| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
26 Oct 2009 : Column 131W—continued
UK Innovation Investment Fund: Finance
Mr. Oaten: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how much funding the Government will provide for the new UK Innovation Investment Fund in the next three years; and how much private sector investment he expects the Fund to receive in that period. [294707]
Mr. Lammy: The Government are committing £150 million of taxpayer investment to build a fund of up to £1 billion over its 10-year life. The Government expect that their investment of £150 million will leverage significant investment from the private sector.
USA: Overseas Trade
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what the monetary value of trade was between the UK and the United States in each of the last five years. [293316]
Ian Lucas: The data requested are shown in the following table
| £ million | |||||
| UK exports of goods to USA | UK exports of services to USA | UK imports of goods from USA | UK imports of services from USA | Total UK-USA trade | |
| Source: UK Balance of Payments Pink Book, 2009 edition | |||||
Video Games
Philip Davies: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what the monetary value of (a) video game exports and (b) video game imports was in each year from 2001 to 2008. [293981]
Ian Lucas: Full figures are not separately identifiable for trade in video games as a whole: royalties, licence fees and trade in services associated with video games are not separately identifiable; nor are trade in goods figures for video games not for use with a television receiver. The figures in the following table are for trade in goods for video games for use with a television receiver (Harmonised System code 950410) recorded in the overseas trade statistics.
| £ million | Exports | Imports |
White Phosphorus
Sir Menzies Campbell: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what information the Export Control Organisation requires of companies seeking an export licence for munitions containing white phosphorus. [294265]
Ian Lucas: Companies applying for a standard individual export licence (SIEL) to export any munitions, including those containing white phosphorus, must provide the Export Control Organisation with sufficient information to allow an assessment against the Consolidated EU and National Arms Export Licensing Criteria and any other relevant announced policies to be made.
This includes providing sufficient technical details to allow the correct control list entry for the goods to be identified; specific quantities and values; the name of the end-user, consignee and any other parties involved in the transaction; and information on what the munitions will be used for. Companies also have to supply a signed end-user undertaking from the end user, which is used to corroborate information provided in the application form.
Applications for open individual export licences (OIEL) must include the same information, except specific quantities and values and not normally required.
Work of Manufacturing Insight
Lorely Burt: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent assessment he has made of the work of Manufacturing Insight. [295120]
Ian Lucas: Manufacturing Insight has not yet been formally launched. Nick Hussey was appointed director of Manufacturing Insight on 1 September 2009. The Manufacturing Insight Board will closely monitor and assess achievements over the short, medium and longer term, against the agreed business plan. The business plan is currently being agreed with the board and is expected to be finalised autumn 2009.
Communities and Local Government
Buildings: Energy
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether his Department may transfer to third parties data held on its register of the energy performance of buildings. [294889]
John Healey: The Secretary of State may disclose data to third parties held on its register in accordance with part 6 of the Energy Performance of Buildings (Certificates and Inspections) (England and Wales) Regulations 2007 as amended.
We plan to consult later this year on a strategy to allow third parties greater access to the energy performance of buildings data.
Common Purpose: Finance
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government with reference to page 18 of his Department's Resource Accounts for 2008-09, HC 449, how much his Department has paid to Common Purpose since its establishment; and who the young leaders being trained by Common Purpose are. [294663]
Barbara Follett: The Department for Communities and Local Government has funded Common Purpose a total of £215,000 since 2007 to provide leadership training to members of Muslim communities.
2006-07: £85,000 to provide leadership training to 40 Muslim community leaders.
2007-08: £65,000 to deliver training to 60 emerging leaders within the Muslim Community, with a particular focus on women, young people and faith leaders.
2008-09: £65,000 to provide leadership training to 65 younger members of the Muslim community, including a schools and colleges programme.
Communities and Local Government has also spent £20,950 on six Common Purpose training programmes for members of CLG staff since the year 2000.
Community Development
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if he will place in the Library a copy of the research report associated with his Department's publication 'Evaluation of the Take-up and Use of the Well-being Power: research summary' published in November 2008. [294553]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The research report was published in November 2008 by the university of Birmingham and university of the West of England, entitled 'Formative Evaluation of the Take-up and Implementation of the Well Being Power, 2003-07, Final Report 2007'. A copy has been placed in the House Library.
Community Development: Finance
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what method his Department used to determine the (a) wards and (b) local authorities to receive funding from the first wave of its Connecting Communities programme. [294882]
Mr. Malik: Neighbourhoods have been identified by examining a range of hard and soft data around cohesion, deprivation and crime, perceived unfairness in the allocation of resources and feedback from people working locally. Over 100 authorities have now indicated interest in being part of Connecting Communities. The first 27 areas across 21 local authorities announced on 14 October are those that have a good understanding of what they want to do and are ready to start work immediately. Discussions are continuing with another 80 local authorities that should be ready to go live later this year.
Community Infrastructure Levy
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment he has made of the effect on the level of usage of section 106 agreements of the introduction of the Community Infrastructure Levy. [294525]
Barbara Follett: As part of the Government's consultation on the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL), which was launched on 30 July 2009 and will conclude on 23 October 2009, the Government have proposed that the facility to enter into a negotiated planning obligation using section 106 of the 1990 Town and Country Planning Act will remain when CIL is introduced. However, the Government have stated their intention to make changes to the operation of section 106 following the introduction of CIL. Details of the Government's proposals are set out in chapter 5 of the CIL consultation document.
Conservation Areas
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government which single conservation areas the Homes and Communities Agency has established; and which local authority areas each covers. [294893]
John Healey: The Homes and Communities Agency has not established any single conservation areas. The agency is in regular contact with organisations such as English Nature as well as relevant local authorities to ensure conservation aspects of proposals are considered.
Council Tax: Valuation
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much his Department has spent on the collection of data on domestic properties for the purpose of revaluing properties for council tax; and what data sources not controlled by his Department have been used for this revaluation. [294549]
Barbara Follett: The postponement of the 2007 council tax revaluation was announced in September 2005. There has been no further work on revaluation since that date.
With regard to the costs to central Government of the postponed revaluation, I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 25 October 2005, Official Report, column 327W, which explained that these cannot be separately identified.
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether the Valuation Office Agency plans to perform point valuations on individual properties as part of its revaluation for council tax in England. [294601]
Barbara Follett: There is no revaluation of council tax in England.
Departmental Public Expenditure
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government with reference to page 76 of his Department's Resource Accounts for 2008-09, HC 449, to whom the £301,000 payment in settlement of a personal injury claim was made in December 2008; and where the injury occurred. [294650]
Barbara Follett: This amount relates to a payment made to a private individual. Disclosing the name of this individual would breach the first data protection principle. However, I can confirm that the payment was in settlement of a personal injury compensation claim which was brought against the Department by a former Property Services Agency employee who contracted mesothelioma as a result of exposure to asbestos in the workplace.
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government with reference to page 76 of his Department's Resource Accounts for 2008-09, HC 449, to whom the £750,000 compensation payment in respect of the Local Authority Business Growth Incentive scheme was made in November 2008; and for what reasons. [294654]
Barbara Follett: The payment of £750,000 in November 2008 was an out of court settlement to Cannock Chase district council in respect of legal challenges.
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government with reference to page 76 of his Department's Resource Accounts for 2008-09, HC 449, to whom the £9.3 million compensation payment was made in October 2008; and for what reasons. [294655]
Barbara Follett: This payment was made to the Midlands Co-operative Society Ltd. It was in settlement of a claim relating to the handling of a planning case which was investigated by the Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration. This is explained further in chapter 10.83 of the departmental annual report.
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government with reference to page 18 of his Department's Resource Accounts for 2008-09, HC 449, what the ConnCom Plus programme is. [294662]
Barbara Follett:
The ConnCom Plus programme, as listed in the Communities and Local Government Resource Accounts for 2008-09 (the payment listed was paid in 2007-08), was the Connecting Communities Plus programme, a grant programme for organisations working to promote race equality and community cohesion. The Community Development Foundation (CDF) managed
the community grants part of this programme on behalf of CLG and this money was disbursed by the CDF to successful grant recipients.
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |