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12 Nov 2009 : Column 677W—continued
The process does not yield actual reductions for each individual property or projected estimates. The calculated figures for the last five years are as follows.
| Average r eduction | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 |
The figures given for 2006-07 and 2008-09 differ to those previously quoted in the Warm Front Annual report for these years. This is the result of an error in calculation in these reports, which are in the process of being amended.
Wind Power
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what funding Ofgem has provided to connect each offshore windfarm to the mainland; and what estimate he has made of the gigawatts each windfarm will transmit. [299778]
Mr. Kidney: Ofgem is currently running the first transitional round of competitive tenders to grant offshore transmission owner (OFTO) licences for the grid connections from offshore wind projects that qualified. The new OFTOs will reimburse the developers for their efficiently incurred connection costs determined by Ofgem. For the first round of tenders, this is estimated to be around £1.1 billion. In return developers will pay OFTOs an annual transmission charge for 20 years to use the connections. The OFTOs will be responsible for the operation and maintenance of the connections for that period.
The British Wind Energy Association provides information on the actual or anticipated output of offshore wind farms. This information is available at:
Wind Power: Lincolnshire
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what consideration he has given to the recent consent for the construction of an onshore wind farm in Lincolnshire; what his most recent estimate is of (a) the cost of the project, (b) the number of watts it will generate and (c) the approximate number of domestic properties which will be supported by its power generation. [299779]
Mr. Kidney: I understand this question relates to an offshore wind farm-"Lines"-which was consented on 21 October 2008 following a public consultation exercise and the thorough consideration of a consent application that included an environmental impact assessment. The project, to be sited five miles off the Lincolnshire coast, will generate 250 MW of electricity, enough, according to the developer, Centrica, to supply around 200,000 properties. Centrica has indicated that the project will require an investment of £725 million.
Women and Equality
Departmental Aviation
Mr. Heald: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality how many first-class flights were taken by each Minister in the Government Equalities Office in 2008-09; and what the (a) origin, (b) destination and (c) cost was of each such flight. [298914]
Michael Jabez Foster: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.
Departmental Hotels
Mr. Heald: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality how much the Government Equalities Office spent on hotel bills in 2008-09. [299147]
Michael Jabez Foster: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.
Departmental Motor Vehicles
Andrew Stunell: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality how much the Government Equalities Office spent on hire vehicles in each of the last five financial years. [291705]
Michael Jabez Foster: Since the Government Equalities Office was established on 12 October 2007, the following amounts have been spent of vehicle hire.
| Financial year | Expenditure (£) |
Departmental Postal Services
David T.C. Davies: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality with which providers the Government Equalities Office held contracts to provide postal services (a) in 2007, (b) in 2008, (c) between 1 January and 1 July 2009 and (d) after 1 July 2009. [298767]
Michael Jabez Foster: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.
Discrimination: Older Workers
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality what recent discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions on prevention of discrimination against persons aged over 60 years who apply for paid employment. [295425]
Michael Jabez Foster: Government Equalities Office Ministers work closely with their counterparts on issues affecting older people. We fully support the work being undertaken by DWP under the Government's 'Building a society for all ages' strategy, which tackles many issues affecting older people in the UK.
GEO Ministers also work closely with Ministers at the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, which leads on legislation on age discrimination in the workplace.
Equal Opportunities
Robert Neill: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality, with reference to page 38 of the Government Equalities Office's Annual Report and Resource Accounts 2008-09, HC 874, what the other evidence is which contradicts the findings of the Citizenship Survey that there are no significant gaps between groups in perceptions of unfair treatment. [298481]
Michael Jabez Foster: The Government made a commitment in PSA15 to narrow the gap between advantaged and disadvantaged groups-for example, between men and women, and between non-disabled people and disabled people-in relation to perceptions of fair treatment, and to measure performance through responses to new questions in the Citizenship Survey.
However, when GEO analysed data responses to the new questions, there was little evidence of significant gaps in perceptions of fair treatment between groups. The gaps that do exist are all small, usually between 1 and 2 percentage points. While we should not discount these findings, they do conflict with other evidence on the issue:
The 2008 Citizenship Survey found that 34 per cent. of black and minority ethnic people believed that one or more from a range of listed public services would treat them worse than people of other races.
A May 2008 Department of Health report ("Report on self reported experience of patients from black and minority ethnic groups") found that BME groups are less likely to report a positive experience of healthcare.
Organisations representing older people consistently present anecdotal evidence that this group are significantly disadvantaged in relation to treatment by public services (for example in the 2007 Help The Aged report, "The Challenge of Dignity in Care: Upholding the rights of the individual").
GEO will be reporting on progress for each of the PSA15 indicators in our Autumn Performance Report 2009.
Females
Robert Neill: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality with reference to the "Women in Power: Milestones" document of the Government Equalities Office, for what reason the UK's first woman Prime Minister is not mentioned by name in the document; and if she will make it her policy to revise the document to include her name. [298480]
Michael Jabez Foster: The omission of Baroness Thatcher's name on the milestone fact sheet was not intentional. This was an oversight. When it was brought to our attention it was corrected. This particular fact sheet was produced for a specific purpose-to coincide with the 80th and 90th anniversaries of the 'democratic' franchise of 1918(1) and the Equal Franchise Act of 1928(2).
It is not a comprehensive list but provides a snapshot of some key advances made by women in political and public life over the years. We will be publishing a revised women's milestones fact sheet shortly.
(1) The Democratic Franchise of 1918 gave the right to vote only to women over the age of 30).
(2) The Equal Franchise Act of 1928 granted women the right to vote on the same terms as men.
Homosexuality: Human Rights
Chris Ruane: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality what recent steps the Government Equalities Office has taken in respect of the human rights of gay and lesbian people. [299958]
Maria Eagle: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.
Immigrants: Housing
Robert Neill: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality if she will place in the Library a copy of the interim report on Social Housing Allocation and Immigrant Communities commissioned by the Equality and Human Rights Commission from the Institute for Public Policy Research. [288266]
Michael Jabez Foster: I have placed a copy of the report on Social Housing Allocation and Immigrant Communities in the House of Commons Library. The report is already published on the Equality and Human Rights Commission's website.
Political Parties: Equal Opportunities
Mr. Bone: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality what assessment she has made of the extent of gender discrimination in registered political parties represented in Parliament. [294955]
However, the Speaker's Conference is looking at gender discrimination as part of its remit to investigate, and make recommendations to address, the lack of women, disabled people and ethnic minorities in the House of Commons.
The findings are expected to be published at the end of the year.
Olympics
Departmental Billing
Mr. Weir: To ask the Minister for the Olympics what percentage of invoices from suppliers her Office paid within 10 days of receipt in (a) September and (b) October 2009. [299555]
Tessa Jowell: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.
Olympic Games 2012: Voluntary Organisations
Clive Efford: To ask the Minister for the Olympics what steps she is taking to ensure that third sector community organisations play a part in planning for the legacy from the London 2012 Olympics; and if she will make a statement. [299817]
Tessa Jowell: The Government are committed to ensuring a lasting legacy from the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
The Government Olympic Executive has worked with Volunteering England and YouthNet to convene an advisory group to ensure that Third Sector organisations are fully involved in legacy planning.
In addition, the Office of the Third Sector has provided £1.6 million to YouthNet and Volunteering England in order to strengthen existing third sector infrastructure in advance of the Games.
Clive Efford: To ask the Minister for the Olympics what funding her Office has allocated to third sector community organisations to enable them to bid for the plans for the legacy from the London 2012 Olympics; and if she will make a statement. [299818]
Tessa Jowell: The Office of the Third Sector in the Cabinet Office is funding two programmes that will support third sector involvement in the Olympic legacy. The first is a £1.6 million programme, managed by third sector organisations Youthnet and Volunteering England. It will enable 1,500 organisations to promote 100,000 more volunteering opportunities inspired by the London 2012 Games through the National Volunteering Database and help 100,000 people to register for these.
The second programme will be delivered through the youth volunteering charity 'V'. In early 2010; 'V' will announce further details of a £5 million national programme to boost youth volunteering leading up to the 2012 Games. 'V' has been consulting with young people and a range of other stakeholders, including the voluntary sector, 2012 delivery bodies and Government Departments to inform this programme.
Clive Efford: To ask the Minister for the Olympics what funding her Office has allocated to third sector organisations to develop their sporting facilities as part of the plans for the legacy from the London 2012 Olympics; and if she will make a statement. [299819]
Tessa Jowell: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.
Scotland
Advertising: Scotland
Jenny Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how much his Department (a) spent on advertising in 2008-09 and (b) has so spent in 2009-10 on the latest date for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement. [299849]
Ann McKechin: The Scotland Office incurred no expenditure on advertising in 2008-09 and to date has incurred no costs in 2009-10.
Christmas
Mr. Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how much his Department has spent on Christmas (a) cards, (b) parties and (c) decorations in the last 12 months. [299263]
Ann McKechin: The Scotland Office spent £456 on Christmas cards, but no expenditure was incurred from official funds on internal Christmas parties or decorations in the last 12 months.
All expenditure was incurred in accordance with the principles set out in Managing Public Money and the Treasury handbook on Regularity and Propriety.
Departmental Billing
Mr. Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what percentage of invoices from suppliers his Department paid within 10 days of receipt in (a) September and (b) October 2009. [299554]
Ann McKechin: The Scotland Office paid 98.7 per cent. of invoices for suppliers within 10 days of receipt in September 2009 and 100 per cent. of invoices in October 2009.
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