| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
26 Oct 2010 : Column 202W—continued
Service Personnel and Veterans Agency
Mr Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many staff the Service Personnel and Veterans Agency employed on the latest date for which figures are available; and what the monetary value of the salaries of (a) all staff and (b) its senior management was in the latest year for which figures are available. [18451]
Dr Fox
[holding answer 21 October 2010]: The Service Personnel and Veterans Agency employed 1,003 full-time equivalent staff during the year 2009-10. Salaries and
wages of all staff for the same period was £27.112 million. Senior management salaries are detailed in the following table:
| Salary including performance pay 2009-10 | |
| £000 | |
| (1)There are two Heads of Military Services noted, as one completed only a partial year. | |
This information has been taken from the SPVA annual report and accounts 2009-10, which once published will be available in the Library of the House.
Strategic Defence and Security Review
Jonathan Reynolds: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what consultation other than meetings has been held with representatives of the (a) aerospace industry, (b) maritime industry and (c) other defence industries as part of his Department's Strategic Defence and Security Review; [17180]
(2) what meetings he has (a) had and (b) planned with representatives of the (i) aerospace, (ii) maritime, (iii) cyber technology and (iv) other defence sectors as part of his Department's Strategic Defence and Security Review. [17181]
Dr Fox: Ministers and officials had many discussions with industry representatives while the Strategic Defence and Security Review (SDSR) was in progress, including a full meeting of the National Defence Industries Council which I chaired, and various sub-group meetings, as well as meeting with individual companies.
The Ministry of Defence Ministers will continue to meet with industry representatives in the coming months, to discuss the follow-up to the SDSR.
Trident
Mr Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what expenditure his Department has planned for the UK Trident warhead life extension programme; and how much it has spent on this programme to date. [17301]
Dr Fox: Stockpile management and certification activity, including obsolescence management, is contained within the annual cost of operating the Atomic Weapons Establishment, which is around £1 billion per annum in the current pricing period, to the end of March 2013. Costs are not disaggregated into sub-strands of activity. It is therefore not possible to provide disaggregated costs as they are not held in the format requested.
Type 26 Frigates
Mr Davidson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what his timetable is for the introduction of the Type 26 Frigate. [19315]
Peter Luff: On current plans, the first Type 26 or Global Combat Ship is expected to enter service early in the next decade and this was confirmed in the strategic defence and security review published on 19 October 2010.
Warships
Lindsay Roy: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the effect on the capacity of the Royal Navy to meet current commitments of the proposed change to the size of the surface fleet. [19318]
Peter Luff: As explained in the White Paper, 'Securing Britain in an Age of Uncertainty: The Strategic Defence and Security Review (Cmd 7948)', the Royal Navy will continue to provide continuous at sea nuclear deterrence, the maritime defence of the UK and our overseas territories, as well as an enduring presence in priority regions such as the Gulf. The surface fleet will remain able to deliver a full spectrum of maritime capabilities from high intensity warfare to projecting UK influence.
Mr Davidson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he expects Royal Navy ships in extended readiness to be brought back into service. [19375]
Peter Luff: Most Royal Navy ships enter states of low or very low readiness at various times during their operational lives. This is usually to allow for periods of maintenance, or when there is no operational priority to hold them at higher readiness. Ships are returned to higher states of readiness as and when they are required for operational purposes.
Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Agriculture: Subsidies
Mr Graham Stuart: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many Single Payment Scheme leased land agreements the Rural Payments Agency failed to reinstate to the owner at the lease agreement end date owing to computer technical difficulties in (a) 2008-09 and (b) 2009-10. [18683]
Mr Paice: There were no occasions when technical problems prevented reinstatement of leased land in 2008-09 and 2009-10.
Mr Graham Stuart: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) what percentage of Single Payment Scheme payment entitlements were not paid owing to technical problems in (a) 2008-09 and (b) 2009-10; [18684]
(2) in respect of how many Single Payment Scheme entitlements the Rural Payments Agency has not yet released payments owing to computer technical difficulties in (a) 2008-09 and (b) 2009-10. [18685]
Mr Paice: The position as at 15 October is as follows:
SPS 2008 (2008-09 from the question) year
50 farmers, representing less than 0.05%, have not been paid. None of these are due to technical difficulties.
