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23 Jun 2010 : Column 274W—continued
2. Annual performance awards that are paid to members of staff who receive a highly successful performance rating.
Non-consolidated variable pay awards are funded from within existing pay bill controls, and have to be re-earned each year against pre-determined targets and, as such, do not add to future pay bill costs.
Performance awards for the SCS are part of the pay system across the whole senior civil service, and are used to reward high performance sustained throughout the year, based on judgments of how well an individual has performed relative to their peers. The performance related pay scheme is designed to help drive high performance and support better public service delivery. Performance awards are non-consolidated and non pensionable. The percentage of the pay bill set aside for performance-related awards for the SCS is based on recommendations from the independent Senior Salaries Review Body. For the year 2009-10 the Senior Salaries Review Body has confirmed that up to 8.6% of the BIS SCS pay bill may be used for non-consolidated performance awards for the SCS. No payments have yet been made, but BIS does not intend to use the full amount available.
BIS was formed through a machinery of government change that occurred in June 2009. The Department was created by merging the Department for Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR) and the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS). The following information provides combined details for the performance payments made to staff below the SCS from each of the former Departments.
| Amount spent on performance awards (£) | |
Departmental Reviews
Andrew Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 8 June 2010, Official Report, column 137W, on Government Departments: reviews, what reviews his Department is undertaking; and what the (a) purpose and (b) timescale of each is. [2589]
Vince Cable: The coalition agreement sets out in detail the Government's future plans, including the key reviews it will be undertaking. My Department will bring forward detailed information about these reviews in due course.
Graduates: Employment Schemes
Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether he plans to maintain the previous Government's policy of a Graduate Guarantee. [738]
Chris Grayling: I have been asked to reply.
The Graduate Guarantee was introduced by the previous Administration as a temporary measure, for 2009 graduates who reach six months unemployment.
This Government are committed to providing targeted support and will be introducing a single, integrated work programme to deliver personalised support for the unemployed, including appropriate graduates. Until this is introduced, we will ensure that unemployed graduates receive the support they need.
Higher Education
Mr Lammy: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills which higher education institutions (a) he and (b) the Minister of State for Universities visited in May 2010. [2954]
Mr Willetts: In May 2010, I visited the University of Birmingham.
Insolvency: Witham
Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many small and medium-sized businesses in Witham constituency were declared insolvent in each year since 1997. [3747]
Mr Davey: Official statistics covering corporate insolvencies for England and Wales are not currently available at sub-national level, or differentiated by firm size.
Corporate and personal insolvency statistics are published quarterly as a National Statistics press release by the Insolvency Service; they are available at:
Latest headline figures currently are those for Quarter 1 2010; Q2 2010 will be available from 6 August 2010.
One NorthEast: Hartlepool
Mr Iain Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills which projects in Hartlepool constituency received funding from One NorthEast in each of the last five years. [3454]
Mr Prisk: The Department allocates budgets to Regional Development Agencies. The agencies determine which projects to support, subject to the terms of the accountability and financial framework and their delegated financial authorities. RDAs' investments have been guided by the regional economic strategy and their corporate plans. The Department does not hold details of individual projects supported by the RDAs within their delegated financial authorities.
Post Office: ICT
Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many times Ministers in his Department had discussions with Post Office Ltd on the Horizon system in the last five years. [3750]
Mr Davey: The Horizon system is an operational responsibility of the company and I have had no such discussions. It is an established convention that Minsters of one Administration cannot see the documents of a previous Administration. I am therefore unable to provide the information requested.
Post Offices
Chris Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills (1) if he will require Post Office Ltd to publish the methodology it uses to calculate whether a post office reinstatement would have a negative effect on the remaining network in that area; [3678]
(2) which post offices have been re-opened under the Post Office Ltd Local Funding Guidance; [3679]
(3) what plans Post Office Ltd has to open new post offices in urban areas; and what criteria it will use in determining the viability of a business case for opening such a post office. [3680]
Mr Davey: I have asked David Smith, the Managing Director of Post Office Ltd, to respond directly to the hon. Member and a copy of his reply will be placed in the Library.
Post Offices: Witham
Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills (1) how many Post Office branches there were in Witham constituency in each year since 1997; [3746]
(2) if he will (a) review and (b) report to the House on the effectiveness of the Post Office's Horizon system. [3751]
Mr Davey: I have asked David Smith, the managing director of Post Office Ltd, to respond directly to my hon. Friend and a copy of his reply will be placed in the Library.
Unemployment: Young People
Damian Collins: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many 16 to 24 year olds were not in education, employment or training in the Shepway district council area in each year since 1997. [3824]
Mr Hayes: The following table provides estimates of the number and proportion of people aged(1) 16 to 24 not in education employment or training (NEET) in Kent local education authority. This information is from the Annual Population Survey and covers the period 2000 to 2008, with 2008 being the most recent estimate available.
We are unable to produce NEET estimates for 16 to 24-year-olds at district council level due to sample sizes being insufficiently large. Due to incomplete data, estimates are not available prior to 2000.
| People aged 16-24 years old not in employment, education or training (NEET) in Kent local education a uthority | |||
| Number NEET | Percentage NEET | 95% c onfidence interval (pp) | |
All of the estimates provided are subject to sampling variability and should therefore be treated with caution and viewed in conjunction with their confidence intervals(2) (CIs), which indicate how accurate an estimate is. For example, a CI of +/-4 percentage points (pp) means that the true value is between 4pp above the estimate and 4pp below the estimate.
The Department for Education (DfE) is responsible for policy covering NEETs aged 16-18 years old and therefore this answer from BIS is partially on behalf of DfE.
(1) Age used is respondents academic age, which is defined as their age at the preceding 31 August.
(2) Those given are 95% confidence intervals.
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