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Questions for Oral or Written Answer
beginning on Tuesday 19 May 2009
(the 'Questions Book')
Part 1: Written Questions for Answer on
Tuesday 19 May 2009
This paper contains only Written Questions for answer on Tuesday 19 May of which previous notice has been given in the Notices of Questions paper. They are arranged in alphabetical order of answering Department. For other Written Questions for answer on Tuesday 19 May of which no previous notice has been given, see the Order Paper. For Written and Oral Questions for answer after Tuesday 19 May see Part 2 of this paper.
Questions to the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform 1
N | Norman Baker (Lewes): To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, on what dates since 1 January 2007 (a) the Secretary of State, (b) other Ministers and (c) officials in his Department have (i) met and (ii) had discussions with (A) Colin Matthews and (B) BAA. | | (276386) | 2
| Helen Southworth (Warrington South): To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, what business support measures from his Department are available to small and medium-sized businesses in Warrington. | | (276518) | Questions to Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer 3
| Sir Menzies Campbell (North East Fife): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many individuals in North East Fife constituency have been (a) overpaid and (b) underpaid tax credits (i) once, (ii) twice and (iii) three or more times since April 2003. | | (276520) | 4
N | Mr Paul Goodman (Wycombe): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, when he plans to reply to the letter of 27 November 2008 from the hon. Member for Wycombe concerning his constituent, Armitabh Naik. | | (276446) | 5
N | Bob Spink (Castle Point): To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent discussions he has had with Ministerial colleagues on Equitable Life; and if he will make a statement. | | (276449) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families 6
N | Mr David Chaytor (Bury North): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, how many pupils entered state secondary schools in each local authority in year 7 in September 2008; how many and what percentage of these pupils entered schools selecting other than via banding systems (a) wholly by academic ability, (b) partly by academic ability and (c) by aptitude; and how many of them transferred to state secondary schools from primary schools in the private sector. | | (274440) | 7
N | Mr David Drew (Stroud): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, whether he has received a proposal from Gloucestershire County Council to change the status of Cam House School. | | (276216) | 8
N | Mr David Drew (Stroud): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, how many (a) head teachers, (b) deputy head teachers, (c) other teaching staff and (d) non-teaching staff were suspended from duties in each local authority area in each of the last three years for which figures are available. | | (276217) | 9
| Helen Southworth (Warrington South): To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, how many children in Warrington have enrolled in Sure Start in each year since 2003. | | (276530) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 10
| Mr Andrew Dismore (Hendon): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what progress has been made on the Housing Revenue Account review; and when the expected consultation paper will be issued. | | (276521) | 11
| Andrew George (St Ives): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what estimate she has made of the proportion of new retail development which was located in town centres in each of the last three years; and what information her Department holds on projected trends in the location of proposed retail development in the next three years. | | (276569) | 12
| Andrew George (St Ives): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, when she expects the revised approach to retail planning in local plans proposed by draft Planning Policy Statement 4 to be integrated into local development frameworks throughout England. | | (276570) | 13
| Andrew George (St Ives): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what proportion of local planning authorities in England have in place an up-to-date local development framework. | | (276571) | 14
N | Grant Shapps (Welwyn Hatfield): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many homes were available under the (a) HomeBuy Direct, (b) OwnHome, (c) OpenMarket HomeBuy, (d) the First Time Buyers Initiative, (e) MyChoice HomeBuy, (f) New Build HomeBuy, (g) Social HomeBuy and (h) Rent to HomeBuy schemes in each region in each of the last six months. | | (276384) | 15
| Grant Shapps (Welwyn Hatfield): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer to the hon. Member for Meriden of 14 May 2009, Official Report, columns 996-7W, on eco-towns, how much her Department plans to spend on stage 2 of the Financial Viability Study of the eco-towns programme; and if she will make a statement. | | (276533) | 16
| Grant Shapps (Welwyn Hatfield): To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, when the data in relation to Live Table 1303 on her Department's website will next be updated. | | (276534) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport 17
| Charlotte Atkins (Staffordshire Moorlands): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if he will encourage English tourism leaders to promote holidaying on waterways; and if he will make a statement. | | (276525) | 18
N | Mr Tobias Ellwood (Bournemouth East): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how much Visit England has budgeted to spend on administration costs in 2009-10. | | (276450) | 19
| Peter Luff (Mid Worcestershire): To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, when he plans to reply to the letter of 3 February 2009 from the hon. Member for Mid Worcestershire on consultation on changes to the licensing regime for circuses; what plans he has to change the regime; and if he will make a statement. | | (276519) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Defence 20
| Mr Paul Keetch (Hereford): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many veterans are not able to join either the AFPS75 or AFPS05 pension scheme; and how many veterans who left the armed forces before 1975 receive a preserved pension. | | (276522) | 21
| Mr Paul Keetch (Hereford): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what minimum level of hearing loss from active service is necessary for a veteran to receive a disablement pension on the grounds of hearing loss. | | (276523) | 22
| Mr Paul Keetch (Hereford): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when he next plans to review the eligibility criteria for entitlement (a) to a preserved pension and (b) to pensions for those who served in the armed forces prior to 1975; and if he will make a statement. | | (276524) | 23