A further 92 farmers, representing approximately 0.1%, have received a manual payment of up to 95% of their estimated claim value and will receive a top-up payment once their claims have been finalised. The majority of these are due to technical difficulties.
SPS 2009 (2009-10 from the question) year
127 farmers, representing approximately 0.1%, have not been paid. None of these are due to technical difficulties.
A further 956 farmers, representing approximately 1%, have received a manual payment of up to 95% of their estimated claim value and will receive a top-up payment once their claims have been finalised. The majority of these are due to technical difficulties.
Mr Bain:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the average
farm business income of (a) all farm types, (b) sheep farms and (c) dairy farms was in each of the last five years. [18822]
Mr Paice: Data on average farm business income for all farm types and dairy farms for the five years to 2008-09 are shown in the table. Figures are not produced separately for specialist sheep farms, except for those in the severely disadvantaged areas. This information is also shown in the table against that for all grazing livestock farm types in the less favoured areas for comparison.
Data on average farm business income for 2009-10 will be published on 28 October 2010 and will be available at:
| Average farm business income per farm for LFA grazing livestock farms types, England, current prices | |||||
| £/farm | |||||
| Farm type | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-09 |
Animal Welfare
Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of the effect on the welfare of farmed animals of the closure of the Farm Animal Welfare Council. [18596]
Mr Paice: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 19 October 2010, Official Report, column 630W. Changing the status of the Farm Animal Welfare Council to an Expert Committee will ensure the work of this important body can continue and we will seek to ensure this change has no adverse impact on the welfare of farmed animals.
Animals: Diseases
Mr Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what notifiable animal disease outbreaks have occurred in each of the last five years; and what estimate she has made of the cost to the economy of each such outbreak. [18392]
Mr Paice: A list of notifiable animal disease outbreaks since 2004 is available on the DEFRA website:
Information on the cost of all notifiable disease outbreaks is not available for each of the last five years.
DEFRA's current estimate of the economic cost to the UK livestock sector as a result of the 2007 Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) outbreak is over £100 million. The estimated total cost to the Government of the outbreaks in 2007 is £47 million for FMD, £1.7 million on bluetongue and £5 million on Avian Influenza (two outbreaks). During 2010 there have been three outbreaks of equine infectious anaemia, and the cost of these outbreaks has been £0.2 million.
The other values could be provided only at disproportionate cost to the Department.
Bovine Tuberculosis
Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what her policy is on implementation of each recommendation of the Krebs report on the links between bovine tuberculosis and badgers. [18610]
Mr Paice [holding answer 21 October 2010]: The 1997 Krebs report included a large number of recommendations, the vast majority of which have been implemented. The recommendations fall into four categories, and actions taken in each of these categories are summarised as follows:
Research to better understand the causes of herd breakdown
DEFRA has put in place a wide-ranging portfolio of research to examine this issue. Since 1997, approximately 40 research projects have been funded in this area, the reports of which are available on the DEFRA website.
Work to evaluate the effectiveness of the current available strategies to reduce herd breakdowns
The main recommendation was implemented through the establishment of the Randomised Badger Culling Trial in 1998. This study compared the effectiveness of no culling, proactive and reactive culling policies. DEFRA has also funded over 20 research projects to evaluate available strategies including, as recommended in the Krebs report, examining the effectiveness of proactive husbandry measures.
Work to develop improved strategies to reduce herd breakdown
This has involved the development of vaccines to protect badgers and cattle against tuberculosis (TB) and a diagnostic test to distinguish infected from vaccinated cattle. Total investment in vaccine development from 1998 has now reached more than £30 million and includes over 20 research projects. An injectable vaccine for badgers was licensed in March 2010. An oral badger vaccine is at the research stage and may be available from 2015. We aim to have a licensed BCG cattle vaccine and a validated differential diagnostic test by the end of 2012. However, due to the need to change EU legislation before cattle can be vaccinated for TB, we anticipate that a cattle vaccine could not be used in the field before 2015 at the earliest.
These covered a range of issues and have been implemented through increasing the use of modelling, making more data available to researchers, whenever possible using open competition to select research contractors, working collaboratively with other funders, increasing the spend on TB research from £1.7 million in 1998-99 to £7.9 million in 2010-11 and liaising with the Health Protection Agency in monitoring bovine TB incidence in humans.
Mr Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent discussions she has had with her counterpart in the Welsh Assembly Government on the operation of the badger cull and vaccination programme in Wales. [19205]
Mr Paice: I have regular contact with the Minister for Rural Affairs in the Welsh Assembly Government on a range of issues, including bovine TB and badger control. In addition, officials in England and Wales have regular discussions about this issue.
Capita
Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many contracts her Department has with Capita; and how much it has paid to Capita under such contracts in 2010-11 to date. [18621]
Richard Benyon: The information requested is set out in the following table.
| Number of contracts | Paid 2010-11( 1) ( £) | |
| (1) April to September | ||
Departmental Contracts
Andrew Bingham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of quality management statements in assisting with contract decisions by her Department; and what assessment she has made of the effects on the prospects for small businesses of winning contracts of such statements. [19016]
Richard Benyon: Our Pre-Qualification Questionnaire (PQQ) and Invitation to Tender (ITT) ask how the supplier's quality management processes will help deliver the required goods/service. The question on Quality Management is one of a series of questions that help us to evaluate and select the most suitable provider. If the business has the required expertise/experience to deliver the required services they should be able to comfortably answer these questions irrespective of the size of the organisation.
Departmental Pay
Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much was paid to officials in her Department and its non-departmental public bodies in bonuses and other payments in addition to salary in each year since 1997; how many officials received such payments; and what the monetary value was of the largest 20 payments made in each such year. [18755]
Richard Benyon: Information on other payments paid in addition to salary are not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost for the Department and its non-departmental public bodies (core DEFRA and those organisations covered by DEFRA terms and conditions-Animal Health and the Veterinary Medicines Directorate)
The requested information on non-consolidated variable performance pay for the financial years from 2005-6 to 2009-10 has been placed in the House Library, where available. Information on these payments prior to this date is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Departmental Public Expenditure
Mr Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much she plans to allocate in capital funding to each agency sponsored by her Department for each of the next four financial years; and what capital funding she made to each such agency for 2010-11. [19422]
Richard Benyon [holding answer 25 October 2010]: Given constrained capital budgets across Government in this spending review period, DEFRA is in the process of considering its investment requirements carefully in order to agree an allocation across the portfolio. Allocation of the capital budget will be prioritised to ensure that value for money is achieved while meeting DEFRA's strategic priorities. More information on allocations should be available in January 2011.
Capital allocations to DEFRA's Executive Agencies in 2010-11 are:
| Agency | Capital allocation (£ million) |
|
Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (CEFAS) | |
Mr Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what funding she plans to allocate to the Environment Agency for each of the next four financial years; and what funding she allocated to that agency for 2010-11. [19423]
Richard Benyon [holding answer 25 October 2010]: Following the Spending Review, DEFRA is considering budget allocations for the next four financial years across the DEFRA network, including the Environment Agency. More information on allocations should be available in January 2011.
The Environment Agency's grant in aid budget from DEFRA for 2010-11 is currently £644.5 million for flood and coastal erosion risk management and £146.3 million for environmental protection.
Departmental Sick Leave
Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many days her Department has lost to staff sickness in each year since 1997; and what estimate she made of the cost to her Department of sickness absence in each such year. [18758]
Richard Benyon: The following table shows the total working days lost through sickness in DEFRA and its agencies in each year since 2002. The end dates of the 12 month periods vary between years due to the way that data was collected at the time. No estimate has been made of the cost to the Department of sickness absence in each such year. However, the pay equivalent of days lost through sickness absence in 2009 was £9.6 million.
| 12 months ending | Total working days lost |
| (1 )Excludes Central Science Laboratory for which data are not available. | |
Environmental Stewardship Schemes: Finance
Mr Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) how many higher level stewardship agreements she expects to be funded by Natural England in (a) 2010-11, (b) 2011-12, (c) 2012-13, (d) 2013-14 and (e) 2014-15; [19799]
(2) what estimate Natural England made of the number of higher level stewardship agreements to be funded in the financial year 2010-11 at the commencement of the financial year; and what its most recent estimate is of that number. [19800]
Mr Paice: Natural England's estimate of the number of Higher Level Stewardship (HLS) agreements to be funded at the start of the current financial year was 7,663. These estimates are currently being reviewed in the light of the outcome of the spending review. Spending on HLS will continue to grow throughout the remainder of the lifetime of the Rural Development Programme for England, and will be 83% higher in 2013-14 than in the current financial year.
