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26 Nov 2009 : Column 278W—continued
Home Department
Animal Experiments
Mr. Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he permits rabbits to be tested more than once in pyrogen tests under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986. [300322]
Meg Hillier: The re-use of rabbits in pyrogen tests is permitted under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986. Consent for re-use of animals in procedures is generally conditional upon the animal having suffered no significant adverse effects as a consequence of the first use, and its not having been subjected to any intervention which compromises its suitability as a subject for the second or subsequent protocol. Authority to re-use any animal that has experienced significant adverse effects in its previous use is unlikely to be granted.
Mr. Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many facilities are licensed under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 to carry out pyrogen tests on rabbits. [300323]
Meg Hillier: Home Office records show that four establishments licensed under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 have completed statistical returns during the last three years reporting pyrogen tests on rabbits.
Ian Tomlinson
Mr. Fallon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects the Independent Police Complaints Commission report on the death of Ian Tomlinson during the G20 protests to be published. [301815]
Mr. Hanson: This is a matter for the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC), and the hon. Member's query has been passed to them for consideration.
Identity Cards
Patrick Mercer: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many individuals who are not required to have a compulsory identity card have applied for a voluntary national identity card. [301002]
Meg Hillier: My right hon. Friend the Home Secretary, announced in a written ministerial statement on 30 June 2009, Official Report, column 11WS that the introduction of identity cards for all British citizens will be voluntary, including those issued to airside workers at Manchester and London City airports.
Since 20 October, up to and including 24 November, 1,107 eligible volunteers, from the Greater Manchester area, London and the two airports, have made an appointment to enrol for an identity card.
Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many individuals who are not required to have a compulsory identity card and do not work for his Department, its executive agencies, or sponsored non-departmental public bodies, have voluntarily applied for a voluntary national identity card. [301936]
Meg Hillier: My right hon. Friend the Home Secretary, announced in a written ministerial statement on 30 June 2009, Official Report, column 11WS that the introduction of identity cards for all British citizens will be voluntary, including those issued to airside workers at Manchester and London City airports.
Since 20 October, up to and including 24 November, 1,107 eligible volunteers, from the Greater Manchester area, London and the two airports, have made an
appointment to enrol for an identity card. The information held on the National Identity Register does not include the basis of an individual's eligibility to apply for an identity card.
Identity Cards: Greater Manchester
Mr. Leech: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department with reference to the answer of 11 November 2009, Official Report, column 430W on identity cards, how many people in Greater Manchester have requested an identity card; and what proportion of the total eligible population of Manchester this represents. [300339]
Meg Hillier: Up to and including 20 November, approximately 2,445 people from the Greater Manchester area have expressed an interest in continuing to be updated about the National Identity Service via the Early Interest Website.
Since 20 October, 749 people have made an appointment to enrol in Greater Manchester for an identity card.
From 30 November, in Greater Manchester, approximately 1.7 million people will be eligible to apply for an identity card.
Motorcycles
Mr. Crabb: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department in what circumstances (a) police and (b) Highways Agency traffic officers may order groups of two or more motorcyclists travelling together on public highways to (i) travel separately on the same route and (ii) take separate routes. [301443]
Mr. Hanson: There is no specific power to split up groups of motorcyclists. The police and on certain roads Highways Agency traffic officers have a general power to direct a person driving or propelling any vehicle, including a motorcycle, to stop, proceed in, or keep to a particular line of traffic. It is an offence not to comply with such a direction. Exercise of the power to direct vehicles on particular occasions and in particular circumstances is an operational matter for the police and Highways Agency. It may be to reduce or prevent crime, to increase safety, or to regulate traffic.
Mr. Crabb: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether guidance has been provided for police forces on the policing of groups of two or more motorcyclists travelling in convoy on public highways. [301444]
Mr. Hanson: Neither the Home Office nor the Association of Chief Police Officers has issued such guidance. Policing of roads is an operational matter for individual chief officers of police.
Opinion Polls
Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will place in the Library copies of the reports of all opinion polling commissioned by his Department in the last 12 months. [301264]
Mr. Woolas:
The Home Office does not publish hard copies of the opinion polling results to save expense but
they are available electronically online. Results are regularly published on the Department's website and can be found at the following location:
Similarly, the results for the UK Border Agency can be found at:
Results for the Identity and Passport Service can be found at:
The most recent sets of polling results are due to be published in the same locations before the end of the year.
Police Custody
Mike Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police custody cells there are in (a) Dacorum and (b) Hemel Hempstead; what his plans are for the future number of such cells in each area; and if he will make a statement. [301774]
Mr. Hanson: The management of the police estate and the allocation of resources in the borough of Dacorum and Hemel Hempstead is a matter for the chief constable of Hertfordshire and Hertfordshire police authority, who are responsible for assessing local needs.
Scotland
Christmas
Mr. Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many Christmas parties his Department plans to host in 2009; what has been budgeted for each such reception; what estimate he has made of the proportion of (a) lamb, (b) beef, (c) chicken, (d) pork, (e) turkey, (f) other meats, (g) vegetables, (h) fruit and (i) alcohol to be served at each such function which is produced in the UK; and if he will make a statement. [300867]
Ann McKechin: My Department does not plan to host any Christmas parties in 2009.
Departmental Cost Effectiveness
Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what efficiency savings projects his Department put in place under the Operational Efficiency Programme; on what date each such project was initiated; how much each such project was expected to contribute to departmental savings; how much had been saved through each such project on the latest date for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement. [300938]
Ann McKechin: The Scotland Office is part of Ministry of Justice (MoJ). The MoJ's contribution towards the Operational Efficiency Programme will be announced in the pre-Budget report.
Departmental Disclosure of Information
Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many allegations of victimisation for whistleblowing have been made to his Department by its staff since 6 June 2006. [301562]
Ann McKechin: The Scotland Office has received no allegations of victimisation for whistleblowing since 6 June 2006.
Departmental Mobile Phones
Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how much his Department spent on (a) purchasing and (b) operating (i) Blackberrys and (ii) other mobile telephones in 2006 to 2009. [300460]
Ann McKechin: Information is not available in the form requested. The total costs of Blackberrys and other mobile phones, including the cost of equipment, call charges and line rental, are set out in the following table.
| £ | ||
| Blackberrys | Other mobile phones | |
Departmental Pay
John Mason: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what (a) bonuses and (b) incentives have been paid to (i) consultants and (ii) contractors engaged by his Department in each of the last three years. [300735]
Ann McKechin: The Scotland Office has paid no bonuses or incentives to consultants or contractors.
Departmental Scientists
Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many (a) scientific advisers and (b) civil servants in scientific posts there are in his Department. [302020]
Ann McKechin: The Scotland Office has no scientific advisers or civil servants in scientific posts.
Departmental Taxis
Ian Stewart: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what contracts his Department has with private hire taxi companies; and what expenditure his Department has incurred against each such contract in each of the last three years. [300835]
Ann McKechin: The Scotland Office have one contract in place to provide private hire taxi services in Edinburgh. The costs in each of the last three years are shown in the following table:
| Expenditure (£) | |
Northern Ireland
Climate Change
Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many (a) Ministers and (b) civil servants from his Department will be attending the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen in an official capacity. [301032]
Paul Goggins: No Ministers or officials from my Department will be attending the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen in an official capacity.
Departmental Pay
John Mason: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what (a) bonuses and (b) incentives have been paid to (i) consultants and (ii) contractors engaged by his Department in each of the last three years. [300645]
Paul Goggins: The Northern Ireland Office, including its arms length bodies and the Public Prosecution Service Northern Ireland, has made no bonus or incentive payments to (i) consultants and (ii) contractors in each of the last three years.
John Mason: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what (a) bonuses and (b) incentives have been paid to (i) consultants and (ii) contractors engaged by executive agencies and non-departmental public bodies for which his Department is responsible in each of the last three years. [300646]
Paul Goggins: No executive agencies of the Northern Ireland Office (NIO) have made bonus or incentive payments to (i) consultants and (ii) contractors in each of the last three years.
The NIO does not hold this information for its non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs). This is an operational matter for each of the NIO's executive NDPBs, who operate independently of Government. I would encourage the hon. Member to write to the respective Chief Executives. Details of the NIO's NDPBs can be found on page seven of the NIO 2009 Departmental Report at
http://www.nio.gov.uk/northern_ireland_office_ departmental_report_2009.pdf
Wales
Departmental Pay
Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many staff in his Department received bonus payments in 2008-09; what proportion of the total workforce they represented; what the total amount of bonuses paid was; what the largest single payment was; and if he will make a statement. [300569]
Mr. Hain: In 2008-09, five staff in the Wales Office received end of year appraisal bonuses, to reward outstanding performance, representing 9 per cent. of the workforce. The total figure paid in bonuses was £6,000, a non-pensionable lump sum. Each of the five members of staff received £1,200, a fixed amount set by the Ministry of Justice.
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