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13 Sep 2010 : Column 803W—continued
Business: North Swindon
Justin Tomlinson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many small businesses in North Swindon constituency had a turnover of (a) under £100,000 and (b) over £100,000 in the latest year for which figures are available. [13334]
Mr Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated September 2010:
As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question concerning how many small businesses in North Swindon constituency had a turnover of (a) under £100,000 and (b) over £100,000 in the latest year for which figures are available. [13334]
Annual statistics on business counts are available from the ONS release UK Business: Activity, Size and location at:
Data are for enterprises in the constituency of North Swindon with less than 50 employment and for the year 2009.
Justin Tomlinson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many businesses (a) started up and (b) ceased to exist in North Swindon constituency in each year since 1997. [13335]
Mr Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.
Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated September 2010:
As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question concerning how many businesses (a) started up and (b) ceased to exist in North Swindon constituency in each year since 1997. [13335].
Annual statistics on business births, deaths and actives are available for 2002 onwards from the ONS release on Business Demography at:
The table below contains the latest statistics available, on enterprise births and deaths in North Swindon for the years 2002 to 2008.
| Enterprise births and deaths for the constituency of North Swindon, 2002-08 | ||
| Number | ||
| Births | Deaths | |
| (1) Not available. | ||
Civil Servants: Conditions of Employment
Mr Wallace: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office if he will take steps to ensure that terms and conditions of employment of low-paid civil servants are not affected by changes to civil service employment contracts. [13184]
Mr Maude: Whenever changes to terms and conditions are being considered we consider very carefully how these might impact on all civil servants, including the low paid. Management structures and working practices, including well established processes of consultation and negotiation, are in place to represent the interests of all civil servants in that regard.
Civil Servants: Redundancy Pay
Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what legal advice his Department obtained before the introduction of the Superannuation Bill; and what discussions he and his officials had with civil service unions on the future of the Civil Service Compensation Scheme. [14086]
Mr Maude: The issues of whether legal advice has been taken, and what that legal advice is, are privileged. The Government do not disclose the legal advice that they have taken.
My officials and I have undertaken several discussions with the civil service unions on reform of the Civil Service Compensation Scheme. I met with Paul Noon, chair of the Council of Civil Service Unions on 13 July and I met with him and the members of the CCSU again on 9 September. Between those dates my officials have conducted a large number of meetings with representatives from the unions in order to develop a framework for a new compensation scheme.
It remains my desire to reach an agreement with the unions on a new scheme before the Superannuation Bill is passed.
Departmental Allowances
Matthew Hancock: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how much his Department spent on (a) reimbursement of staff expenses and (b) the 10 largest staff expense reimbursement claims in each year since 1997. [13031]
Mr Maude: The Cabinet Office's annual resource accounts from 1999-2000 to 2009-10 years, available in the House of Commons Library, provide combined total amounts for expenditure on travel, subsistence and hospitality. Further information could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Departmental Billing
Stewart Hosie: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what proportion of invoices from suppliers his Department paid within 10 days of receipt in July and August 2010. [13271]
Mr Maude: The percentage of compliant invoices from all suppliers which were paid within 10 days of receipt is as follows:
| Percentage within 10 days | |
This response excludes the Constitution Group function which was recently transferred to Cabinet Office from the Ministry of Justice.
Departmental Buildings
Matthew Hancock: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how much office space per employee his Department occupied in each year since 1997. [12993]
Mr Maude: Information on space usage is published in the annual 'State of the Estate' report. This is available at:
http://www.ogc.gov.uk/high_performing_property_the_state_ of_the_estate.asp
A copy has been placed in the Libraries of the House.
Departmental Consultants
Pete Wishart: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how much was spent on external consultants and advisers by (a) his Department and (b) each (i) non-departmental public body and (ii) executive agency for which his Department is responsible in each year since 2005. [12454]
Mr Maude: The amount spent on external consultancy and advice by the Cabinet Office in each financial year since 2005-06 is as follows:
| £ million | |
Departmental Disclosure of Information
Mr MacNeil: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many investigations following the unauthorised disclosure of information from his Department there have been in the last 12 months. [12869]
Mr Maude: In the last 12 months my Department has been involved with investigating one suspected unauthorised disclosure of information.
In line with exemptions 1(a) and 7(b) set out in Part II of the "Code of Practice on Access to Government Information", it has been the practice of successive Governments not to comment on the outcome of such inquiries in order to safeguard security and investigative arrangements.
Departmental ICT
Pete Wishart: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office which IT contracts awarded by his Department in each of the last five years have been abandoned; and what the monetary value of each such contract was. [12715]
Mr Maude: No IT contracts awarded by the Cabinet Office have so far been abandoned since the formation of the new Government.
Departmental Motor Vehicles
Pete Wishart: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the expenditure on vehicles of (a) his Department and (b) each (i) non-departmental public body and (ii) executive agency for which his Department is responsible in each region of England was in each of the last three financial years; and what the planned expenditure is in each case for 2010-11. [12455]
Mr Maude: The information is as follows:
(a) The Department's annual expenditure on vehicles purchased via the Department's travel contracts for the last three financial years is detailed as follows:
| Financial year | Expenditure (£) |
Figures for any vehicle expenditure that may have been purchased by officials using the Government Procurement Card or claimed back on expenses are not readily available and may not be obtained without incurring disproportionate costs.
(b) (i) There has been no annual expenditure on vehicles in each of the last three financial years by the Cabinet Office's non-departmental public bodies.
(b) (ii) There has been no annual expenditure on vehicles in each of the last three financial years by the Cabinet Office's Executive agency.
It is not possible to provide figures on planned expenditure for financial year 2010-11 as our vehicle expenditure is demand driven. It is Cabinet Office policy to reduce the amount of travel by questioning the need to travel and make use of alternative provisions such as video conferencing.
Departmental Pensions
Pete Wishart: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the cost was of pension contributions incurred by (a) his Department and (b) each (i) non-departmental public body and (ii) executive agency for which he is responsible in each region of England in each of the last three financial years; and what the planned expenditure is for 2010-11. [12453]
Mr Maude: The cost of pension contributions incurred by the Cabinet Office in each of the last three financial years is published in the Cabinet Office resource accounts which are available on the Cabinet Office website at the following address
and detailed in the following table:
| Financial year | Cost of pension contribution (£000) |
The cost of planned expenditure for 2010-11 is not held centrally and would be available only at disproportionate cost.
Departmental Rents
Mr Weir: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how much was paid by his Department in rent for properties in (a) total and (b) each (i) region and (ii) nation of the UK in each of the last five years. [12353]
Mr Maude: Rent paid by the Cabinet Office in the last five years is as follows:
| Expenditure | ||||
| £ | ||||
| Total rent expenditure | London-England (Region) | Warrington (Cheshire Region) England | Basingstoke (Hampshire Region) England | |
Over the last five years in question, the Cabinet Office has paid rent only in London, Warrington and Basingstoke.
Lone Parents: Employment
Caroline Flint: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many lone parents with children aged between (a) five to 10 and (b) 11 to 16 years have entered employment in (i) Don Valley constituency, (ii) Doncaster and (iii) England in each of the last five years. [12699]
Mr Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated August 2010:
As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your question asking how many lone parents with children aged between (a) five to 10 and (b) 11 to 16 years have entered employment in (i) Don Valley constituency, (ii) Doncaster and (iii) England in each of the last five years. 12699.
Information about the number of parents entering employment is not available. However, the attached table shows the number of parents in employment for January to December 2004 to 2008, using the Annual Population Survey (APS) household datasets.
The sample of the APS is not large enough to provide estimates for Doncaster local authority or Don Valley parliamentary constituency because of insufficient sample sizes.
As with any sample survey, estimates from the APS are subject to a margin of uncertainty as different samples give different results. These estimates are such that there is 95 per cent certainty that from all samples possible they will lie within the lower and upper bounds.
| Table 1: Lone parents( 1 ) in employment with children( 2) aged (a) 5 -10 years arid (b) 11-16 years, England | ||||||
| Thousand | ||||||
| Children aged 5-10 | Children aged 11-16 | |||||
| Estimate | Lower bound( 3) | Upper bound( 3) | Estimate | Lower bound( 3) | Upper bound( 3) | |
| (1 )Men aged 16 to 64 and women aged 16 to 59. (2) Dependent children are under 16 and those aged 16 to 18 who are never-married and in full-time education. (3) 95% confidence interval which means that from all samples possible there would be 95% certainty that the true estimate would lie within the lower and upper bounds. Source: APS household dataset | ||||||
NDPBs
Tristram Hunt: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many public bodies there were in England (a) in 1979, (b) in 1997 and (c) on the latest date for which information is available. [12510]
Mr Maude: Figures for the number of non-departmental public bodies have been published annually by Cabinet Office in "Public Bodies" since 1980. Copies are available from the Libraries of the House. Recent editions are also available at:
Teenage Pregnancy: Rhondda Cynon Taff
Chris Bryant: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many live births per thousand teenage girls there were in Rhondda constituency in the most recent year for which figures are available. [12589]
Mr Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking how many live births per thousand teenage girls there were in Rhondda constituency in the most recent year for which figures arc available. (012589)
There were 44.1 live births to women aged under 20 per thousand women aged 15-19 in Rhondda parliamentary constituency in 2O081 (the most recent year available).
(1) Based on usual residence of the mother and date of occurrence of the birth.
Unemployed People: Bexley
Mr Evennett: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many children were living in workless households in Bexleyheath and Crayford constituency in (a) 2005, (b) 2007 and (c) 2010. [12541]
Mr Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. .
Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated August 2010:
As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, 1 have been asked to reply to your question asking how many children were living in workless households in Bexleyheath and Crayford constituency in (a) 2005, (b) 2007 and (c) 2010. (12541)
The requested information is not available. It is not possible to provide estimates for Bexleyheath and Crayford constituency because of insufficient sample sizes.
Voluntary Organisations: Vetting
David Mowat: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office if he will take steps to ensure that adult volunteers are not deterred from working with children by criminal record checking procedures; and if he will make a statement. [12498]
Mr Hurd: The Government have committed to reviewing the criminal records regime to scale it back to common sense levels. The terms of reference of this review will be published in due course. The Office for Civil Society will be working closely with the Home Office on this review to ensure that the impact on volunteering is taken into account.
Wines
Matthew Hancock: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how much his Department spent on wine in each year since 1997. [12811]
Mr Maude: The information requested is not held centrally and therefore is available only at disproportionate cost. Any expenditure on wine is made in accordance with published departmental guidance on financial procedures and propriety, based on principles set out in "Managing Public Money" and the Treasury handbook on "Regularity and Propriety".
Work and Pensions
Benefits: Kent
Tracey Crouch: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) how many people in (a) Chatham and Aylesford constituency and (b) Medway have received employment and support allowance in each of the last five years; [15094]
(2) how many people in (a) Chatham and Aylesford constituency and (b) Medway have received incapacity benefit in each of the last five years; [15095]
(3) how many people in (a) Chatham and Aylesford constituency and (b) Medway have received disability living allowance in each of the last five years. [15096]
Maria Miller: The information can be found in the following tables.
| Chatham and Aylesford constituency: February 2006-09 (May 2005 boundaries) and February 2010 (May 2010 boundaries( 1) ) | |||||
| February 2006 | February 2007 | February 2008 | February 2009 | February 2010 | |
Child Support Agency
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions in how many cases the Child Support Agency recorded intercession by an hon. Member in 2009-10. [14913]
Maria Miller: The Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission is responsible for the child maintenance system. I have asked the Child Maintenance Commissioner to write to the hon. Member with the information requested and I have seen the response.
In reply to your recent Parliamentary Question about the Child Support Agency, the Secretary of State promised a substantive reply from the Child Maintenance Commissioner as the Child Support Agency is now the responsibility of the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission.
