Written Answers to Questions
Wednesday 12 January 2011
Culture, Media and Sport
BBC: Public Expenditure
Mr Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport with reference to his letter of 20 October 2010 to the Chairman of the BBC Trust on the 2010 Spending Review, what his policy is on requesting the BBC to take on additional responsibilities or activities for the duration of the period of the Spending Review settlement; and if he will make a statement. [33025]
Mr Jeremy Hunt: My letter of 21 October to the Chair of the BBC Trust confirmed that the Government have undertaken to provide a full financial settlement to the end of the year 2016-17, with no new financial requirements or fresh obligations of any kind being placed on the BBC and/or licence fee revenues in this period except by mutual agreement.
Broadband: Suffolk
Peter Aldous: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what assessment he has made of the suitability of Suffolk for designation as a pilot area in the next round of Government broadband pilots. [33181]
Mr Vaizey: The Secretary of State announced on 6 December that £50 million would be made available for the next round of broadband projects. Bids for support for projects will be invited from local authorities in April 2011 on the basis of guidance from Broadband Delivery UK, to be issued in the near future. At that point, any bid from Suffolk will be given the same consideration as all the others submitted.
Olympic Games 2012
Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what steps he is taking to increase adult participation in sport in (a) the West Midlands, (b) London and (c) nationally prior to the London 2012 Olympics. [32081]
Hugh Robertson: Sport England is the arm's length body with responsibility for community sport. Their aim is to increase and sustain levels of participation in sport.
National governing bodies of sport (NGBs) are responsible for the strategy, delivering through their networks of community clubs, coaches and volunteers, across all parts of the country. Sport England is investing £480 million through 46 governing bodies over the next four years and has agreed 'grow' and 'sustain' targets with each one. Each sport has developed a whole sport plan to achieve these targets.
Additionally, the £135 million mass participation Olympic legacy-Places People Play-was launched in November and will benefit residents of the west midlands, London and the country more widely. This programme will be funded by lottery money and has been developed in partnership with Sport England, the London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games (LOCOG), the British Olympic Association (BOA) and the British Paralympic Association (BPA).
In addition to the benefits this investment will bring to these areas, in terms of the west midlands, Sport England has also directly invested in a number of projects including a grant of £130,000 to the Cannock Trails Mountain Biking Centre and a grant of £200,000 to the Oswestry Leisure Centre.
Investment into London includes Sport England's £1.3 million towards Redbridge Sport and Leisure Centre's new 12 court sports hall. The centre has also received financial support from the Olympic Delivery Authority, Badminton England and England Netball (via their Whole Sport Plan funding) and the Mayor's Legacy Fund. It will be a regional centre of excellence for badminton and netball and will provide a lasting legacy from the Games.
Sport England has also recently invested £1 million into the new 50 metre swimming pool at Hillingdon.
Youth Sports Trust
Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what recent progress his Department has made in its discussions with the Department for Education on the future work programme of the Youth Sports Trust; and what assessment he has made of the likely effects of the outcomes of those discussions on the work of the School Sports Partnership in North Stoke. [33087]
Hugh Robertson: The Government are committed to driving up participation in competitive sport. To that end, Sport England has appointed the Youth Sport Trust to lead the development of the new School Games. We are confident that, with their expertise and those of other partners, the School Games will be a success and will build upon the strengths of the school sport system.
In addition, the Department for Education is providing funding up to 2013 to allow PE teachers further to embed competitive sport in schools across the country, including north Stoke, and raise participation.
Energy and Climate Change
Carbon Emissions: Forests
Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what agreements were made at the Cancun Climate Change Summit on reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation. [33127]
Gregory Barker:
An agreement was reached at Cancun on all the essential elements of reducing emissions from deforestation and degradation (REDD+). In the context of the provision of adequate and predictable support to developed country parties, parties collectively aim to
slow, halt and reverse forest cover and carbon loss, consistent with the ultimate objective of the UN framework convention on climate change.
Elements of the agreement include that forests nations will develop national strategies, safeguards should be put in place to avoid any potentially detrimental impacts to biodiversity and indigenous people, the scale at which reference levels for forests should be set and at which monitoring should occur, and a commitment from developed countries to help fund activities. The full decision text is available at:
Climate Change: International Cooperation
Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate he has made of the direct carbon dioxide emissions arising from the participation of the UK delegation in the climate change conference in Cancun. [32789]
Gregory Barker: The carbon footprint created by the travel of United Kingdom delegates to the climate change conference in Cancun has been kept to a minimum through limiting the number of delegates who attended. All emissions resulting from their flights will be offset by the relevant Government Department using the Government Carbon Offsetting Facility.
Departmental Press Releases
Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change on how many occasions his Department has provided embargoed media briefings prior to an oral statement to the House since 26 May 2010; in respect of how many such briefings his Department was informed that the embargo had been breached; what steps were taken as a result of each such breach; and on how many occasions his Department has provided media briefings without an embargo prior to an oral statement to the House since 26 May 2010. [31918]
Gregory Barker: There have been no such occasions.
Energy Saving Trust : Finance
John Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what funding the Energy Saving Trust received from his Department in each of the last three years; what funding for the Trust was planned for 2010-11; what his most recent estimate is of his Department's funding for the Trust in 2010-11; and what funding he expects to allocate to the Trust in each of the next three years. [32994]
Gregory Barker: The Energy Saving Trust (EST) has received the following grant funding from the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC):
2008-09-£35.5 million
2009-10-£38.5 million
In 2010-11, EST was given a provisional grant offer of £35.5 million. This was then reduced to £34.4 million as part of the DECC's contribution to cross Government in-year savings.
The funding that DECC expects to allocate to EST in 2011-12 will be confirmed at the end of the financial year.
The organisation of future advice provision will be dependent on the outcome of the delivery review, as announced in last year's Annual Energy Statement.
Energy: Prices
David Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what steps he is taking to equalise the price of electricity for customers on (a) pre payment meters and (b) standard credit tariffs. [33276]
Charles Hendry: Ofgem has put in place rules to protect consumers on pricing, including licence condition changes to prevent unfair price differentials, including those between different payment methods, such as between pre-payment meters and standard credit.
Ofgem has reported on the effectiveness of these changes and found that the differentials for customers paying by pre-payment meter (PPM) have been completely eliminated and are, on average, £19 below the equivalent standard credit tariffs. The full Ofgem report is available online at:
http://www.ofgem.gov.uk/Markets/RetMkts/ensuppro/Documents1/Update%20on%20Probe%20Monitoring_ FINAL.pdf
We support the action Ofgem took to address unjustified tariff premiums, their action to evaluate the effectiveness of these changes and their action to enforce the changes. We believe it is important to see ongoing monitoring and enforcement by Ofgem, so consumers do not lose out.
In addition, we expect the roll-out of Smart meters to provide consumers with a wider range of tariffs.
Fuels: Prices
Mrs McGuire: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what recent discussions he has had with oil companies on trends in the price of (a) heating and (b) other fuels. [33191]
Charles Hendry: We continue to monitor trends in the price of heating oil and other fuels. The UK has open and competitive markets for heating oil and other petroleum products. The Office of Fair Trading continues to consider all complaints and representations carefully and is monitoring for any indications that consumer or competition legislation has been breached. We have had no specific discussions with oil companies on trends in oil prices.
Green Deal
Mike Weatherley: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what assessment he has made of the combined effect of the requirement for savings to exceed repayments and varying household expenditure caps on the likely extent of energy savings achievable through the Green Deal; and if he will make a statement. [30653]
Gregory Barker: The Golden Rule, the principle that the charge attached to the energy bill should not exceed the expected savings on an average bill sits at the heart of the Green Deal and is a key consumer protection mechanism. Satisfying the Golden Rule at the outset will protect bill payers and enable the charge to transfer automatically from one bill payer to the next. We have not therefore considered a Green Deal scheme without this protection. There is no limit on the face of the Energy Bill to the amount of finance available to each household. As we develop secondary legislation we will be considering what limit is appropriate alongside other consumer protections. We will publish analysis of the effects of our proposals at this time.
It is important to ensure that as many households as possible are eligible for a Green Deal. The new Energy Company Obligation will interact with the Green Deal and provide support to vulnerable and low income consumers as well as those in expensive to treat homes. In addition, ambitious consumers will have the opportunity to pay any excess costs up front to ensure the charge attached to the energy meter will meet the Golden Rule.
Heating
Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what support his Department plans to provide to incentivise the establishment of district heating systems. [33121]
Gregory Barker: In November 2010, we launched Community Energy Online, an online resource that provides information and guidance for communities and local authorities looking to develop low carbon energy projects, including district heating. The website address is:
The renewable heat incentive (RHI), which comes into force later this year, will help bridge the gap between the cost of conventional and renewable heating. This will incentivise the establishment of all types of renewable heat, including district heating systems fuelled by, for example, biomass or renewable combined heat and power (CHP).
London Energy Meeting
Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what progress he has made on the commitments given at the London Energy Meeting in December 2008. [32964]
Charles Hendry: Participants in the London Energy Meeting did not enter into formal commitments to act but did agree on the importance of key actions aimed at improving the functioning of global energy markets and improving dialogue between energy producing and consuming countries.
Participating countries noted the importance of working closely with the International Energy Forum (IEF) to provide high quality data on oil and gas production, supply and demand to the Joint Oil Data Initiative (JODI). The IEF reports that the data supplied are of increasingly good quality. At their summit in Seoul in November 2010, G20 leaders strongly supported JODI and asked the IEF to work with the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries and the International
Energy Agency to produce a report suggesting specific steps to improve the quality, timeliness and reliability of the JODI database.
Participants also agreed to support the establishment of an expert group to recommend how to strengthen the architecture of the consumer-producer dialogue and the functioning of the IEF. At the IEF Ministerial In March 2010 in Cancun, Ministers from 66 countries endorsed that group's recommendations for analytical work, approving a programme which is now under way under the aegis of the IEF. They also agreed that a new charter for the IEF should be developed to underpin that organisation's work. With Saudi Arabia, the UK has co-chaired the group developing the new Charter. Work is now at a very advanced stage and we hope the new Charter will be agreed over the next few weeks. At the Seoul summit, G20 leaders supported the establishment of the Charter and welcomed the IEF programme of analysis and dialogue.
Renewable Energy: Heating
Mike Weatherley: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what steps he plans to take to increase the uptake of ground source heat pumps. [32985]
Gregory Barker: The Government will be launching the renewable heat incentive in 2011 which will provide a financial incentive for renewable heat. Full details on the scheme will be published shortly.
The coalition Government are also currently consulting on its microgeneration strategy. The purpose of the strategy is to identify and tackle non-financial barriers which have an impact on the development of all microgeneration, including ground source heat pumps. The consultation closes on 16 March 2011.
Further information is available at:
Solar Power
Mike Weatherley: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what plans he has to increase the uptake of solar panels; and if he will make a statement. [32401]
Gregory Barker: The coalition Government have recently published a consultation document on the promotion of microgeneration, which includes solar photovoltaic and solar thermal technologies. The consultation document discusses non-financial barriers to the development of the microgeneration sector. Further information on the consultation is available at:
The Government are committed to the full implementation of feed-in tariffs (FiTs) to incentivise uptake of small-scale low-carbon electricity generating technologies, including solar photovoltaic.
The renewable heat incentive (RHI), which will be launched in 2011, will provide financial support to renewable heat technologies at all scales in order to incentivise uptake. The Government will confirm which technologies they will support under the scheme shortly.
Attorney-General
Departmental Sponsorship
Priti Patel: To ask the Attorney-General what expenditure the Law Officers' Departments incurred on sponsorship in each year since 1997 for which figures are available. [27532]
The Attorney-General: The Treasury Solicitor's Department (TSol) has no record of any expenditure incurred on sponsorship by TSol, the Attorney General's Office or the HM Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate in the period 2001 to date. Prior to 2001, any figure could not be established without incurring disproportionate cost.
The National Fraud Authority made a one-off payment of £17,625, in 2009-10, to Get Safe Online, a joint initiative to raise awareness of internet security and help individuals and small businesses in the UK to use the internet confidently and safely.
The Serious Fraud Office has in recent years spent the following on sponsorship.
| £ | ||
| Sponsorship | 2010 | 2009 |
Data prior to this is unavailable in the format requested and would not be accurate due to the way that the accounts were previously reported.
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) Financial Management System does not specifically capture information on sponsorship, and the information sought could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. However, it has been established that the CPS incurred the following costs (in the associated years) for the events that are listed as follows:
| Event sponsored | Year | Cost (£) |
Ubani: Daniel
Stephen Barclay: To ask the Attorney-General pursuant to the answer of 25 October 2010, Official Report, column 64W, on European Arrest Warrant: Dr Daniel Ubani, what the minor corrections were which the Serious and Organised Crime Agency (SOCA) requested to the European Arrest Warrant received on 9 March 2009 in respect of Dr Daniel Ubani; and if he will place in the Library a copy of the warrant received by SOCA on (a) 9 March and (b) 12 March 2009. [29430]
The Attorney-General: The minor alteration to the European Arrest Warrant (EAW) related to the contact details for the Serious and Organised Crime Agency (SOCA).
Foreign and Commonwealth Office
Belarus: Elections
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the implications for the UK's policy on election monitoring of the decision of the Government of Belarus to withdraw facilities from the election monitoring team sent by the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe; and if he will make a statement. [33187]
Mr Lidington: On 31 December 2010,1 made a statement underlining that the UK strongly regrets Belarus's decision to veto the renewal of the mandate of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Mission in Belarus and calling for this decision to be revised immediately.
In addition to its role of supporting the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights in conducting their election observation mission, the OSCE Mission in Belarus makes other vital contributions. The mission not only encourages democratic reform, but also promotes institution building, consolidating the rule of law, the development of civil society and the freedom of the media. Further valuable work is also conducted in addressing issues of common regional security, such as energy security and border management.
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the Government of Belarus on the arrest and detention of candidates in the presidential election in that country. [33188]
Mr Lidington: I am deeply concerned about the situation in Belarus. My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary and I issued statements on 20, 22 and 31 December 2010, strongly condemning the violence surrounding the presidential election, urging the Belarusian authorities to release those detained for politically motivated reasons and to ensure that all detainees are given access to proper medical care and legal representation. I called in the Belarusian ambassador on 22 December 2010 to voice my grave concerns in person. We will continue to follow events closely. We are also working closely with other EU member states to urge a tough EU response, including looking at re-imposing targeted sanctions.
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with his EU counterparts on the recent presidential election in Belarus. [33189]
Mr Lidington:
The UK is at the forefront of efforts within the EU and the wider international community to bring pressure on the Belarusian authorities to release the political prisoners. We have been vocal in advocating a tough EU response, including looking at re-imposing targeted sanctions. I have discussed Belarus with some of my EU counterparts and encouraged EU High
Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, the right hon. Baroness Ashton, to issue a strongly worded statement. A joint EU-US statement was released on 23 December 2010.
Prime Minister
Fireworks
Kelvin Hopkins: To ask the Prime Minister pursuant to the oral answer to the hon. Member for Northampton North of 8 December 2010, Official Report, column 304, which body is responsible for the enforcement of legislation on Category One fireworks, including Christmas crackers. [32839]
Mr Davey: I have been asked to reply.
This Department has policy responsibility for the EU legislation relating to Category One fireworks, although Trading Standards Departments of local authorities are responsible for enforcement of the regulations.
Mikhail Khodorkovsky
Chris Bryant: To ask the Prime Minister if he will make representations at his next meeting with the President of the Russian Federation on the (a) trial of Mikhail Khodorkovsky and Platon Lebedev and (b) death in custody of Sergei Magnitsky. [31088]
Mr Lidington: I have been asked to reply.
The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), made a statement on 30 December 2010 expressing deep concern over recent developments in Mr Khodorkovsky and Mr Lebedev's case and the serious implications this has for confidence in how the rule of law is applied in Russia. The Government have consistently stressed to the Russian authorities the importance of fair and impartial trials. It will continue to raise issues surrounding these cases, and others including through the EU and during our bilateral human rights consultations this month with Russia.
Deputy Prime Minister
Electoral Register: Fraud
Mr Offord: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what steps he plans to take to reduce fraudulent entries on the electoral register. [32746]
Mr Harper:
Responsibility for maintaining electoral registers lies with electoral registration officers (EROs) who are appointed by local authorities, but independent of them. Legislation requires EROs to determine applications for registration that they receive. It also requires EROs to remove entries from the register if the ERO determines that a person with an entry is not entitled to be registered, and provides for objection and review processes to enable EROs to make such determinations. It is an offence under Section 13D of the Representation of the People Act 1983 to provide false information for any purposes connected with
registration and if a person does so it is within the discretion of the ERO, depending upon the relevant circumstances of the case, to pursue the matter further and refer the case to the police.
Ensuring the integrity of the electoral register is a key part of rebuilding trust in the political system. The Government are therefore committed to tackling electoral fraud and has announced that it will legislate to bring forward the implementation of individual electoral registration to 2014. This will require those applying to be registered to provide evidence of their identity, and so provide greater protection against fraudulent entries on the register.
Government Departments: Internet
Mr Offord: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what assessment he has made of the role to be played by (a) the Directgov website and (b) other Government websites in informing the public about (i) individual voter registration and (ii) other constitutional and political changes. [32748]
Mr Harper: We always consider how best to inform the public about changes that affect them. While the details of public information campaigns relating to political and constitutional reforms, including individual electoral registration, are still being developed, it is likely that there will be an online element and we will consider how Directgov and other Government websites might support this.
International Development
Southern Sudan
13. Tony Baldry: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much his Department has allocated in development assistance to southern Sudan in the last year for which figures are available. [32726]
Mr Andrew Mitchell: I am considering what our support to Sudan should be in future through the Bilateral Aid Review which is currently under way. The UK is providing £140 million to Sudan in development and humanitarian aid during the current financial year, approximately half of which goes to the south.
In southern Sudan UK aid has, for example, increased access to basic services providing 1.3 million people with access to primary health care and 300,000 people with access to water and sanitation. It has provided communications systems for 30,000 southern Sudanese police to manage security during and after the referendum period. It has also provided 4.5 million packages of food aid.
Arms Trade Treaty
Mr Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps his Department is taking in preparation for the second Preparatory Committee on the Arms Trade Treaty in February 2011; and which officials of which grades from his Department will attend the Preparatory Committee. [32557]
Mr Duncan: The UK Government fully supports efforts to establish an Arms Trade Treaty that will help prevent irresponsible trade in conventional weapons. The Department for International Development (DFID) will continue to contribute to the Government's strategy, working with civil society, the defence industry and other departments across Whitehall to prepare for the upcoming Preparatory Committee in February 2011. The UK's delegation will be led by John Duncan, Ambassador for Multilateral Arms Control and Disarmament. The size and makeup of the rest of the delegation will be finalised during January 2011.
Developing Countries: Climate Change
Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what his policy is on the use of microinsurance as a mechanism to assist adaptation to climate change in the world's poorest countries. [32560]
Mr O'Brien: I refer the hon. Member to my answer of 21 December 2010, Official Report, column 1137W, on Developing Countries: Insurance.
Developing Countries: Remittances
Anas Sarwar: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what estimate he has made of the monetary value of remittances sent by UK residents to developing countries in the latest period for which figures are available. [32724]
Mr O'Brien: The Department for International Development (DFID) relies on the Office for National Statistics (ONS) for data on UK transfers. The ONS does not publish separate estimates for remittances because they are not considered to be of sufficient quality. Instead, estimates for remittances are combined with estimates for net transfers to UK charities. Together, these estimates are defined in the UK Balance of Payments (the Pink Book) as 'other payments by households'.
In 2009, 'other payments by households' totalled £5.3 billion, the majority of which were remittances. However, this covers remittances to all countries, not just developing countries, with data quality issues preventing a more accurate country disaggregation. In recent years, the ONS has investigated a number of new sources to improve the quality of remittances statistics and will continue to do so going forward.
Members: Correspondence
Sir Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development when he plans to respond to the letter from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton of 15 November 2010 concerning Mr W Howe. [32492]
Mr Andrew Mitchell: The response to the letter from the right hon. Member has been issued.
Nigeria: Education
Fiona O'Donnell:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if his Department will provide support for steps to reinstate the education
sector Community Accountability and Transparency Initiative in Nigeria. [R] [33224]
Mr O'Brien: The Department for International Development (DFID) is willing to consider supporting any reinstatement of the Community Accountability and Transparency Initiative (CATI) in Nigeria. This would be dependent on a request and support from the Nigerian Government. The principles of accountability and transparency are fully supported by DFID, and we are working with Nigerian officials to promote these principles. DFID is supporting community based management committees to improve transparent use of resources at school level, as part of an effort to strengthen management of the education sector as a whole.
Overseas Aid: Local Government
Dr Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent discussions he has had with the Local Government Association on the recommendation from the Select Committee on International Development in its Report on Aid Under Pressure, HC 179-I, Session 2008-09, that his Department should make greater use of the expertise that exists within local government in the UK. [32760]
Mr Duncan: The Secretary of State for International Development met Baroness Eaton, Chair of the Local Government Association, on 16 November 2010. During the meeting, the contribution of expertise that exists within local government in the United Kingdom to international development was discussed. The Secretary of State encouraged the Local Government Association to write directly to the Department to outline their offer in the field of international development.
Experts from local governments already make a significant contribution to development, including having members in the new Stabilisation Cadre. The Department for International Development is supporting the Commonwealth Local Government Forum's Good Practice scheme which also capitalises on existing expertise in local government.
Sri Lanka: Overseas Aid
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much his Department allocated to Sri Lanka in each of the last five years. [32545]
Mr Duncan: The Department for International Development (DFID) allocated the following amounts to Sri Lanka over the last five financial years.
| £ million | |
Details of UK aid expenditure are published annually in Statistics on International Development, which is available in the Library of the House and on DFID's website.
Yemen: Overseas Aid
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much funding his Department allocated to Yemen in each of the last five years. [32544]
Mr Duncan: The amount of bilateral assistance provided to Yemen by the Department of International Development (DFID) is reported in "Statistics on International Development", which is available in the Library of the House and on DFID's website.
DFID has allocated £50 million of programme funding for this financial year 2010-11. Bilateral assistance in each of the four previous years was as follows:
| £ million | |
Work and Pensions
Housing Associations: Edinburgh
Sheila Gilmore: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) what estimate he has made of the number of one-bedroom (a) local authority and (b) housing association properties with a rental in the bottom 30 per cent. of local market values in Edinburgh in the first six months of 2010; and how many such properties were in (i) sheltered housing and (ii) multi-story blocks; [31396]
(2) what estimate he has made of the number of vacant housing association tenanted homes with (a) one bedroom and (b) two bedrooms in Edinburgh East constituency; [31397]
(3) what estimate he has made of the number of tenants of each type of tenure under-occupying a property in Edinburgh East constituency; and how many are on (a) housing benefit and (b) local housing allowance. [31399]
Steve Webb: This information is not available.
Housing Benefit
Mr Douglas Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent estimate he has made of the number of recipients of local housing allowance between the ages of 25 and 35 who are in employment. [32598]
Steve Webb: At September 2010 our records show that 124,120 recipients of housing benefit assessed under the local housing arrangements were aged between 25 and 35-years-old and in employment.
Notes:
1. Figures are based on the single housing benefit extract (SHBE), are rounded to the nearest 10 recipients, and are as at the second Thursday of September 2010.
2. Figures refer to benefit units which may be a single person or a couple.
3. The age breakdown is based on the age of the main benefit claimant.
4. Local housing allowance tenants (LHA) may include a small number of non-LHA cases making a new claim since 7 April 2008. This will include recipients in caravan accommodation.
5. SHBE is a monthly electronic scan of claimant level data direct from local authority computer systems. It replaces quarterly aggregate clerical returns. The data is available monthly from November 2008 and August 2010 is the most recent available.
Housing Benefit: Blaenau Gwent
Nick Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) how many households in Blaenau Gwent constituency claiming housing benefit have at least one member in receipt of jobseeker's allowance; [33058]
(2) how many households in Blaenau Gwent claim housing benefit; and in how many such households the claimant of housing benefit is in employment; [33060]
(3) how many single people under 35 years of age in Blaenau Gwent constituency who claim housing benefit (a) are in work and (b) claim jobseeker's allowance. [33062]
Steve Webb: The information is not available.
Housing Benefit: Greater London
Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many households received housing benefit payments in (a) Richmond upon Thames and (b) Kingston upon Thames local authority area in the latest period for which figures are available. [32973]
Steve Webb: The number of people in receipt of housing benefit in Richmond-upon-Thames and Kingston-upon-Thames in September 2010 is shown in the following table.
| Local authority | Total HB recipients |
| Notes: 1. Recipients are as at second Thursday of the month. 2. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10. 3. SHBE is a monthly electronic scan of claimant level data direct from local authority computer systems. It replaces quarterly aggregate clerical returns. The data is available monthly from November 2008 and September 2010 is the latest. 4. At present geographic breakdowns are only available for local authorities and regions. However, an exercise is being undertaken to add other geographical areas to the data: this will include parliamentary constituencies. 5. Data is published on the Department's website at: http://statistics.dwp.gov.uk/asd/asd1/hb_ctb/hbctb_release_dec10.xls Source: Single Housing Benefit Extract 100% individual level data (SHBE) | |
Housing Benefit: Lanarkshire
Tom Greatrex: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what proportion of (a) housing benefit and (b) local housing allowance recipients in (i) South Lanarkshire and (ii) Rutherglen and Hamilton West constituency in (A) the private sector and (B) other housing were also in receipt of (1) jobseeker's allowance and (2) employment and support allowance in the latest period for which figures are available. [29529]
Steve Webb: The information is not available.
Information is only collected on the number of claimants on housing benefit in receipt of a passporting benefit, which includes income-based jobseeker's allowance and income-related employment and support allowance, but not the total number of housing benefit claimants on jobseeker's allowance or employment and support allowance.
Housing Benefit: South Lanarkshire
Tom Greatrex: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many recipients of local housing allowance who have been in receipt of jobseeker's allowance for more than 12 months are resident in (a) South Lanarkshire and (b) Rutherglen and Hamilton West constituency. [29370]
Steve Webb: The information is not available.
Neither the total number of jobseeker's allowance claimants receiving housing benefit nor the duration of such claims is available. The relevant analysis has not been quality assured to National Statistics standard, and to do so would incur disproportionate cost.
Incapacity Benefit: Richmond upon Thames
Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many adults of working age in Richmond Park constituency claimed incapacity benefit in the latest period for which figures are available. [33061]
Steve Webb: The information requested is given in the following table.
| Number of claimants of incapacity benefit/severe disablement allowance of working age in Richmond Park constituency-May 2010 | |
| Number | |
| Notes: 1. Data is rounded to the nearest 10. 2. Figures do not include employment support allowance (ESA) which was introduced in October 2008 for new claimants. 3. Constituencies used are for the Westminster Parliament of May 2010. 4. Working age restricts the analysis to males aged 16 to 64 and females aged 16 to 59. 5. Data is published at: https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/Default.asp Source: DWP Information Directorate 100% WPLS | |
Social Security Benefits: Appeals
Richard Harrington: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) what proportion of appeals made by benefit claimants to the First-tier Tribunal were attended by an official of the Ministry of Justice in each year since 2005; and what proportion of appeals at which that Department (a) was and (b) was not represented were allowed in each year; [33026]
(2) what proportion of appeals made by jobseeker's allowance claimants to the First-tier Tribunal were attended by an official of the Ministry of Justice in each year since 2005; and what proportion of appeals at which that Department (a) was and (b) was not represented were allowed in each year; [33027]
(3) what proportion of appeals made by incapacity benefit claimants to the First-tier Tribunal were attended by an official of the Ministry of Justice in each year since 2005; and what proportion of appeals at which that Department (a) was and (b) was not represented were allowed in each year; [33028]
(4) what proportion of appeals made by employment support allowance claimants to the First-tier Tribunal were attended by an official of the Ministry of Justice in each year since 2005; and what proportion of appeals at which that Department (a) was and (b) was not represented were allowed in each year. [33029]
Maria Miller: The information requested is not available.
Richard Harrington: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what proportion of appeals made by child support claimants to the First-tier Tribunal were attended by an official of the Ministry of Justice in each year since 2005; and what proportion of appeals at which that Department (a) was and (b) was not represented were allowed in each year. [33030]
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.
State Earnings Related Pension Scheme
Mr Ivan Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) what plans he has to enable individuals to make representations on his proposals for the State Earnings Related Pension Scheme when the Green Paper is published; [32948]
(2) whether any proposed changes to the State Earnings Related Pension Scheme will affect those who are presently at pensionable age; [32949]
(3) what assessment he has made of the likely effect of proposed changes to the State Earnings Related Pension Scheme on pensions paid to widows and widowers. [32950]
Steve Webb: The Government are currently considering a number of options for simplifying the state pension system but final decisions have not yet been made.
Any proposals will be subject to consultation.
Work Capability Assessment
Mike Weatherley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will consider the merits of extending the time between employment and support allowance capability to work assessments for people with progressive, degenerative or continually severe illnesses. [32608]
Maria Miller: As part of the work capability assessment, a healthcare professional will give advice on when they think a customer's condition may have changed sufficiently that a return to work may be possible. They must also give a justification for this advice. The Department uses this advice to decide when to reassess claimants.
A claimant for whom a return to work is considered unlikely within two years will be reassessed after two years. This is because, even for claimants who are unlikely to see an improvement in their health and who are unlikely to sufficiently adapt to their condition, it is important that each individuals circumstances are considered separately. However, this reassessment will not necessarily involve a face-to-face assessment-where possible, the Department may make a decision using paper-based evidence.
We currently have no plans to change this process.
Written Questions: Government Responses
Rushanara Ali: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when he plans to answer question 20879, tabled by the hon. Member for Bethnal Green and Bow on 26 October 2010. [30213]
Steve Webb: I replied to the hon. Member's question on 15 December 2010, Official Report, column 838W.
Communities and Local Government
Asset Transfer Unit
Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what plans he has to provide information to the public on the Asset Transfer Unit; and if he will make a statement. [32169]
Andrew Stunell: Information is available on the activities carried out by the Asset Transfer Unit on their website at:
This includes access to information and case studies on community asset transfer and the programmes they run on behalf of Government. Guidance and toolkits they have developed to support community asset transfer are also available such as a legal toolkit to assist community groups and local authorities; guidance on community-led open spaces exploring transfer of parks and green spaces; transferring heritage assets; and making buildings work for your community through design and refurbishment. The Unit's Information, Advice and Referral service has received over 650 inquiries since the unit opened in January 2009. SQW consultants are carrying out an independent evaluation of the Asset Transfer Unit and their interim report is available on the unit's website. They have also carried out a baseline survey of local authorities' attitudes to asset transfer. The Year 1 report was published in November 2009 and the Year 2 report is being published in March.
Homelessness
Ian Mearns: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate his Department has made of the number of households likely to present as homeless in (a) Gateshead local authority area, (b) Tyne and Wear and (c) England in 2011. [33201]
Grant Shapps:
The Department for Communities and Local Government has not produced estimates of the number of households likely to present as homeless in
Gateshead local authority area, Tyne and Wear and England in 2011. Statutory homelessness statistics are published quarterly and can be found on the Department's website at
This Government are committed to tackling and preventing homelessness. We have protected homelessness grant funding, with £400 million over the spending review period. This will be made available to local authorities and the voluntary sector to support their work to tackle homelessness. We have made an additional £190 million available for discretionary housing payments and other forms of practical support alongside the Government's package of welfare reform measures.
Allocations of Preventing Homelessness Grant for local authorities were published on 13 December as part of the provisional local government settlement for 2010-11. This can be found on the Department's website at
I also refer the hon. Member to my letter on the spending review's settlement for housing of 20 October 2010, a copy of which is available in the Library of the House, on our plans to build more affordable homes and renovate poor quality social housing.
Homelessness: Greater London
Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what his most recent estimate is of the number of people who are homeless in the (a) Richmond-upon-Thames and (b) Kingston Upon Thames local authority area. [32970]
Grant Shapps: Information about local authorities' discharge of their duties under homelessness legislation is collected on quarterly PIE returns. Summary information about English local housing authorities' actions under the homelessness legislation (part 7 of the Housing Act 1996) is collected at local authority level, and published by the Department in the quarterly Statistical Release on Statutory Homelessness, available both in the Library of the House and via the DCLG website:
Data collected include the number of households accepted by local housing authorities as eligible for assistance, unintentionally homeless and in priority need, and therefore owed a main homelessness duty (to ensure that suitable accommodation is available). If a settled home is not immediately available, the authority must secure temporary accommodation until a settled home becomes available and this information is also collected.
The number of households accepted as owed a main homelessness duty during the July to September quarter 2010 and the number of households in temporary accommodation at the end of September in each local authority is given in the table at the following link:
Information is also collected on rough sleeping. Since 1998, only councils in areas with a known, or suspected, rough sleeping problem were required to conduct an
official rough sleeper count-which meant that only 70 councils submitted information to central Government. Figures published in July 2010 showed that under this previous method, on any given night there were 440 rough sleepers in England. However, the coalition Government wanted a more complete measure of rough sleeping and when the remaining 256 councils provided estimates of the scale of the problem in their areas, this added a further estimated 807 rough sleepers-taking the national total to 1,247 rough sleepers on any given night.
Rough sleeping figures are published by the Department on the DCLG website and are given by local authority in the table at the following link:
Under new guidance all councils across England will now provide information on rough sleeping. This move follows consultation with homelessness charities and councils and is aimed at getting a clearer picture of the scale of the problem in each area so more targeted support can be provided to some of the most vulnerable in society.
Housing Benefit
Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if his Department will take steps to ensure that people in receipt of housing benefit have better access to private rented accommodation in areas where there is insufficient social housing available; and if he will make a statement. [32753]
Andrew Stunell: From 1 April 2011, private tenants who are in receipt of housing benefit will receive funding equivalent to the thirtieth percentile of local market rents for a suitable privately rented property in their area. This means that they will have access to approximately one-third of the privately rented housing in their area-a reasonable proportion of the available housing. We have also announced that we will allow direct payment of benefit to landlords where a landlord has reduced the rent on their property to reflect the lower local housing allowance in an area. We anticipate that this will provide a real incentive to landlords to make their property available to housing benefit recipients.
The Government are making £190 million of additional funding available to help local authorities to provide support where it is needed, for example to help people to stay in their home or to move to cheaper accommodation We are also working with Crisis to put in place additional support for single homeless people. This initiative will support the voluntary sector to work with local authorities to expand access to private rented housing for single homeless people.
Housing: Construction
Ian Mearns: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many new homes he expects to be built under the New Homes Bonus scheme in Gateshead local authority area in each year of the comprehensive spending review period. [33199]
Grant Shapps: The New Homes Bonus will match fund the additional council tax raised for new homes and properties brought back into use, for the following six years with an enhancement for affordable homes.
The Government have consulted on the scheme design and the final details and individual local authority allocations will be published in due course.
A calculator has been published which enables local authorities to estimate their grant. The calculator can be found at
The consultation stage impact assessment published alongside the New Homes Bonus consultation provides an estimate of the potential supply impact but this depends on the final scheme design and the behavioural response of local authorities. Our analysis suggests that we could see a national increase of 8-13% in homes built, over the expected baseline, from 2016-17 onwards.
Private Rented Housing: Standards
Ian Mearns: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what recent assessment he has made of the standard of accommodation in the private rented sector; and if he will make a statement. [33198]
Andrew Stunell: The English Housing Survey makes an annual assessment of the standard of accommodation for the private rented sector and for the stock as a whole. The following table provides the latest available estimate based on the Decent Homes standard. Conditions in the housing sectors are dependent on a range of factors but particularly the age profile of their housing stock. Some 40% of the private rented stock was built before 1919 compared to 21% of owner occupied stock and only 7% of social housing.
| Number and percentage of dwellings non-decent by tenure, 2008 | ||||
| Number (thousand) | Percentage of tenure | |||
| Decent | Non-decent | Decent | Non-decent | |
| Notes: 1. To be considered decent a dwelling must meet the minimum standard (be free of any serious health and safety risks for vulnerable people), be in a satisfactory state of repair, have modern facilities and services and provide a satisfactory level of thermal comfort. The detailed criteria are provided in the Decent Homes Guidance on the Department's website at: www.communities.gov.uk/publications/housing/decenthome 2. The figures for this table were published in the English Housing Survey Headline Report 2008-09, Table 13, p33, on the Department website at: www.communities.gov.uk/publications/corporate/statistics/ehs200809headlinereport Source: English Housing Survey, 2008 dwelling sample | ||||
Right to Acquire Scheme
Richard Fuller: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer of 29 November 2010, Official Report, column 481W, on the Right to Acquire Scheme, whether he plans to bring forward legislative proposals to make sharia financing possible under the Right to Acquire Scheme. [33078]
Andrew Stunell: The Government have no current plans for legislation to allow sharia finance to be used for Right to Acquire purchases for the reasons set out in my answer of 29 November 2010, Official Report, column 481W.
