100 per cent. of electricity requirements to all but three of its residents.
St. Helena currently generates approximately 25 MWh per month from wind turbines.
Bermuda generates 2 per cent. of its energy from waste.
The British Virgin Islands, the Turks and Caicos Islands and Montserrat confirmed that they generate no electricity from renewable resources.
There is limited private use of renewable energy resources in Anguilla, the Cayman Islands, Tristan da Cunha and Pitcairn.
This answer does not include information on Gibraltar.
Departmental Buildings
Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what properties his (a) Department and (b) Department's (i) executive agencies and (ii) non-departmental public bodies have sold in each of the last five years; and how many of these have been sold for housing development. [266496]
Gillian Merron: Details of the properties sold by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) have been provided to the Foreign Affairs Committee on a quarterly basis since financial year 2004-05. This information is published in the Committee's annual reports on the FCO's Departmental Report and is available for viewing online on their website at:
The British Council, an Executive non-departmental public body of the FCO, has sold one leasehold property in the UK only in the last five years; the British Council's office in Oxford.
Information on the sale of its overseas properties is not held centrally and can be provided only at disproportionate cost.
None of the FCO's other Executive agencies or non-departmental public bodies have sold property over the last five years.
Information on the subsequent use of properties sold is not held and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Departmental ICT
Jenny Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what estimate he has made of the (a) energy consumed by, (b) energy cost of and (c) carbon dioxide emissions from each category of IT device in each division of his Department in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement. [269537]
Gillian Merron: Detailed estimates of this nature are not available although we have made estimates of the energy costs associated with our security requirement to keep certain equipment running out of hours.
In 2007, power consumption tests based on the range of personal computers (PC) then in use suggested an average daily usage of 1.92 kW per day. This level of consumption would have been broadly constant during the past five years. With the introduction of the new hardware/software, a typical PC would consume approximately 666 W per day. Identifying a cash value based on these figures would incur disproportionate cost, as different tariffs apply in the countries around the world in which the Foreign and Commonwealth Office is represented.
We have recently commissioned IBM to identify our IT-related carbon footprint which will be delivered in June 2009. This will establish a basis for assessing progress made toward reducing emissions as additional measures are implemented, covering the full life of equipment from procurement, through operation, to disposal.
Jenny Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps his Department has taken to address the effect on levels of carbon dioxide emissions from his Department of its ICT purchases since the publication of the Greening Government ICT Strategy; and if he will make a statement. [269562]
Gillian Merron: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has carried out a detailed analysis of the actions needed to achieve full alignment with the Greening Government strategy. On the basis of this, we have drawn up and are implementing a three-year plan to put in place the additional measures identified, covering the full life of ICT equipment from procurement, through operation, to disposal.
With the introduction of Future Firecrest, we have implemented a desktop/monitor power policy and are currently working on the printer policy to incorporate the Greening Government ICT strategy recommendations.
Jenny Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the average server capacity utilisation by each division of his Department was in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement. [269580]
Gillian Merron: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has a distributed IT estate covering over 250 posts worldwide. At present server capacity utilisation is not monitored and with the current tools available this information could only be provided at disproportionate cost.
Jenny Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what estimate has been made of the proportion of personal computers in each of his Department's offices that are turned off (a) overnight, (b) at weekends and (c) during holiday periods; and if he will make a statement. [269598]
Gillian Merron: For security reasons Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) staff are instructed to leave personal computers (PCs) switched on when not in use. There are approximately 12,000 PCs in use in FCO offices around the world. Allowing for exceptions and shared use by shift workers, an estimate of 10,000 machines left on out of office hours is reasonable, but untested.
The Future Firecrest programme is providing new equipment to FCO users worldwide. In addition to being more energy efficient this equipment enables the application of global standby policies which will lead to PC idle power consumption of between 1 per cent. and 3 per cent. of full power. To date approximately 3,500 new machines have been installed in offices in the UK. Under current plans all 12,000 worldwide will have been replaced within the next 12 months.
Jenny Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many (a) printers and (b) multi-function devices with printing functions were in use in each division of his Department in each of the last five years; how many such devices had a function enabling two-sided printing; and if he will make a statement. [269611]
Gillian Merron: Responsibility for the purchase of low value IT equipment is devolved to individual budget holders worldwide. This information is not held centrally and the question could only be answered at disproportionate cost.
However, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office is currently replacing IT equipment both in the UK and around the world. The printers supplied are capable of two-sided printing and will be the default setting when users print material.
Jenny Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many and what proportion of IT products in each category procured for each division of his Department were compliant with the Government's Buy Sustainable-Quick Win standard in the latest year for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement. [269633]
Gillian Merron:
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office is currently replacing its IT infrastructure, and the Future Firecrest programme is delivering a newly designed and procured corporate IT platform. Up until recently the IT products available have not fully met the
Buy Sustainable Quick Win standard, for example the complete elimination of PVC's. Current and future product choices should ensure compliance with this important Government standard.
For completeness, it is important to note that in order to maintain costs at a reasonable level, certain small items of unclassified IT equipment can be procured by posts locally. This expenditure is comparatively low and there is no centrally managed asset database to confirm compliancy. Compiling this information could only be carried out at disproportionate cost.
EU Aid
Mr. Kidney: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much EU grant-aided funding for non-member states there was in 2007. [268796]
Caroline Flint: Official Development Aid payments from the EC Budget of 2007 constituted 5,219 million euros for non-member states. In addition, 3,274 million euros was given under the European Development Fund to countries in Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific.
Immigration: Human Rights
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with ministerial colleagues on (a) human rights abuses in countries from which people undertake enforced migration to the UK and (b) levels of inequality in such countries; and what discussions he has had on measures to reduce levels of enforced migration. [268794]
Bill Rammell: I refer the hon. Member to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's (FCO) 2008 Human Rights Report which gives details on the FCO's engagement with states on human rights issues including with reference to migration.
The UK works with other states, bilaterally and through the EU, to reduce illegal migration, tackle the root causes of forced migration and manage legal migration into the UK.
The FCO 2008 Human Rights report is available for viewing online at:
Israel
Mr. Sarwar: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he plans to meet the new Foreign Minister of Israel to discuss UK-Israel relations. [270254]
Bill Rammell: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary spoke to the Israeli Foreign Minister, Avigdor Lieberman on 3 April 2009. He congratulated Mr. Lieberman on his appointment and emphasised the importance of making swift progress towards a two state solution.
My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary is looking forward to working closely with Israel on achieving this goal and, while there is no meeting date yet agreed, expects to meet his Israeli counterpart soon.
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |