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11 Nov 2009 : Column 394W—continued
Departmental Political Activities
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer of 3 November 2009, Official Report, column 804W, on party conferences, how much each of his Department's non-departmental public bodies spent sending representatives to attend each of the party political conferences. [298929]
Dan Norris: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 3 November 2009, Official Report, column 804W. The actual cost of such attendance is a matter for the non-departmental public bodies concerned and officials have not been able to access the information requested, accurately and consistently for all four bodies, in the time available. I will ask the relevant bodies to write to you with this information.
Departmental Publicity
Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what national environment campaigns have been undertaken by his Department since 1997; and what the (a) resource, (b) capital expenditure and (c) staffing costs in 2009 prices were of each such campaign. [288761]
Dan Norris: DEFRA was created in June 2001. Since then DEFRA has undertaken a wide range of various environmentally focussed campaigns through the core Department. This includes Every Action Counts, Climate Change Initiative, Act on CO2, Food Imports, and Muck in 4Life. The total costs for all marketing and communication activity since 2004-05 are as follows:
| £ | |
| (1)This includes the initial Act on CO2 mitigation campaign, now led by the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC). | |
Figures before financial year 2004-05 are not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Figures for resource costs, capital expenditure costs and staffing costs in 2009 prices could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Departmental Rail Travel
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer of 28 October 2009, Official Report, column 350W, on departmental rail travel, how many (a) journeys were paid for and (b) people travelled in each year; whether any nugatory expenditure was incurred in each year; and if he will make a statement. [298175]
Dan Norris: From information held centrally, on departmental rail travel, the information is:
| Journeys paid for | Refund fees (£) | |
Information on the numbers of people who travelled in each year could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Marine Management Organisation
Mr. Benyon:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) how many
Marine and Fisheries Agency staff have asked for a transfer to another department in preference to accepting a position at the new Marine Management Organisation; [298989]
(2) how many Marine and Fisheries Agency staff have accepted (a) permanent and (b) temporary posts in the new Marine Management Organisation. [298991]
Huw Irranca-Davies: All staff in the Marine and Fisheries Agency at the time of vesting of the new Marine Management Organisation will automatically transfer to the new organisation under Cabinet Office protocols on transfers in the public sector. The Marine Bill provides that staff in the Marine and Fisheries Agency at the time of vesting of the Marine Management Organisation who choose not to transfer to it are deemed to have resigned.
We are not aware of any staff in the Marine and Fisheries Agency who have requested a transfer to another Department because their post is being transferred to the Marine Management Organisation.
The Marine and Fisheries Agency headquarters is relocating to Newcastle and will become the new Marine Management Organisation headquarters. Eleven staff are relocating. Sixty-seven staff have chosen not to relocate and have access to posts in core DEFRA or can apply for advertised vacancies in other Departments.
Defence
Afghanistan
David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many (a) journalists, (b) television crews, (c) other civilians, (d) officials from his Department and (e) other non-military personnel have visited British troops in Helmand province in each of the last five years; and what (i) assistance and (ii) facilities his Department has provided for them. [299486]
Bill Rammell: Between November 2006 and November 2009 the MOD has facilitated 354 media visits to Afghanistan, including to Helmand province. The composition of each group varies and records are not held centrally. I will write shortly to the hon. Member on non media visits.
The MOD provides transport, accommodation, dining and security support to these visits, using facilities already available in theatre.
Information on media visits to Afghanistan prior to November 2006 is not available centrally.
Afghanistan: Armed Forces
Dr. Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence which units down to company level have been deployed to Afghanistan (a) once, (b) twice, (c) three and (d) four or more times since October 2001. [297938]
Bill Rammell: The following table shows which units at Company level have deployed once, twice, three and four times to Afghanistan since October 2001.
The apparent unevenness in the distribution of deployments between the various units shown reflect the narrow parameters of the question. Over the period that the answer covers, the Army have been committed on operations in not only Afghanistan and Iraq, but also have deployed in the Balkans, Northern Ireland, Cyprus and the Falkland Islands. When determining which units to allocate to operations, a number of considerations apply, not least the particular capability they offer. For example, those units which have deployed to Afghanistan will predominantly be those that operate in a light role.
Mr. Holloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many UK soldiers have (a) died and (b) suffered injury that has required aeromedivac to the UK, due to improvised explosive devices detonated in the course of logistical moves in Helmand Province since 2005. [298421]
Bill Rammell [holding answer 10 November 2009]: The MOD is committed to openly publishing casualty statistics on the number of service personnel killed and wounded on operations. Information on casualties sustained since January 2006 in Afghanistan and information on how each individual was killed is included in their eulogies available on our website at the following link.
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