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3 Mar 2010 : Column 1197W—continued
Fertiliser Industry Assurance Scheme
Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what his most recent estimate is of the cost to his Department of the fees charged by Product Authentication International in respect of the Fertiliser Industry Assurance scheme. [319441]
Jim Fitzpatrick: In respect of the Fertiliser Industry Assurance scheme, the companies participating in the scheme pay for the fees charged by Product Authentication International. For this reason, there are no costs to DEFRA or any Government Department.
Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what his latest assessment is of the financial effects on individual farms of the Fertiliser Industry Assurance scheme; and if he will make a statement. [319442]
Jim Fitzpatrick: The Fertiliser Industry Assurance scheme has no direct financial effect on individual farms. The scheme was designed specifically for the fertiliser supply chain. For this reason, there are no individual farms signed up as members of the scheme.
Food: Public Sector
Mr. Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what guidance his Department provides to public sector bodies on procuring meat and dairy products that are free range or produced to standards equivalent to those of the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Freedom Food scheme. [319537]
Jim Fitzpatrick: Guidance produced under DEFRA's Public Sector Food Procurement Initiative encourages all public sector bodies to, and shows how they can, specify higher animal welfare standards, including farm assurance schemes and higher level schemes such as the RSPCA's Freedom Foods standards.
Waste Disposal
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the (a) functions and (b) purposes are of (i) the Waste and Resources Action Programme and (ii) the Waste Improvement Network; and whether each body has provided guidance to local authorities on (A) adopting alternate weekly rubbish collections and (B) restricting residual refuse container capacity. [319733]
Dan Norris: The Waste Improvement Network is a service for local authority waste officers and members. It provides information, advice, guidance and support to its members, including networking possibilities and advice on working in partnerships.
The Waste Improvement Network does not provide advice on the issues listed in the question, but it does share information and good practice between councils and to that end it has published surveys and case studies on the impact of restricting residual waste i.e. on increasing recycling and reducing overall waste arisings per household.
The Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) works with businesses and individuals to help them reap the benefits of reducing waste and develop sustainable products and use resources in an efficient way. It is WRAP's aim to create the case for change, support change and deliver change. WRAP's Business Plan is available on the WRAP website and provides more information about its functions and purposes. WRAP, through its local authority support programme, also provides direct support and advice to individual local authorities on all aspects of their collection and recycling services. Advice is provided at the request of local authorities and this has included advising on options for improving recycling and reducing refuse.
WRAP published guidance on alternate weekly collections in July 2007. This guidance makes reference to other options for restricting refuse capacity including that of maintaining weekly collections but providing smaller containers for refuse. This guidance document is also available on the WRAP website.
Waste Disposal: East of England
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what funding (a) his Department and (b) the Waste and Resources Action Programme has given to the East of England Waste Prevention Network since that body's inception. [319621]
Dan Norris: DEFRA has provided no funding to the East of England Waste Prevention Network.
WRAP has not provided any funding to the East of England Waste Prevention Network, but did provide the Network with consultancy support and advice on local communications and promotional activities linked to the East of England's involvement in the European Week for Waste Reduction in November 2009.
International Development
Malaria
11. David Tredinnick: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps his Department is taking to control malaria in developing countries. [319874]
Mr. Michael Foster: The UK remains strongly committed to tackling malaria.
That is why the Prime Minister committed in 2008 to provide over 20 million bednets by the end of 2010 and to help prevent 110,000 child deaths, and our 2009 White Paper committed to provide an additional 10 million bednets each year to 2013.
By the end of 2009, we had provided over 14 million bednets, preventing over 80,000 child deaths.
Jamaica and Nigeria: Development Aid
12. Mr. Hollobone: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much development aid his Department gave to Jamaica and Nigeria in the last 12 months. [319875]
Mr. Thomas: The amount of bilateral aid provided by the Department for International Development (DFID) to Jamaica was £3.6 million and to Nigeria was £110.5 million in 2008-09.
Gleneagles Summit 2005
13. Mr. Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent assessment he has made of progress towards implementing those recommendations of the Africa Commission which were adopted at the Gleneagles summit in 2005. [319877]
Mr. Michael Foster: We regularly monitor progress against the commitments made at Gleneagles. Along with the other G8 countries, we are producing an accountability report on this progress in time for the next G8 summit in Canada. This will include the Gleneagles commitments and the other development commitments made by the G8 since 2005.
14. Mr. Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent discussions he has had with his G8 counterparts on progress towards meeting commitments made at Gleneagles in 2005. [319878]
Mr. Michael Foster: Last week the Secretary of State for International Development met with Minister Beverley Oda to discuss issues including the aid volume commitments made at Gleneagles. The European Union's Gleneagles commitments were also discussed at the Informal Meeting of EU Development Ministers at La Granja, attended by the Minister of State. While there he also had bilaterals with German Development Minister Niebel and European Development Commissioner Piebalgs. The UK will meet its aid volume commitments and continue to press others to meet their own commitments.
Departmental Public Expenditure
Mr. Curry: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much funding his Department (a) allocated to each Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and Creditor Reporting System code in each of its bilateral country programmes in each of the last five years and (b) intends to allocate to each such code for each such programme in each of the next three years. [319483]
Mr. Michael Foster: The Creditor Reporting System (CRS) is overseen by the Development Assistance Committee (DAC) of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Full details of the UK return for calendar years up to 2008 are available directly from the OECD website at
A breakdown of the allocations of the Department for International Development's (DFID's) aid for 2009 or for future years cannot be provided at this level of detail without incurring disproportionate cost. Information on 2009 flows is due to be provided to the DAC in July.
Mr. Curry:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much funding his Department (a) allocated and (b) disbursed for (i) agriculture and (ii) food security through (A) bilateral expenditure,
(B) multilateral contributions and (C) research in each of the last five years; and how much it intends to disburse in each such case in each of the next three years. [319484]
Mr. Michael Foster: Details of funds disbursed by the Department for International Development (DFID) for agriculture and food security in each of the last five financial years are provided in the following table. DFID does not record funds allocated but not disbursed. These figures do not include spending on emergency humanitarian food aid.
| 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | |
The UK Government have committed to spend £1.1 billion on agriculture and food security between 2009-10 and 2011-12. This commitment does not include spending on basic nutrition or emergency humanitarian food aid.
Falkland Islands: Oil
Clare Short: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will apply the rules of the extractive industries transparency initiative in relation to any oil that may be discovered in the Falkland Islands. [320104]
Mr. Michael Foster: If oil is discovered in the Falkland Islands, any revenues generated will be subject to the same rules applied by the UK Government to other revenue received from extractive industries.
The UK Government publish all information on revenue received from oil and gas industries, including taxation revenues and this available on the HM Revenue and Customs website at
The UK practice of disclosure of revenue information is in line with the principles of the extractive industries transparency initiative.
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