N | Mr David Winnick (Walsall North): To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he has considered a timetable for the withdrawal of British troops from Afghanistan; whether he has had recent discussions on the matter with other states involved in military operations; and if he will make a statement. | | (276330) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 24
| Charlotte Atkins (Staffordshire Moorlands): To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what income British Waterways received from its non-operational canalside property portfolio was in the last 12 months; and how much of that income was allocated to spending on waterways maintenance and improvement. | | (276526) | 25
| Charlotte Atkins (Staffordshire Moorlands): To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to assist British Waterways to establish a business model to provide a sustainable future for the waterways; what options are under consideration for the future of the waterways; and how those options will be evaluated. | | (276532) | 26
N | Mr Tobias Ellwood (Bournemouth East): To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 25 March 2009, Official Report, column 381W, on tourism: rural areas, how much funding from the Rural Development Programme for England 2007-13 has been provided for support to encourage rural tourism in each region. | | (276426) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs 27
N | Mr David Amess (Southend West): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what reports he has received on the probable outcome of the general election in India; and if he will make a statement. | | (276073) | 28
N | Mr Lindsay Hoyle (Chorley): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent progress has been made in talks between his Department and representatives of (a) Spain and (b) Gibraltar on territorial waters; and if he will make a statement. | | (276331) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Health 29
| Andrew George (St Ives): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many grown-ups with congenital heart disease are being treated by paediatricians. | | (276572) | 30
N | Stephen Hammond (Wimbledon): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the likely effect on blood supplies of implementing the recommendations contained within the Archer Report on levels of contaminated blood supplies; and if he will make a statement. | | (276385) | 31
| Mike Penning (Hemel Hempstead): To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many applications have been received by the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency for the registration of products under the provisions of the EU Traditional Herbal Medicinal Products Directive; how many such applications have been (a) accepted and (b) rejected; how many such applications remain under consideration; and what guidance is available to small and medium-sized companies on making such applications. | | (276547) | Questions to the Secretary of State for the Home Department 32
N | Mr John Baron (Billericay): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when a decision will be made in the case of the hon. Member for Billericay's constituent Mr W. Mlangeni, with reference to the hon. Member's letters of 1 September 2008 and 28 January 2009. | | (276425) | 33
| Damian Green (Ashford): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much her Department spent on the asylum registration card scheme in 2008. | | (276557) | 34
| Damian Green (Ashford): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many contracts her Department has with private contractors for escorted deportations. | | (276558) | 35
| Damian Green (Ashford): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many Iraqi citizens settled in the UK in each year of the Gateway Programme. | | (276559) | 36
| Damian Green (Ashford): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many sponsors for Tier 2 of the points-based immigration system are classified as (a) category A and (b) category B. | | (276560) | 37
| Damian Green (Ashford): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she expects to publish her Department's new strategy on organised crime. | | (276561) | 38
| Damian Green (Ashford): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much the Serious and Organised Crime Agency spent on work undertaken in co-operation with (a) Europol and (b) Interpol in the last period for which figures are available. | | (276563) | 39
| Damian Green (Ashford): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many scheduled deportations were cancelled in 2008. | | (276564) | 40
| Damian Green (Ashford): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 6 May 2009, Official Report, column 285W, on local immigration teams, where each of the nine operational teams is based. | | (276565) | 41
| Damian Green (Ashford): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people have been prosecuted for human trafficking offences relating to labour exploitation under the Asylum and Immigration (Treatment of Claimants EEC) Act 2004. | | (276566) | 42
| Damian Green (Ashford): To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people have been prosecuted for human trafficking offences relating to sexual exploitation under the Sexual Offences Act 2003. | | (276567) | Questions to the honourable Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission 43
N | Dr Julian Lewis (New Forest East): To ask the honourable Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission, what legal responsibilities the House authorities have under the Data Protection Act 1998 to keep hon. Members' (a) home addresses, (b) ex-directory telephone numbers, (c) bank account details and (d) other personal information secure; and if he will make a statement. | | (276387) | 44
N | Mr David Winnick (Walsall North): To ask the honourable Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission, how much the House of Commons (a) has paid and (b) remains liable to pay in respect of the costs of legal actions concerning freedom of information since the Freedom of Information Act 2000 came into effect. | | (276329) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills 45
N | Mr Paul Goodman (Wycombe): To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills, when he plans to reply to Question 245558, on Islamic Studies outside the Islamic world, tabled on 16 December 2008 and transferred from the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government on 12 January 2009. | | (276447) | Questions to the Secretary of State for International Development 46
| Mr Don Foster (Bath): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps he is taking to promote the Global Framework for Action for water and sanitation to his counterparts in countries with bilateral agencies. | | (276573) | 47
| Mr Virendra Sharma (Ealing Southall): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps the Government has taken to seek to ensure that the Israeli government does not prevent food from entering Gaza. | | (276527) | 48
