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Written Answers to Questions
Friday 13 May 2011
House of Commons Commission
Audio Recordings
Mr Amess: To ask the hon. Member for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross, representing the House of Commons Commission, pursuant to the answer of 4 April 2011, Official Report, column 566W, on motions: audio recordings, whether the House of Commons Commission plans to place on the parliamentary website the remainder of the sound recording of the debate held on a Motion of no confidence in the Government on 28 March 1979; and if he will make a statement. [55297]
John Thurso: The selected clips from the 1979 audio recording of the debate held on a Motion of no confidence in the Government on 28 March 1979 have been published on the Living Heritage page on the Parliament website. Web access to complete archive films would require a major development of the Parliament Live TV website. Currently there are no plans to do this.
Home Department
Departmental Mobile Phones
Mr Blunkett: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what advice has been given to Ministers on mobile telephone security in the last three months. [55271]
Mr Maude: I have been asked to reply.
On appointment, Ministers are given briefing on a wide range of security issues and are subsequently given any updates as a matter of course.
Seasonal Agricultural Workers' Scheme
Gordon Banks: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether she has considered the merits of extending the Seasonal Agricultural Workers Scheme beyond the end of 2011. [55574]
Damian Green: The Seasonal Agricultural Workers Scheme is only open to nationals of Bulgaria and Romania and forms part of the restrictions on labour market access currently applied to nationals of those countries. Those restrictions may be extended to the end of 2013 if there is a labour market case for doing so and the Government will be making a decision later this year.
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Health
NHS: Ambulances
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many NHS ambulances were damaged while in service in the last five years. [55217]
Mr Simon Burns: The Department does not collect centrally information on the numbers of NHS ambulances damaged while in service.
Sickle Cell Anaemia
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent representations he has received on sickle cell anaemia and the NHS. [55212]
Anne Milton: The Department receives representations periodically including invitations to Ministers to attend events of the All Party Parliamentary Group on sickle cell and thalassaemia. I attended the All Party Parliamentary Group on sickle cell and thalassaemia's parliamentary reception on 16 November 2010.
Air Ambulance Services
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many NHS air ambulances are in service; and whether he has plans to increase this number. [55227]
Mr Simon Burns: The national health service does not operate air ambulances—they are run and funded by independent charities. However, in order to strike an appropriate balance between the high cost to operate air ambulances and the role they can play in assisting the NHS in delivering emergency care, the NHS has, since 1 April 2002, normally met the cost of clinical staff on air ambulances. It remains for NHS trusts to decide whether they provide any additional funding to air ambulance charities.
Departmental Visits
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many official trips he has made abroad in the last 12 months; and what expenditure his Department has incurred on such visits. [55223]
Mr Simon Burns: Details of all ministerial overseas travel, including the cost, are published quarterly in arrears on the Department's website at the following address:
www.dh.gov.uk/en/Aboutus/Ministersand DepartmentLeaders/Departmentdirectors/DH_110759
Hospitals: Libraries
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of expenditure on hospital libraries in the last five years. [55226]
Mr Simon Burns: The information requested is not held centrally.
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NHS Bursary Scheme
Derek Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate has been made of the cost of the NHS bursary scheme in each of the financial years from 2011-12 to 2015-16; and if he will make a statement. [55274]
Anne Milton: The National Health Service bursary scheme budget is part of the multi-professional education and training budget and paying students is the first call on this budget. In 2011-12, the NHS bursary scheme is expected to cost £520 million. Future costs will be dictated by student numbers, the level of attrition and the format of the NHS bursary scheme, which is currently under review.
Derek Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether the NHS bursary scheme will continue to cover tuition fees following the implementation of the Higher Education (Higher Amounts) (England) Regulations 2010; and if he will make a statement. [55275]
Anne Milton: The Higher Education (Higher Amounts) (England) Regulations 2010 will have no direct impact on national health service funded students as universities are prohibited from charging tuition fees under the terms of the standard contract. Tuition fees for medical and dental students in the later years of training are met from the NHS bursary scheme. We are assessing the impact of the regulations on these students and considering whether any changes are necessary.
Work and Pensions
State Retirement Pensions: Immigrants
Lindsay Roy: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether he has made an estimate of the number of immigrants that would be affected by the proposed introduction of a seven-year minimum qualifying rule for future pensioners as part of his plans for state pension reform. [55428]
Steve Webb: The Government's consultation paper ‘A state pension for the 21st century’ sets out two broad options for reform to simplify the state pension and better support saving.
The Government are currently seeking views on both options for reform as part of the consultation process and, as policy development is still under way, it is not possible to provide further detail at this stage. The Government will provide further detail and a full assessment of the impacts of any changes when they publish more detailed proposals for reform.
Deputy Prime Minister
Third Sector
Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what steps his Office has taken to support the big society initiative. [42651]
The Deputy Prime Minister: My office are encouraged to participate in volunteering activities in accordance with the Cabinet Office's departmental policy on volunteering, for which the Minister for the Cabinet Office is responsible.
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Chris Ruane: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister whether (a) he and (b) Ministers in his Office are participating in volunteering activities as part of his Office's involvement in the big society initiative. [42669]
The Deputy Prime Minister: I support any initiative to encourage volunteering and I will be taking an active role in the Speakers for Schools initiative along with my fellow Cabinet colleagues.
Justice
Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme
Gregg McClymont: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice when he expects the review of the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme and victims' services to be completed. [55501]
Mr Blunt: The Government intend to make an announcement before the summer recess.
Cumulative Jackson Proposals
Mr Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice with reference to the impact assessment of the Cumulative Jackson Proposals, whether he has taken steps to verify independently the results table in Annex A; and if he will make a statement. [55265]
Mr Djanogly: In undertaking the calculations in Annex A, Ministry of Justice officials engaged with Professor Paul Fenn of Nottingham University Business School as to the dataset used and the methodology applied. Professor Fenn acted as an assessor to Lord Justice Jackson.
Departmental Billing
Gordon Banks: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many invoices his Department received in respect of goods or services supplied by tier 1 suppliers between 1 May 2010 and 1 April 2011; and how many of those invoices were not paid within the period of time specified in the Government's Fair Payment guidance. [55862]
Mr Blunt: I can confirm that NOMS Shared Services paid 445,933 invoices between 1 May 2010 and 31 March 2011 of these 101,577 invoices were not paid within the period of time specified in the Government's Fair Payment guidance.
Earned Privilege Schemes
Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) how many (a) foreign national prisoners and (b) immigration detainees were involved in incentive and earned privilege schemes in each of the last five years; and what the total monetary value of additional allowances and privileges awarded was in each such case in each year; [55536]
(2) what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of Prison Service Instruction 11/2011 on incentives and earned privilege. [55537]
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Mr Blunt: The incentives and earned privileges scheme applies to all prisoners, including all foreign national prisoners and immigration detainees. The purpose of the scheme is to allow prisoners to earn additional privileges through responsible behaviour, participation in hard work and other constructive activity. The key earnable privileges do not have a direct monetary value; for example, costs of in-cell television and wearing own clothes are borne by the prisoner. Other key earnable privileges, such as additional prison visits, are already provided by NOMS and form an integral part of the prison regime. Governors may offer additional earnable privileges as part of local schemes. Details of these are not held centrally and could be obtained only by contacting every prison at disproportionate cost.
Prison Service Instruction 11/2011 did not introduce any substantive changes to the previous Incentives and Earned Privileges policy. The scheme is an integral part of prisoner management and the cost of operating it cannot be separately identified.
Judicial Review: Costs
Mr Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice whether he plans to revise the Boxall rules on costs in judicial review cases. [55445]
Mr Djanogly: The Government have not taken a view on Lord Justice Jackson's recommendation in his Review of Civil Litigation Costs to revise the law on the costs of judicial review claims which derives from the case of R (on the application of Boxall) v. Waltham Forest LBC (2001) 4 CCLR 258.
Legal Aid
Mr Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many claims were brought in the Administrative Court under a conditional fee agreement using legal aid and in any other funding category in each of the last three years. [55446]
Mr Djanogly: The Ministry of Justice does not hold figures centrally which specifically relate to the total numbers of claims brought in the Administrative Court under a Conditional Fee agreement, using legal aid or another type of funding. While claims brought in the Administrative Court are recorded on IT systems, information on how they are funded is not recorded for each case.
Legal Aid: Reform
Mr Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what progress he has made in responding to his Department's consultation on the reform of legal aid; and when he plans to issue the response. [55442]
Mr Djanogly: We are making good progress in preparing the Government's response to the consultation. I anticipate being able to publish the response soon after Whitsun recess.
Mr Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the name is of each respondent to his Department's consultation on the reform of legal aid. [55443]
Mr Djanogly: It is likely that a list of respondents will be published alongside the response to consultation.
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Prisoners
Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice whether he has received reports of prisoners who have been identified as presenting a risk to children who have (a) requested and (b) been granted permission to make contact or correspond with a child in each of the last five years. [55544]
Mr Blunt: The consideration of any requests by prisoners to make contact or correspond with children takes place at the establishment where the prisoner is held. Information about such requests is not collated centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
The level of risk posed by a prisoner to children will help the prison governor or his representative to determine whether to grant permission for contact, and what level of restrictions, if any, to apply. However, the overriding principle in decisions of this kind is what is in the best interests of the child.
Prisoners’ Release
John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many offenders have taken part in the payment by results programme at HMP Peterborough to date; how long each such offender was in custody in HMP Peterborough; what the average age has been of offenders participating in the payment by results programme at HMP Peterborough; what the average length of sentence has been of those taking part; and if he will make a statement. [55280]
Mr Blunt: The Ministry of Justice has commissioned Social Finance Ltd to run the Social Impact Bond at Peterborough prison for a maximum period of six years. The project will work with three 1,000-offender cohorts, and the final cohort will close when it numbers 1,000 offenders, or in August 2016 if the capacity is not reached. Although an interim evaluation of the rehabilitation pilots will take place before February 2013, the assessment of reconviction rates for this cohort will begin 18 months after capacity is reached, and by February 2018 at the latest. The Ministry of Justice will measure the outcome of the programme in relation to the entire cohort of offenders eligible, and does not collect data on participation.
Prisons: Crimes of violence
John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) how many incidents of attacks on (a) prison staff and (b) prisoners were recorded in prisons where the victim (i) was and (ii) was not hospitalised in 2010; and how many incidents of attacks on (A) prison staff and (B) prisoners were recorded in prisons where (1) a weapon and (2) no weapon was used in 2010; [55281]
(2) how many assaults by a prisoner on (a) a member of staff and (b) another prisoner were recorded in 2010. [55282]
Mr Blunt: Statistics for 2010 have not yet been published. Safety in Custody statistics for 2000-09 can be found on the Ministry of Justice website at the following link:
http://www.justice.gov.uk/publications/statisticsanddata/prisonsandprobation/safetyincustody.htm
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The published statistics show assaults on staff, including prison officers, by establishment. The statistics do not specifically identify prisoner on officer assaults as a separate group.
The Safety in Custody statistics for 2010 are due to be published on the Ministry of Justice website at the end of July.
Prisons: Security
Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many (a) covert tests, (b) unannounced tests and (c) planned tests with the objective of testing security processes, procedures and equipment in prisons have taken place in each prison in each of the last five years; and how many such tests were classed as (i) successful, (ii) partially successful and (iii) not successful. [55553]
Mr Blunt: The testing of security procedures is a routine task in most prisons with covert, unannounced and planned tests of both physical and procedural security taking place on a daily basis. Nearly all of the information pertaining to the results is only used for local analysis and not collated centrally. The exception is covert testing data for the eight prisons in the High Security Estate; these data have been collated centrally since 2007 and are included in tabular format as follows. To comprehensively list all other outcomes from routine security tests would require significant disproportionate cost as it would involve the collation of many thousands of separate individual records.