Home Department
Violent and Sex Offenders Register
John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people were on the violent and sex offenders register on the latest date for which figures are available. [33106]
Lynne Featherstone: There are currently around 57,000 live records on the ViSOR database, which captures information on a range of offender types who are considered to pose a risk of harm to the public, including registered sex offenders (RSOs). The Ministry of Justice publishes annual statistics on multi-agency public protection arrangements (MAPPA) eligible offenders. The 2009-10 annual report, published on 27 October 2010, recorded that there were 34,939 registered sexual offenders in the community as at 31 March 2010.
John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people convicted of a sexual offence and released from custody failed to register on the violent and sex offenders register in the latest period for which figures are available. [33107]
Lynne Featherstone: The data are not collected in the format requested and could be collated only at disproportionate cost.
Sex offenders are required to notify their personal details with the police. This system is often referred to as the sex offenders register and requires offenders to provide their local police station with a record of their name, address, date of birth and national insurance number. Sex offenders have to notify these details to the police annually and whenever these details change.
If an offender breaches his notification requirements he commits a criminal offence and could be subject to a maximum penalty of five years' imprisonment.
Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Game Birds: Animal Welfare
Graeme Morrice: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will include a ban on the use of enriched cages in her Department's Code of Practice for the Welfare of Gamebirds Reared for Sporting Purposes. [33037]
Mr Paice: In the absence of any scientific evidence that enriched cages compromise the welfare of gamebirds there are no current plans to include a ban on the use of enriched cages in DEFRA's Code of Practice for the Welfare of Gamebirds Reared for Sporting Purposes.
Water Voles
Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will bring forward proposals to protect water voles from predation by the mink population. [33091]
Richard Benyon: Both Natural England and the Environment Agency have been actively supporting projects which serve to maintain and enhance the populations of water voles, which are a UK Biodiversity Action Plan priority species; management of mink is a key action in this regard.
As the American mink is now a widely established invasive non-native species, complete eradication is unlikely and targeted management at appropriately considered scales is the only viable approach. Currently mink trapping takes place in some river catchments, supported by combinations of the Environment Agency (the lead partner for water vole conservation in England and Wales), Natural England, the local Wildlife Trusts and other conservation organisations. These aim for local suppression of mink numbers, to assist water vole populations, rather than eradication.
Defence
Addison Lee
Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether (a) his Department and (b) the public bodies for which his Department is responsible contract services from Addison Lee private hire taxi company. [30847]
Peter Luff: The Ministry of Defence (MOD) and its agencies hold no contracts with the Addison Lee private hire taxi company. We do, however, have an account with the company which is used to meet urgent travel requirements in London when no other suitable form of transport is available. Use of this account is under strict line management control, and the total spend during the last financial year of 2009-10 was under £300.
Staff may only use a taxi for official duty when there is a business benefit to the MOD or when it saves money. We are constraining the amount of travel undertaken in the present economic conditions.
Scotland
Fuels: Scotland
Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what recent discussions he has had with the Scottish Government on ensuring continuity of fuel deliveries during severe weather. [32406]
David Mundell:
There have been regular and extensive discussions between Ministers in both the UK Government and the devolved Administration in Scotland about
managing the impact of the severe weather including on the continuity of fuel deliveries. Officials in UK Government Departments, including the Scotland Office, are in regular communication with their counterparts in the Scottish Government.
UK Reform of Consumer and Enforcement Bodies
Ann McKechin: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland whether his Department has formal representation on the working group established by the Scottish Executive in December 2010 on UK reform of consumer and enforcement bodies. [33225]
Michael Moore: The UK reform of consumer and enforcement bodies is a matter for the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and the Scotland Office maintains regular dialogue with officials there. My Department has not been invited to be represented on the Scottish Government working group.
Women and Equalities
Discrimination
Tom Greatrex: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities what assessment the Regulatory Policy Committee made of the impact assessment on the implementation of the dual discrimination provisions of the Equality Act 2010. [32538]
Lynne Featherstone: I refer the hon. Gentleman to the reply given on 20 December 2010, Official Report, column 939W.
Health
Health Visitors: Training
Mr Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to make provision for training of Sure Start health visitors. [32764]
Anne Milton: The Department will be publishing shortly "Health Visiting Implementation plan-A Call to Action", which sets out the Government's commitment to a larger, re-energised, health visiting service. This will deliver a new model of support to families, building on the Healthy Child Programme, and provides further clarification as to how this increase will be achieved including action on training, and what the expectations of strategic health authorities and service providers will be.
The plan supports the "Operating Framework for the NHS in England 2011/12", which identified health visiting provision as a key service priority for the national health service over the next year.
Hospital Beds
John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) intensive care and (b) high dependency beds there were in the NHS in England in the most recent year for which figures are available; and what the average daily cost of each such type of bed was in that year. [33041]
Mr Simon Burns: On the day of the census on 15 July 2010 there were 3,662 critical care beds. Of these beds 1,989 beds were being used for intensive care (level 3) and 1,673 were being used for high dependency care (level 2).
This information is published and available on the Department's website at:
The Department does not collect the average daily cost of intensive care and high dependency beds. However, national health service organisations in England reported an average cost of £1,149 per bed day for providing critical care for adults in 2008-09 reference costs.
The source of this data is the 2008-09 national schedule of reference costs, NHS trusts and primary care trusts combined, which is published and available at:
John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many outpatient appointments requiring a temporary non-overnight use of a hospital bed were cancelled in December 2010 for reasons attributable to recent changes to policy on reporting procedures for mixed-sex wards. [33185]
Mr Simon Burns: This information is not collected centrally. The reporting requirements relating to breaches of national guidance on same-sex accommodation are unlikely to have any impact on out-patient appointments.
Our policy on providing single-sex accommodation (except when it is in the patient's overall best interest) has not changed. Organisations providing national health service funded care are expected to provide single-sex sleeping accommodation, along with single-sex bathroom and toilet accommodation. Patients should not have to pass through opposite-sex areas to reach their own facilities.
Only patients who are admitted to hospital are included in the reporting policy. This includes patients undergoing day surgery and procedures such as endoscopy; however, it does not apply to the majority of out-patient appointments. None the less, high standards of privacy and dignity must be maintained, even when patients are not admitted.
Hospitals: Admissions
Tom Greatrex: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people were admitted to hospital as a result of injuries sustained in fires that were electrical in origin in each of the last five years; and for what injuries such people were treated. [32537]
Mr Simon Burns: The Department does not hold information centrally on the number of people admitted to hospital resulting from injuries sustained by fire that were electrical in origin, or on what injuries they were treated for.
Influenza
John Healey:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what representations he has received on the preparedness of the NHS for influenza from (a) Asthma UK, (b) the
British Medical Association, (c) the Royal College of General Practitioners, (d) the Royal College of Nurses, (e) the Royal College of Midwives, (f) the Royal College of Gynaecologists and Obstetricians, (g) UNISON, (h) Diabetes UK and (i) the British Heart Foundation. [33190]
Anne Milton: The Department has been working closely with many organisations both in the run up to, and during the influenza season.