Detailed budgets for the spending review period will be finalised shortly, and DEFRA will be working with Natural England to ensure that the available budget is targeted effectively at the delivery of key environmental outcomes. It is, therefore, not possible at this stage to provide precise estimates of the number of HLS agreements which are expected to be funded in each year.
Equine Infectious Anaemia
Thomas Docherty: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what discussions she has had with her counterparts in the devolved Administrations on the recent outbreak of equine infectious anaemia. [18808]
Mr Paice: Regular discussions were held with the devolved Administrations throughout the September outbreak. As set out in DEFRA's Contingency Plan for Exotic Diseases of Animals, the devolved Administrations are an integral part of disease response and are included in all the major discussions on disease control measures throughout any outbreak.
Thomas Docherty: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what discussions she has had with representatives of the equine industry on the recent outbreak of equine infectious anaemia. [18811]
Mr Paice: Regular discussions were held with representatives of the equine industry throughout the September outbreak. As set out in DEFRA's Contingency Plan for Exotic Diseases of Animals, shortly after the disease outbreak had been confirmed by the chief veterinary officer, a meeting of DEFRA's Core Group of equine stakeholders was convened to discuss the control measures to be applied. The Core Group continued to meet regularly throughout the outbreak.
Thomas Docherty:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the compensation
scheme for animals that have been compulsorily slaughtered following a positive identification of equine infectious anaemia. [18997]
Mr Paice: For equine infectious anaemia (EIA), the statutory compensation payable is determined by the Equine Infectious Anaemia (Compensation) Order 2006.
The compensation paid for any infected animal that is culled, reflects the fact that an infected animal, which does not die as a result of the disease itself, remains a lifelong carrier of the infection. It therefore poses a risk to all other horses, ponies and donkeys in the immediate vicinity and as such, would have negligible market value. The nominal sum of £1 compensation reflects this.
Equine Infectious Anaemia: Disease Control
Thomas Docherty: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will discuss with the EU Commission the merits of an enhanced disease testing regime for intra-Community horse movements following the recent outbreak of equine infectious anaemia. [18998]
Mr Paice: Existing EU rules on intra-Community trade in all livestock, including horses, places responsibility on the consigning member state to control disease on its territory and to certify that any consignments for movement to another member state are safe. The rules do not permit extensive or blanket checks carried out by the importing member state. Such measures would be a burdensome restriction on trade, disproportionate to the risk and would fall foul of EU trade rules. The UK is a major beneficiary of the open market and these trade rules facilitate our thriving trade in the movement of livestock and their products. As a further assurance to the importing member states, the rules do allow them to carry out checks for compliance with certification on a proportion of consignments. As such, we currently have in place enhanced post import checks for certain consignments of horses.
Additionally, DEFRA is in regular contact with other member states and the Commission and discussions are taking place on the movements of horses and the risk of transmitting exotic disease. Any further protective measures introduced would be expected to be proportionate to the risk and to continue within the boundaries of EU rules.
Fisheries
Mr Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many UK-registered fishing vessels were reported as lost at sea in each of the last five years. [18821]
Richard Benyon: The number of UK registered fishing boats, reported as accidentally lost at sea in each of the last five years is:
| Vessels | |
| Number | |
Higher Level Stewardship Scheme
Mr Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when she plans to publish the projected budgets for the Natural England higher level stewardship scheme for the next four financial years. [19779]
Mr Paice: We are working with Natural England to finalise the detailed budgets for the remaining years of the current Rural Development Programme for England. Spending on higher level stewardship (HLS) will be 83% higher in 2013-14 than in the current financial year. Changes in the financial plan for the remainder of the programme will also need to be approved by the European Commission. We shall publish financial plans for the remainder of the programme period following those discussions.