| 2007-08 | ||||
| Prison | Successful | P/successful | Unsuccessful | Total tests |
| 2008-09 | ||||
| Prison | Successful | P/successful | Unsuccessful | Total tests |
| 2009-10 | ||||
| Prison | Successful | P/s uccessful | Unsuccessful | Total tests |
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| 2010-11 | ||||
| Prison | Successful | P/s uccessful | Unsuccessful | Total tests |
Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many tests designed to test security processes, procedures and equipment in prisons identified areas of concern in each of the last five years. [55556]
Mr Blunt: The testing of security procedures is a routine task in most prisons with covert, unannounced and planned tests of both physical and procedural security taking place on a daily basis. Nearly all of the information pertaining to the results is used for local analysis only and not collated centrally. The exception is covert testing data for the eight prisons in the High Security Estate; these data have been collated centrally since 2007 and are included in tabular format as follows. It is important to note that the failure of a test does not necessarily mean that it has identified areas for concern; this is a value judgment that cannot be readily extrapolated from the data held. To comprehensively identify all other failures of routine security tests would require significant disproportionate cost as it would involve the collation of many thousands of separate individual records.
|
|
Tests completed | Unsuccessful tests |
Prisons: Suicide
Karl Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many individuals attempted to commit suicide in the prison estate in (a) 2006, (b) 2007, (c) 2008, (d) 2009 and (e) 2010. [55488]
Mr Blunt: Self harm is a complex behaviour and determining intent is often very difficult. The National Offender Management Service, (NOMS), uses a broad definition that includes attempts to commit suicide. Self-harm in prison custody is defined as:
“any act where a prisoner deliberately harms themselves irrespective of the method, intent or severity of any injury.”
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Self harm statistics for 2006-09 are included in the Safety in Custody statistics on the Ministry of Justice website at the following link:
http://www.justice.gov.uk/publications/statisticsanddata/prisonsandprobation/safetyincustody.htm
Statistics for 2010 are not yet available. The Safety in Custody statistics for 2010 are due to be published on the Ministry of Justice website at the end of July.
Young Offenders: Alternatives to Prison
Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice (1) what recent reports he has received on the effectiveness of the intensive alternative to custody pilot schemes for young adult offenders; [55051]
(2) how many young adult offenders were placed on intensive alternative to custody programmes in each of the pilot areas; and how many completed successfully their orders; [55052]
(3) for what reasons he decided not to extend the intensive alternative to custody pilot scheme for young adult offenders; and what plans he has for the future of the existing pilot areas; [55053]
(4) pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Cardiff North of 11 October 2010, Official Report, column 154W, whether he plans to commission an evaluation of the effects of the Intensive Alternative to Custody pilot schemes on re-offending among young adults who participated. [55067]
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Mr Blunt: A summary report of research on the Intensive Alternatives to Custody pilot schemes is currently being prepared. It is based on several process evaluations of the seven pilot sites, consideration of the results on the feasibility of conducting an evaluation of the impact of IAC on re-offending, and an economic break-even analysis. This report is due to be published in the summer. Further process evaluations of the IAC pilot sites are currently being concluded and reports will be published in due course.
They cover all adult offenders, and do not currently disaggregate young adults from other adults.
The following table is a breakdown of young adult offenders undertaking an Intensive Alternative to Custody by pilot area.
| Age group | ||
|
|
18-20 | 21-24 |
NOMS does not centrally keep statistical information on successful completion rates by age. The overall completion rate per pilot area for all IAC offenders is as follows:
| Transfers | Other | Completion | |||||
| Area | Total starts | Revoked | Out | In | Medical / deceased | Normal/early completion | Current case load |
Of the 1,851 of offenders sentenced to IAC by 1 March 2011, 539 had successfully completed with 672 still completing their orders.
There was never an intention to extend funding centrally beyond the end of the pilots. As the pilots have come to a close, each of the pilot areas has investigated ways either to mainstream provision or to expand delivery. Some areas have modified the IAC by combining the management of offenders with an Integrated Offender Management approach. This can reduce duplication of effort and maximise benefits realised through the contributions of partner agencies, thereby improving the efficiency of service delivery.
MoJ are exploring the possibility of conducting an evaluation of the IAC pilots which will compare reoffending rates for all IAC offenders with reoffending rates for similar offenders receiving custodial sentences of less than 12 months.
