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13 Jan 2010 : Column 1011W—continued
National Offender Management Service: Manpower
John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice whether NAPO and Unison will be consulted on planned reductions to staffing levels in the National Offender Management Service headquarters. [309671]
Maria Eagle: NAPO and Unison will be informed about planned reductions to staffing levels in National Offender Management Service (NOMS) headquarters through the NOMS Trade Union Consultation Meeting structure alongside other trade unions representing NOMS staff.
Prisoners' Release
Mr. Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answers of 24 November 2009, Official Report, column 85W and 1 December 2009, Official Report, column 590W, on prisoners' release, whether the investigating officer's report was completed by 4 December 2009; on what date he expects to write to the hon. Member for West Chelmsford; and if he will make a statement. [308235]
Maria Eagle: The investigating officer's report was completed on 4 December 2009. I wrote to the hon. Member on 13 January 2010.
International Development
Departmental Surveys
Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will place in the Library a copy of the results of his Department's most recent staff survey; which organisation carried out the survey; and what the cost of the survey was. [309838]
Mr. Michael Foster: The Department for International Development (DFID) will publish its October 2009 staff survey results on our website in early March. Following publication we will place a copy of the results in the Library.
ORC International carried out the survey. Their services were procured by the Cabinet Office to deliver the first cross-Civil Service People Survey. The People Survey replaced all existing staff surveys in the civil service with a single questionnaire.
The final cost of the 2009-10 People Survey for DFID is expected to be approximately £50,000. By procuring a single supplier for staff surveys in 2009-10, the civil service has saved 35 per cent. on the total cost of staff surveys in 2008-09.
Departmental Training
Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many sessions of media training were organised for Ministers in his Department in each of the last three years. [309913]
Mr. Douglas Alexander: Training is provided to Ministers on a range of issues including handling the media, as part of their induction and continuing development in order to carry out their duties effectively under the 'Ministerial Code'.
Non-Governmental Organisations: Finance
Mr. Carswell:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development (1) what criteria are used to determine which organisations take part in (a) Partnership
Programme arrangements, (b) Strategic Grant agreements and (c) Strategic Framework Partnership agreements; [309745]
(2) what criteria are used by his Department to decide which non-governmental organisations receive funding under Partnership Programme Arrangements; and if he will publish those criteria. [309809]
Mr. Michael Foster: The most recent competitive call for proposals for Partnership Programme Arrangements (PPAs) was held in 2006. The Department for International Development's criteria for Partnership Programme arrangement applications are posted on the DFID website at:
DFID does not have any Strategic Grant Agreements or Strategic Framework Partnership Agreements.
Mr. Carswell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what the (a) purposes and (b) terms are of each current (i) Strategic Grant Agreement and (ii) Strategic Framework Partnership Agreement entered into by his Department. [309747]
Mr. Michael Foster: The Department for International Development (DFID) does not have any current Strategic Grant Agreements or Strategic Framework Partnership Agreements.
Mr. Carswell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps he has taken to improve the mechanisms for (a) accountability and (b) performance measurement of expenditure from grants provided by his Department. [309808]
Mr. Michael Foster: The Department for International Development (DFID) requires all grant recipients to provide audited financial statements and also checks on the use of funds by conducting annual monitoring reviews. Performance measurement has been improved through the introduction of a strengthened results framework at the project level which details objectives and expected outcomes.
Mr. Carswell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many non-governmental organisations in receipt of grants from his Department are not required to provide audit information including itemised expenditure in respect of such grants. [309810]
Mr. Michael Foster: All organisations in receipt of funding from the Department for International Development are required to provide evidence about the use of funds through Annual Audited Accounts or special audited statements.
Mr. Carswell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether any funding provided by his Department to non-governmental organisations may be spent by them on communications and public relations activities. [309811]
Mr. Michael Foster:
Funding provided to non-governmental organisations by the Department for International Development must meet the development
assistance or humanitarian assistance tests of the International Development Act. In addition all grants must be spent in accordance with the specific objectives and criteria set out in each of the funding arrangements.
Mr. Carswell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what proportion of non-governmental organisations in receipt of grants from his Department (a) audit themselves and (b) are independently audited in relation to their expenditure of such funding. [309812]
Mr. Michael Foster: Grants provided by the Department for International Development require evidence about the use of such funds through the receipt of Annual Audited Accounts, or through a special audited statement. In both circumstances this follows an independent examination.
