| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
18 May 2009 : Column 1138W—continued
Recycling
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will commission research into the effectiveness of local authorities' recycling schemes; and if he will make a statement. [275449]
Jane Kennedy: Neither DEFRA nor the Waste and Resources Action Programme plans to commission any research into the effectiveness of local authorities' recycling schemes.
Sheep: Lameness
Mr. Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what funding his Department has provided for research into lameness in sheep in each of the last three years; and if he will make a statement. [274926]
Jane Kennedy: DEFRA recognises the severe effect on farmers of lameness in sheep and has produced an advisory booklet on its control. Over the past three years DEFRA has provided funding for two research projects on this subject with a total expenditure of:
2006-07: £196,879
2007-08: £69,891
2008-09: £17,477.
One of the two projects was carried out jointly with the Scottish Executive and industry, and the level of expenditure referred to above represents the DEFRA contribution only.
The Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council has also funded work on this topic.
Waste and Resources Action Programme
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) has paid to the Association of Cities and Regions for Recycling and Sustainable Resource Management since WRAP’s establishment. [275762]
Jane Kennedy: The only payment the Waste and Resources Action Programme has made to the Association of Cities and Regions for Recycling and Sustainable Resource Management is a membership fee of £1,125.
Water Supply
Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what discussions he has had with South East Water on (a) its plans to reduce leakage and (b) its proposal for a reservoir to increase water capacity. [276302]
Huw Irranca-Davies: Ofwat sets the water companies targets to reduce their leakage to the Economic Level of Leakage (ELL), the level of leakage at which it would cost more for a water company to further reduce its leakage than to produce water from an alternative source. South East Water has met its leakage targets since 2002 and is currently operating at the ELL. Since 1997, total leakage has been reduced by 30 per cent. in South East Water's area of supply.
The Secretary of State will shortly be making a decision on how preparation of the water resource management plan, which includes proposals for a reservoir near Ringmer, should proceed. Ministers have not met directly with South East Water to discuss its plan, although officials, especially at the Environment Agency, have done so.
Leader of the House
Members: Allowances
John Mann: To ask the Leader of the House how many current hon. Members have redesignated their main home for the purposes of the additional costs allowance on three or more occasions. [276044]
Chris Bryant: It is not possible to provide this information without going through each individual Member's paper records as the information as requested is not held electronically and nomination forms, indicating where a main and second home are located, were only required from 2003 onwards.
The answer could therefore be provided only at disproportionate cost.
John Mann: To ask the Leader of the House how many hon. Members have redesignated their main home for the purposes of the additional costs allowance since 3 July 2008. [276056]
Chris Bryant: 10 hon. Members have redesignated which of their homes is their main and which is their second home since 3 July 2008.
John Mann: To ask the Leader of the House how many hon. Members submitted claims for reimbursement of mortgage payments on homes outside London under the additional costs allowance in the last 12 months. [276057]
Chris Bryant: 134 Members currently claim costs for homes that are outside London. Of these, 95 have claimed reimbursement of mortgage interest payments.
Mr. Dai Davies: To ask the Leader of the House into which budget moneys paid back to the Fees Office by hon. Members relating to their expenses and allowances claims are paid. [276304]
Chris Bryant: All repayments will be credited to the House of Commons: Members Estimate.
Northern Ireland
Civil Service Agencies: Employment
Dr. Alasdair McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what procedures his Department has in place to monitor compliance by its agencies with procedures on employment matters stipulated by the Civil Service Handbook; and how many cases of (a) unfair dismissal and (b) suspension have been upheld against the Youth Justice Agency by employment tribunals in each of the last three years. [273981]
Paul Goggins: There are personnel service agreements between the various agencies and personnel services division which set out the agreed working arrangements on personnel matters. In addition all recommendations for dismissal must be submitted to the establishment officer, DFP, who has responsibility for termination of employment. There have been no cases of (a) unfair dismissal or (b) suspension upheld against the Youth Justice Agency by employment tribunals in any of the last three years.
Departmental Complaints
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what procedure his Department follows for dealing with complaints received (a) by e-mail, (b) by post, (c) by telephone and (d) via his Department’s website. [274519]
Paul Goggins: The Northern Ireland Office’s complaints procedure is fully documented on the website at:
The procedure covers complaints by telephone or in writing by letter or e-mail.
The facility to make a complaint via the website is not available.
Departmental Pay
Mr. Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much (a) his Department and (b) its agencies paid in end-of-year performance bonuses to (i) all staff and (ii) senior Civil Service staff in 2008-09; and how many such payments were made. [275249]
Paul Goggins: Non-consolidated performance payments for Northern Ireland Office senior civil servants (SCS) are distributed in line with Cabinet Office guidance. The size of the consolidated performance pot is based on recommendations of the independent senior salaries review body. In 2008, 42 members of the SCS received end of year performance payment totalling £371,200 which is 8.6 per cent. of the pay bill. In line with current economic conditions the SCS non-consolidated performance payment pot for 2008-09 has been frozen.
Non-consolidated performance payments for staff below the SCS have been awarded to 20 per cent. of staff who are considered to meet the criteria for an award. In 2008, 367 staff received an end year performance payment totalling £292,675 which is 0.54 per cent. of the pay bill. Awards to be made in respect of 2008-09 remain at 0.54 per cent. and are funded within existing pay bill controls, have to be earned each year against pre-determined targets and as such do not add to future pay bill costs. The award of performance payments help drive high performance.
Departmental Training
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much his Department has spent on IT training for its staff in each of the last five years. [274224]
Mr. Woodward: The following table shows expenditure on IT training for its staff by the Northern Ireland Office, excluding its agencies and Executive NDPBs, in each of the last five years:
| IT training (£000) | |
| (1 )Not yet available | |
Prime Minister
Departmental Responsibilities
Mr. Kidney: To ask the Prime Minister which (a) Minister and (b) civil servant has cross-departmental responsibility for the promotion of sustainable development in respect of public sector procurement policy. [272304]
Angela Eagle: I have been asked to reply.
There are three pillars of sustainable development: environmental; social; and economic.
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary for the Cabinet Office (Mr. Watson) has responsibility for the promotion of the environmental elements of sustainable development in departments' procurement activities and the operation of their estates.
I, as Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury, have responsibility for all other aspects of Central Government procurement policy, including the promotion of the social and economic elements of sustainable development in departments’ procurement activities.
The Secretary of State for the Environment (Hilary Benn) is responsible for policy on sustainable development in Government and sustainable products. He is also responsible for the sustainability policy underpinning Government's sustainable procurement commitments, with input from procurement experts in the Office of Government Commerce and other relevant organisations.
The Chief Sustainability and Operating Officer (William Jordan) is the civil servant responsible for working with Departments to ensure that the Government’s sustainable
operations on the Government Estate targets are met and that its sustainable procurement action plan is implemented. He reports to the Parliamentary Under-Secretary for the Cabinet Office on his work.
The Chief Executive of OGC (Nigel Smith) is the civil servant responsible for all other aspects of Central Government procurement (including the promotion of social and economic elements of sustainable development). He reports to the Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury.
Within central Government Departments, from 2008-09 all Permanent Secretaries’ responsibility for improving sustainability has been highlighted in their personal objectives.
Scotland
Departmental Complaints
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what procedure his Department follows for dealing with complaints received (a) by e-mail, (b) by post, (c) by telephone and (d) via his Department's website. [274518]
Ann McKechin: Complaints to the Scotland Office, where they cannot be resolved immediately, whether face-to-face or on the telephone or in writing, are allocated to a senior member of staff. Their responsibility is to investigate and provide a full reply in writing within 10 days of receipt of the complaint. Where it proves impossible to provide a full reply within 10 days, an interim reply is sent explaining the need for more time and indicating when the full reply will be sent. Details of the complaints procedure will shortly be posted on the Scotland Office's internet site, which is currently in the process of being updated.
Departmental Drinking Water
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how much his Department has spent on bottled water in each of the last five years. [275700]
Ann McKechin: The Scotland Office spent the following on bottled water, for water coolers in its premises in London and Edinburgh:
| Cost (£) | |
These figures do not include any bottles of water that may have been supplied for ministerial hospitality events, as they would have been subsumed within suppliers’ overall invoices and not recorded separately.
Departmental Furniture
Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how much his Department spent on furniture in each of the last five years. [273748]
Ann McKechin: The combined Scotland Office and Office of the Advocate-General expenditure on furniture for departmental buildings in the last five years is as follows:
| Cost (£) | |
Departmental Internet
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how much his Department has spent on the maintenance of its website in each year since 1997. [275701]
Ann McKechin: The Scotland Office only came in to existence on 1 July 1999. We do not hold a separate record of the cost of maintaining the Scotland Office website for the period 1999 to 2007.
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 19 November 2008, Official Report, column 471W, to the hon. Member for North-East Hertfordshire (Mr. Heald) for the latest period for which figures are available.
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |