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14 July 2010 : Column 741W—continued
Crime Prevention
Karen Lumley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether her Department plans to proceed with the Not in My Neighbourhood week scheme in (a) 2010 and (b) future years. [7761]
Nick Herbert: Not in My Neighbourhood Week will not take place in 2010. Plans for future years are under review.
Demonstrations: Parliament Square
Mr Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if she will take steps to ensure that Parliament Square is kept free of demonstrators on parliamentary sitting days; what recent representations she has received on this issue; and if she will make a statement; [7276]
(2) if she will commission a report from the Commissioner of Police for the Metropolis on the policing of the demonstration held in Parliament Square on 2 July 2010; and if she will make a statement. [7277]
Nick Herbert: We are reviewing the law governing protests in and around Parliament Square.
The Government will continue their discussions with the Greater London Authority, Westminster City Council, the Metropolitan Police, the Speaker and other interested parties on how to support peaceful protest while preventing criminal activity and securing enjoyment and use of the Square for all.
The responsibility for managing Parliament Square Garden rests with the Greater London Authority (GLA) under the GLA Act 1999. The Mayor of London has taken action in the High Court to deal with the current encampment on Parliament Square Garden. This matter remains before the courts.
Departmental Buildings
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many buildings her Department occupies in (a) London and (b) the UK. [6852]
Nick Herbert: The Department excluding its Executive agencies mainly occupies one building in central London and has minor occupations in three others. It occupies 12 others outside London. Proposals to vacate buildings are under consideration.
Departmental Conferences
Robert Halfon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate she has made of her Department's expenditure on (a) organisation of and (b) attendance at conferences in each year since 1997. [6121]
Nick Herbert: Expenditure incurred on the organisation of and attendance at conferences cannot be identified separately without incurring disproportionate cost. However, the Department has recorded conference-related expenditure on its accounting systems and these are set out in the table. This includes conferences organised and funded by the Home Office for partner bodies and the costs of conference attended by Home Office staff.
| Conference costs (£000) | |
General and subsidiary ledgers produced for the purpose of preparing certified financial statements are not retained after a period of six years, in line with National Audit Office requirements. The Department does not hold the requested information for financial years before 2004-05.
All expenditure on conference services is incurred in accordance with the principles of Managing Public Money and the Treasury handbook on Regularity and Propriety.
Departmental Electronic Equipment
Graham Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much (a) her Department and (b) its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent on televisions in each year since 1997. [7510]
Nick Herbert: Information on expenditure on television purchase since 1997 is not held centrally and would incur disproportionate cost to obtain.
Departmental Lighting
Graham Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much (a) her Department and (b) its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent on light bulbs in each year since 1997. [7630]
Nick Herbert: Information on expenditure on light bulbs since 1997 is not held centrally and would incur disproportionate cost to obtain.
Departmental Photographs
Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much her Department has spent on official photographs of Ministers since the formation of the present administration. [6449]
Nick Herbert: Since the formation of the Government the Home Office has spent £1,000 on official photographs of Ministers. The fee was for hire of a professional photographer for two days to take photographs of Ministers for official use, including the Home Office website, documenting the Home Secretary's arrival at the Home Office, and the Home Secretary's first address to Home Office staff for the intranet.
Departmental Security
Graham Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much (a) her Department and (b) its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent on security in each year since 1997. [7378]
Nick Herbert: Security in the Home Office Group is embedded in its operations. The central unit responsible for oversight of security. The Departmental Security Unit, and the security units for the agencies provide central points of support and advice but much of the day to day work of security is done by local units under the guidance of their security liaison officers.
It would be difficult to extract the costs of this work as it would involve examining the accounts of every unit in the Home Office Group. This could be done only at disproportionate cost.
Departmental Utilities
Graham Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much (a) her Department and (b) its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent on (i) electricity, (ii) water, (iii) heating and (iv) telephone services in each year since 1997. [7592]
Nick Herbert: The utility spend for Home Office HQ at 2 Marsham Street for the last five years is set out in the following table:
| Table A | |||||
| £ | |||||
| 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | 2009-10 | |
Information on utilities spend for across the rest of the estate is not held centrally.