You asked the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions in how many cases the Child Support Agency recorded intercession by an hon. Member in 2009-10. [14913]
We tried to contact your office to clarify your request but we were advised that you were unavailable for most of the day so we have interpreted the question as being the volume of correspondence received by the Commission from MPs in 2009-10.
In the year to March 2010 the Commission received 16,500 pieces of correspondence from MPs. This includes both case-specific and general correspondence received in writing and through the MP hotline. Multiple correspondence may be received for a single complaint.
I hope you find this answer helpful.
Employment and Support Allowance
Mr Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the (a) average and (b) total cost was to his Department of processing new claims for employment and support allowance in the latest period for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement. [13892]
Maria Miller: Published information and statistics for ESA claims and work capability assessments are available on the Department's website:
The latest audited and publicly available financial information for Jobcentre Plus is in the annual report and accounts for 2009-10. These cover the period from 1 April 2009 to 31 March 2010.
The average and total costs to Jobcentre Plus of processing new claims for ESA in 2009-10 are shown in the following table:
| ESA new claims, 2009-10 | |
| Source: Jobcentre Plus Activity Based Management system. | |
Mr Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the (a) average and (b) total cost was to his Department of work reconsidering claims for employment and support allowance that were initially rejected by it in the latest period for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement. [13893]
Maria Miller: It is not possible to provide the costs specifically for reconsideration of the decisions made on these claims as this level of information is not captured.
Published information and statistics for ESA claims and work capability assessments are available on the Department's website:
Mr Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the (a) average and (b) total cost to his Department of cases involving appeals against its decisions to refuse claims for employment and support allowance was in the latest period for which figures are available. [13894]
Maria Miller: Published information and statistics for ESA claims and work capability assessments are available on the Department's website:
Jobcentre Plus, an agency of the Department for Work and Pensions, is responsible for an element of the ESA appeal process. The rest is handled by the Tribunal Service.
The latest audited and publicly available financial information for Jobcentre Plus is in the annual report and accounts for 2009-10. These cover the period from
1 April 2009 to 31 March 2010. Jobcentre Plus does not hold information on the costs incurred by the Tribunal Service therefore we cannot provide the total cost of an appeal. However, the average and total costs to Jobcentre Plus of processing an ESA appeal in 2009-10 are shown in the following table.
| 2009-10 | ESA appeals |
| Source: Jobcentre Plus Activity Based Management system. | |
Employment and Support Allowance: Appeals
Heidi Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the time taken was from submission of an appeal against a failed employment and support allowance claim to its decision in the latest period for which figures are available. [13840]
Maria Miller: Departmental data sources allow us to measure the time from the date the original decision was made by Jobcentre Plus to the date of the appeal hearing. Our latest estimates are that the average time from the original decision to the appeal hearing with the Tribunals Service is six months.
Customers have up to one month to appeal a decision. This period is included in the six month figure.
Average times are subject to change due to the volume of appeals awaiting a hearing.
Flexible Working
Mrs Grant: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps his Department plans to take to extend parental rights in the workplace in the form of flexible hour agreements for those parents with children under the age of 16 years. [14721]
Mr Davey: I have been asked to reply.
The Government are committed to extending the right to request flexible working to all employees, consulting with business on how best to do so. Parents of children under 17, or under 18 if the child is disabled, as well as carers of certain adults, already have the right to request flexible working, to help them balance their work and caring responsibilities. Extending this right to all employees will encourage more employees and employers to benefit from the flexible working, and make making a request more commonplace, removing the stigma attached to making a request.
I will launch a consultation on the extension to the right to request flexible working later in the year.
Housing Benefit
Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many households receive housing benefit of more than £400 a week at the five-bedroom rate. [13455]
Steve Webb: The Department published a document on 'Impacts of Housing Benefit Proposals: Changes to the Local Housing Allowance to be Introduced in 2011-12' on 23 July 2010. A copy of the document has been placed in the Library.
Glenda Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions with reference to the letter to the hon. Member for Hampstead and Kilburn from the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State of 16 August 2010, paragraph 5, on proposed changes to housing benefit, when he expects to publish the economic impact assessment; and if he will make a statement. [13565]
Steve Webb: The Department will publish a full impact assessment for the 2011-12 changes to the local housing allowance arrangements when it lays the relevant legislation in November 2010.
Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will conduct an impact assessment on the proposed changes to housing benefit and local housing allowance on the basis of socio-economic class. [14975]
Steve Webb: The Department published a document on "Impacts of Housing Benefit proposals: Changes to the Local Housing Allowance to be introduced in 2011-12" and a separate equality impact assessment on 23 July. A copy of the documents has been placed in the Library.
The Department will publish a full impact assessment for the 2011-12 changes to the local housing allowance arrangements when it lays the relevant legislation in November 2010.
There are no plans to assess the impacts of the proposed changes to housing benefit on the basis of socio-economic class.
Housing Benefit: Glasgow
Margaret Curran: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent discussions he has had with (a) housing associations in Glasgow and (b) tenants in social sector housing in Glasgow on the Government's proposals on housing benefit. [14139]
Steve Webb: We have had preliminary discussions with the Scottish Government and key stakeholders on the changes to housing benefit affecting the social rented sector and will publish our proposals and associated impact assessments in due course.
Housing Benefit: Impact Assessments
Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when his Department plans to publish an impact assessment on proposed reductions in housing benefit; and what impacts will be assessed. [13864]
Steve Webb: The Department published a document on "Impacts of Housing Benefit Proposals: Changes to the Local Housing Allowance to be Introduced in 2011-12" and a separate equality impact assessment on 23 July. A copy of the documents has been placed in the Library.
The Department will publish a full impact assessment for the 2011-12 changes to the local housing allowance arrangements when it lays the relevant legislation in November 2010.
Housing Benefit: Jobseeker's Allowance
Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in Sunderland in receipt of housing benefit have also been receiving jobseeker's allowance for more than 12 months at the latest date for which figures are available. [14026]
Steve Webb: The information requested is not available.
From February 2007, DWP has been collecting more detailed housing benefit and council tax benefit data electronically from local authorities. Over time this will improve the accuracy, timeliness and level of detail available in the published statistics, as the information supplied is quality assured.
At present, the management information needed to estimate durations on housing benefit has not been sufficiently quality assured; and, while information is collected on the number of claimants in receipt of a passported benefit, which includes income-based jobseeker's allowance, the total number of jobseeker's allowance claimants receiving housing benefit is not available.
Housing benefit case load and average weekly amounts are available at local authority area level and these are published on the Department's website at:
Housing Benefit: Local Housing Allowance
Glenda Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) how many households in the London Borough of (a) Camden and (b) Brent he estimates will move home as a result of the proposed (i) housing benefit caps and (ii) reductions in the level of local housing allowance; [13563]
(2) with reference to the letter to the hon. Member for Hampstead and Kilburn from the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State of 16 August 2010, which outer London boroughs may have an increased number of new housing benefit customers as a result of the proposed changes in housing benefit and local housing allowance; and what estimate he has made of the likely increase in numbers of claimants in those boroughs. [13564]
Steve Webb: The Department has published estimates of the number of households that will be affected by the changes we are making to local housing allowance rates in 2011-12. However, it is not possible to estimate the number of households that will move as a consequence of the changes.
A copy of the document "Impacts of Housing Benefit proposals: Changes to the Local Housing Allowance to be introduced in 2011-12" has been placed in the Library.
Housing Benefit: Scotland
Margaret Curran:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many households receive housing benefit of more than (a) £250 per week for a one bedroom property, (b) £290 per week for a two
bedroom property, (c) £340 per week for a three bedroom property and (d) £400 per week for a four bedroom property in (i) Scotland, (ii) Glasgow and (iii) Glasgow East constituency. [14302]
Steve Webb: This information is not available at constituency level.
The Department published a document on "Impacts of Housing Benefit proposals: Changes to the Local Housing Allowance to be introduced in 2011-12" on 23 July 2010, which includes analysis at local authority and regional level. A copy of the document has been placed in the Library.
John Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many households receive housing benefit of more than (a) £250 per week for a one bedroom property, (b) £290 per week for a two bedroom property, (c) £340 per week for a three bedroom property and (d) £400 per week for a four bedroom property in (i) Scotland, (ii) Glasgow and (iii) Glasgow North West constituency. [15112]
Steve Webb: This information is not available at constituency level.
The Department published a document on "Impacts of Housing Benefit proposals: Changes to the Local Housing Allowance to be introduced in 2011-12" on 23 July 2010, which includes analysis at local authority and regional level. A copy of the document has been placed in the Library.
Housing Benefit: Warwickshire
Dan Byles: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in (a) Warwickshire county, (b) North Warwickshire borough and (c) Nuneaton and Bedworth borough were in receipt of housing benefit of more than £400 a month in the latest period for which figures are available. [14357]
Steve Webb: At May 2010, for housing benefit claims assessed under the local housing allowance arrangements, our records show that:
(a) In Warwickshire county there were 3,560 households receiving over £400 per month;
(b) In North Warwickshire borough council there were 370 households receiving over £400 per month;
(c) In Nuneaton and Bedworth borough council there were 970 households receiving over £400 per month.
The coalition Government emergency Budget announced a cap on the local housing allowance rates of £400 per week (around £1,733 per month). There are no households in Warwickshire county in receipt of housing benefit of over £400 per week.
Note:
All figures have been rounded to the nearest 10 recipients.
Source:
Single Housing Benefit Extract for May 2010.
Housing Benefit: Wolverhampton
Emma Reynolds:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the number of people in (a) Wolverhampton North East constituency and (b) Wolverhampton who would be
affected by implementation of proposed changes to housing benefit; and whether he has made an estimate of the average change in housing benefit payments to such people under his Department's proposals. [13369]
Steve Webb: The information is not available at constituency level.
The Department published a document on "Impacts of Housing Benefit Proposals: Changes to the Local Housing Allowance to be Introduced in 2011-12" on 23 July, which includes analysis at local authority level. A copy of the document has been placed in the Library.
Local Housing Allowance
Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the percentage of households affected by the reductions to local housing allowance that will receive additional discretionary housing payments from 2011-12. [13454]
Steve Webb: The Department published a document on "Impacts of Housing Benefit proposals: Changes to the Local Housing Allowance to be introduced in 2011-12" on 23 July, which includes analysis at local authority and regional level. A copy of the document has been placed in the Library.
While the Department makes a contribution to local authorities' discretionary housing payment budgets, the decision on whether to award a payment in an individual case is a matter for the local authority.
Local Housing Allowance: Hyndburn
Graham Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many households in Hyndburn will be affected by the changes in calculating local housing allowance using the 30th percentile rent instead of the median. [13736]
Steve Webb: The Department published a document on "Impacts of Housing Benefit Proposals: Changes to the Local Housing Allowance to be Introduced in 2011-12" on 23 July 2010, which includes analysis at local authority level. A copy of the document has been placed in the Library.
Low Incomes: Peterborough
Mr Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many households with below average income there were in Peterborough constituency in each year since 2005. [11375]
Steve Webb: Analysis of the UK income distribution is published in the households below average income (HBAI) series. HBAI uses household income adjusted (or 'equivalised') for household size and composition, to provide a proxy for standard of living.