| Mr Virendra Sharma (Ealing Southall): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if he will make representations to the Israeli government to allow humanitarian supplies into Gaza. | | (276528) | 49
| Mr Virendra Sharma (Ealing Southall): To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what discussions he has had with his Israeli counterpart on restrictions on the supply of humanitarian aid to Palestinians in Gaza. | | (276529) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Justice 50
N | Rosie Cooper (West Lancashire): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, for what reasons the greenfield site at Scarisbrick was under consideration as a potential location for a titan prison; for what reasons he decided not to build a prison on that site; if he will make it his policy to inform local residents when sites are being considered as potential locations for prison developments; and if he will make a statement. | | (276411) | 51
N | Rosie Cooper (West Lancashire): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what his Department's procedures are for informing local residents when sites in their locality are being considered as potential locations for new prisons; what steps his Department takes to consult local communities on its plans for the location of new prisons; and if he will make a statement. | | (276412) | 52
| Andrew George (St Ives): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the Answer of 29 March 2007, Official Report, column 1673, on politics and government: South West region, whether any parts of Stannary Law still exist as part of the law of England and Wales. | | (276568) | 53
N | Mr Dominic Grieve (Beaconsfield): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many offenders aged 21 years or over received (a) immediate custody, (b) a suspended sentence (c) a community sentence, (d) a fine, (e) a conditional or absolute discharge and (f) other treatment for rape or attempted rape of a child under the age of 13 years in each year since 2004. | | (276444) | 54
| Mr Michael Jack (Fylde): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether New Hall Farm Lea, near Preston and Kirkham, has been under consideration by his Department as a site for a new prison; whether it is still under consideration; and if he will make a statement. | | (276531) | Questions to the Minister for the Olympics 55
| Charlotte Atkins (Staffordshire Moorlands): To ask the Minister for the Olympics, what contracts the Olympic Delivery Authority has let for sustainable regular delivery of construction materials by water; and what proportion of deliveries of such materials she expects to be made by (a) water, (b) rail and (c) other modes of transport. | | (276548) | 56
| Charlotte Atkins (Staffordshire Moorlands): To ask the Minister for the Olympics, when the regular (a) delivery of construction materials to and (b) removal of materials from the Olympic site by water will begin. | | (276549) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Transport 57
N | Norman Baker (Lewes): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, for what reason a closure process for Newhaven Marine station has not been initiated. | | (276325) | 58
N | Norman Baker (Lewes): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what proportion of the cost of running the rail network was met from passenger revenue in (a) 1997 and (b) 2003; and what proportion he estimates will be so met in (i) 2009 and (ii) 2013. | | (276326) | 59
N | Norman Baker (Lewes): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether the bond deposited by a train operating company awarded a rail franchise is fully forfeit in the event of a unilateral termination of the franchise by that company. | | (276327) | 60
N | Norman Baker (Lewes): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, which rail franchise contracts provide for a time extension; what time extension is available in each case; and what conditions govern the extension. | | (276328) | 61
N | Mr Frank Field (Birkenhead): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 8 May 2009, Official Report, columns 488-9, on roads: accidents, how many of the drivers of (a) heavy goods vehicles, (b) light goods vehicles and (c) cars referred to in the Table had (i) foreign and (ii) UK driving licences in (A) 2003, (B) 2004, (C) 2005, (D) 2006 and (E) 2007. | | (276427) | 62
N | John McDonnell (Hayes & Harlington): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what meetings his Department has had with each rail franchise company in each month of 2009; and what requests from such companies to modify franchise agreements he has received in that period. | | (276448) | 63
N | Paul Rowen (Rochdale): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he plans to publish guidance on the quality contracts provided for by the Local Transport Act 2008; and if he will make a statement. | | (276445) | 64
N | Bob Spink (Castle Point): To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make it his policy to reissue official photocard driving licences with all prior entitlements without the need for the applicant to provide proof of completion for each individual class; and if he will make a statement. | | (275497) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 65
N | Mr Frank Field (Birkenhead): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 13 May 2009, Official Report, columns 860-1W, on jobseeker's allowance, what the equivalent planning assumption is in respect of income-based jobseeker's allowance. | | (276433) | 66
N | Mrs Theresa May (Maidenhead): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the budget under each budget sub-heading is of each of his Department's employment programmes for (a) 2009-10 and (b) 2010-11. | | (276439) | 67
N | Mrs Theresa May (Maidenhead): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will place in the Library a copy of the Jobcentre Plus National Workload Projection update from Quarter (a) one and (b) two 2009. | | (276440) | 68
N | Mrs Theresa May (Maidenhead): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the Jobcentre Plus National Workload Projection updates are for the most recent four quarters, broken down by the smallest possible geographical area. | | (276441) | 69
N | Mrs Theresa May (Maidenhead): To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will place in the Library a copy of each Jobcentre Plus National Workload Projection update used as assumptions for the Budget 2009. | | (276442) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs 70
N | Linda Gilroy (Plymouth, Sutton): To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his Ghanaian counterpart on the political situation in Ghana. | | [Question Unstarred] (276065) | Questions to the Secretary of State for Justice 71
| Damian Green (Ashford): To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many paper cases are awaiting decision by the Asylum and Immigration Tribunal. | | [Transferred] (276562) |
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