The telephony spend for the Home Department and UKBA from available records is set out in the following table:
| Table B | ||||
| £ million | ||||
| Telephony | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 | 2009-10 |
UKBA telephony spend for 2006-07 is not available as it was consolidated within other costs and can not be individually identified. Telephony spend for other Home Office agencies and non-departmental public bodies is not held centrally.
Hillsborough Stadium: Disclosure of Information
Derek Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department on what date she expects the first documents relating to the Hillsborough disaster to be released by relevant Government Departments. [6796]
Nick Herbert [holding answer 8 July 2010]: The Hillsborough Independent Panel is overseeing the process for maximum public disclosure of documents relating to the Hillsborough stadium disaster. Government Departments are already working on the arrangements for identifying, cataloguing and reviewing these records.
My right hon. Friend the Home Secretary has met recently with the Bishop of Liverpool in his capacity as chair of the independent panel and has given personal backing to the project.
Immigration
Mr Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people were given leave to enter the UK under the Post-Study Route of tier 1 of the points-based immigration system in each month since its introduction. [7766]
Damian Green [holding answer 12 July 2010]: The number of people given leave to enter the UK under the post-study route of tier 1 of the points-based immigration system is given in the following table:
| Post-study route tier 1 | ||||
| Endorsement | ||||
| Tier 1 (post study) main applicant | Tier 1 (post study) partner | Tier 1 (post study) child | Grand total | |
The data in this table are based on management information. They are provisional and subject to change.
Police Community Support Officer: Redundancy
Paul Goggins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate she has made of the (a) minimum and (b) average redundancy costs in respect of a police community support officer whose services are no longer required. [6371]
Nick Herbert [holding answer 6 July 2010]: No such estimates have been made. It is an issue for each force to determine police staff redundancy costs. The redundancy terms are set out under the Local Government Pension Scheme (and Principal Civil Service Pension Scheme for the Metropolitan Police) and the associated compensation schemes.
Police Community Support Officers: Greater Manchester
Mr Crausby: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police community support officers there are in (a) Bolton and (b) Greater Manchester. [7843]
Nick Herbert: Latest available data, as at 31 Match 2009, show that there were 67 police community support officers in Bolton (BCU) and 782 police community support officers in Greater Manchester police force.
Police: Manpower
Julie Elliott: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate she has made of the effects on the number of (a) police officers, (b) community police officers and (c) other front line staff in the Northumbria police force of the reduction in the force's funding for 2010-11. [7123]
Nick Herbert: Every force will face a cut equivalent to the same percentage (under 1.5%) of the core funding they receive from central Government.
These proposed reductions should not impact on the frontline. Decisions about the number of police officers, police community support officers and other police staff engaged by the police remain a matter for each chief constable and the police authority, but we have made it clear that the frontline should remain strong and secure and we expect police authorities to look at how they spend their money and ensure that they are delivering a cost effective service to achieve this.
Police: VAT
Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what estimate she has made of the financial effects on police forces of the proposed increase in the standard rate of value added tax in 2011; [7270]
(2) how much value added tax was paid by police forces in the latest year for which figures are available. [7271]
Nick Herbert: We do not hold information centrally on how much police forces pay in VAT.
Speed Limits: Fines
Simon Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many fines for speeding offences have been (a) issued by each police force in the East of England region in each year since 1997 and (b) how many such fines have been paid by residents of Norwich South constituency in each such year. [7052]
Nick Herbert: Data showing the number of fixed penalty notices (FPNs) issued by police in the East of England region from 1997 to 2008 (latest available), broken down by police force area, are provided in table A.
Additionally, data on the number of court fines for speeding, provided by the Ministry of Justice, are provided in table B.
The data on fines reported to the Home Office and Ministry of Justice do not include information on the
persons paying the fines; therefore it is not possible to identify the number of fines paid by residents of the Norwich South constituency.
| Table A: Number of fixed penalty notices issued for speeding offences, by police force area, East of England region 1997-2007( 1) | ||||||||||||
| Police force area | 1997 | 1 998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 |
| (1) Includes only FPNs issued and paid. Where penalties are not paid and are referred to court, they are no longer recorded as FPNs. | ||||||||||||
| Table B: The number of fines imposed at all courts in the East of England Government Office Region, by police force area, for speed limit offences( 1) , from 1997 to 2008( 2,3) | ||||||||||||
| Police force area | 1997 | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 |
| (1) Offences under the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 ss. 16. 81, 84. 86, 88 & 89; Motor Vehicles (Speed Limit on Motorways) Regs. 1973; Parks Regulation (Amendment) Act 1926-byelaws made thereunder. (2) It is known that for some police force areas, the reporting of court proceedings in particular those relating to summary motoring offences, may be less than complete. (3) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services-Ministry of Justice | ||||||||||||
Leader of the House
Departmental Official Cars
Hugh Bayley: To ask the Leader of the House how much his Office has spent on the Government Car Service since the Government took office. [7961]
Sir George Young: The Office of the Leader of the House of Commons is part of the Cabinet Office. I refer the hon. Member to the answer by the Minister for the Cabinet Office of 12 July 2010, Official Report, column 598W.
Departmental Travel
Hugh Bayley: To ask the Leader of the House which (a) Ministers and (b) officials in his Office have been driven by the Government Car Service since the Government took office; and how much each of these persons has received in expenses for use of taxis, buses and underground trains in that period. [7962]
Sir George Young: The Office of the Leader of the House of Commons is part of the Cabinet Office. I refer the hon. Member to the answer by the Minister for the Cabinet Office of 13 July 2010, Official Report, column 668W.
Attorney-General
Departmental Buildings
Graham Evans: To ask the Attorney-General how much (a) the Law Officers' Departments and (b) their agency spent on office refurbishment in each year since 1997. [7348]
The Attorney-General: The information requested is detailed in the following table:
Departmental Marketing
Graham Evans: To ask the Attorney-General how much (a) the Law Officers' Departments and (b) their agency spent on logo design in each year since 1997. [7474]
The Attorney-General: The information requested is as follows.
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) and Revenue and Customs Prosecutions Office (RCPO) merged on 1 January 2010.
Expenditure on logos in both organisations since 1997 was as follows:
2006-07: £5,950-redesign cost of the CPS logo.
2005-06: £8,594-total cost of the RCPO logo. This figure represents the full cost for the design and implementation of the logo, which took place at the new organisation's inception. A breakdown of this figure to provide solely the design costs is not available.
TSol redesigned its logo in 2004-05. The total cost was £20,000.
Since 1997 the Serious Fraud Office has spent £16,290 on branding exercises.
Since launching in 2008-09, the National Fraud Authority spent £38,290 in 2008-09, and £38,024 in 2009-10 on logo design. The expenditure incurred in 2008-09 was for the design and development of the National Fraud Strategic Authority (NFSA) brand, including logo design. The expenditure in 2009-10 includes rebranding to the National Fraud Authority (logo development and office branding), and development of the Action Fraud logo.
The Attorney-General's office and HMCPSI have incurred no external design expenditure on logo design.
Departmental Official Cars
Hugh Bayley: To ask the Attorney-General how much the Law Officers' Departments have spent on the Government car service since the Government took office. [7998]
The Attorney-General: Since the Government took office, the Crown Prosecution Service has spent £14,858.21 on the Government car service.
Treasury Solicitor's have made payments of £22,985 to the Government car service between May 6 and 30 June. This includes the costs incurred by the Attorney-General's Office.
The SFO, HMCPSI and NFA do not use the Government car service.
Departmental Training
Graham Evans: To ask the Attorney-General how much (a) the Law Officers' Departments and (b) their agency spent on employee awaydays in each year since 1997. [7310]
The Attorney-General: Information relating to the Law Officer's departments is as follows.
The National Fraud Authority (NFA) spent £5,100 on staff away day events during 2009-10. There was no expenditure in 2008-09 when the NFA was launched.
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) is a devolved organisation and local managers are responsible for arranging away days. Information on the number and costs of away days that took place outside CPS buildings attended by civil servants is not recorded centrally. To obtain the information requested would require all managers to review financial records since 2003 (our financial systems can only go that far back) and would incur disproportionate cost.
The following information is available for away days relating to the Revenue and Customs Prosecution Office (RCPO) who merged with the CPS on 1 January 2010:
| Expenditure (£) | |
| (1) Amounts are still subject to audit. | |
The Serious Fraud Office holds workshops and conferences which relate directly to business priorities and strategy. Participation and contribution by staff is required. The cost for such events is not recorded separately from other conference events, the total cost for which is detailed in the following table.
| Financial year | Cost (£) |
It is not possible to separately identify the amount spent by the Treasury Solicitor's Department, Attorney-General's Office and HM Crown Prosecution Inspectorate on staff away days from other expenditure on training and organising and attending conferences without incurring disproportionate cost.
Departmental Utilities
Graham Evans: To ask the Attorney-General how much (a) the Law Officers' Departments and (b) their agency spent on (i) electricity, (ii) water, (iii) heating and (iv) telephone services in each year since 1997. [7580]
The Attorney-General: The information requested is outlined as follows.
Spending on these utilities by the SFO is outlined in the following table:
| Cost (£) | ||||
| SFO( 1) | Electricity | Water | Heating | Telephones |
| (1) The NFA collocated with the Serious Fraud Office in its office at Gray's Inn Road in 2009-10 and all NFA costs for utilities, are accounted for in the SFO's 2009-10 figure. Additionally NFA spent £2,039 on the procurement of mobile/blackberry and 3G services. | ||||
The amount spent by the Treasury Solicitor's Department, Attorney-General's Office and HM Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate for each year is shown as follows. The figures prior to 1998-99 are not retained on the Department's accounting system, and HM Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate was not included within the Department until mid-2001.
The National Fraud Authority shared premises with HM Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate in 2008-09 and all utilities were paid for by the inspectorate.
| £000 | ||||
| Electricity | Water | Gas Heating | Telephone services | |
The following tables show the amounts for electricity, water and gas (the gas and electricity would form part of the heating charges) and telephone services incurred by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS). They also show the amount spent on telephone services and utilities by the Revenue and Customs Prosecution Service (RCPO)-who merged with the CPS on 1 January 2010. The data are taken from the financial management system and are only available for 2003-04 onwards. RCPO expenditure for 2009-10 is included in the CPS totals for that year.
| CPS | |
| Expenditure (£ million) | |
| RCPO | |
| Expenditure (£ million) | |
During 2005-06 RCPO utilities were not reported separately from the main rental payment to HMRC-hence no expenditure is shown for this year. The 2009-10 figures are subject to audit.
Written Questions: Expenditure
Grahame M. Morris: To ask the Attorney-General what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of answering Questions 7474, 7498, 7580, 7599, 7618, 7637, 7329, 7348, 7366, 7417, 7436, 7455 and 7310, tabled on 8 July 2010 by the hon. Member for Weaver Vale (Graham Evans) for written answer. [8177]
The Attorney-General: The Treasury produces regular estimates of the average cost of answering a written parliamentary question. The estimated figure was last updated to £154 in January 2010 and Parliament was notified in a written statement issued by the former Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury (Sarah McCarthy-Fry), on 20 January 2010, Official Report, column 15WS.
Estimating the exact costs of producing individual PQ answers is very difficult, although it is fair to say that in the case of most of the above questions the average cost has almost certainly been exceeded, and in a few cases may be approaching the upper disproportionate cost threshold limit of £800. All of these questions requested a large amount of factual information, none of which was stored centrally and thus required a coordinated information gathering exercise across the Law Officers Departments.
Culture, Media and Sport
Departmental Buildings
Graham Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport how much (a) his Department and (b) its agency and non-departmental public bodies spent on office refurbishment in each year since 1997. [7351]
John Penrose: The Department has spent the following on office refurbishments in each of the last 10 years.
| £ | |
We do not hold figures prior to 1999.
Information on the amount spent by the DCMS agency and arm's length bodies is held by them and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Departmental Electronic Equipment
Graham Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport how much (a) his Department and (b) its agency and non-departmental public bodies spent on televisions in each year since 1997. [7501]
John Penrose: Between financial years 2005-06 and 2009-10, the following amounts were spent on televisions at this Department:
| Expenditure on TVs | |
| £ | |
| (1) This amount includes a flat screen television, stand, protective screen and case. It is not possible to separate the cost of each item. Note: Information prior to 2005-06 is not available. | |
Information on the amount spent by the DCMS agency and arm's length bodies is held by them and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Departmental Lighting
Graham Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport how much (a) his Department and (b) its agency and non-departmental public bodies spent on light bulbs in each year since 1997. [7621]
John Penrose: The Department does not directly purchase light bulbs. The replacement of light bulbs is included in the Department's facilities management contract and it is not possible to disaggregate the cost.
Information on the amount spent by the DCMS agency and arm's length bodies is held by them and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Departmental Photographs
Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport how much his Department has spent on official photographs of Ministers since the formation of the present Administration. [6427]
John Penrose: In the first week of the current Administration's tenure, the Department commissioned a photographer to take official photographs of new Ministers and a range of additional images for use on the DCMS website and in communication materials, at a cost of £600.
We keep photography costs to a minimum and wherever possible departmental staff take photographs at no cost, or we use cost-free images.
Departmental Security
Graham Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport how much (a) his Department and (b) its agency and non-departmental public bodies spent on security in each year since 1997. [7369]
John Penrose: The Department has spent the following on security in each year since 2007:
| Financial year | Spend on security (£) |
We do not hold figures for preceding years.
Information on the amount spent by the DCMS agency and arm's length bodies is held by them and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Departmental Travel
Graham Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport how much his (a) Department and (b) its agency and non-departmental public bodies spent on travel for employees in each year since 1997. [7420]
John Penrose: All official travel is undertaken in accordance with rules set out in the Department's Travel and Subsistence guidance and is consistent with the Civil Service Management Code.
The following table outlines this Department's expenditure on travel since 1997:
| Financial Year | Total (£) |
Information on the amount spent by the DCMS agency and arm's length bodies is held by them and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Historic Buildings: Coventry
Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport pursuant to his answer of 21 June 2010, Official Report, column 16W, on Coventry Market, when he plans to make a final decision. [7100]
John Penrose [holding answer 12 July 2010]: I am sorry I was unable to make a decision before the date stated in the previous answer. I will make a decision on this by the end of July.
National Lottery
Mr Bradshaw: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport to what good causes National Lottery funding went in the first year after the lottery was established. [8007]
John Penrose [holding answer 12 July 2010]: The National Lottery etc. Act 1993 established four good causes: arts, sport, national heritage and charitable expenditure which each received 20% of lottery proceeds. In addition to the four good causes a further 20% was assigned to projects to mark the year 2000 and the beginning of the third millennium. This ceased to receive income from the national lottery in 2001.
Communities and Local Government
Departmental Buildings
Graham Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much (a) his Department and its predecessors and (b) its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent on office refurbishment in each year since 1997. [7350]
Robert Neill: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer given to my right hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond) on 16 March 2010, Official Report, columns 819-20W.
The amounts spent by the Department's agencies and non-departmental government bodies are not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Departmental Consultants
Mr Redwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much (a) his Department and (b) its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent on consultancy fees in 2009. [5500]
Robert Neill: The Department, its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent the following on consultancy in the financial year 2009-10:
| 2009-10 Spend (£) | |
These figures are from the 2009-10 Public Sector Procurement Expenditure Survey (PSPES) and reflect consultancy spend from the organisation under the definition of consultancy approved by the Office of Government Commerce.
The Government have pledged to reduce consultancy spend across Government. The Department is committed to supporting this and has implemented a consultancy freeze across the Department, our agencies and non-departmental public bodies to release £5.8 million in 2010-11.
Departmental Electronic Equipment
Graham Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much (a) his Department and its predecessors and (b) its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent on televisions in each year since 1997. [7500]
Robert Neill: Details of expenditure on televisions are not held centrally and could be supplied only at disproportionate cost.
Departmental ICT
Graham Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much (a) his Department and its predecessors and (b) its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent on information and communication technology in each year since 1997. [7331]
Robert Neill: The following table shows total spend on information and communications technology for the last financial year for (a) the Department and (b) its agencies and non-departmental bodies. Details of expenditure in earlier years could be supplied only at disproportionate cost.
| Financial year: 2009-10 | |
| £ | |
Departmental Internet
Graham Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much (a) his Department and its predecessors and (b) its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent on website design in each year since 1997. [7601]
Robert Neill: Details of expenditure on website design are not held centrally and could be supplied only at disproportionate cost.
Departmental Lighting
Graham Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much (a) his Department and its predecessors and (b) its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent on light bulbs in each year since 1997. [7620]
Robert Neill: Details of expenditure on light bulbs are not held centrally and could be supplied only at disproportionate cost.
Departmental Mobile Phones
Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for West Bromwich East of 9 June 2010, Official Report, column 173W, on departmental mobile phones, what the (a) purchase cost of the handset, (b) network provider, (c) type of tariff and (d) name of the supplier is of the BlackBerry device issued to each Minister in his Department. [4011]
Robert Neill
[holding answer 24 June 2010]: Three Ministers are currently using BlackBerrys of different models issued by the Department. Two were provided
under the terms of the Department contract with Orange Ltd who supply the devices and provide the network and are Model 8310. The third device-Model 9700 is currently on trial-cost £314 (excluding VAT). Each of the three devices has a tariff of £14.50 (excluding VAT) each month. All are compliant with the Government's mandatory security settings.
Departmental Official Hospitality
Graham Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much (a) his Department and its predecessors and (b) its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent on hospitality in each year since 1997. [7438]
Robert Neill: The following table shows the amounts spent on food by (a) the Department and (b) its agencies and non-departmental public bodies. These figures are taken from the Public Sector Procurement Expenditure Survey (PSPES). There is no category for hospitality within the survey. Figures for earlier years could be supplied only at disproportionate cost.
| 2009-10 | £ |
Departmental Public Expenditure
Yvette Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether equality impact assessments will be used in determining the areas of his Department's budget in respect of which spending will be reduced. [8339]
Robert Neill: Yes, we will be following spending review guidance issued by the Government Equalities Office to ensure that decisions give due consideration to any disproportionate impact on women, disabled people and ethnic minorities.
Departmental Regulation
Mr Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government which of his Department's regulations are under review; and if he will make a statement. [7145]
Grant Shapps: The Department is reviewing all regulation in the pipeline for implementation inherited from the previous Administration. This is in line with the cross Government action plan for reducing regulation launched by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Business Innovation and Skills on 3 June.
I am also reviewing the secondary legislation, statutory guidance and regulation sponsored by this Department already on the statute. The direction of travel on the first 11 pieces of secondary legislation was published on 7 July 2010 and is available on the Department's website at:
Copies have also been placed in the Library of the House.
Departmental Security
Graham Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much (a) his Department and its predecessors and (b) its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent on security in each year since 1997. [7368]
Robert Neill: The following table shows total spend on security for the last financial year for (a) the Department and (b) its agencies and non-departmental bodies. Details of expenditure in earlier years could be supplied only at disproportionate cost.
| 2009-10 | |
| £ | |
Departmental Speeches
Angela Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government which (a) (i) civil servants and (ii) special advisers in his Department and (b) other individuals are employed to write speeches for each Minister in his Department. [7302]
Robert Neill: There is one dedicated full-time member of departmental staff employed to write speeches. A small number of other officials periodically draft content for ministerial speeches.
For context, three dedicated speechwriters were employed between 2004-09 and two dedicated speechwriters were employed in 2009-10.
No special advisers are employed by the Department specifically to write speeches.
Departmental Stationery
Graham Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much (a) his Department and its predecessors and (b) its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent on stationery in each year since 1997. [7457]
Robert Neill: The following table shows the total spent on stationery (eg office supplies and consumables) for the last financial year for (a) the Department and (b) its agencies and non-departmental bodies. Details of expenditure in earlier years could be supplied only at disproportionate cost.
| 2009-10 | Total (£) |
Departmental Training
Graham Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much (a) his Department and its predecessors and (b) its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent on employee awaydays in each year since 1997. [7312]
Robert Neill: Details of employee awaydays are not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Fire Services
Kelvin Hopkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (1) what his policy is on the future of the FiReControl project; [7914]
(2) what steps he has put in place to ensure that the FiReControl project is delivered on time and on budget. [7915]
Robert Neill: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 17 June 2010, Official Report, column 526W, to the hon. Member for Coventry South (Mr Cunningham).
Kelvin Hopkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many people were rescued from fires by each fire and rescue service in England between April 2009 and March 2010; and how many were (a) injured or (b) unharmed. [7916]
Robert Neill: The numbers of people who were rescued from fires by each Fire and Rescue Service in England are shown in the table for the six-month period April to September 2009. Data to March 2010 will be available by the end of August.
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