As they are based on survey data, estimates published in HBAI only allow breakdowns to Government office region and analysis by parliamentary constituency is not possible. However, figures for east of England are set out in the following table.
| Table 1: Number of households in the eastern Government office region that had incomes below the median income from 2005 | ||
| Number (million) | ||
| Period | Before housing costs | After housing costs |
| Notes: 1. These statistics are based on households below average income data which are sourced from the Family Resources Survey. Both of these are available in the Library. 2. All estimates are based on survey data and are therefore subject to uncertainty. Small differences should be treated with caution as these will be affected by sampling error and variability in non-response. 3. The reference period for household below average income figures is single financial years. Three survey years have been combined as regional single year estimates are subject to volatility. 4. The income measures used to derive the estimates shown employ the same methodology as the Department for Work and Pensions publication "Households Below Average Income" (HBAI) series, which uses disposable household income, adjusted (or 'equivalised') for household size and composition, as an income measure as a proxy for standard of living. 5. For the HBAI series, incomes have been equivalised using Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) modified equivalisation factors. 6. Figures have been presented on both a before housing cost and after housing cost basis. For before housing cost, housing costs (such as rent, water rates, mortgage interest payments, structural insurance payments and ground rent and service charges) are not deducted from income, while for after housing cost they are. This means that after housing cost incomes will generally be lower than before housing cost. 7. Numbers of households have been rounded to the nearest 100,000 households. Source: Households Below Average Income, DWP. | ||
Maternity Benefits: Wolverhampton
Emma Reynolds: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many Sure Start maternity grants were made to mothers for their second or subsequent child in Wolverhampton North East constituency in 2009-10. [13379]
Steve Webb: A total of 274,000 Sure Start maternity grants were awarded in Great Britain in 2009-10. The exact number of awards for a second or subsequent maternity is not available, but is estimated to be 52% of all awards, around 143,000.
The number of awards made in 2009-10 is available by Government office region or Jobcentre Plus Social Fund budget area only, not by constituency.
Note:
Both numbers have been rounded to the nearest 1,000.
Source for total number of awards:
Department for Work and Pensions Social Fund Policy, Budget and Management Information System.
Parental Leave
Mrs Grant: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether his Department plans to make maternity and paternity leave more flexible. [14822]
Mr Davey: I have been asked to reply.
The Government are committed to encouraging shared parenting from the earliest stage of pregnancy-including the promotion of a system of flexible parental leave. The current maternity and paternity leave system favours
mothers, who receive 52 weeks leave and 39 weeks pay. Fathers have only two weeks paid leave reserved for them.
I will launch a consultation on shared parental leave later in the year-including how to give more flexibility to parents.
Pensioners: Cost of Living
Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what advice his Department has received from the Office for National Statistics on use of the (a) consumer prices index and (b) retail prices index to measure changes to the cost of living of pensioners. [15042]
Steve Webb: The Department made use of a range of information provided by the Office for National Statistics regarding price inflation indices, including the Consumer Prices Index Technical Manual 2010 and other related documents.
Pensioners: Wolverhampton
Emma Reynolds: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in Wolverhampton North East constituency are over state retirement pension age; and how many receive (a) basic state pension and (b) pension credit. [13366]
Steve Webb: The information requested for those in Wolverhampton North East constituency who are over state pension age is not available. However, the document "Caseloads for selected benefits by 2010 Parliamentary Constituencies, February 2010" is available in the Library and includes figures for pension credit and state pension.
Pensions: Uprating
Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what effect the inclusion of housing costs in the consumer prices index will have on the methodology used by his Department to up-rate pensions payments. [15041]
Steve Webb: In his letter to the Governor of the Bank of England of 18 May 2010, the Chancellor of the Exchequer expressed interest in the inclusion of housing costs in the CPI measure used by the Bank of England as their inflation target. Whether and how housing costs will be included in CPI is still under consideration. We will consider what effect any such measure would have, if any, once further information is available.
Poverty: Children
Ian Mearns: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many children were living in poverty (a) before housing costs and (b) after housing costs in Gateshead constituency in each year since 2000. [13383]
Maria Miller: Estimates of the number and proportion of children living in poverty are published in the Households Below Average Income (HBAI) series. HBAI uses household income adjusted (or 'equivalised') for household size and composition, to provide a proxy for standard of living.
As they are based on survey data, child poverty estimates published in HBAI only allow breakdowns to Government Office Region and analysis by parliamentary constituency is not possible. However, figures for the North East of England are set out in Table 1.
| Table 1: Number and percentage of children living in households with less than 60% of contemporary median household income for the North East of England, before housing costs and after housing costs | ||||
| Before housing costs | After housing costs | |||
| Period | Number (m illion ) | Percentage | Number (m illion ) | Percentage |
| Notes: 1. These statistics are based on the Households Below Average Income series, sourced from the Family Resources Survey. 2. All estimates are based on survey data and are therefore subject to uncertainty. Small differences should be treated with caution as these will be affected by sampling error and variability in non-response. 3. The reference period for Households Below Average Income figures are single financial years. Three survey years have been combined as regional single year estimates are subject to volatility. 4. The income measures used to derive the estimates shown employ the same methodology as the Department for Work and Pensions publication 'Households Below Average Income' (HBAI) series, which uses disposable household income, adjusted (or 'equivalised') for household size and composition, as an income measure as a proxy for standard of living. 5. For the Households Below Average Income series, incomes have been equivalised using Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) modified equivalisation factors. 6. Numbers of adults and children in low-income households have been rounded to the nearest 100,000, while proportions have been rounded to the nearest percentage point. Source: Households Below Average Income, DWP | ||||
Fiona O'Donnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps he is taking to meet the targets for reducing child poverty included in the Child Poverty Act 2010. [13541]
Maria Miller:
Section 14 of the coalition document confirms the Government's commitment to ending child poverty in the UK. We believe that the best way to tackle this issue is to address the root causes of poverty,
because it is only by doing this that we can improve outcomes for children in the most effective way. By spring next year we will consult on and publish a robust, sustainable strategy to end child poverty by 2020 as required by the Child Poverty Act.
Social Security Benefits
Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what advice he has received on the legality of using the consumer prices index as the measure of the general level of prices under section 150 (2) of the Social Security Administration Act 1992. [15040]
Steve Webb: Advice was taken on the legality of using the consumer prices index as the measure of the general level of prices, in the context of the Secretary of State's statutory duty under section 150 of the Social Security Administration Act 1992. As with all legal advice to the Government, this is confidential and covered by legal professional privilege, and so will not be divulged.
Social Security Benefits: Appeals
Dr Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the cost was of first-tier appeal hearings on benefit decisions between April 2009 and March 2010. [13501]
Mr Djanogly: I have been asked to reply.
The total cost for running the first-tier tribunal-social security and child support in 2009-10, including overheads, was £78,216,000.
Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many and what proportion of claimants of (a) employment and support allowance, (b) incapacity benefit and (c) disability living allowance who were found to be capable of work appealed against that decision in the latest period for which figures are available; and how many in each case had their appeal granted. [13712]
Maria Miller: Of people who made a claim for ESA between October 2008 and June 2009 and who were found fit for work at assessment, 52,800 (32%) have had an appeal heard by Tribunals Service to date. The appeal was granted for 31,600 (40%) of these cases.
The Department does not have figures for the number of cases appealed but not yet heard by the Tribunal Service. Due to the time it takes for appeals to be submitted to the Tribunals Service and heard, it is likely that there are more appeals that have not yet been heard, particularly for the most recent cohorts of ESA claims. These figures should continue to be treated as emerging findings and not final at this stage.
The Department publishes tables showing the number of appeals and decisions relating to ESA claims on our website at:
The equivalent information for incapacity benefit appeals is not available.
Disability living allowance is not a work-related benefit and is not awarded on the basis of work-related capability.
With regard to all appeals against a decision not to award DLA, 21,000 appeals were granted in the customer's favour in 2009-10.
Social Security Benefits: Disability
Caroline Dinenage: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what target timescale his Department has set for processing decisions on benefit entitlements for those claiming (a) disability living allowance and (b) attendance allowance. [13699]
Maria Miller: The Department's targets for disability living allowance (DLA) and attendance allowance (AA) new claims are called average actual clearance times (AACT). They measure the average number of working days taken to process new claims within the reporting year and are set each financial year.
The target timescales for processing decisions are shown in the following tables:
| (a) The AACT target and performance achieved for DLA new claims from 2007-08 to August 2010 | ||
| Days | ||
| Target | Annual performance | |
| (b) The AACT target and performance achieved for AA new claims from 2007-08 to August 2010 | ||
| Days | ||
| Target | Annual performance | |
| (1 )Year to date. Source: Department for Work and Pensions: RDA/RAA80123 reports-DLA/AA Management Information Statistics. | ||
Caroline Dinenage: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what target timescale his Department has set for processing decisions on claims for (a) disability living allowance, (b) attendance allowance and (c) other benefit entitlements for patients diagnosed with (i) terminal and (ii) non-terminal cancer. [13700]
Maria Miller: Customers who have been diagnosed with terminal cancer can make a claim for disability living allowance (DLA) and attendance allowance (AA) under special rules (SR). A claim can be considered under the SR if it is made expressly on the grounds that the person named on the claim form is a terminally ill person. For the purpose of SR, a person is terminally ill if they have a progressive disease and their death in consequence of that disease can reasonably be expected within six months.
SR new claims are dealt with quickly and sensitively and with a minimum of delay. Consequently the internal target timescales for clearing SR new claims are not the same as a new claim. The Departments targets for DLA and AA SR new claims are called average actual clearance
times (AACT). They measure the average number of working days taken to process SR new claims within the reporting year.
The target timescales for processing decisions are in the following tables:
(a) the AACT target and performance achieved for DLA SR new claims from 2007-08 to August 2010.
| DLA SR new claims | Target (days) | Annual performance (days) |
| (1) August (2) Year to date | ||
(b) the AACT target and performance achieved for AA SR new claims from 2007-08 to August 2010.
| AA SR new claims | Target (days) | Annual performance (days) |
| 1 August (2) Year to date Source: Department for Work and Pensions - RDA/RAA80123 reports - DLA/AA Management Information Statistics | ||
Processing timescales for non-terminal cancer patients claiming DLA and AA are the same as for other applicants to those benefits. The target timescales for processing new claim decisions are in the following tables:
| DLA new claims | Target (days) | Annual performance (days) |
| (1) August (2) Year to date | ||
| AA new claims | Target (days) | Annual performance (days) |
| (1) August (2) Year to date Source: Department for Work and Pensions-RDA/RAA80123 reports-DLA/AA Management Information Statistics | ||
Customers diagnosed with terminal or non-terminal cancer are entitled to the full range of benefits depending on their circumstances. In particular if a customer has terminal cancer they can claim employment and support allowance (ESA) under the special rules (SR). A customer who claims under the SR is terminally ill and not expected to live for more than six months. Awards of employment and support allowance are made on the basis of medical certificates from a GP. Customers with a terminal illness are not required to have a full medical
examination for a work capability assessment. Following the benefit claim immediate advice is sought from Atos Healthcare to confirm that SR applies. In August 2010 replies were received in 0.8 days within the two day AACT.
The target timescales for processing ESA decisions are in the following table:
| ESA claims | Target (days) | In month performance (days) |
| Sources: Department for Work and Pensions- Management Information System Programme (MISP) and ESA Medical Services Contract Management Team Management Information Statistics | ||
Processing timescales for non-terminal cancer patients claiming other benefits are the same as for other applicants to those benefits.
Caroline Dinenage: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether his Department plans to increase the speed at which claims for disability living allowance and attendance allowance for those diagnosed with non-terminal cancer are processed. [14939]
Maria Miller: Customers who have been diagnosed with non-terminal cancer would have their claims processed under normal rules for new claims. This is because customers with non-terminal cancer would be treated the same as for other applicants to disability living allowance and attendance allowance (they would not be treated under the special rules).
The Department's targets for disability living allowance (DLA) and attendance allowance (AA) new claims are called average actual clearance times (AACT). They measure the average number of working days taken to process new claims within the reporting year and are set each financial year.
The target time scales for processing decisions are in the following tables:
| AACT target and performance achieved for DLA new claims from 2007-08 to August 2010 | ||
| Days | ||
| DLA new claims | Target | Annual performance |
| (1) Year to date | ||
| AACT target and performance achieved for AA new claims from 2007-08 to August 2010 | ||
| Days | ||
| AA new claims | Target | Annual performance |
| (1) Year to date | ||
PDCS is currently pursuing a LEAN programme and is seeking opportunities to exploit further efficiencies in our processing capability, however, there are no current plans to review these targets.
Source:
Department for Work and Pensions-RDA/RAA80123 reports-DLA/AA Management Information Statistics.
Social Security Benefits: Gateshead
Ian Mearns: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people resident in Gateshead constituency are in receipt of (a) disability living allowance, (b) incapacity benefit and (c) employment and support allowance. [13385]
Maria Miller: The information is as follows:
| Gateshead parliamentary constituency | |
| Number of recipients | |
| Notes: 1. Incapacity benefit was replaced by employment and support allowance (ESA) from October 2008. 2. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10; some additional disclosure has been applied. 3. Caseloads for DLA show the number of people in receipt of an allowance, and exclude people with entitlement where the payment has been suspended, for example if they are in hospital. 4. Constituencies used are for the Westminster Parliament of May 2010. Source: DWP Information Directorate Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study 100% data. | |
State Retirement Pensions and Pension Credit: Gloucester
Richard Graham: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many pensioners in Gloucester (a) receive the basic state pension, (b) receive pension credit and (c) are eligible for pension credit but do not claim it. [15131]
Steve Webb: The document "Caseloads for selected benefits by 2010 Parliamentary Constituencies February 2010" is available in the Library and includes figures for pension credit and state pension.
Estimates of eligibility and therefore those who are entitled to pension credit but have not claimed it are not available below the level of Great Britain.
The latest estimates of the take-up rates and the number of those entitled but not receiving pension credit are published in the report "Income Related Benefits Estimates of Take-up in 2008-09".
Winter Fuel Payments: British Nationals Abroad
Mr Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what plans he has for the future of the payment of winter fuel allowance to people residing abroad; and if he will make a statement. [14370]
Steve Webb: Winter fuel payments are paid to former UK residents living in the European Economic Area only if they qualified for a payment before leaving the UK.
European Union law means that some benefits acquired in one member state must be paid to people when they move to another country within the European Economic Area.
Justice
Asylum: Appeals
Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what estimate has been made of the effect on the number of appeals in (a) asylum cases and (b) immigration cases of changes to the tendering process for immigration legal aid. [13980]
Mr Djanogly: The means and merits test for legal aid has not altered as a result of the tendering process and there is not therefore expected to be any impact on appeals in either asylum or immigration cases as the LSC considers that sufficient access to services remains in place.
Community Orders
Hazel Blears: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment has been made of the effectiveness of the powers of review of community orders under section 178 of the Criminal Justice Act 2003 in increasing the accountability of offenders. [13441]
Mr Blunt: There has been no assessment of the effectiveness of the powers of review of community orders under section 178 of the Criminal Justice Act 2003, separate to wider evaluations of community justice pilots at North Liverpool and Salford. There are four published reports evaluating the Community Justice Initiatives in Salford and North Liverpool. They are:
Process Evaluation of Salford Community Justice Initiative (2007) at:
Evaluation of North Liverpool Community Justice Centre (2007) at:
North Liverpool Community Justice Centre-Surveys of local residents (2007) at:
Initial evaluation of reconviction rates in community justice initiatives (2009) at:
Convictions: Tyres
Tristram Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many convictions relating to motor vehicle tyre condition there have been in each of the last 10 years. [13560]
Mr Blunt: The number of defendants found guilty at all courts for the offence defective tyres, England and Wales 1999 to 2008 (latest available) can be found in the table as follows.
Data for 2009 are planned for publication on 21 October 2010.
| The number of defendants found guilty( 1,2 ) at all courts for the offence defective tyres, England and Wales 1999 to 2008( 3,4) | |
| Found guilty | |
| 1 The figures given in the table on court proceedings relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences it Is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. 2 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. (3) Excludes data for Cardiff magistrates court for April, July and August 2008. (4) Includes the following statute and corresponding offence description: Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations 1986 RR.25-27 Road Traffic Act 1988 S.41A as added by Road Traffic Act 1991 S.8 Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services - Ministry of Justice. | |
Courts: Manpower
Hazel Blears: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment has been made of the effectiveness of the use of court co-ordinators in the criminal justice system. [13440]
Mr Blunt: Community Justice was piloted in 12 magistrates courts across England and Wales. The court co-ordinator was one aspect only piloted at the Salford Community Justice Initiative, which ceased sitting in 2008. Since then, learning from Salford and the other 12 courts has been used to introduce sustainable mechanisms to achieve similar objectives in other courts, without incurring the costs of appointing dedicated co-ordinators.
Courts: Video Conferencing
Rehman Chishti: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will (a) make greater use of existing video-conferencing facilities in courts and (b) reduce the number of times that defendants attend preliminary hearings. [14137]
Mr Djanogly:
The Government strongly support the use of video links technology where it is appropriate to
do so and encourages courts to look to increase its use wherever possible. Revised guidance was issued to the courts in August 2010 with a primary focus to increase utilisation of video link equipment across the courts estate by highlighting best practice and inviting courts and local prisons to set up 'Partnership Agreements' to enable greater use. In addition I have asked my officials to look more generally at how wider use of video and telephone links, where appropriate, might improve the public's experience and the operation of the justice system.
Much has been done in recent years to reduce unnecessary court hearings particularly in the magistrates courts where the number of hearings has fallen from estimated average number of 3.02 hearings per defendant (March 2007) to 2.19 hearings in June 2010 (Time Interval Survey, June 2010). However where a hearing is necessary we support the use of video links in appropriate cases wherever possible.
Dead Bodies
Stella Creasy: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many 104 removal of body notice forms have been issued in the London borough of Waltham Forest since 2000; and how many of those were issued within four days of request. [14501]
Mr Djanogly: This information is not held centrally. I have, however, made inquiries with the East London Coroner's office, who have advised that 2,045 removal of body notice forms have been issued since 2000. They have not been able to say how many of those were issued within four days of request. I will write to the hon. Member when I have any further information, and place copies in the Libraries of the House.
