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16 Oct 2009 : Column 1200W—continued
I have arranged for a copy of the Prison Service report, "Review of the Potential Use of the Baton in the Young People's Estate" to be placed in the House of Commons Library.
Northern Ireland
Administration of Justice: Translation Service
Mark Durkan: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland whether the National Framework Agreement on arrangements for the use of interpreters, translators and language service professionals within the criminal justice system applies to Northern Ireland. [292834]
Paul Goggins: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 7 July 2009, Official Report, column 656W.
Olympics
Olympic Games 2012: Heating
John Mann: To ask the Minister for the Olympics how many buildings which will be used for the London 2012 Olympics will use heat generated by (a) solar panels and (b) ground source heat pumps. [292002]
Tessa Jowell: There are no plans to use solar panels or ground source heating pumps to heat the venues on the Olympic Park. Heat for these buildings will be provided from a purpose built Energy Centre and Community Energy Network. The Energy Centre comprises biomass boilers fuelled by renewable wood pellets and is designed to capture enough heat during the electricity production process to supply heating and hot water to all the buildings on the Olympic Park.
These measures are part of the Olympic Delivery Authority's strategic approach to energy supply on the Olympic Park, which seeks to achieve the ambitious target that carbon emissions from the built environment in the Park should be reduced by 50 per cent., against 2006 standards' levels, by 2013. The strategic approach includes designing permanent venues to make them 15 per cent. more energy efficient than the 2006 Building Regulations require and building a wind turbine that will produce the energy equivalent to supplying 1,000 homes over an average year.
Transport
Aviation: Greater London
Bob Spink: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport whether he has made an assessment of the likely environmental impact of an airport located in the Thames Estuary. [293392]
Paul Clark: Options for offshore or coastal airports were considered extensively in the work leading to the Air Transport White Paper in 2003. A summary assessment of their impacts was presented in the report 'Development of Airport Capacity in the Thames Estuary', December 2003, available on the Department for Transport website at:
Gatwick Airport
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what the Government's role is in establishing the future (a) operation and (b) ownership of Gatwick Airport; and if he will make a statement. [293849]
Paul Clark: Gatwick is a designated airport under the Airports Act 1986 and as such its future operation is a matter for its operator and the Civil Aviation Authority.
The sale of Gatwick airport was required by the Competition Commission following its investigation into the supply of airport services by BAA. The Competition Commission's requirements for any new owner of Gatwick were set out in detail in its report (which was published on 19 March 2009). These include that it should have appropriate expertise and financial resources to operate and develop the airport, as well as a sufficient degree of independence from BAA.
The sale is a commercial matter for BAA subject to it satisfying the Competition Commission's requirements. The Government have no formal role in the transaction and have no statutory powers to intervene in it. Department for Transport officials have ensured that the various bidders for the airport have had equal access to information on the regulatory context and broader aviation policy framework as it affects Gatwick. Officials have also shared information on these matters with the Competition Commission to assist in the Competition Commission's formal consideration of the suitability of various bidders.
BAA has challenged the legality of certain of the Competition Commission's findings, and its appeal is due to be heard by the Competition Appeals Tribunal on 19-21 October.
Northern Rail: Rolling Stock
Norman Baker: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport for what reasons the number of new rail carriages originally planned for Northern Rail has been reduced. [290300]
Chris Mole: No decision has yet been made on the total number of vehicles that Northern Rail should add to its train fleet. The Department for Transport is currently working with Northern Rail on a first phase of additional rolling stock to address overcrowding issues.
Parking
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport whether revenue raised by local authorities from (a) on-street parking charges and (b) parking fines is ring-fenced. [292586]
Mr. Khan: The revenue raised from on-street parking charges must be used in accordance with Section 55 (as amended) of the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984, which limits the use of surplus funds to transport related objectives or for environmental purposes.
Local authorities in England operating under the Civil Parking Enforcement (CPE) regime issue Penalty Charge Notices (PCNs) for parking contraventions. The revenue raised from PCNs must also be used in
accordance with Section 55 (as amended) of that Act. Where the local authority has not taken on the CPE powers under the Traffic Management Act 2004 to enforce parking contraventions, enforcement is carried out under criminal law by the Police who issue parking fines for parking offences. The revenue raised from parking fines goes to the Treasury.
Railway Stations: Ticket Offices
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport how many non-Transport for London railway station ticket offices in each London borough have (a) been closed and (b) had opening hours reduced in each of the last four years; and if he will make a statement. [293059]
Chris Mole: The Department for Transport does not hold this information in the form requested. Full details of National Rail ticket office opening hours are listed in Schedule 17 of the Ticketing and Settlement Agreement (TSA) and a copy of this document, for years 2005 to 2009, has been placed in the Library of the House.
A number of National Rail ticket offices in London have closed permanently as part of railway infrastructure improvement schemes:
King's Cross Thameslink station where the National Rail station closed as part of the Thameslink Programme. A new station and ticket office was opened at St. Pancras International.
Custom House, Silvertown and North Woolwich where the National Rail stations closed to enable an extension to the Docklands Light Railway to be built.