Young Offenders: Foster Care
Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what plans his Department has for the future of the intensive fostering programme for juvenile offenders. [55054]
Mr Blunt: There are no current plans for the YJB to expand the existing four intensive fostering projects for sentenced young people. However, the Department of Education published on the 17 March a prospectus that sets out the details of a package of financial and other support to be made available to support evidence-based interventions for looked after children and children on the edge of care or custody. The interventions included in this package of support are Multi Systemic Therapy (MST), for children on the edge of care or custody, Multi-dimensional Treatment Foster Care (MTFC) and KEEP (parenting skills for foster carers) and Functional Family Therapy (FFT). They have been successful in helping some very vulnerable children and families to start to recover and to turn their lives around.
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Defence
Armed Forces: Health Services
Charlotte Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what provision exists for training placements for nurses in military hospitals. [55168]
Mr Robathan: Military hospitals no longer exist in the United Kingdom. However, to meet the clinical training need of medical service personnel, including nurses, Ministry of Defence Hospital Units (MDHUs) have been established within five NHS Trust hospitals.
Over the past four years military nursing staffs have accessed clinical placements in 31 different NHS hospitals across England and Wales, as well as in the MDHUs, the Royal Centre for Defence Medicine based at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Birmingham and the Defence Medical Rehabilitation Centre at Headley Court, where Defence Medical Services personnel work clinically.
Military Aircraft
Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when the Nimrod R1 will be retired; when the RC-135W Air Seeker will come into service; and which assets will fill the SIGINT and ELINT capability in the interim period. [55521]
Peter Luff: I refer the hon. Member to the answer the Secretary of State for Defence, my right hon. Friend the Member for North Somerset (Dr Fox), gave on 30 March 2011, Official Report, column 392W.
Air Seeker is planned to enter service in 2014. Until then UK aircrew will be deployed on USAF Rivet Joint aircraft to provide electronic intelligence (ELINT) and signals intelligence (SIGINT) support to coalition operations. A number of other intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition and reconnaissance capabilities will also be available to our armed forces during this time including: Sentry, Sentinel, Tornado GR 4 when fitted with a RAPTOR or Litening III pod, Typhoon when fitted with a Litening III pod, Sea King Mk7, Reaper Remotely Piloted Air System and Hermes 450 UAS.
Nuclear Submarines
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what proposals have been made by his Department to its French counterparts on the future joint operation of ship submersible ballistic nuclear fleets. [55424]
Cabinet Office
Deaths: Liver Diseases
Mr Amess: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many deaths from (a) liver cancer and (b) other liver disease there have been in (i) England and (ii) each parliamentary constituency in each of the last five years. [55252]
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Mr Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your recent question asking how many deaths from (a) liver cancer and (b) other liver disease there have been in (i) England and (ii) each parliamentary constituency in each of the last five years. [55252]
The tables provide the number of deaths where the underlying cause was (a) liver cancer (Table 1) and (b) liver disease (Table 2) in England and each parliamentary constituency in England for the years 2005 to 2009 (the latest year available).
A copy of the tables has been placed in the House of Commons Library.
The number of deaths registered in England and Wales each year by sex, age and cause are published annually on the National Statistics website at:
http://www.statistics.gov.uk/statbase/Product.asp?vlnk=15096
Departmental Pensions
Steve Baker: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what proportion of his Department's budget he expects to be spent on staff pensions in each of the next five years. [54566]
Mr Maude: Pension benefits for Cabinet Office staff are provided through arrangements under the Principal Civil Service Pension Scheme. Therefore the budget for the Cabinet Office does not include expenditure for paying pensions.
Government Departments: ICT
Jon Trickett: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of the initiative to reduce back office IT costs across government. [43219]
Mr Maude: The Government ICT Strategy was published on 30 March 2011 and can be found at:
http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/resource-library/uk-government-ict-strategy-resources
The strategy sets out the coalition Government's plans to reduce back office ICT costs across government and deliver better public services for less cost. All initiatives will be funded from within existing spending plans. By September the Government will publish a strategic implementation plan which will set out further details of the costs and benefits.