Departmental Billing
Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many payments to suppliers were made by (a) his Department, (b) its agencies and (c) its non-departmental public bodies (i) within 30 days of, (ii) over 30 days after, (iii) over 60 days after and (iv) over 90 days after the date of invoice in the latest period for which figures are available. [13928]
Mr Djanogly: The information is as follows.
The timeliness of the Ministry of Justice's payments to suppliers for the latest available period (August 2010) is set out in the following table.
| Within 30 days | Within 60 days | Within 90 days | Over 90 days | Total | |
This represents 94% of all payments made within 30 days.
The Ministry measures its payment to suppliers against the five-day target applied to all Government Departments and performance against this target is published on the Ministry's website.
Departmental Consultants
John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much his Department and its predecessor spent on public consultations in each of the last five years. [12907]
Mr Djanogly:
My Department does not record the total costs of individual public consultations, for example,
the costs of relevant staff time are not calculated and recorded as a consultation cost.
However, some costs are recorded separately, including the printing of paper copies of consultation papers, the translation of consultation papers into Welsh and public engagement activities as part of the consultation process. These costs are provided in the following table for both my Department and its predecessor where they are available.
| Department for Constitutional Affairs | ||
| Consultation | Consultation p eriod | Costs of consultation where known( 1) (£) |
|
Openness in the Family Courts - Confidence and Confidentiality: http://www.dca.gov.uk/consult/courttransparencey1106/cp1106.htm | ||
|
Legal Aid: A sustainable future (a joint consultation with the Legal Services Commission): http://www.dca.gov.uk/consult/legal-aidsf/sustainable-future.htm | ||
| (1) The costs shown represent the non-staff costs such as consultation events, Welsh translations of documents and printing etc. (2) Matched by the Legal Services Commission. | ||
| Ministry of Justice | ||
| Consultation | Consultation period | Costs of consultation where known |
|
Confidence and confidentiality: openness in family courts-a new approach: | ||
|
OCJR-Improving the criminal justice process for young witnesses | ||
|
Governance of Britain-War Powers and Treaties: Limiting Executive Powers: | ||
|
Strategic plan for reducing reoffending 2008-11; Working in partnership to reduce reoffending and make communities safer: | ||
|
Believing we can (faith-based organisations and reducing reoffending): | ||
|
NOMS third sector action plan: http://www.justice.gov.uk/news-publications-events/publications/consultations/BWC_third_sector_08/?view=Standard&;pubID=510239 |
£20,000 plus £18,000 for joint consultation events for NOMS Believing we can and Third Sector Strategy | |
|
Murder, Manslaughter and Infanticide: Proposals for Reform of the Law: | ||
|
Rules for Mandatory Polygraph Tests for Sex Offenders: http://www.justice.gov.uk/consultations/mandatory-polygraphy-consultation.htm | ||
|
Reducing Re-Offending in London: http://www.justice.gov.uk/consultations/consultation-reducing-reoffending-london.htm | ||
|
Reviewing the Mental Capacity Act 2005: Forms Supervision and Fees: http://www.justice.gov.uk/consultations/reviewing-mental-capacity-act.htm | ||
|
Proposed Closure of Telford Hearing Centre: http://www.justice.gov.uk/consultations/proposed-closure- telford-hearing-centre.htm | ||
|
Proposal for three Local Justice Areas instead of nine in Lincolnshire: http://www.justice.gov.uk/consultations/three-local-iustice-areas-lincolnshire.htm | ||
|
Defamation and the internet: the multiple publication rule: http://www.justice.gov.uk/consultations/defamation-internet-consultation-paper.htm | ||
|
Welsh language scheme/Cynllun laith Gymraeg: http://www.justice.gov.uk/consultations/welsh-language-scheme.htm |
Translation of Welsh Language Scheme and consultation-Translate amendments only-Cost £950 +VAT. | |
|
Electoral registers: proposed changes to the Edited Register: http://www.justice.gov.uk/consultations/electoral-registers-consultation.htm | ||
|
Review of fees for Lands Tribunal: http://www.justice.gov.uk/consultations/lands-tribunal-fees.htm | ||
|
Postage costs for sending out hard copies of documents-£150. (Total £1,371.13). | ||
|
http://www.justice.gov.uk/consultations/civil-law-reform-bill.htm |
Welsh Language translation of main body of the paper-£800 (£920 including VAT). | |
|
Mortgages: power of sale and residential property: http://www.justice.gov.uk/consultations/mortgages-power-sale.htm | ||
|
Lord Chancellor's Advisory Committees on Justices of the Peace: http://www.justice.gov.uk/latest-updates/lord-chancellor-advisorv-ips.htm | ||
|
Trusts (Capital and Income) Bill: http://www.justice.gov.uk/latest-updates/lord-chancellor-advisory-jps.htm |
Welsh Translation: Summary-Translate whole document-Cost £94.00 including VAT. | |
|
Consultation paper-Capital and Income Bill-Translate whole document-Cost £480 + VAT. | ||
|
Her Majesty's Court Service published 16 consultations on changes to the HMCS estate 2010 |
16 consultations in 2010-please refer to the MoJ website at: |
We are unable to break down the costs for each individual consultation but the total cost of printing hard copies of the consultation papers came to £4,793.64. |
Alun Cairns: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the (a) average and (b) highest daily rate paid to consultants by his Department was in each of the last five years. [13061]
Mr Djanogly: The Ministry of Justice (MOJ) came into existence in May 2007, encompassing the former Department for Constitutional Affairs and part of the Home Office. This means comprehensive figures are only available for the last three financial years.
Consultants and contractors are only used when there is a compelling business need to do so. They are used to provide specialist skills and expertise for a limited period of time where in-house skills are not available. The average and highest daily rate paid to consultants in the last three financial years are detailed in the table as follows:
| Average day rate (£) | Highest day rate (£) | |
| (1) £1,500 per day to three individual consultants for 632 days in total (2) £2,000 per day to two individual consultants for 11 days in total (3) £1,700 per day to one consultant for 13 days in total | ||
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