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3 Jun 2009 : Column 485W—continued
Road Traffic
Mrs. Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much his Department spent on contracts for collecting data on congestion on roads in England in each of the last five years. [276463]
Paul Clark: The following table shows spending by the Department for Transport and the Highways Agency on contracts which wholly or mainly collect and/or process congestion data. It does not include feasibility studies, research or analysis contracts.
| Spending (£000 excl. VAT) | |||||
| Financial year | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 |
Roads: Construction
Mrs. Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport which road building programmes completed in each year since 2005 have affected areas of outstanding natural beauty and sites of special scientific interest. [276460]
Paul Clark: I have today placed in the Libraries of the House tables identifying major road schemes, costing over £5 million, completed by local highway authorities and the Highways Agency since 2005 and where the scheme has affected (1) areas of outstanding natural beauty and (2) sites of special scientific interest.
Speed Limits: Chideock
Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when his Department plans to make a decision on the cases of people wrongly notified of speeding offences as a result of the malfunctioning of the speed camera on the A35 at Chideock following the expiry of the March 2009 deadline for an announcement. [277485]
Paul Clark: The Highways Agency is currently working with the Dorset Safety Camera Partnership regarding speeding offences from a Traffic Regulation Order on the A35 at Chideock in Dorset, found by the courts to be invalid. Any announcement will come from the partnership. The Highways Agency is working closely with them and it is anticipated that a statement will be made shortly.
Wales
Economic and Monetary Union
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what activities have been undertaken by his Department’s Euro Minister in that capacity. [277170]
Mr. Paul Murphy: Euro Ministers are responsible for Euro preparations in their Department and attend Euro Ministers Steering Group meetings. Meetings are held only when necessary to discuss practical preparations to ensure a smooth changeover.
Radioactive Fallout
Mr. Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales whether the proposed amendment to schedule 5 of the Government of Wales Act 2006, as set out in the proposed Legislative Competence (Environment) Order 2009, Cm 7608, will cover land-based radioactive fallout other than at military sites. [276851]
Mr. Paul Murphy: It would enable the National Assembly to legislate on radioactivity in these areas with certain exceptions. The exceptions relate to nuclear energy and nuclear installations, including nuclear safety and liability for nuclear occurrences, (other than the disposal of very low level radioactive waste moved from nuclear licensed sites) and the transport of radioactive material.
Prime Minister
Cabinet: Glasgow
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Prime Minister what the cost was of holding the meeting of the Cabinet in Glasgow on 16 April 2009. [274177]
The Prime Minister: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave the hon. Member for Blaenau Gwent (Mr. Davies) on 7 May 2009, Official Report, column 378W. An additional invoice of £4,788 has been received for the venue.
Domestic Visits: Costs
Mr. Hands: To ask the Prime Minister pursuant to the answer of 21 January 2009, Official Report, column 1429W, on domestic visits: costs, when he expects the information requested to be available. [260394]
The Prime Minister: The information requested is not separately available. However, the costs will be included in the overall Operating Cost Statement of the Cabinet Office Annual Report and Accounts, which will be published in the usual manner before the summer recess.
Ministerial Policy Advisers
Mr. Amess: To ask the Prime Minister who the members of the Special Advisers' Remuneration Committee are; what specialist qualifications each holds; when each was appointed and by whom; where the committee holds its meetings; what the budget of the committee is for (a) office accommodation, (b) staff costs and (c) travel and subsistence in the next 12 months; and if he will make a statement. [270077]
The Prime Minister: The Special Advisers' Remuneration Committee has existed in its current form since 2001. It is chaired by the Leader of the House of Lords, and has as its members a HM Treasury Minister, a Cabinet Office Minister, and a senior Cabinet Office official acting as an Accounting Officer. The Remuneration Committee meetings are held on the Government Estate. The Remuneration Committee incurs no accommodation, travel or subsistence costs. Support, including expertise on remuneration issues, is provided from existing resources within the Cabinet Office.
Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform
British Airways
Mr. Amess: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many officials of each grade from his Department and its predecessor were seconded to work with British Airways in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement. [269849]
Mr. McFadden: Secondments are not managed centrally in the Department as they are delegated locally to line management. The information is not easily available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Business: Government Assistance
Mr. Newmark: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many businesses have received assistance from the Capital for Enterprise Fund; and how much funding has been committed to date. [259008]
Ian Pearson [holding answer 26 February 2009]: As from 20 May 2009, the Capital for Enterprise Fund has made offers totalling round £9 million to eight businesses.
Stewart Hosie: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform when the Capital for Enterprise Scheme began to operate. [261374]
Ian Pearson: The Capital for Enterprise Fund was launched on 14 January 2009, when a registration helpline was set up to manage inquiries and register applications.
Business: South West
Mr. Streeter: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what assistance the South West of England Regional Development Agency is providing to small and medium-sized businesses in the South West region during the recession; and if he will make a statement. [277286]
Mr. McFadden: The South West Regional Development Agency’s activity to support SMEs during the recession involves two key strands:
The South West RDA is an integral part of the South West Regional Economic Task Group (RETG), chaired by the Regional Minister for the South West, which is responsible for co-ordinating the region's overall response to the recession. It leads on work strands focusing on business support, skills and employment, and green economic recovery.
In December 2008 the RDA established a Regional Business Forum to enable regular dialogue with key business representative organisations in the region. It acts as a sounding board for new plans and initiatives and provides business a voice to help shape policy development.
Through its management of South West EU programmes, the RDA is ensuring that over £1 billion of EU and domestic investment from 2007 to 2013 is being targeted at improving the productivity of small and medium-sized businesses in the South West.
The RDA has been working to enhance the support already available through the Government’s Solutions For Business services provided via the Business Link network. Since October 2008, Business Link has provided over 4,350 free Business Health Checks to local SMEs, and developed a Business Survival Guide to help small businesses cope with the downturn and prepare for recovery.
On 14 April the RDA launched its £10 million business loan fund which offers viable businesses with growth potential loans of up to £250,000. This augments the financial support available through the Government’s Real Help for Business support package launched earlier this year.
The RDA organised eight workshops in April and May which provided 500 businesses in the region with advice, guidance and networking opportunities.
In November 2008 the RDA established eight Area Action Forces across the region to co-ordinate the public sector response to individual businesses in difficulty.
Departmental Disciplinary Proceedings
Mr. Paul Goodman: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many officials in his Department are suspended; how many are suspended on full pay; for how long each has been suspended; and what the reasons are for each such suspension. [270523]
Mr. McFadden: There are less than five current suspensions in the Department. The detailed information requested could lead to the identification of individuals and therefore cannot be provided for reasons of confidentiality.
Departmental Dismissal
Chris Huhne: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many members of staff in his Department and its agencies were dismissed (a) for under-performance and (b) in total in each of the last 10 years. [274184]
Mr. McFadden: The information is as follows.
| Number of staff dismissed | |
Information for earlier years is not available.
The total number of staff dismissed for reasons of under-performance, including both capability and attendance over the period 2002-08 inclusive is 25. A breakdown by individual year cannot be provided on the grounds of confidentiality.
I have asked the Chief Executives of Companies House and Insolvency Service to provide separate data for the respective agencies.
Letter from Gareth Jones, dated 3 June 2009:
I am replying on behalf of Companies House to your Parliamentary Question tabled on 6 May 2009, UIN 274184, to the Minister of State for Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform.
Companies House only has computer records of dismissals from 2004 onwards. The cost of obtaining information for previous years would be disproportionate.
There have been no dismissals for under performance since 2004. The total number of dismissals is as follows:
| Number | |
Letter from Stephen Speed, dated 3 June 2009:
The Minister of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform has asked me to reply to you directly in respect of your question (2008/2880) asking how many member of staff in his Department and its agencies were dismissed (a) for under-performance and (b) in total in each of the last 10 years.
The numbers of dismissals within The Insolvency Service are shown in the table below:
The figures shown for under-performance include dismissals due to unsatisfactory attendance:
| Dismissals for under-performance | Total number of dismissals | |
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