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13 July 2009 : Column 80Wcontinued
Lembit Öpik: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what research has been carried out by his Department on the merits of installing A-rated circulator pumps in public sector buildings. [285066]
Ian Pearson: The Treasury has not carried out any research on this subject. The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs' market transformation programme undertakes research into the environmental impact of products. The Department for Communities and Local Government is currently consulting on introducing efficiency standards for circulator pumps under building regulations.
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will place in the Library a copy of the Valuation Office Agency form VO6403 used for the 2010 business rates revaluation. [283840]
Mr. Timms: This form is not specifically used for the 2010 business rates revaluation and has a limited application. I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Member for Brentwood and Ongar (Mr. Pickles) on 19 March 2008, Official Report, column 1216W, when form VO6403 was placed in the Library.
A full list of forms used to request information from ratepayers for the revaluation is published on the Valuation Office Agency website at:
http://www.voa.gov.uk/business_rates/List-of-Forms-Requesting -Information.htm
Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the odds of winning a minimum prize with a £500 Premium Bond holding were in (a) 1992, (b) 1997, (c) 2001, (d) 2005 and (e) 2009. [284297]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: NS&I publishes details of the current odds of winning prizes on premium bonds on their website at:
In 1992, the odds(1) of winning a minimum prize with a £500 premium bond holding were 1 in 23.
In 1997, in January and February, the odds were 1 in 44; in March, 1 in 45; in April, 1 in 46; in May 1 in 47; and between June and December, 1 in 39.
In 2001 the odds were 1 in 41; in 2005 1 in 49; and in 2009 are 1 in 73.
The interest rate and the value of eligible funds invested in premium bonds provides a total prize pool. NS&I then look at two variables to determine the prize draw structure based (i) on the odds; and (ii) the number of prizes allocated to each value prize band.
These variables are determined based on keeping the number and value of prizes at a favourable level for premium bond holders within the constraints of the interest rate and value invested.
(1) Rounded to the nearest whole number.
Tony Baldry: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the Prime Minister's answer of 1 July 2009, Official Report, column 294, what the change in total spending will be between 2012-13 and 2013-14. [284606]
Mr. Byrne: Budget 2009 set the Government's spending assumptions beyond the CSR period, from 2011-12 to 2013-14.
Table C4 in Budget 2009 (page 226) shows projected public sector current expenditure and public sector net investment from 2011-12 to 2013-14.
Mr. Sanders: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make it his policy to hold public consultations on proposed changes to his Department's policy on levels of public debt. [283821]
Mr. Byrne: The Government publish their economic and fiscal forecast, including their forecast of the public sector net debt, twice a year in the pre-Budget report and the Budget.
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what timetable has been set for the closure of the HM Revenue and Customs office in Chorley. [285007]
Mr. Timms: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave on 5 February 2009, Official Report, column 1398W. The position has not changed.
Lembit Öpik: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what tax incentives there are for the installation of energy-efficient circulator pumps in (a) domestic and (b) non-domestic properties. [285065]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: Two energy-efficient circulator models are supported through the Government's flagship household energy efficiency policy, the carbon emissions reduction target.
Energy efficiency measures for households are also supported by a reduced rate of VAT for the professional installation of certain energy saving products, including "hot water system controls" and "central heating system controls". Where circulator pumps fall within this description they will be eligible for the reduced rate.
Mr. Austin Mitchell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much in tax liability was set off against company borrowing in (a) 2004-05, (b) 2005-06, (c) 2006-07, (d) 2007-08 and (e) 2008-09. [285735]
Mr. Timms: The information requested is not available.
Mr. Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for North West Leicestershire of 5 May 2009, Official Report, columns 68-69W, on HM Prison Ashwell, if he will place in the Library a copy of the representations from the Prison Officers' Association on the recent disturbances at HM Prison Ashwell. [274146]
Mr. Straw: With the permission of the national chairman of the Prison Officers' Association I have placed in the Library a copy of the letter referred to in the answer to my hon. Friend the Member for North-West Leicestershire (David Taylor) of 5 May 2009, Official Report, columns 68-69W.
Of the two issues referred to in the letter, the extension to the deadline for the investigation was agreed to and the meeting took place on 6 May.
Mr. Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many residents in approved premises were (a) charged and (b) convicted of (i) murder, (ii) manslaughter, (iii) rape, (iv) attempted murder and (v) attempted rape in the last year for which figures are available. [285298]
Mr. Straw: The number of residents in approved premises who were (a) charged in 2007-08 and (b) subsequently convicted of the offences specified are in the following tables. The tables are based on the most recent published statistics, the Offender Management Caseload Statistics 2007, in October 2008.
