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12 Oct 2009 : Column 396W—continued
Bank Services: Public Consultation
Mr. Maude: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what timetable she has set for consultation on a social investment bank. [287346]
Angela E. Smith: The Social Investment Wholesale Bank consultation, announced in Budget 2009, was launched on Wednesday 15 July. The consultation set out the vision, the economic case, and consulted on proposals for the design and functions of a potential bank. The consultation ran for a 12-week period and ended on 7 October in compliance with the Compact. This consultation will now inform substantive proposals to be developed by the Office of the Third Sector.
Building Britain's Future
Mr. Hands: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many staff maintain the Building Britain's Future (a) website, (b) Twitter feed, (c) blog and (d) video feeds. [290283]
Tessa Jowell: The Building Britain's Future website is maintained by one online editor who is responsible for (a) website, (b) twitter feed and (c) blog. Occasionally and infrequently this individual requires assistance in delivering (d) the video feeds. In these instances additional support is provided by one cameraman and two website development specialists. All of these staff are in-house Cabinet Office employees.
Grant Shapps: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how much the Central Office of Information has spent on acquiring online advertising space for the Building Britain's Future programme. [285142]
Angela E. Smith: I have asked the chief executive of the Central Office of Information to write to the hon. Member.
Letter from Mark Lund, dated 1 October 2009:
As Chief Executive of the Central Office of Information (COI), I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question on how much the Central Office of Information has spent on acquiring online advertising space for the Building Britain's Future programme to date (285142).
The final amount spent on this programme was £190.03.
Capacitybuilders
Mr. Vara: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what recent steps her Department has taken to increase participation rates in the (a) Capacity and (b) Futurebuilders scheme among charitable organisations in the East of England. [289241]
Angela E. Smith:
Capacitybuilders programmes in the East of England are promoted through events, e-bulletins and local consortia of support providers, such as councils for voluntary service. All consortia funded by Capacitybuilders in the region are now assessed as fit for purpose, which includes engaging with frontline groups and marginalised communities. Capacitybuilders
Regional Managers maintain local contacts. A network of five local delivery agencies promoted the Modernisation Fund grants stream through 11 events in the region, newsletters and networks.
Futurebuilders England (FBE) has taken steps to promote the Futurebuilders Fund in the East of England, including at events in Huntingdon and Clacton. Since the start of July, FBE has allocated a dedicated Business Development Officer to engage with the sector within the East of England region.
Capacitybuilders and FBE together are delivering the new £16.5 million Modernisation Fund. This was promoted at the Office of the Third Sector's road show in Cambridge on 8 June 2009, attended by over 60 delegates from the region.
Mr. Hurd: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the criteria are for receiving funds from the Capacitybuilders Campaigning Research Programme. [292097]
Angela E. Smith: The Capacitybuilders Campaigning Research Programme will support organisations to take part in research about third sector campaigning. Criteria for the programme are:
Participants must be third sector organisations
Organisations must be small organisations with limited campaigning capacity
Organisations must be prepared to be involved in action learning (up to 10 days from October 2009 to March 2011)
Represent, support or champion the voice of a marginalised group or seek change on their behalf
Comply with the Charity Commission's guidance on campaigning and political activity
Use campaigning methods which can help the sector learn more about effective campaigning. This may be a campaign
which is already running but could be improved by introducing new or different campaigning methods.
Mr. Hurd: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office which organisations have been shortlisted for funding under the Capacitybuilders Campaigning Research Programme; and to fund what projects and initiatives such applications have been made. [292098]
Angela E. Smith: To date 49 organisations have been short listed for the Capacitybuilders Campaigning Research Programme. This was carried out by a selection panel, made up of third sector experts. The final programme will support around 30 organisations to participate in the research programme. Details of these organisations will be announced shortly, once the final selection process has been completed.
The programme will study, support and fund organisations through an action research programme to identify innovative ways for the third sector to campaign on behalf of disadvantaged people in society.
Capacitybuilders: Staffordshire
Joan Walley: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what progress has been made on funding projects under the Capacitybuilders programme in (a) Stoke-on-Trent and (b) Staffordshire. [289769]
Angela E. Smith: Capacitybuilders is making good progress in investing across Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent. Investments through a range of programmes during 2008-11 are listed in the following table. Note that many grants benefit both Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent. For example, the consortium grants benefit a group of 13 local support providers from across the area, including the rural community council, many councils for voluntary service and specialist bodies for black and minority ethnic and faith groups.
