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15 Jun 2009 : Column 8W—continued
Police Service of Northern Ireland
Mr. Donaldson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many officers who (a) retired and (b) resigned from the Police Service of Northern Ireland in each of the last three years retained a personal protection weapon. [280027]
Paul Goggins: That is an operational matter for the Chief Constable. I have asked him to reply directly to the right hon. Member, and a copy of his letter will be placed in the Library of the House.
Prisoners: Basic Skills
Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the estimated (a) numeracy and (b) literacy rate was among prisoners in Northern Ireland in each of the last five years. [277259]
Paul Goggins: The following tables provide a breakdown of the assessed levels of numeracy and literacy rates among prisoners in Northern Ireland in each of the last five financial years and the current financial year up to 31 May.
| Numeracy | ||||||
| Financial year | Below entry level | Entry Level 1 | Entry level 2 | Entry level 3 | Level 1 plus above | Total number of assessments |
| Literacy | ||||||
| Financial year | Below entry level | Entry Level 1 | Entry level 2 | Entry level 3 | Level 1 plus above | Total number of assessments |
Scotland
Departmental Plants
Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how much his Department spent on pot plants in (a) 2007-08 and (b) 2008-09. [280021]
Ann McKechin: The Scotland Office have incurred no expenditure on pot plants in either 2007-08 or 2008-09.
Transport
Aviation
Mr. Dai Davies: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport for what reasons data collected in in-flight flight recorders are not transmitted in real time to (a) the Civil Aviation Authority and (b) air traffic control regulators; and what research has been undertaken into encryption of such data. [279352]
Paul Clark: Cockpit voice recordings are not transmitted in real time because of the need to ensure data security. There is a potential for unscrupulous surveillance and interventions, which are capable of compromising the data. There is currently no internationally accepted method available for the encryption of these recordings, although industry-led research is under way.
The limiting factors for the transmission of flight data recordings are the technical and financial challenge of fitting appropriate equipment to the aircraft and the development of the necessary satellite bandwidth.
Aviation: Safety
Mrs. Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport whether his Department issued any guidance in relation to A330 aircraft following the warning by the US Federal Aviation Administration in 2001 that unreliable air speed may be caused by a random destruction or obstructed pitots in relation to that aircraft. [279135]
Paul Clark: Civil aviation safety in the UK is regulated by independent aviation safety regulators: the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA). As such the Department for Transport does not itself issue guidance. In July 2001, the Federal Aviation Administration issued an Airworthiness Directive (AD) related to a potential unsafe condition associated with unreliable airspeed indication. The AD was issued in order to mandate action for Airbus A330 aircraft registered in the US, which had already been taken in Europe by France as the State of Design for that aircraft. The French Directorate General of Civil Aviation recognised a potential safety problem and issued two ADs on the Airbus A330 in February 2001 The UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) made the ADs mandatory in the UK at that time.
Bus Services: Standards
John McDonnell: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how many bus drivers were examined under the driver quality monitoring scheme in 2008-09; and how many of them were found to be unacceptable with (a) serious faults and (b) dangerous faults. [279529]
Paul Clark [holding answer 12 June 2009]: The following table shows the number of driver quality monitoring (DQM) assessments conducted by the Driving Standards Agency in 2008-09.
| 2008-09 | |
| Number | |
Assessment data is reported back to the client on the next day for potential remedial action. For assessments recording dangerous faults, the bus company is notified on the day of the assessment. In all cases, the client is responsible for any further action.
Departmental Data Protection
James Brokenshire: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how many officials in (a) his Department and (b) its agencies have been (i) disciplined and (ii) dismissed for (A) breaches of data protection requirements and (B) inappropriate use of personal or sensitive data in the last 12 months. [278750]
Chris Mole: There have been fewer than five occurrences of (i) disciplinary action or (ii) dismissal for (A) breaches of data protection requirements and (B) inappropriate use of personal or sensitive data during the last 12 months. As there have been less than five such occurrences, further information is withheld on grounds of confidentiality.
Information is a key asset to government, and its correct handling is vital to the delivery of public services and to the integrity of Her Majesty's Government. The Security Policy Framework and the Data Handling Report produced by the Cabinet Office provide a strategic framework for protecting information that government handles and put in place a set of mandatory measures which Departments must adhere to.
Departmental Exhaust Emissions
Mrs. Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what estimate he has made of the volume of carbon dioxide emissions arising from official journeys made by his Department's employees in the last five years. [279580]
Chris Mole: The Department for Transport has collected data on carbon dioxide emissions resulting from road, rail and air travel since 2005.
The volume of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions arising from official journeys is estimated as follows:
2005-06: 11.6 million tonnes of CO2
2006-07: 11.2 million tonnes of CO2
2007-08: 11.1 million tonnes of CO2
The figures are calculated from Sustainable Operations on the Government Estate (SOGE) returns. SOGE for 2008-09 is due for completion by 31 July 2009, so carbon emission figures for that year will be calculated by September.
Departmental Taxis
Mrs. Villiers: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what expenditure his Department incurred on taxis in each of the last two years. [278229]
Chris Mole: The Department for Transport (central) and three of its agencies, Driving Standards Agency, Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency and Vehicle Certification Agency spent the amounts in the following table on taxis in the last two years.
| £ | ||
| 2007-08 | 2008-09 | |
The Department's other four agencies, Government Car and Despatch Agency, Highways Agency, Maritime and Coastguard Agency and Vehicle Operator Services Agency do not record taxi fares separately from other travel costs and could provide the information only at disproportionate cost.
Driving Tests: Motorcycles
Mrs. Ellman: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what assessment he has made of the adequacy of provision of sites for Module One motorcycle tests; and if he will make a statement. [279300]
Paul Clark [holding answer 12 June 2009]: The number of sites providing the Module One (Off Road) Motorcycle Test is detailed in the following table:
| Site Category | Number of Sites |
|
Vehicle and Operator Services Agency sites (weekend testing only) | |
This means that 88 per cent. of the population are within 45 minutes travelling time or 20 miles of an off-road facility. The Driving Standards Agency is continuing to search for additional sites to further improve coverage.
Driving: Licensing
Mr. Goodwill: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport on how many occasions in each of the last three years for which information is available GPs or other medical practitioners have disclosed information to the medical adviser of the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency about licence holders of (a) passenger service vehicles, (b) large goods vehicles and (c) cars and other light vehicles. [279292]
Paul Clark [holding answer 12 June 2009]: The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency seeks disclosure of medical reports from GPs and consultants where a driver has notified a medical condition that may affect their ability to drive. The number of such reports received during the last year are shown as follows categorised as ordinary (car/bike) and vocational (lorry/bus) entitlement.
| Number | |
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