New Businesses
Mr Timpson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many new businesses have been started in (a) Crewe and Nantwich constituency, (b) Cheshire East unitary authority, (c) the North West and (d) the UK in each year since 1987. [55507]
Mr Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated May 2011:
As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking how many new businesses have been started in (a) Crewe and
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Nantwich constituency, (b) Cheshire East unitary authority, (c) the North West and (d) the UK in each year since 1987. [55507]
Annual statistics on the number of enterprise births are available from 2002 onwards in the ONS release on Business Demography at:
www.statistics.gov.uk
The table below contains the latest statistics available, which give the number of enterprise births for the (a) Crewe and Nantwich constituency, (b) Cheshire East unitary authority, (c) the North West and (d) the UK in each year since 2002. Information relating to 2010 will be available following release of the latest Business Demography publication in November 2011.
| Count of enterprise births from 2002-09 for Crewe and Nantwich constituency, Cheshire East unitary authority, North West and the UK | ||||
|
|
Crewe and Nantwich constituency | East Cheshire UA | North West | United Kingdom |
Public Sector: Procurement
Neil Carmichael: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what assessment he has made of progress in enabling small and medium-sized enterprises to tender for Government procurement contracts; and if he will make a statement. [53937]
Sajid Javid: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what recent assessment has been made of progress in enabling small and medium-sized enterprises to tender for Government procurement contracts. [54279]
Mr Maude: On 11 February, the Prime Minister and I announced a series of measures to make it easier for SMEs to compete for Government contracts through:
Increasing visibility of opportunities—by the week commencing 2 May 2011, we had published 1,062 procurement opportunities on Contracts Finder, with registrations from 1,523 supplier organisations.
Simplifying prequalification—We are seeking to eliminate prequalification questionnaires below a £100,000 threshold and promoting use of the SME-friendly Open Procedure above £100,000, which is being tested on 11 projects. We will report on progress.
Streamlining the procurement process—We are applying a ‘lean’ approach to strip out unnecessary overhead from Government procurement processes.
Feedback—Introducing a new Mystery Shopper service. Three out of four completed cases concluded by the Mystery Shopper service have resulted in changes to simplify the procurement process. The first SME Panel meeting—allowing SMEs the opportunity to critically evaluate progress on the programme is scheduled for the end of June and will be chaired by the MCO.
We will be publishing, in May or June, Central Government Departments’ specific action plans detailing how they will increase the amount of their business going to SMEs. We will also publish statistics showing progress towards the Government’s aspiration that 25% of its procurement expenditure should go to SMEs. Baseline data for 2009-10 are currently being collected and will be published once they are available.
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Statistics
Nicholas Soames: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what recent assessment he has made of the quality of public statistics; and if he will make a statement. [55500]
Mr Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
Letter from Sir Michael Scholar KCB, dated 12 May 2011:
As Chair of the UK Statistics Authority, I am replying to your question asking what recent assessments have been made of the quality of public statistics [55500].
The UK Statistics Authority was established on 1 April 2008 by the coming into force of the Statistics and Registration Service Act 2007. The Statistics Authority has a statutory objective of promoting and safeguarding the production and publication of official statistics that serve the public good.
The Act requires the Authority to prepare and adopt a Code of Practice for Official Statistics, to use the Code of Practice to assess and determine whether the Code has been complied with in relation to any official statistics, and to designate those official statistics which have been assessed by the Authority as compliant with the Code as National Statistics.
The Authority also monitors the production and publication of official statistics and makes reports about any concerns it might have about quality, good practice or comprehensiveness of any official statistics.
The Authority publishes Assessment Reports following each of its statutory assessments, setting out requirements and suggestions to the relevant producer departments. Assessment Reports also indicate the Authority's decision in respect of designation as National Statistics and any conditions that should be met for designation to be confirmed. Assessment Reports and details of the Authority's Assessment forward work programme are published on the Statistics Authority's website at
http://www.statisticsauthority.gov.uk/assessment/assessment/index.html
The Authority has published 114 Assessment Reports covering 550 statistical outputs since June 2009. A paper setting out the Authority's findings from the first 100 Assessment Reports was published in April 2011 and is available at
http://www.statisticsauthority.gov.uk/assessment/monitoring/monitoring-briefs/monitoring-brief-2-2011---findings-from-the-first-100-assessment-reports.pdf
The Authority also publishes Monitoring Reports, shorter Monitoring notes, and items of correspondence with the Statistics Authority on specific issues that are of concern to the Authority. These are also published on the Authority's website at
http://www.statisticsauthority.gov.uk/assessment/monitoring/index.html
and
http://www.statisticsauthority.gov.uk/reports---correspondence/correspondence/index.html
Education
Brighton and Hove: Funding
Mike Weatherley: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many ring-fenced grants provided by his Department were available for Brighton and Hove city council to claim in 2011-12; how much is available in such grants; how many such grants have been made; and how much is to be awarded in such grants. [51847]
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Mr Gibb: The funding streams to local authorities were rationalised for 2011-12 and there are two ring-fenced revenue grants available to Brighton and Hove council in 2011-12. These are the dedicated schools grant and the pupil premium grant.