Mr Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when she expects to announce her Department's policy on the renewal of higher level stewardship schemes. [19781]
Mr Paice: Spending on higher level stewardship (HLS) will continue to grow throughout the remainder of the lifetime of the Rural Development Programme for England, and will be 83% higher in 2013-14 than in the current financial year. HLS schemes remain open for applications for agreements which will start from April 2011 or later. Natural England has temporarily suspended approvals of HLS agreements with a start date prior to April 2011 while the impacts of the spending review outcome are being assessed. We hope to confirm the situation shortly.
Horses: Disease Control
Thomas Docherty: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport on the bio-security of equestrian events at the London 2012 Olympics. [18804]
Mr Paice: DEFRA has been working closely with the organisers of the London 2012 Olympics and Paralympics and the Government Olympic Executive. Officials met recently to discuss the handling of various exotic equine diseases should an incursion occur in the run up to, or during, the Games.
Hunting Act 2004: Convictions
Simon Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many convictions there have been for offences under the Hunting Act 2004 in each year from 2005 to 2009. [19123]
Mr Paice: The number of defendants found guilty at all courts for offences under the Hunting Act 2004(1) in England and Wales from 2005-09(2, 3, 4) are as follows:
Hydrofluorocarbons
Mr Love: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent steps her Department has taken to reduce the use of hydrofluorocarbons in (a) refrigeration and (b) heat pumps; and if she will make a statement. [18515]
Richard Benyon: A comprehensive EU regulatory framework to contain, prevent and thereby reduce, emissions of hydrofluorocarbons from equipment such as refrigeration and heat pumps is already in place, having been fully implemented since 2009 in Great Britain by the Fluorinated Greenhouse Gases Regulations 2009 (SI 2009/261).
Slaughterhouses: Devon
Mel Stride: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many abattoirs there were in Central Devon constituency in (a) 2000, (b) 2005, (c) 2007 and (d) on the latest date for which figures are available. [19148]
Mr Paice: The number of approved slaughterhouses operating in the Central Devon constituency was:
| Number | |
| Notes: 1. All figures are for a financial (April-March) year. 2. The figure for 2010 is correct at 21 October 2010. | |
Task Force on Farming Regulation
Mr Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs which (a) regulations, (b) directions and (c) circulars affecting farming and food are being examined by the Task Force on Farming Regulation; and how much her Department spent on compliance and monitoring work in respect of each such measure in the latest year for which figures are available. [19421]
Mr Paice
[holding answer 25 October 2010]: The Task Force on Farm Regulation has been asked to identify ways to reduce the regulatory burden on farmers and food processors. Its remit covers all regulations that apply to farming, including horticulture; food issues
where they apply on farm; food processing where farmer and producer interests overlap; and processing of farmed produce. It will focus on those areas of most concern to business and has asked for ideas and suggestions identifying unnecessary regulations, gold-plating and measures that are over-complex in implementation or enforcement to be submitted by 31 October.
Water: Shortages
Simon Kirby: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what regulatory obligations to nearby residents there are upon water companies during major renewal or construction works. [19096]
Richard Benyon: Paragraph 1 of schedule 12 to the Water Industry Act 1991 provides that water companies should do as little damage as possible while undertaking streetworks, and should pay compensation for any loss or damage caused as a result of the company exercising its street works powers. Schedule 12 goes on to say that any dispute as to whether compensation should be paid, or as to the amount of compensation, should be referred to the arbitration of a single arbitrator appointed by agreement between the parties to the dispute. Ofwat can appoint an arbitrator if the parties cannot agree on one. Ofwat does not have a formal role in deciding whether or how much compensation should be paid under schedule 12.
Section 60 of the Control of Pollution Act 1974 empowers local authorities to serve notices upon works of construction and demolition (the erection, construction, alteration, repair or maintenance of buildings, structures or roads and demolition or dredging work). Notices can specify what plant or machinery may or may not be used, the hours during which works may be carried out, and the levels of noise that are acceptable from the works.
Section 61 enables a person intending to carry out works to apply for consent from the local authority. An application should contain the particulars of the works and the method by which they are to be carried out, and the steps proposed to be taken to minimise noise resulting from the works.
If a person on whom a section 60 notice has been served contravenes any requirement of the notice without reasonable excuse, there is a penalty upon summary conviction of a fine not exceeding level 5 on the standard scale, together with a fine not exceeding £50 for each day on which the offence continues.