The Department received a letter from the British Medical Association in December. The Department took this opportunity to ask the organisation to remind its members to continue calling all at risk patients for their vaccines.
Seasonal influenza vaccination was discussed at the 9 December 2010 Social Partnership Forum, of which the Royal College of Nurses, UNISON, Royal College of Midwives and British Medical Association are partners, along with other organisations. The British Medical Association, Royal College of Midwives, Royal College of Gynaecologists and Obstetricians, Royal College of Nurses and UNISON have all agreed to promote seasonal influenza vaccination to help increase vaccine uptake rates.
Kidney Patients: Hospital Wards
Mrs Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make an assessment of the likely effects on kidney dialysis patients of imposing financial penalties on dialysis units which provide mixed sex accommodation; and if he will make a statement. [32742]
Mr Simon Burns: National health service organisations are expected to eliminate mixed sex accommodation, except where it is in the overall best interests of the patient, or reflects their personal choice. The Operating Framework for the NHS 2011-12(1) confirms requirements for reporting and sanctioning breaches of national guidance.
Organisations providing NHS-funded care must agree with their commissioners how they will determine whether a particular episode of mixing is justified. One of limited number of circumstances in which mixing can be justified, relates to patients who actively choose to share with others of the same age or clinical condition, rather than gender.
The Department has issued guidance, including PL/CNO/2010/3(2), to help service providers and commissioners in making decisions, and these resources also support appropriate use of sanctions. One element of this guidance specifically refers to 'patients with long-term conditions, including renal dialysis'. Here, guidance states that it can be acceptable for mixing to occur-the crucial factors being that it reflects the decision of the whole group and does not adversely affect the care of others.
In the context of the guidance referred to above, it will be for local commissioners to decide about the imposition of sanctions on dialysis units. It is not expected that renal dialysis will prompt a significant number of sanctions, though the Department will be able to monitor the situation in the new year, when the first set of data about breaches of the guidance is published.
Policy relating to mixed sex accommodation in Wales is a matter for the Welsh Assembly. The arrangements and sanctions set out above relate to England only.
(1) Published: 15 December 2010.
(2) A copy has been placed in the Library and is available at:
Smoking
Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what evidence he has received on the effects of plain packaging of cigarettes on levels of smoking. [32791]
Anne Milton: A large number of documents, reports and studies are relevant to the role and effect of packaging in the marketing and promotion of tobacco products.
For example, the RAND Europe study "Assessing the Impacts of Revising the Tobacco Products Directive" commissioned by the European Commission Health and Consumer Directorate-General to support their assessment of the impacts of revising the Tobacco Products Directive 2001/37/EC and published in September 2010, includes a section examining the evidence on the plain or generic packaging of tobacco products.
The RAND report has been placed in the Library and can be found at:
Also, the Australian Government have announced their intention to introduce a legislative requirement for the plain packaging of tobacco to commence on 1 January 2012. The evidence supporting their action is summarised in the technical report "Australia: the healthiest country by 2020-Technical report 2 Tobacco Control in Australia".
The Australian technical report has been placed in the Library and can be found at:
Swine Flu: Medical Treatments
John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many extracorporeal membrane oxygenation treatment machines are available in each region. [33039]
Mr Simon Burns: There are currently 25 beds for adult respiratory extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) beds available nationally for patients with potentially reversible severe respiratory failure. There are six beds available for paediatric respiratory ECMO. The number of beds for adult respiratory ECMO has increased from five in early December to 25 beds currently.
Hospitals providing adult respiratory ECMO are Glenfield hospital in Leicester (five), Papworth Hospital NHS Foundation Trust (four), the Royal Brompton and Harefield NHS Foundation Trust (four), University Hospitals of South Manchester NHS Foundation Trust (four), Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (four), Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust (three) Aberdeen Royal Infirmary (two).
There are a further six beds available for paediatric respiratory ECMO at Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Great Ormond Street Hospital and the Royal Hospital for Sick Children (Yorkhill) in Glasgow.
John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average daily cost to the NHS of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation treatment of a patient was in the latest period for which figures are available. [33040]
Mr Simon Burns: Trusts are reimbursed for extracorporeal membrane oxygenation care on a bed day basis at circa £4,000 per bed per day. This takes into account the intensive staffing and equipment costs. The costs of air and road transport are reimbursed separately.
Tuberculosis: Finance
Mr Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the likely effect of his proposals for health premiums on the allocation of funding to tuberculosis prevention measures. [32393]
Anne Milton: The Department is currently consulting on its proposals for the health premium, including which outcomes should be used in "Healthy Lives, Healthy People: consultation on the funding and commissioning routes for public health" published 21 December 2010, and "Healthy Lives, Healthy People: Transparency in Outcomes, Proposals for a Public Health Outcomes Framework" published 20 December 2010. Both consultations close on 31 March 2011. Then, the Government will publish their response.
The health premium received by local authorities will depend on progress they make on elements of the Public Health Outcomes Framework. We will only set out a detailed model when we have established the baseline and potential scale of the premium clearly, and have agreement about the outcomes we will use. However, treatment of tuberculosis (TB) is proposed to be national health service funded and commissioned.
Timely detection and successful completion of treatment are key to preventing the spread of TB. TB treatment completion rate is a proposed outcome in the Public Health Outcomes Framework.
Education
CAFCASS: Pay
John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what the salary is of the (a) chief executive and (b) other senior executives of the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service. [30715]
Tim Loughton: The salary of the chief executive of the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service is currently £160,000 per annum. The salaries of other senior executives of the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service are set out as follows.
| £ | |
|
Director of business transformation and technology (and CIO) | |
Children and Family Court Advisory Support Service: Standards
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Education (1) if he will take steps to ensure that the Children and Family Court Advisory Support Service prepares contingency plans to enable it to respond when changed circumstances affect its business; [32904]
(2) if he will take steps to ensure that the senior management team of the Children and Family Court Advisory Support Service develop and implement an action plan (a) to address (i) existing and (ii) emerging skill gaps and (b) raise levels of performance and staff morale; [32905]
(3) what recent steps he has taken to ensure that the Children and Family Court Advisory Support Service is fit for purpose; [32906]
(4) if he will take steps to ensure that the Children and Family Court Advisory Support Service establishes plans to manage reductions in duty allocation of care cases with clear milestones for each area. [32907]
Tim Loughton: These issues formed part of the recommendations in the Public Accounts Committee's sixth report on "Cafcass's response to increased demand for its services", published on 11 November 2010. The Government will respond to these recommendations in a Treasury minute in the new year.
Children in Care
Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Education when he plans to publish regulations and guidance under section 25 of the Children and Young Persons Act 2008 on care breaks. [21730]
Sarah Teather [holding answer 4 November 2010]: The regulations under section 25 of the Children and Young Persons Act 2008, which relate to the provision of short breaks for carers of disabled children, have now been published. The regulations are affirmative, and are due to be debated by the house this month (January). The guidance which relates to the regulations will be published once the House has agreed that the regulations can come into force.