There are 101 approved premises in England and Wales, providing 2,200 bed spaces. Approved premises are used primarily to supervise high risk of harm offenders on release from custody, where supervision can be provided more effectively than if such offenders were dispersed into less suitable accommodation elsewhere in the community. In 2007-08, 14,607 offenders or bailees spent some time in an approved premises.
Approved premises residents 'charged' with murder, attempted murder, manslaughter, rape and attempted rape, 1 April 2007 to 31 March 2008 | |
Serious violent offence description | England and Wales notifications |
Approved premises residents ' convicted' of murder, attempted murder, manslaughter, rape and attempted rape, 1 April 2007 to 31 March 2008 | |
Serious violent offence description | England and Wales notifications |
Mr. Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many applicants to the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme have died while awaiting (a) a decision, (b) the outcome of a review and (c) the outcome of an appeal against a decision in each of the last five years. [285269]
Mr. Straw: The Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority, which administers the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme, currently does not record this information. However, work is ongoing in the authority in relation to the recording of cases where the applicant dies while the application is live, and which will enable the recording of these cases in the future.
CICA has made significant improvements in the average time it takes to reach decisions on cases: from an average of 14 months in 2006-07 for first decisions to an
average of 9.3 months in the current financial year to end of June 2009. The average time taken to conclude a review of a case has almost halved in the same period, from an average of 11.2 months in 2006-07 to 5.9 months in the current financial year to end of June 2009. These improvements of themselves should reduce the number of cases where the applicant dies before a decision is made.
Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many bodies of persons who died in the last 10 years in England and Wales remain unidentified. [285002]
Bridget Prentice: Where a deceased person cannot be identified the body must be disposed of by the local authority in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Public Health (Control of Disease) Act 1984, either by burial or cremation. Central records of such disposals are not kept.
Mr. Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice when his Department plans to update its web browsers from Internet Explorer 6. [285031]
Mr. Wills: The Department has commenced the upgrade of Internet Explorer from version 6 to version 7. Internet Explorer 6 is still supported by Microsoft, and the upgrade to version 7 is planned to be completed prior to Microsoft ceasing to support Internet Explorer 6.
With respect to individual business areas, the upgrade from version 6 to version 7 has commenced in the HQ areas of the former Department for Constitutional Affairs (DCA). This will be completed by the end of October 2009. Approximately 1,800 PCs within the Legal Services Commission (LSC) will be upgraded by the end of March 2010, bringing all their computers up to version 7. Plans to upgrade Her Majesty's Courts Service are currently being considered. Meanwhile, staff will continue to use the Microsoft supported Internet Explorer version 6.
Within the National Offender Management Service (NOMS), version 6 of Internet Explorer is being deployed to staff within the probation service on the OMNI network as part of their contractual agreement with their IT supplier. They are considering the upgrade path to Internet Explorer 7, as part of the wider strategy of convergence of the infrastructure.
For staff within Her Majesty's Prison Service, an exercise is under way to upgrade from version 6 to version 7 as part of the Quantum Infrastructure Improvement Programme. This exercise is currently in the planning stage and work is under way to validate this plan which currently anticipates the main deployment of version 7 taking place between mid-2010 and 2011. Tactical upgrades may occur as required.
NOMS staff that use the NOMSnet service (primarily regional offender managers) are already operating at version 7.
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many employees of his Department have been posted to work in offices of hon. Members of each political party in each of the last five years. [284889]
Mr. Straw: Civil servants are required to act in accordance with the requirements of the Civil Service Code. There are no records of any civil servant from the Ministry of Justice being posted to the political offices of Members of Parliament.
Civil servants may shadow MPs as part of a programme run by the Industry and Parliament Trust. However details on numbers of civil servants from this department that have had such an attachment cannot be obtained as this information is not held centrally and it would incur disproportionate cost in trying to obtain.
Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will take steps to enable the Information Commissioner's office to reduce the length of time taken for the determination of complaints. [285811]
Mr. Wills: The Ministry of Justice and the Information Commissioner regularly review the resources required for the commissioner to discharge all of his freedom of information responsibilities. For this financial year, the Government have identified additional funding of £500,000 for the Information Commissioner's office's freedom of information work, over and above the baseline funding of £5 million. We are discussing with the office how it can use this additional funding most effectively to reduce the number of outstanding cases.
In addition, the MOJ promoted a scheme last year where secondees from central Government Departments work for the ICO to help clear the freedom of information cases at their home departments' expense. There are currently seven secondees working at the ICO.
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice on how many occasions on which the Parole Board recommended parole it has not been granted in each year since 1997. [285761]
Maria Eagle: The number of prisoners' cases where a recommendation for early release from the Parole Board was turned down for the years 2004-09 is given in the table. All the cases were those of prisoners serving fixed-term sentences of 15 years or more and subject to the release provisions of the Criminal Justice Act 1991. The figures are derived from internal records. We do not have reliable data for previous years.
Number of prisoners | |
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