Mr. Carswell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps he is taking to ensure greater accountability of expenditure by third party organisations of Partnership Programme Arrangements funding on projects. [309813]
Mr. Michael Foster: The Partnership Programme Arrangements (PPAs) provide funding in support of mutually agreed high level developmental outcomes. The Department for International Development (DFID) holds PPA organisations accountable for achieving agreed outcomes. DFID does not directly monitor the effectiveness of a PPA organisation's in-country partners.
We are currently working with all PPA organisations to review and strengthen their performance frameworks to ensure greater accountability against agreed outcomes.
Overseas Aid
Mr. Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development pursuant to his contribution of 14 December 2009, Official Report, column 645, on Afghanistan and the EU Council, how much Ministry of Defence spending on humanitarian aid will contribute to the Government's 0.7 per cent. overseas development commitment. [309672]
Mr. Douglas Alexander: The only Ministry of Defence (MOD) contribution to UK Official Development Assistance (ODA) is through its joint management of the Conflict Pool. The Conflict Pool is a tri-departmental fund managed with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) and the Department for International Development (DFID). Approximately 80 per cent. of spending under the Conflict Pool is projected to be ODA eligible. The MOD is expected to manage approximately £60 million of Conflict Pool funds in 2009-10.
Trades Union Congress
Mr. Carswell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much funding his Department has provided under the Partnership Programme Arrangement to the Trades Union Congress in 2009-10; and on what terms such grants are made. [309746]
Mr. Michael Foster: In 2009-10 the Department for International Development (DFID) provided the Trades Union Congress (TUC) with £1.2 million under the Partnership Programme Arrangement (PPA).
This support was made available on the basis that it would be used solely for development assistance purposes as defined in the International Development Act (2002).
As with all other PPAs, the TUC are required to report annually against mutually agreed outcomes which are set out in their PPA performance framework.
Mr. Carswell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development for what reasons his Department enters into Partnership Programme arrangements with the Trades Union Congress; and if he will make a statement. [309748]
Mr. Michael Foster: Trade Unions form an important part of civil society globally. The Department for International Development's (DFID's) Partnership Programme Arrangement (PPA) with the Trades Union Congress (TUC) enables support to be provided to trade unions in the developing world that are contributing to poverty reduction as part of an international network.
Uganda: Homosexuality
Mr. Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether his Department has made representations to the Ugandan government on the Anti-Homosexuality Bill before the Ugandan Parliament. [309707]
Mr. Thomas: The Department for International Development (DFID) is extremely concerned by the introduction of this Bill and is working closely with the Foreign Office and with European Union (EU) colleagues on this issue. The UK Government have made clear our concerns in representations to Ugandan Ministers, including by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister to President Museveni and my noble Friend Baroness Kinnock to Foreign Minister Kutesa, at the recent Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting. The UK High Commissioner in Kampala has also lobbied the Prime Minister and other Ugandan Ministers on the issue. Sweden, as local EU presidency in Uganda, led an EU démarche to the Ugandan Foreign Ministry in December 2009. The Head of DFID Uganda has raised the issue with Uganda's Minister of Finance and senior officials.
The Bill is a private members Bill and has not been adopted by the Government of Uganda or approved by Parliament. However, we will take account of the Bill's progress when taking any decisions on future funding for Uganda.
Uganda: Human Rights
Mr. Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps his Department is taking to improve the human rights situation in Uganda. [309708]
Mr. Thomas:
The UK has lobbied the Government of Uganda (GoU) on contraventions of human rights. The British high commission and the Department for International Development's (DFID's) office in Kampala follow the situation closely and regularly discuss human
rights issues with the GoU. For example we raised concerns over the use of force and restrictions on media freedoms during the September 2009 riots.
DFID also provides direct assistance to a number of initiatives aimed at strengthening the protection of human rights. DFID supports the Ugandan Human Rights Commission programme of civic education, with a focus on citizens' rights. We are supporting the police and civil society groups to improve public order policing under the Deepening Democracy Programme. DFID also contributes to the Independent Development Fund that provides grants to human rights organisations in Uganda.
Uganda: Overseas Aid
Mr. Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development which (a) human and (b) civil rights organisations have received funding from his Department in supporting their work in Uganda in each of the last five years; what allocations have been made to such organisations for each of the next three years; and if he will make a statement. [309706]
Mr. Thomas: The Department for International Development (DFID) supports human and civil rights organisations working in Uganda through both bilateral and multilateral programmes. Organisations supported through both these channels for each of the past five years are presented in the following tables.
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