Wheat: Prices
Mr Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the average farm gate price was of (a) corn, (b) wheat and (c) soya beans in each month of the last five years. [18495]
Mr Paice: Because grain maize and soya beans are only grown in small amounts in the UK we do not have detailed UK farm gate price information for these crops.
The average price of British wheat, calculated from returns by merchants in England and Wales under the Corn Returns Act 1882 (as amended) in each month of the last five years is given in the following table:
| Average price of wheat per tonne each month | ||||||||||||
| £ | ||||||||||||
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | June | July | Aug | Sept | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
| Source: Home-Grown Cereals Authority. | ||||||||||||
Justice
Chelmsford Prison
Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice for how long the tumble drier for use by prisoners at Chelmsford Prison has not been working; and when he expects it to be repaired or replaced. [19607]
Mr Blunt: HMP Chelmsford has a tumble drier on E wing which has not been working for about two months. It requires a replacement seal and arrangements are being made for its repair. In the meantime prisoners can use an alternative tumble drier available on the wing or have their clothing laundered in the prison's main industrial laundry facility.
Courts
Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what steps his Department is taking to increase the level of enforcement of family court orders. [19789]
Mr Djanogly: Enforcement of an individual court order is a matter for the independent judiciary. Her Majesty's Courts Service does not collect general statistics on enforcement of orders made in the family courts.
Enforcement arises most often in cases concerning children and financial arrangements, where a range of enforcement mechanisms already exist.
In ancillary relief cases, the courts can register the judgment and enforce the amount payable by means of remedies available for debt, for example by attachment of earnings, placing a charge upon property or requiring payment from a person holding money owed to the person in breach of the order.
In cases concerning the payment of child maintenance, various provisions are available to enforce the debt and an application can be made to court for a person who refuses to pay to be sent to prison. The Child Maintenance and Other Payments Act 2008 strengthened the range of enforcement and debt management powers available to the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission.
In relation to child contact, the courts were given wider powers in December 2008 to enforce orders by imposing unpaid work, or awarding financial compensation, where a person breaches a contact order without reasonable excuse.
The family courts also have an inherent power to treat breach of an order as a contempt of court, with the sanction of a fine or imprisonment, although this is rarely used in family proceedings.
The family justice review is currently considering whether there are better alternatives to court in appropriate cases, such as mediation. Mediation can be quicker, cheaper and can help to maintain ongoing parenting relationships, avoiding the need for enforcement action later on.
Family Courts
Jack Lopresti: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice whether he plans to review his Department's policy on the (a) granting of parental access to children and (b) interviewing of young children in the family court process. [19062]
Mr Djanogly: The Secretary of State for Education, the Welsh Assembly Government Minister for Health and Social Services and the Secretary of State for Justice have commissioned a review of the family justice system in England and Wales to examine the effectiveness of the family justice system, the outcomes it delivers and to make recommendations for reform.
The review is examining how to promote contact rights for non-resident parents and grandparents where this is in the best the interests of the child. The review will also examine how best to ensure the voice of the child is heard.
We will consider the recommendations of the review when it is published in autumn 2011.
Juries
Mr Raab: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what legislative proposals he plans to bring forward to protect trial by jury. [19223]
Mr Blunt: We are looking carefully at repealing the provision in the Criminal Justice Act 2003 that allows certain fraud cases to be tried without a jury.
Magistrates
Anna Soubry: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will undertake a review of the requirement for magistrates to retire from the bench at the age of 70 years. [19030]
Mr Djanogly: There are currently no plans to undertake a review. The retirement age for magistrates is 70 and is set in statute under section 13 of the Courts Act 2003. This is in line with the retirement age for the vast majority of other judicial offices.
The contribution of magistrates of all ages is invaluable. However, it is important that magistrates reflect the diverse communities they serve. While there has been positive progress on ethnic and gender diversity, 82% of magistrates are 50 or over and the average age is 57. As well as taking magistrates out of step with other judicial offices, increasing the retirement age would reduce the number of available vacancies and thus reduce opportunities for younger people to become magistrates.