Civil Servants
Mr. Greg Knight: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many foreign nationals who are not Commonwealth or EEA citizens are employed in the civil service and work in positions based in the UK. [281652]
Angela E. Smith: Data relating to the total number of non-EEA and non-Commonwealth nationals employed in the civil service and working in positions based in the UK are not held centrally by the Cabinet Office.
For data relating to the number of non-EEA and non-Commonwealth nationals employed under cover of aliens' certificate I refer the right hon. Member to the
answer given to the hon. Member for Hendon (Mr. Dismore) on 22 July 2009, Official Report, column 700W, on Civil Servants: Foreign Workers.
Civil Servants: Pensions
Mr. Hurd: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office pursuant to the answer to the right hon. Member for Horsham of 7 July 2009, Official Report, column 677W, on civil servants: pensions, if she will place in the Library a copy of the advice from Hewitt Associates Financial Services Limited on the reasons for which the Civil Service Additional Voluntary Contribution Scheme should withdraw from the Scottish Widows and Standard Life with-profit funds. [290287]
Angela E. Smith: I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave to the right hon. Member for Horsham (Mr. Maude) on 7 July 2009, Official Report, column 677W.
Civil Service West Midlands Pilot
Mr. Hurd: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the terms of reference of the Civil Service West Midlands Pilot are; and whether (a) civil servants and (b) other members of the public who live outside the West Midlands are eligible to apply for jobs in the pilot. [290153]
Angela E. Smith: The Civil Service West Midlands Pilot (CSWM) is a programme of work aimed at improving the culture, identity and brand of the civil service. Answerable through a cross-departmental board to permanent secretaries, it seeks to improve the visibility and attractiveness of the civil service to people from all backgrounds, and allow staff to develop their careers locally rather than having to move to London.
(a) The pilot requires that civil service organisations advertising vacancies in the region open these up to all employees who live or work there. It is a matter for departments and agencies themselves to decide whether any such vacancies will also be advertised to civil servants elsewhere, and on what terms. The pilot does not constrain any such activity.
(b) The pilot is aimed at ensuring the civil service in the region is managing its vacancies internally before going outside the service. Organisations will open their vacancies to members of the public if the internal process fails to yield a suitable candidate. Also, if Departments are conducting a larger scale recruitment campaign indicating a need to go simultaneously to the wider market, this will be done.
Civil Service: Influenza
Mr. Hurd: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what preparations have been undertaken to ensure the continued effectiveness of the Civil Service in the event of an influenza pandemic. [290086]
Tessa Jowell:
All Government Departments have business continuity arrangements in place to address a wide range of scenarios as required under the Security Policy Framework. These plans focus on ensuring continued delivery of critical departmental activities, including at times of high staff absenteeism. To assist preparations,
Departments are receiving regular updates and briefings including revised planning assumptions for staff absenteeism which are also available to other employers on the Cabinet Office website.
Community Development: Finance
Mr. Maude: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what organisations have received funding from Communitybuilders; and for what purpose in each case. [287355]
Angela E. Smith: The Communitybuilders Programme has been open for applications since 7 September and applications received to date are being assessed. The fund remains open and for more information potential applicants can visit:
Death: Cannabis
Mike Penning: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many cannabis-related deaths there were in (a) Hemel Hempstead constituency, (b) Dacorum and (c) Hertfordshire in each of the last five years. [289419]
Angela E. Smith: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.
Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated July 2009:
As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent question asking how many cannabis-related deaths there were in (a) Hemel Hempstead constituency, (b) Dacorum and (c) Hertfordshire in each of the last five years. (289419)
There were no deaths where the underlying cause was drug poisoning(1) and cannabis was mentioned on the death certificate, in (a) Hemel Hempstead constituency, (b) Dacorum local authority district or (c) Hertfordshire county, from 2003 to 2007(2,3) (the latest year available).
(1) Cause of death was defined using the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10). Deaths were included where the underlying cause was due to drug poisoning (shown in the box below), and where cannabis was mentioned on the death certificate.
(2) Based on boundaries as of 2009.
(3) Figures are for deaths registered in each calendar year.
Department Advertising
Pete Wishart: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how much her Department spent on newspaper advertising carried in each newspaper in the most recent year for which figures are available. [289512]
Angela E. Smith: As a number of recruitment adverts are placed as part of a whole advertising campaign (campaigns can include both on-line and newspaper adverts as well as the preparation of application packs, sifting and assessments) it would be possible to provide the information only at disproportionate cost.
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