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24 Apr 2009 : Column 978W—continued
Ann McKechin: The Scotland Office shares an information and communications technology system (SCOTS) with the Scottish Executive which is responsible for the development, administration, and maintenance of the system including the provision of hardware. The Scottish Executive is complying with the same standards as those set out in the Greening Government ICT Strategy.
The Office has a total of 55 printers, of which 25 (45 per cent.) are enabled for double sided printing. As and when printers in the Office reach the end of their life or they become economically unviable to repair they will be replaced by duplex printers. The Office does not have any multi-function devices.
Jenny Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland 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. [269637]
Ann McKechin: The Scotland Office shares an information and communications technology system (SCOTS) with the Scottish Executive which is responsible for the development, administration, and maintenance of the system including the provision of hardware. The Scottish Executive is complying with the same standards as those set out in the Greening Government ICT Strategy.
All “Office Machinery” items that are supplied—PC, Monitor, Laptop, Laser Printers and MFDs all meet the best practice Government Buy Sustainable-Quick Win standard.
Solicitor-General
Corruption
Mr. Djanogly: To ask the Solicitor-General which authorities have powers to bring prosecutions for offences related to bribery. [270956]
The Solicitor-General: There is a common law offence of bribery which can be prosecuted by any of the relevant prosecuting authorities. In practice, prosecutions for bribery in England and Wales are brought by one or other of these prosecuting authorities under the Public Bodies Corrupt Practices Act 1889 or the Prevention of Corruption Act 1906 with the consent of the Attorney-General.
The Crown Prosecution Service is responsible for prosecuting offences investigated by the police in England and Wales. The Serious Fraud Office is responsible for investigating and prosecuting cases relating to serious or complex fraud in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, which includes offences of domestic and overseas bribery.
However, under the law of England and Wales there remains a general power to bring a private prosecution for any offence, subject to any specific statutory provision to the contrary. This means that it would in theory be possible for another authority to bring a prosecution
for bribery, if the offence related to the authority’s discharge of its public functions and the necessary consent of the Attorney-General had been obtained.
Transport
British Airways
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many former senior officials from his Department have been employed by British Airways upon leaving the Department in each of the last 10 years; and if he will make a statement. [269845]
Mr. Hoon: The Department does not maintain a central record of where senior officials go to work when they leave the Department. All senior officials leaving the Department are reminded of their obligation under the Business Appointment Rules to seek permission before accepting an outside appointment within two years of leaving Crown Service.
Driving: Licensing
Mr. Maude: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many photo card driving licences issued since 1998, where the driver is still alive and eligible to drive, have not been renewed upon expiration. [269916]
Jim Fitzpatrick: The requirement to renew a photograph on a driving licence became operational in July 2008. As of 2 April 2009, the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency have issued reminders to 295,441 drivers' whose photographs have now expired, of whom 66,258 have not, as yet, renewed them.
Dunsfold Aerodrome
Anne Milton: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what (a) controls and (b) restrictions apply to flights from the Dunsfold Aerodrome site in Surrey. [270050]
Jim Fitzpatrick: Controls and restrictions on the operation of Dunsfold airfield are matters for the local planning authority and the airfield operator.
Heathrow Airport
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what guidance his Department (a) has issued during the last two years and (b) plans to issue within the next year on security at Heathrow Airport; and if he will make a statement. [269843]
Jim Fitzpatrick: Security guidance is issued to the aviation industry in the UK as a whole, and is revised and updated as necessary to reflect the changing nature of the threat.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent reports he has received on the effectiveness of the operation of Heathrow Terminal 5; what recent discussions he has had with British Airways on the issue; and if he will make a statement. [269844]
Jim Fitzpatrick: My right hon. Friend has not had any recent discussions with British Airways on this issue.
BAA provides information on performance at Heathrow against service quality targets set by the Civil Aviation Authority. The most recent report for Terminal 5 stated that in March 2009 BAA met or exceeded the majority of its targets, reducing the length of waiting at security search such that queue times were less than five minutes for over 96 per cent. of the time.
Mr. Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) whether consideration was given to civilian use of RAF Northolt as an alternative to a third runway at Heathrow airport; [270393]
(2) what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Defence on the expansion of Heathrow airport. [270394]
Jim Fitzpatrick: The 2003 “Future of Air Transport” White Paper considered options for using RAF Northolt as a satellite runway of Heathrow, but rejected this in favour of other development options, including adding a third runway at Heathrow. The proposals in the “Adding Capacity at Heathrow Airport” consultation document (November 2007), which explicitly acknowledged the potential implications for RAF Northolt, were drawn up in consultation with the Ministry of Defence, and my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence was similarly consulted prior to the Heathrow decisions announced to Parliament on 15 January.
Motor Vehicles: Registration
Margaret Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate he has made of the number of vehicles from EU accession states on the road in the UK which have no tax or motor insurance; what steps he is taking to ensure that such vehicles are on the road legally; and if he will make a statement. [271490]
Jim Fitzpatrick: Foreign registered vehicles temporarily brought into the UK by overseas residents are usually exempt from UK registration and licensing under the Motor Vehicles (International Circulation) Order 1975. The exemptions state that a vehicle which is properly registered and taxed in its home country may be used by a visitor for up to six months in any 12 without being subject to domestic registration and licensing. Data relating to the total number of vehicles entering the UK from EU accession states are not collected.