Funding for both grants is allocated on the basis of pupil numbers and total allocations for each grant will be confirmed in June 2011 once pupil number data from the January 2011 Census have been validated and agreed. For Brighton and Hove the grants will be allocated on the following basis:
|
|
Amount per pupil (£) |
Education: Finance
Mr Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Education whether he plans to provide additional assistance to schools for the administration of 16 to 19 bursaries. [55037]
Mr Gibb: Schools, colleges and training providers are able currently to use up to 5% of their allocation of discretionary funds to meet the costs of administering the scheme; this will continue following the introduction of the 16 to 19 bursary fund.
Mr Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what plans his Department has to communicate to students details of the eligibility criteria for the proposed 16 to 19 bursary system; and what funds he has allocated for this purpose. [55041]
Mr Gibb: Information on the 16 to 19 Bursary Fund is currently available on the Department for Education website at:
http://www.education.gov.uk/16to19/studentsupport
and will be updated after the end of the current consultation. We will also consider what further communication may be necessary. In doing so we will work with representative bodies of schools, colleges, training providers and others, to ensure appropriate communication of the new arrangements at a local level. We do not expect this activity to involve communications paid for by Government, in order that the maximum possible resource can be directed towards providing financial support for students.
Mr Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Education on what dates students requesting 16 to 19 bursary funding in financial year 2011-12 will receive their first payment. [55042]
Mr Gibb: Exact dates of payments will depend on the student's circumstances and the arrangements put in place by schools, colleges and training providers for administering the fund locally.
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Mr Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what guidance his Department plans to give schools and colleges on the final date on which applications for 16 to 19 bursaries may be submitted for funds to be disbursed in financial year 2011-12. [55043]
Mr Gibb: Decisions regarding the date by which young people should apply for support from the 16 to 19 Bursary Fund to receive payment in either the 2011-12 financial or academic year will be made locally. We will consider, following the ending of the consultation on the new arrangements, whether guidance is necessary on this matter.
Mr Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what proportion of (a) school sixth forms and (b) further education colleges he expects to offer 16 to 19 bursaries in academic year 2011-12. [55044]
Mr Gibb: The proportion of school sixth forms and further education colleges that will receive an allocation of funding for the 16 to 19 Bursary Fund will depend on the methodology for allocating funding, on which we are currently consulting. Decisions regarding the awarding of bursaries to students will be made locally by schools, colleges and training providers.
Mr Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what steps he is taking to prevent any discrimination in the administration of the proposed 16 to 19 bursary scheme. [55045]
Mr Gibb: As we concluded in our equality impact assessment, we do not expect there to be any discrimination against young people on the basis of the protected characteristics which are set out in equalities legislation.
With the exception of the guaranteed funding available to those young people from the most vulnerable groups, decisions about allocating the bursary funding will be for schools, colleges and training organisations to make. We do not intend to restrict this discretion. Schools, colleges and training providers are subject to equalities legislation, which means that they must not discriminate against their students on the basis of their protected characteristics, and they are also subject to the public sector equality duty in section 149(1) of the Equality Act 2010.
We will monitor the impact of the introduction of the new fund, including with reference to levels of support by disability, ethnicity, gender and the other characteristics. We will also make sure that guidance to schools, colleges and training organisations is clear that they should consider their duty to promote equalities in making arrangements for the distribution of the fund.