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what assessment his Department has made of the effects on passenger safety of the closure of railway station ticket offices on the First Connect line through Hornsey and Wood Green; and if he will make a statement. [293058]
Chris Mole: First Capital Connect (FCC) has followed the Ticketing and Settlement Agreement processes for changing ticket office opening hours. The Ticketing and Settlement Agreement is an inter-operator agreement which sets out, among other things, arrangements for ticket retailing. A safety assessment is not required under this Agreement.
Since the start of the franchise FCC has invested heavily or achieved the following:
Has achieved Secure Stations at all of their stations within the Greater London area;
Improved relationships and joint working with the British Transport Police to manage out crime and improve response to crime.
Railways: Standards
Bob Spink: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what records his Department holds on the number of rail services which departed stations prior to their scheduled departure time in the last 12 months; what proportion of these services arrived at their destination on time; and if he will make a statement. [293599]
Chris Mole: Data on trains which may have departed from stations before their scheduled time are not held by the Department for Transport, but by Network Rail. Please contact Iain Coucher, chief executive of Network Rail, at the following address for this information:
Mr. Iain Coucher
Chief Executive
Network Rail
Kings Place
90 York Way
London
N1 9AG
Of all train arrivals, 91.3 per cent. arrived at their destination within the specified punctuality margin in the 12 months up to 19 September 2009.
Treasury
Council Tax: Valuation Office
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 16 September 2009, Official Report, column 2287W, on the Valuation Office Agency, on what date the Valuation Office Agency published its guidance on council tax bands and self-contained units. [293030]
Ian Pearson: Practice Note 5 of the Valuation Office Agency (VOA) council tax manual contains the instructions giving guidance on council tax bands and self contained units. These instructions were published online when the VOA website was originally set up in January 2000.
A new fact sheet designed to assist the public in understanding council tax law on self-contained units was published in May 2007 and is also available on the VOA website.
Private Finance Initiative
Jim Cousins: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what guidance he has given to Government departments on the fair valuation of risk and risk transfer in the evaluation of bids under the private finance initiative where (a) RBS and (b) Lloyds Banking Group are partners in such bids. [292799]
Ian Pearson: None. Guidance on public private partnerships in general is available on the Treasury website at:
Public Expenditure
Mrs. Villiers: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer with reference to the Pre-Budget Report and Comprehensive Spending Review 2007, page 49, what his most recent estimate is of the projected levels of long-term funding for his Department in order to provide for the 2.25 per cent. real growth in the Long-Term Funding Guideline to 2018-19 set out in that document. [290160]
Mr. Byrne: Departmental budgets for the next spending review period will be set in due course.
Public Expenditure: Transport
Mrs. Villiers: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer with reference to the Pre-Budget Report and Comprehensive Spending Review 2007, page 49, what his most recent estimate is of the projected levels of spending on transport to 2018-19. [290159]
Mr. Byrne: Departmental budgets for the next spending review period will be set in due course.
Revenue and Customs: Telephone Services
Mr. Oaten: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people would pay (a) more, (b) less and (c) the same for calls to HM Revenue and Customs helplines with 0845 prefixes if they were changed to numbers with 0300 prefixes. [293637]
Mr. Timms: HM Revenue and Customs does not hold this information. The cost of calls to 0845 and other non geographical numbers is dependent on several factors. Calls are charged to the customer based on the tariff arrangements they have with their service provider, the device they use for the call and the location from which they call. There are therefore many hundreds of variations of call costs.
Stamp Duties
Sarah Teather: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the cost to the Exchequer of only levying stamp duty on the individual dwellings in a bulk rental purchase. [292901]
Sarah McCarthy-Fry: No such estimate has made.
Taxation: Pensions
Steve Webb: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether lump sum arrears of basic state pension paid under the reinstatement of deficiency notices project are taxable; and if he will make a statement. [292837]
Mr. Timms: HM Revenue and Customs does not seek to assess any tax arising on arrears of state pension paid under reinstatement of deficiency notices.
Valuation Office
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what data sources the Valuation Office Agency uses to determine the plot size when gathering data on a dwelling. [292736]
Ian Pearson: The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) uses digital mapping software to calculate plot size.
Valuation Office: Empty Property
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what records the Valuation Office Agency holds on the number of empty non-domestic properties on the Rating List. [292709]
Ian Pearson: Valuation Office records do not show whether non-domestic property entered in the rating lists in England and Wales are either occupied or unoccupied.
Women and Equality
Government Equalities Office: Manpower
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality how many people aged over (a) 55 and (b) 65 years are employed by the Government Equalities Office. [290384]
Michael Jabez Foster: The Government Equalities Office employs less than five staff over the age of 55 and none over 65 years. The Government Equalities Office does not confirm numbers less than five in order that individuals may not be identified.
Work and Pensions
Pathways to Work
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many and what proportion of people on incapacity benefit have voluntarily joined Pathways to Work in each year for which information is available. [288619]
Jonathan Shaw [holding answer 21 July 2009]: Official statistics on the number of participants in Pathways to Work are available up to January 2009, these are published at:
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