Roads: Accidents
Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions his Department has had with representatives of (a) Dorset county council and (b) each other county council on progress towards meeting road accident reduction targets for 2010 in respect of (i) adults and (ii) children killed and seriously injured. [271033]
Jim Fitzpatrick:
In-depth local discussions take place between local authorities, including Dorset county council, and regional Government office officials as part of their
ongoing bilateral discussions on Local Area Agreements and progress against authorities' Local Transport Plans (LTP).
As part of the Department for Transport's process for reviewing Local Transport Plan progress, all LTP areas recently produced Local Transport Plan Progress Reports at the end of 2008, covering the period 2006-08. Local authorities met with their Government office to discuss their progress and identify future challenges. Progress reviews focus on what has been achieved across the key themes, such as road safety, which is one of the four LTP shared priorities. Letters relating to progress, including for the two LTPs that Dorset county council are involved in, are published on the Department's website:
The Department has a number of projects and activities that seek to support local highway authorities and their partners to address local road safety issues to assist in meeting casualty reduction targets for 2010. As part of these, discussions have taken place with Dorset county council and a very large number of other local authorities.
Speed Limits: Cameras
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will investigate the effects of the signage of average speed check cameras on the A127 between Basildon and Southend on (a) the number of speeding offences on the road, (b) the number of cars using the road and (c) road user awareness of the cameras. [271234]
Jim Fitzpatrick: The Department has no plans to investigate the effects of the signage of average speed cameras on the A127 as signing is entirely the responsibility of the local traffic authority. Evidence shows that average speed cameras have major casualty reduction benefits. The Department will work to promote good evaluation of the latest generation of these cameras and share the results with road safety stakeholders.
Treasury
Bank Notes
Michael Fabricant: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will replace the £1 coin with a £1 note; and what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of using a long-life plastic money note. [270081]
Ian Pearson: The Bank of England has no plans to reintroduce the £1 note.
In 1984, when the £1 paper note was replaced with a coin, the average life of £1 notes was nine months. While there is evidence that polymer notes last longer than paper notes, the cost of production would be greater and there would likely be switching costs incurred across the economy.
Bank Services
Danny Alexander:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will take steps to enforce compliance by banks and building societies with regulations to
treat customers fairly in respect of differential interest rates for new and existing individual savings account holders. [270000]
Ian Pearson: The matters raised in this question are the responsibility of the Financial Services Authority (FSA), whose day to day operations are independent from Government control and influence. I have asked the FSA to write to the hon. Member.
Civil Servants: Pensions
Mr. Maude: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 3 March 2009, Official Report, columns 1447-8W, on civil servants: pensions, how many individuals have pension funds invested in (a) Standard Life and (b) Scottish Widows with-profit funds according to records held by the Financial Services Authority. [269941]
Ian Pearson: The matter raised in this question is the responsibility of the Financial Services Authority, whose day-to-day operations are independent from Government control and influence. I have asked the FSA to write to the hon. Member.
Departmental Assets
Bob Spink: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when his Department last reviewed its assets and land and property holdings with a view to identifying and disposing of surpluses. [269854]
Ian Pearson: The Treasury Group published its Asset Management strategy for the Comprehensive Spending Review period in December 2007. It keeps its property holdings under continuous review in order to respond to changing departmental accommodation requirements. As a result, a small area of some of 574 square metres of surplus space in the Leeds office is currently being marketed actively. In addition, HM Treasury is currently undertaking a feasibility study into further efficiencies in building use in central London.
Departmental Consultants
Dr. Cable: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many consultants were employed by his Department and its agencies in 2008-09; how much was spent on them; and if he will make a statement. [270022]
Angela Eagle: Details of spending on consultants for the Treasury, Debt Management Office and the Office of Government Commerce for 2008-09 will be shown in the Treasury's Annual Report and Accounts 2008-09, due for publication in the summer, following the audit by the Comptroller and Auditor General. The Treasury does not hold a central record of the number of consultants employed and the information could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Departmental Secondment
Dr. Cable: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many members of staff from his Department and its agencies were seconded to (a) other Government Departments and (b) external organisations in 2008-09; and if he will make a statement. [270021]
Angela Eagle: The following table shows the number of members of staff from HM Treasury and its agencies who undertook a secondment between 1 April 2008 and 31 March 2009 in other Government Departments and external organisations.
| Number of staff | ||
| Secondees to other Departments | Secondees to external organisations | |
Departmental Sick Leave
Dr. Cable: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many staff days were lost as a result of sick leave from his Department in each of the last five financial years; and if he will make a statement. [270019]
Ian Pearson: Sickness absence data for all central Government Departments since 2003 to 2007 have been published annually by the Cabinet Office at:
This represents a four year period with the fourth year being for the financial year 1 April 2006 to 31 March 2007.
From 1 April 2007 arrangements changed and it became the responsibility of Departments to produce sickness data and the Cabinet Office has published a combined departmental quarterly report. This is available on:
In respect of the fifth financial year in question, 2007-08, 5,507 sickness days in respect of HMT were included within the Cabinet Office figures for the four quarters within the financial year, representing an average of 4.7 days sickness absence for each employee.
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