Mr Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what plans his Department has to publicise and raise awareness of the 16 to 19 bursary scheme; and how much funding he has allocated for that purpose. [55048]
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Mr Gibb: Information on the 16 to 19 Bursary Fund is currently available on the Department for Education website at:
http://www.education.gov.uk/16to19/studentsupport
and will be updated after the end of the current consultation. We will also consider what further communication may be necessary. In doing so we will work with representative bodies of schools, colleges, training providers and others, to ensure appropriate communication of the new arrangements at a local level. We do not expect this activity to involve communications paid for by Government, in order that the maximum possible resource can be directed towards providing financial support for students.
Free Schools
Lisa Nandy: To ask the Secretary of State for Education pursuant to the answer of 14 March 2011, Official Report, columns 49-50W, on free schools, what criteria his Department used in making decisions to consider further or reject proposals for free schools for 16 to 19 year olds; whether (a) local further education and sixth form colleges and (b) local authorities will be informed about those proposals his Department is considering further; and what mechanism he has put in place to enable the public to (i) receive details of and (ii) comment on the proposals. [53238]
Mr Gibb: The proposals for 16 to 19 free schools referred to in my answer of 14 March 2011, Official Report, columns 49-50W, were assessed against a set of core criteria, including the strengths of the proposals' aims and objectives, evidence of demand and suitability of premises and the proposers' capacity and capability. The Education Bill currently before Parliament contains provisions to make the necessary changes to the legislative framework to enable 16 to 19 free schools to be established. Subject to Royal Assent of the Education Bill, the first opportunity for such free schools to open will be September 2012. Applicants will be judged against the minimum and comparative criteria laid out in the recently published guidance document for free schools opening in 2012, details of which can be found at:
www.education.gov.uk/freeschools
Under section 9 of the Academies Act 2010, the Secretary of State has a duty to take account of the impact that establishing a new school might have on existing maintained schools, academies and institutions within the further education sector in the area where the free school is to be situated. This would include further education and sixth form colleges. The views of local authorities will also be taken into consideration when exercising this duty. The duty, in section 10 of the Academies Act 2010, is on the Academy Trust to consult with whom they deem appropriate on whether to enter into academy arrangements with the Secretary of State in relation to an additional school.
GCSE
Charlotte Leslie:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education what number and proportion of children (a) receiving and (b) not receiving free school meals
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were entered for GCSEs in English, mathematics, science, history or geography and an ancient or modern language in the latest period for which figures are available. [53965]
Mr Gibb: The information requested is given in the following table.
Charlotte Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what number and proportion of children (a) receiving and (b) not receiving free school meals attained grade C or above at GCSE in English, mathematics, science, history or geography and an ancient or modern language in each local authority area in the latest period for which figures are available. [53966]
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Mr Gibb: The information requested is given in the following table:
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| Achievements at GCSE for pupils at the end of key stage 4 by free school meal eligibility and local authority 2009/10 (final). Coverage: England, maintained schools (including academies and CTCs) | ||||
| Achieving grade A*-C in English, mathematics, science (1) , history or geography and an ancient or modern language (2) at GCSE (3) | ||||
| Pupils known to be eligible for free school meals (4) (FSM) | Pupils not eligible for free schoolmeals (4) (non-FSM) | |||
|
|
Number of FSM pupils achieving | Percentage of FSM pupils achieving | Number of FSM pupils achieving | Percentage of FSM pupils achieving |
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| n/a = not applicable. There are no pupils at the end of key stage 4 in this FSM category (1 )Figures not shown in order to protect pupil confidentiality Notes: 1. Pupils who achieved at least one A*-C grade in core science, additional science, double award science, single award science, physics, chemistry or biological science GCSEs. 2. Pupils who achieved at least one A*-C grade in French, German, Spanish, Welsh, Irish, Danish, Dutch, Italian, Portuguese, Arabic, Bengali, Chinese, Gujarati, Hindi, Japanese, Panjabi, Polish, Russian, Turkish, Urdu, Persian, Czech, Swedish, Modern Greek, Modern Hebrew, Classical Greek, Latin and other languages. 3. iGCSEs, accredited at time of publication, have been counted as English and mathematics GCSEs. 4. Does not include pupils for whom free school meal eligibility could not be determined. Source: National Pupil Database | ||||