Magistrates Courts: Closures
Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will assess the likely effect on levels of engagement between magistrates and local communities of implementation of his proposals to close magistrates courts. [19476]
Mr Djanogly: Engagement between magistrates and local communities is not dependent on the number or location of court buildings. Her Majesty's Courts Service and the magistracy have been at the forefront of visible and continual engagement with communities, working with other justice agencies to understand and discuss the justice issues that affect those communities and what can be done to resolve them, as well as improving public understanding of the work of the courts and the wider justice system.
The aim of the community engagement work of the magistrates courts is to improve public confidence in the justice system by strengthening links between courts, the communities they serve and the wider justice system, while preserving judicial independence.
Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will estimate the change in the number of serving magistrates arising from implementation of his proposals to close magistrates courts. [19489]
Mr Djanogly: The number of serving magistrates should not be directly affected by court closures as workload is not being reduced but transferred to nearby courts, where magistrates will continue to hear cases from their local justice area or, as a result of any local justice area proposals, across a new, merged local justice area. However, I recognise the need for numbers of magistrates to be commensurate with workload and we expect advisory committees to take this balance into account as they think about possible future appointments.
Magistrates: Utilisation Rates
Graham Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice if he will place in the Library a copy of the utilisation rates of each magistrates court in England in the latest period for which information is available. [19117]
Mr Djanogly: The information requested on utilisation rates of each magistrates court in England and Wales for the period April to June 2010 is within the following table:
Prison Accommodation
Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what guidance his Department issues to prisons on the provision of (a) curtains and (b) duvets in cells. [19480]
Mr Blunt:
Prisoners may earn privileges under the local Incentives and Earned Privileges Scheme, details of which are set out in Prison Service Order (PSO) 4000 which is available in the Library of the House. Curtains and duvets are not included in the key earnable privileges
listed in the PSO, but Governors have discretion to offer additional earnable privileges which reflect the regime of the prison. Some prisons may allow prisoners to have curtains and/or duvets as an earnable privilege.
Prisons requesting curtains and duvets are given guidance on the requirements for fire safety and the management of the ligature risk.
PSO 1250 on Prisoners' Property, also in the Library, sets out guidance on the items of their own personal property prisoners are allowed to have in possession. There is no specific guidance issued to prisons on allowing curtains and duvets in cells.
Prison Service: Taxis
Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much the Prison Service spent on taxis in each of the last five years. [19481]
Mr Blunt: Her Majesty's Prison Service is part of the National Offender Management Service (NOMS). The NOMS accounting system does not record expenditure on taxis separately from other forms of travel. It would incur disproportionate cost to examine thousands of individual expense claims in order to identify expenditure on taxis.
All travel by Ministers is undertaken in accordance with the rules set out in the ministerial code. All official travel by NOMS staff is completed in line with the published rules for official travel and subsistence. The rules are in accordance with the guidelines set out in the civil service management code.
The NOMS policy on staff use of taxis is that staff may only claim reimbursement of fares in the following circumstances:
(i) for journeys for which there is no other suitable method of public transport; or
(ii) where heavy luggage has to be transported to or from the place of departure or arrival; or
(iii) where the saving of official time is important.
Prisoners: Foreign Nationals
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) how many foreign prisoners were detained in each prison on the latest date for which figures are available; and how many such prisoners had completed their sentences; [19462]
(2) how many prisoners there are from each (a) other EU member state and (b) non-EU country; [19463]
(3) how many foreign prisoners are serving a sentence of longer than six months. [19464]
Mr Blunt: The number of foreign national prisoners held in each prison establishment in England and Wales as at 30 June 2010 is shown in table 1. The Department publishes quarterly information on foreign national prisoners; the September 2010 data will be published on 28 October 2010.
As at 5 July 2010 (the closest date to 30 June for which this information is available), 581 foreign national prisoners were being held in prison under immigration powers after completion of their sentences. Table 2 shows a breakdown of this total by prison establishment.
As at 30 June 2010 there were 3,342 foreign national prisoners from other EU member states, and 7,793 non-EU nationals in custody. Table 3 shows a breakdown by country.
As at 30 June 2010, 6,434 foreign national prisoners were serving a sentence of longer than six months.
These figures have been drawn from administrative IT and other systems which, as with any large scale recording systems, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.
| Table 1: Foreign national population by establishment at 30 June 2010 | ||
| Establishment | Total population | Foreign nationals |
| Next Section | Index | Home Page |