John Hemming: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many children aged (a) under one, (b) between one and four, (c) between five and nine, (d) between 10 and 16 and (e) over 16 years in care as a result of a court order which did not carry a criminal sanction have left such care (i) overall and (ii) through adoption in 2010. [26868]
Tim Loughton: Information on the number of children who ceased to be looked after, through adoption and overall, who were subject to a court order which did not carry a criminal sanction can be found in the following table, broken down by the age groups requested.
| Number of children subject to a court order who ceased to be looked after during the year ending 31 March 2010( 1,2) -year ending 31 March 2010, coverage: England | ||
| Numbers | ||
| Age on ceasing | Children who ceased through adoption | All children who ceased to be looked after |
| (1) The figures have been rounded to the nearest 100 if they exceed 1,000, and to the nearest 10 otherwise. (2) Figures include only those children subject to a care order, freeing order, placement order, emergency protection order and child assessment order on ceasing to be looked after. (3) Figures not shown in order to protect confidentiality. Source: SSDA 903 | ||
John Hemming: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what proportion of children left care, where care is defined as subject to a care order, police protection order, emergency protection order, or placement for adoption, and were adopted in each year from 1995 to 2010. [28905]
Tim Loughton: The percentage of children, subject to a care order, police protection order or emergency protection order or placed for adoption, who left care through adoption in each year ending 31 March 1995 to 2010 is shown in the following table.
John Hemming: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many local authority adoptions from care there were in England equivalent to (a) BV163 and (b) PAF C23 in each year from 1995 to 2010. [28906]
Tim Loughton: The definitions of PAF C23 and BV163 changed slightly during their use but most recently in 2005-06 were defined as the number of looked after children who were adopted or who ceased to be looked after due to the granting of a special guardianship order during the year ending 31 March, excluding unaccompanied asylum seeking children. Information on the number of looked after children who were adopted or who ceased to be looked after due to the granting of a special guardianship order in each year from 1995 to 2010 can be found in the following table.
| Local authority adoptions from care equivalent to PAF C23( 1,2,3,4,5) years ending 31 March 1995 to 2010-Coverage: England | |
| Numbers | |
| (1) Numbers have been rounded to the nearest 100. (2) These figures represent the numerator for PAF C23 which is defined as the number of children who cease to be looked after as a result of the granting of an adoption order or a special guardianship order, excluding unaccompanied asylum seeking children. (3) Figures exclude children looked after under an agreed series of short term placements. (4) Only the last occasion on which a child ceased to be looked after in the year has been counted. (5) Historical data may differ from older publications. This is mainly due to the implementation of amendments and corrections sent by some local authorities after the publication date of previous materials. (6) Information on unaccompanied asylum seeking children was not collected until 2003. (7) Special guardianship orders came into force on 30 December 2005 and so are not included until 2006. (8) Figures are taken from the SSDA903 return which covered all children looked after. (9) Figures are derived from the SSDA903 one third sample survey. Source: SSDA 903 | |
John Hemming: To ask the Secretary of State for Education (1) what proportion of children under the age of five left care, where care is defined as subject to a care order, police protection order, emergency protection order, or placement for adoption, and returned to their parents in each year from 1995 to 2010; [28909]
(2) how many children aged (a) one to four, (b) five to nine, (c) 10 to 15 and (d) 15 or more years old left care, where care is defined as subject to a care order, police protection order, emergency protection order, or placement for adoption, and returned to their parents in (i) 1997, (ii) 2010 and (iii) 1995. [28910]
Tim Loughton: The proportion of children under the age of five who were subject to a care order, police protection order or emergency protection order or placed for adoption, who returned to their parents, in England in years ending 31 March 2001 to 2010 is shown in table 1 as follows.
The number of children who were subject to a care order, police protection order or emergency protection order or placed for adoption, who returned to their parents, in England during the year ending 31 March 2010 by age is shown in table 2 as follows.
Information is not available for years 1995 to 2000, as "returned to parents" was not collected as a reason for ceasing to be looked after, until 2001.
| Table 1: Children aged under 5 years who were subject to a care order, police protection order, emergency protection order, or placement for adoption who ceased to be looked after and returned to their parents( 1,2,3,4) Years ending 31 March 2001 to 2010-Coverage: England | |
| Percentage of children aged under 5 years who returned to their parents | |
| (1) Percentages have been rounded to the nearest whole number. (2) Only the last occasion on which a child ceased to be looked after in the year has been counted. (3) Figures exclude children looked after under an agreed series of short term placements. (4) Historical data may differ from older publications. This is mainly due to the implementation of amendments and corrections sent by some local authorities after the publication date of previous materials. (5) Figures are derived from the SSDA903 one third sample survey. (6) Figures are taken from the SSDA903 return which covered all children looked after. Source: SSDA 903. | |
Departmental Lobbying
Robert Halfon: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how much his Department's agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent from the public purse on influencing public policy through (a) employing external (i) public affairs companies, (ii) strategic consultancies and (iii) corporate communications firms, (b) external marketing and (c) other activities in each year since its inception. [23767]
Tim Loughton: The Department does not hold a central record of spending on activities to influence public policy by its agencies and non-departmental public bodies and cannot obtain the information without incurring disproportionate cost.
Robert Halfon: To ask the Secretary of State for Education which of his Department's non-departmental public bodies have undertaken activities to influence public policy for which they engaged (a) public affairs and (b) public relations consultants in each year since its inception; and at what monetary cost in each such year. [23788]
Tim Loughton: The Department does not hold a central record of spending on activities to influence public policy by its agencies and non-departmental public bodies and cannot obtain the information without incurring disproportionate cost.
Departmental Public Expenditure
Hywel Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what recent estimate he has made of the effect of the increase in the standard rate of value added tax on his Department's annual expenditure. [31189]
Tim Loughton: In line with other Government Departments, the Department for Education is able to recover substantial amounts of VAT, reclaimed under section 41(3) of the VAT Act 1994 (commonly known as the contracting-out directive). An additional 2.5% on the average amount reclaimed in the last six months could add approximately £16,500 monthly, if reclaim patterns remain the same.
In addition, there are certain other purchases of goods and services sitting outside the contracting-out directive. For these goods and services neither the Department, nor our arm's length bodies, can recover VAT, and will therefore need to carry the additional 2.5% cost of the VAT increase. The exact amount of
VAT paid on each contract held by the Department and our ALBs is not monitored centrally and could be determined only at disproportionate cost. In line with Government priorities, we would expect these increased costs to be covered by efficiency savings.
As announced on 22 November 2010, legislation will be introduced to allow academies to recover VAT on a similar basis to local authority maintained schools. More details of this proposed scheme are available via the consultation pages of the Treasury website.
Educational Institutions: Buildings
Damian Hinds: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what recent estimate his Department has made of the rate of utilisation of (a) school and (b) sixth form and further education college buildings and facilities by local communities outside normal school hours in the last 12 months. [25823]
Sarah Teather: The Department does not collect data on the use of school and sixth form buildings by local communities beyond the school day. However, the "Extended Services Evaluation: End of Year One Report" (published by the Department in July 2010) suggested that two thirds of the schools were opening at least one of their facilities for community access, most commonly halls, rooms or spaces, sports facilities, and playgrounds and play areas. The report can be viewed at
The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills is responsible for further education colleges.
Family Rights Group: Finance
Paul Maynard: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what plans his Department has for the funding of the Family Rights Group Advice Service after March 2011. [24402]
Sarah Teather: The Family Rights Group has a long standing financial relationship with the Department. A new procurement process was opened on 6 December to fund telephone helplines and online services from 1 April 2011. The Family Rights Group are able to bid for future funding for their advice service through this process. In advance of this process being completed, I cannot comment on any future funding for the advice service provided by the Family Rights Group after 31 March 2011.
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